Your 2007 Vegetable Garden?

[mudbug]

So what are you growing in your garden this year? Old favorites? Trying anything new?

[KYHeirloomer]

Ha! If it doesn't stop raining sometime soon there ain't gonna be a 2007 garden. Only thing in the ground right now is the fall-planted alliums: garlic and Rakkyo.

There were no early greens and other hardy stuff, cuz if you stepped in the gardens you sank to your knees. I had three bundles of onion plants that were tossed, because they sat around since March 13. Etc.

But, if the weather starts to cooperate, there will be a mix of old favorites and new-to-me varieties. Only heirlooms, cuz that's all I grow.

What I've got are 5 tomatoes, 3 of which are new. A new okra that dates back to a Creek woman in the Indian Nations. Four chilies, all of which I've grown before.

I'm planning 6 pole beans, two of which are old faves, the rest new to me. And a new to me red cowpea that's said to be early (as opposed to Red Ripper, which is a late season pea). Then I've got three Cherokee bush beans, which I magically have room for, being as there are no onions taking up that space.

Blacktail Mountain watermelon, for the second year. A butternut squash. And all the usual suspects among summer squashes, herbs, etc.

And, before you know it, it'll be time to start planning the fall garden.

[shel]

No room for a garden here at this time, but I'd like to plant some potted herbs - basil, thyme, rosemary - the ones I use the most. Any suggestions as to soil, size of pots, fertilizer and the like.

[KYHeirloomer]

Size of pots depends on your room, Shel.

My kitchen herbs are mostly in 8" pots, for instance. These are kept on a rustic shelf right outside the door. But you could go smaller and keep the pots in a sunny window. Or larger, if you have the room for them.

The possible exception is the rosemary, which is a herbaceous shrub. If you stunt it in a small pot you won't get the production you probably want. So I would keep it in a largish tub (like a Rubbermaid 18-gallon).

Both the basil and thyme will do ok in a smaller pot. In theory, as small as 4". But I wouldn't go smaller than 6" myself.

An interesting approach is to use a strawberry pot, and plant an entire herb garden in it, putting a different herb in each opening. In your case, I would put the rosemary in the top, then placy basil, thyme, broad-leaf parsley, etc. in the smaller openings. Don't forget one of the mints.

Herbs are interesting in many ways, one of which is that they do not require rich soil. Any potting soil will work fine, and you shouldn't have to fertilize them at all. Or, at most, mix the fertilizer to 25% of strength, and use that only once or twice a year.

Frankly, unless I want to encourage rapid growth, I don't fertilize my herbs at all. When I do, I just use fish emulsion for a shot of nitrogen.

[shel]

Originally Posted by KYHeirloomer

Size of pots depends on your room, Shel.

My kitchen herbs are mostly in 8" pots, for instance. These are kept on a rustic shelf right outside the door. But you could go smaller and keep the pots in a sunny window. Or larger, if you have the room for them.

The possible exception is the rosemary, which is a herbaceous shrub. If you stunt it in a small pot you won't get the production you probably want. So I would keep it in a largish tub (like a Rubbermaid 18-gallon).

Both the basil and thyme will do ok in a smaller pot. In theory, as small as 4". But I wouldn't go smaller than 6" myself.

An interesting approach is to use a strawberry pot, and plant an entire herb garden in it, putting a different herb in each opening. In your case, I would put the rosemary in the top, then placy basil, thyme, broad-leaf parsley, etc. in the smaller openings. Don't forget one of the mints.

Herbs are interesting in many ways, one of which is that they do not require rich soil. Any potting soil will work fine, and you shouldn't have to fertilize them at all. Or, at most, mix the fertilizer to 25% of strength, and use that only once or twice a year.

Frankly, unless I want to encourage rapid growth, I don't fertilize my herbs at all. When I do, I just use fish emulsion for a shot of nitrogen.

I want to grow them outside. I should have mentioned that, as well as the sunlight and climate situation. There's a nice, sunny patio here that gets sun most of the day and a plce in front of the house that gets morning sun, as well as the south side of the house that gets plenty of sun. Morning fog, even in the height of summer, can be an issue, but for the most part, the days are warm, sometimes even hot, and sunny.

You mentioned a strawberry pot. I don't know what that is, but I suppose my nursery people do. Didn't think about parsley and mint ... they sound like good additions. Do you think cilantro will grow in such a situation?

Thanks,

Shel

[KYHeirloomer]

Your conditions are fine. And you can, I presume, go with as large a container as you wish.

What I would do is choose an assortment of widths and heights, so that you can arrange the containers aesthetically. Other than that, there are no restrictions.

A strawberry pot is called that because it's traditional use is for growing straberries. They are tall, for their width, and shaped somewhat like an amphorea. There are additional, cupped, holes in the sides. This lets you plant in the mouth, and in each of the additional openings. They come in various sizes, identified by gallons capacity. For a kitchen herb garden I'd get at least a 5 gallon size. Twice that is even better.

