2012 Garden - The Stars of Project 24

My Garden stars the following attractions this year:

CARROTS

(I planted carrots last year but absolutely none grew, this was a pleasant suprise!)

TOMATOES

(I was given a box of tomatoes last fall and saved the seeds. I planted 4 greenhouse plants just in case but now have an overabundance of tomatoes! Looking forward to making spaghetti sauce of some sort.)

Habanero Peppers

(I started these inside and transplanted in mid-July. They have flowers but I'm unsure if they will produce in time for the fall. We've still got time. First time trying peppers in the garden.)

TOMATILLOS

(First time with tomatillos, hoping to make a few jars of salsa.)

MARIGOLDS

(I have read over the years that Marigolds help with certain pests. I normally don't like the flower itself, but enjoy it in my garden.)

HERBS

(Spearmint, Thyme, Basil in the garden. I also have Parsley in a container on the deck.)

ACORN SQUASH

(I love acorn squash, but my husband and son do not. I'll be eating some and making the rest into baby food.)

ZUCCHINI

(We love zucchini so much that when I ran out of room I planted the 2 extra seeds away from the rest near my acorn squash. Didn't want to waste a seed!)

SWEET POTATOES

(Again, my boys do not eat these. I will eat a few, give a few away, but mostly make these into baby food for next spring.)

PUMPKINS

(I saved seeds from last year's 'cooking pumpkin' we bought while at a local pumpkin patch. This was, again, a let's-see-how-it-works-out type situation. Turned out well!)

GREEN BEANS

(Last year I planted 2 packets of seeds, and we got no green beans. So this year I tried again. Seems everything I put in the ground grew! We've harvested 2 gallons so far just off the bush beans. We'll pick the pole beans tomorrow and will have at least the same. Bush beans will have to be harvested again soon too! I'm freezing the beans to use over the winter. Will possibly make some baby food with these when thawed.)

ASPARAGUS

(I was hoping to plant up to 15 asparagus plants. I restrained and bought 2. They were supposed to be ready to produce this year but I only got 2 stalks. I let them grow and will cut them down in the fall in hopes of asparagus next year. Gotta keep trying!)

GARLIC and ONIONS

(I planted fall garlic and onions that have been growing nicely. Haven't been able to harvest as soon as I thought we would but they are going to be a better size than the garlic and onions I planted this spring. Nice to have a little bit of each.)



TURNIPS

(Opps! I planted turnips and had no idea what I was going to do with them... so I'm going to blanch and freeze them with my potatoes and some with carrots for baby food. I will only add a small amount fo the baby food carrots, turnips could make baby gassy!)

POTATOES

(Planted Kenebec and Yukon Gold. Grew well last year, growing well again now that they don't have weeds to compete with!)

What is Zucchini Wilt?!

Tonight I had to research zucchini wilt... not so fun. I hope I can catch it in time so the rest of my plants don't suffer the same fate. I noticed I do have quite a few good size zucchini but once I got up-close-and-personal with my plants I saw one that did not look right. It looks deflated, which is common from my Internet-research, and squishy. So I picked it off and threw it in the woods. Looks like my zucchini will be a little more work than I thought, but I love them so it will be worth it!
You can see the bottom zucchini on the plant looks like it is bent in half, this little one is my problem.

Zucchini wilt can be caused by a few different things. Here is what I found and the solutions. I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do... maybe try them all?!

Issue 1: Lack of Calcium.

Solution = Add 1 tablespoon of Epsom salt to 1 gallon of water, pour over plants. Repeat once per month. 

Issue 2: Fungus (usually from too much water.)

Solution = Carefully remove flower from plant once  healthy. If there is fungus on the young plant, carefully remove. 

Issue 3: Larvae or squash borers. (in stem)

Solution 1 = Dig out larvae and bury the stem-end.

Solution 2 = Use rotenone pyrethrin dust under the vines. 

Solution 3 = Place foil under the vines to confuse the moths, use shaving cream on the vines to prevent borers from laying eggs on the stems.

Issue 4: Lack of pollination

Solution: Unsure, already have the mason bee house up...

For more tips check out the forums I found with the best info:

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Annuals-706/Zucchini-dieing.htm

http://www.weekendgardener.net/vegetable-gardening-tips/squash-blossom-rot-080908.htm

Container Gardening

I'm starting to become more realistic. That the huge garden I have planned in my mind will not be a 'spring project' but more of a 5-year-plan. I have since decided to do a few containers to tide me over until I can get my hands dirty in the yard. The hard part was deciding what to put in the containers! Containers plants can be finicky and I'm going to have to watch water and soil mix. I've had problems with both tomatoes and zucchini in the past when planting them in the ground. So those are two I am planning on doing for certain plus peppers . Last year I had very nice red pepper plants that did not produce a thing. I started them from seed and ended up as huge, tall beautiful house plants. Sadly, no peppers.

The previous owners left us 3-4 huge clay pots that I need to get under plates for before they are used for 'gardening'. Last year I planted flowers which were beatuiful but I would like the pots to be of better use this year.

To begin I am going to need soil, preferably organic. I will be able to fill the bottom of the pots with organic material from the woods if I can't find any good cheap organic soil in Bemidji.
(I am still an amateur when it comes to buying organic supplies for gardening so hopefully I can find companies that practice what they preach.) Online I found a reasonably priced mix:

Garden Safe Natural Organic Potting Mix
Product Features -
Enriched with organic slow-release plant food and humates for vigorous plant growth for up to 9 months- naturally!
Contains organic wetting agent to improve water penetration throughout the mix
OMRI (Organic Material Review Institute) listed for the use and production of organic food & fiber.
Member tested and recommended by the National Home Gardening Club.
Product Description -
Premium, 100% organic potting mix formulated for growing flowers, vegetables and herbs in containers.

As for my seeds... I am going tohopefully be ordering my tomatoes, peppers and zucchini from:
www.heirloomseeds.com

I will post pictures when I get started. I am hoping to get the seeds planted and ready to go by the second week in April. I am lucky enough to have a south facing garage so I can get up in the morning, pull the pots out and let the seeds start their business. When I get home at night I can pull the pots back into the garage so they don't get too cold.

Will post pictures when this whole process starts!