I can't believe that there haven't been a ton of posts on this topic since I've been gone! Even with our busy kidding season, we did slip away and get a garden started at least. I used to live next door to where I am now, and had started a really nice garden over there, so we just garden there instead of starting a new one here at the house. I have about an acre of garden fenced off. Originally years ago I planned on having a market garden, which I did for several years and really enjoyed it, but you have to have a real job to as tomatoes don't grow in the winter here in the Ozarks.

We set out a few dozen tomatoe plants, and some peppers, but not nearly as many as I would of liked to. I have to say, this year there was the most pathetic selection of garden plants I have ever seen. And so EXPENSIVE! Sheesh, I have got to fix a place in the house next year and grow my own. I did try that last year, but had really lousy luck with it. Going to have to get my act together and do it right next year.

I planted a bunch of old sunflower seeds I had, just hoping to get a few plants so I would have fresher seed for next year. A few days after planting I started seeing a lot of seed on top of the ground. On closer inspection, it was not the seed, just the hulls of the seeds I had planted! Dang birds scratched them up. I was not a happy camper! I did get a few plants though, so maybe I will have better luck next year.

One thing is definatly worrying me about our garden this year, when we went over the other day to plant a bit more, we found nice big deer tracks right threw the middle of the garden. I will be very pissed if they get the benefit from all my hard work! Unless of course I get some venison to go with my tomatoes, lol!

We got some other stuff out a few days ago, but getting things planted this year has been tough. Just about the time the ground would dry out enough to plant it would rain again. I had hoped to get a lot more planted, but it just wasn't in the cards I guess. We did get a lot more out this year than last year. Now if we can just keep up with it. It's allready in dire need of another tilling and hoeing, but my better half has been ailing, and then a few days ago he was getting a goat out of the fence, and as he turned around after getting her loose, he fell down, landed on a big sharp edged rock. He probably now has some cracked ribs and is pretty miserable. Bouncing on a tiller is not something pleasant to do with cracked ribs. Of course, nothing is much fun when you are in that shape.

So, how is everybody else's garden growing?????

 

 

 

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The weather here is about 4 weeks behind its usual schedule, so the garden was late getting planted.

4 Tomatos plants, 30 hills of Taters, Zuchinni, radishes and Garlic are all I'm doing this year. It seems they are all sprouting up fine. We definitely need the heat for things to grow. It has been a very cold, wet Spring so far.

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I love fresh veggies and stuff from a garden, unfortunately I do not have a green thumb I cannot even grow a house plant no matter what I do or what I have tried I cannot grow anything, So I have never tried a garden. Although I love fresh stuff from gardens I have lots of friends who are into gardeningand they are great at bringing me stuff.

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I garden all year round. During the winter I just bring all of my herbs inside:)

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Oh, don't give up on the lack of green thumb just cause you've killed a few house plants! I've killed a many of them myself! Seems the only one I can keep for very long is Aloe Vera, which oddly enough, most people have trouble with. I have an orange tree I have fought with for several years now, I kept it looking good for awhile, but this past winter all the top leaves withered up and fell off, the whole 3/4 of the top of it is dead now, but I do have a few small lower branches with leaves. I hope it will eventually regrow. (but I'm not holding my breath)

Gardening is an art, and a science. Maybe you could help one of your friends with their garden and get some practical experience. Gardens always need weeding! Just don't do like my better half did the other day, and weed out the wroung plants. I had slipped in a few sugar snap peas on both ends of one of our flower boxes in front of the house, where we have a cattle pannel arched up over the bed to tie tomatoes plants to and for cucumbers to grow over. I plant a few peas as they are quick to produce and die out when it gets hot, and are then out of the way for the other crops. Anyway, my dearly beloved pulled up every single one of them! I was not very happy with him. They are one of my favorites, and they are one of those things that you simply cannot buy. Much like trying to eat tomatoes in January, they arent' fit to eat unless you raise them yourself and eat them fresh. I usually don't even get in the house with them. From vine to my mouth.

Another odd thing this year, I didn't see anybody anywhere selling sweet potatoe slips! I had planed on putting some of those out too. And we got around too late to get any onion bulbs. All we found where some really ratty looking green topped slips, funny thing was, I was pretty disgusted and just sort of poked them in the ground thinking they would never make as bad as they looked. (they came out of the 25 cent bin at Wally World) but nearly every one of them ended up taking off! You just never know.

 

 

 

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I like growing fresh herbs in a garden. There are so many things you can do with them, if you have the tools and the patience Here is some info on how you can use those herbs you grow:

First, equipment: you will need paste and mortar, chopping knife, strainer

To release flavor and bring out perfume: chop, grind, pound, heat with butter, or put in hot water or oven

Infusions: when you want the pat rich in aromatic oils. Put herb in boiling water, let seep for 10-15 min.

Decoctions: for hard and woody herbs, it lets active ingredients enter the water. Add cut herbs to boiling water, summer for 10-15 min. and strain while still hot
Tinctures: concentrated mixtures of alcohol, water, and herbs. Put herb in screw-top jar and cover with a spirit. Keep covered in a warm place, shake twice daily. Strain after 14 days

Compresses and poultices: these help body absorb compounds through skin. Soak cloth in hot infusion or decoction, apply to affected area when hot and change when it cools. For a poultice: wrap herbs in gauze and apply to skin

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Hi people, I have a domestic garden in my back yard here in the north island of New Zealand, we are just getting into spring and I have planted cucumber, courgette, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, leeks, spring onions and chives, sage, rosemary, climbing beans, mint, pine nut, bay, oregano, tarragon, rhubarb, beetroot, lettuce and parsnip. I use weed mat to control both weed growth and the amount of water the plants get, plus it helps keep the slugs and snails down to a minimum as I infrequently sprinkle pellets to kill them off. I don't use any insecticides other than the snail pellets, but picking bugs off the plants is not hard work and can be quite interesting, so its not a big deal. I have a compost bin and it cuts our household rubbish down quite a bit, but for the most part, I use sheep manure to give the soil a boost every now and then.. it doesn't need anything else as the plants all seem to grow very well (why mess with a good thing?).
Last year I had this thing for growing heaps of different tomato varieties.. this year my flatmates have said that tomatoes are fine.. just not a bucket full of them every week!
Hey at least I know which ones are best suited for this location now.

Anyway, nice to see a gardening section on these forums, its quite an addictive hobby eh?

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