WR's 2014 Spring Garden

[Rahab222]

I spent all afternoon, until dark today, working in the garden. I treated my cucumber plants with copper fungicide and planted two varieties of the disease resistant ones. I also got my cilantro in and replaced a couple of tomato plants. I'm still battling the spider mites and treated my five bush tomato plants in the 4' x 4' with liquid seaweed again, today. The tomatoes in the new bed look pretty good, but that's where I had to replace two tomato plants that had severe windburn. Al let me just tell you, the wind has beat the heck out of may plants. The windburn is so bad on my tomato plants, I just started snipping off leaves because they are never coming back from that searing anyway. I finally just stopped when it got dark and I'll have to go back out again tomorrow. The tomato plants in my main bed are about four feet tall now, but the wind has really burned them, too. I've also got red clusters of something on the leaves in the main bed, so I'm preparing myself psychologically to just go ahead and bring out the liquid Sevin Dust. If you just looked at my garden, it looks pretty good. But when you get down to the nitty gritty of checking everything out, you can see all the wind damage and insects. It really hurt to keep looking at the orange trees that are now blossomless, due to the wind; as those were my main pollinators. Even the hummingbirds were attracted to them. Oh well, if I keep clipping off tomato leaves, I won't have a garden left to worry over anyway... I've got a few plants left as replacements, but I'm running out of those, too.

 

[w_r_ranch]

The wind has died down finally but it has taken it toll on the plants & it is finally staying at least 60 degrees at night so the plants should start putting on some growth. I still need to till & plant the melon patch within the next 5 days...

Here's some pictures that you can compare with the ones from 10 days ago.

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[whistech]

Looks like your garden is doing really good. Absolutely beautiful!

 

[w_r_ranch]

Thanks, Whistech!

Today I applied 'Ironite' to the corn & the tomatoes & watered it in (need to pickup another 40 lb, bag).

 

[ErnieCopp]

Sam,
In spite of the differences in our climates, our plants are very close to being in the same stage of growth now. My cantaloupe melons, direct planted, are mostly four leaf now, and W melons still mostly two leaf. Have several tomatoes, from nickel sized to a quarter sized for the biggest one.

Nights are staying around 50, days up to 85. Beets and Carrots doing real good in the Picker Boxes, my first time using them. Will be starting a second box of beets and carrots next week.

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

Received the load of mulch & got started. Probably got about 25% of the veggies & pathways done before I ran out of energy. On the plus side, the tomatoes are starting to flower & most of the sweet corn is 4" tall...

 

[Northern Minnesota]

That's a beautiful garden layout WR. Very impressive. Looks like your Air Force background, and it's need for precision, is still shining through. I'm still using concrete mesh wire to make 5 ft high cages for the tomatoes. After seeing your staking program, I may need to do a test trial with them.

We still have frost in the ground and ice on the lakes so planting things like tomatoes and peppers is still a month away. The frost should be out of the ground by another week. A week after that, I'll start experimenting with the plants that can handle a light frost and do "OK" in cold soil.

My plants will still be in the house for another week and then get moved out to the little greenhouse for the last 3 weeks.

Do use the pine bark for both mulch and pathways?

 

[w_r_ranch]

Yes on the shredded pine bark mulch. It's great for moderating soil temps, moisture retention & suppressing weeds/grass. Plus, it is a great way to add organic material to build soil structure.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Continued mulching... about 70% done.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Continued mulching, about 90% done... It was just too hot to continue. Will try again tomorrow.

 

[w_r_ranch]

I did not finish the mulching today... cutworms started working on my sweet corn in, so I sprayed them & went to work on other things.

Here are some pictures for today:

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[w_r_ranch]

Finished mulching the veggie garden this morning. Then tilled the 'melon patch'... The honeydew melon row is formed & that area is mulched. I will continue on Tuesday as we have to go shopping tomorrow & pickup Mrs. Ranch's flower order, then I'll get the cantaloupe & watermelon rows formed. I also will order another 7 yards of the shredded pine bark mulch as I'm out.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Tied up all the tomatoes for the second time & trimmed off any leaves that were touching the ground. Then replaced a few peppers & eggplant that the recent winds broke. Also tilled a part of the melon patch & raked before forming the rows for the nutmeg cantaloupe, Persian melons & the watermelons (all the melons will be planted tomorrow). Now I'm tired & it's time to 'self-medicate'.

 

[ErnieCopp]

My melons are all up, most 3 to 6 inches tall, but a good example of how melons react to soil temperature is this. a few of the plants are on the North side of a large Apricot tree. All were planted the same day, and the ones in the shade, where the ground is obviously cooler, are still in the 2 leaf stage while the others in warmer ground are just growing gangbusters.
I have about ten to twelve feet wide, so just put two drip tubes a foot apart and one plant every two feet. I hope to prune between the plants and train them to grow sideways, giving each plant 2' X 12' of growing room. Last year i had two rows, four feet apart and the plants were just too dense.

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

All the melons are in the ground & watered. The last load of mulch was delivered late this afternoon & the gates are once again locked up! Life is good!!!

 

[majorcatfish]

if i remember right your garden is 50x80 and you have spread mulch in the whole, thats a few trips with the wheelbarrow.
everytime we get to see photos of your hard work it impresses me......congrats on all your hard work

 

[w_r_ranch]

Thanks Catfish, it has been a lot of trips, even with a 10 cu/ft. wheelbarrow. At least mulch is not near as heavy as the dirt was...

UPDATE: The mulch was delivered at 1655 today!!! I'll get started first thing tomorrow morning. The 'end' of this phase is in sight & to be honest. I'm almost looking forward to more concrete/stone work (asparagus bed) & cutting/splitting firewood.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Got a little more than half of the melon patch mulched & then watered the seeds & the veggie side.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Finished mulching the melon patch. YEAAAAAAA!!!! Need to water later as it is 90 here, plants are starting to droop...

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[w_r_ranch]

As is to be expected, some things are doing very well & somethings are not... cucumbers are having a growth problem & the corn is languishing as well. Everything else is doing well... The green beans are just starting to climb the bull panels & the spaghetti squash is close to doing the same. Here are some pics of the plant's progress thus far:

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[45 ACP]

Very, very nice Sam

 

[whistech]

Mr. Ranch, looks to me like everything in your garden is doing great. It sure looks a lot better than mine. I planted my green beans about the same time you did and your green beans are twice as big as mine. Beautiful tomato plants too.

 

[Rahab222]

You have the most beautiful and best organized garden I've ever seen. I'll try to take some current photos of mine and post this weekend. My Big Beef tomato plants are already six feet tall and have outgrown their cages and stakes. I'm going to have to figure out how to secure these better as they continue to grow. Any ideas? Or should I just cut the tops off as they continue to grow? I have lots of green tomatoes. I was watching a couple of bumblebees working the flowers this week on the tomato plants, so I'm hoping they like the cucumber flowers, too. Or do you think I should hand pollinate the cucumbers? I have a lot of flowers on my cucumbers right now, but no cucumbers showing yet.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Tied up the tomatoes for 3X & then the storm arrived.

Lots of tomatoes forming & the green beans are running up the bull panels in mass.

 

[Ibtsoom]

Absolutely awesome, Sam. You're the envy of us all my friend - love seeing the progress pics.