Cilantro is a semi-hardy plant, that doesn't tolerate heat. You can grow it, but should have planted it in February or March. Too late now, I reckon.

By the by, if you think of lettuce as an herb, you can grow your own the same way; in containers and boxes. Just choose loose leaf or loose-headed types.

Also keep in mind that most garden veggies can be grown in containers. So there's no reason not to have a tomato plant or two, and a couple of chilies, etc.

[shel]

Originally Posted by KYHeirloomer

A strawberry pot is called that because it's traditional use is for growing straberries. They are tall, for their width, and shaped somewhat like an amphorea. There are additional, cupped, holes in the sides. This lets you plant in the mouth, and in each of the additional openings.

Oh, I've seen and used those. Never knew what they were called.

I'm going to the nursery in a little while to see what they have to offer and get some ideas based upon their experince in our specific climate.

You've given me some ideas - growing some lettuce in boxes sounds ideal. I am so sick of the lettuce that's available in the stores, and even in the farmers markets. There's nothing better than fresh picked!

Shel

[KYHeirloomer]

Lettuce is also a hardy plant, Shel. So keep it in the shade as much as possible.

Even so, you may want to wait until the fall to plant it. But order seed now, cuz in the fall they mostly won't have any.

Meanwhile, Hey, Mudbug! You started this thread. What are you growing this year?

[allie]

Since we don't have space at home, we are sharing garden space with a friend and his wife. They are contributing plants as is Les's brother and his wife. I have already purchased Better Boy, Early Girl, and some Beefsteak tomato plants, Red Beauty peppers, jalapenos, and some pickling cucumber (can't remember the name) that we will plant this weekend. I also want to plant some yellow squash, eggplants, and would love okra if I can find some for this zone. I'd love a garden with various types of butterbeans and peas like my dad in Georgia grows but not sure that will happen this year. Since we're taking a trip to the local nursery this afternoon or tomorrow, I'll have a much better idea then!

Edited to add this: I really want to plant some herbs in planters on my deck. I have 6 planters and will put flowers (petunias and marigolds along with an ivy or something with trailing vines) in a couple. I've always used dried herbs because I've never had fresh ones unless I buy them. I've been buying a lot of cilantro recently but have a hard time finding other fresh ones and they are expensive when I do. lol

[GhettoRacingKid]

I just did mine yesterday and got a killer sunburn on my back.

Its nothing big and special but enough to keep me going for the summer.

I got the usual suspects

Tomatos (4 different types)
cuccumbers
eggplants
red peppers
greenpeppers
banana peppers
jalepenos
2 other typoes of hot peppers (cant think of them just kidna grabbed them)
zucchini

I also went herb crazy this year.

Cilantro
basil
parsley
lavendar
chives
oregano
rosemany
thyme

[bubbamom]

I'm not much of a farmer so I stick to tomatoes (3 beefsteak, 3 early girls and 3 cherry tomatoes). Also plant 1 sweet basil plant (can't ever use it all but it smells so good and tastes so good on the fresh tomatoes). I've got chives and green onions that come up with no help from me; I have to keep thinning these because they grow like weeds. Will also plant one sweet and one hot pepper.

I've put in some lettuce but the rabbits generally get it as soon as it comes up

[Smilie]

I just planted basil & rosemary. My oregano and thyme comes back bigger and better every year.

I plant tomatoes, with little success. They may go in monday.

Last year I did zuccini. Had lots of flowers. I was hesitant to try frying them because I didn't want to mess up any chance of zucchini growing. But I NEVER got one zucchini. Not sure what to try this year as far as zucchinis go

I also get bunnies and squirrels who eat some of the other stuff I've tried. So I give up on it.

[allie]

We planted at least 12 tomatoes on Sat. I don't even remember all the kinds but Early Girl and Super Beefsteak. Then we planted 6 green bell peppers, 4 jalapenos, and 6 Red Beaty bells. To go with that, 4 Burpee Pickle cucumbers, and 4 burpless, 4 eggplants, 1 zucchini, and 2 rows of onions. Today I'll be shopping for some yellow squash and cherry tomatoes. That was all in the garden plot we're sharing at a friend's house. At home, I planted Cinnamon Basil, Greek Oregano, and Sweet Basil in a planter. I wasn't sure about putting those in the ground to winter. In my small plot, I planted lavendar, rosemary, and onion chives. I also want to get some mint, dill, and parsley. I'm still pretty new to gardening in northeastern Indiana and I never grew any herbs in Georgia and neither did my dad.

[saraskitchen]

This year I've got a variety of tomatoes, chives, green onions, turnips, beets and swiss chard. The swiss chard is already as tall as me!

[SnowfallDesigns]

Ahh...among the weeds I still need to till under...I have...

tomatoes (11 of them!)
green beans
carrots
green bell peppers
red bell peppers
banana peppers
spinach
cucumber
watermelon
cantalope
blueberries
blackberries
strawberries
apple mint
chocolate mint
chives
oregano
sage
basil

I will hopefully be tilling up the other half of my garden sopt this week so I can plant some pumpkins and gourds.