Bush Beans

Okay, I finished my "Mel's perfect soil mix" last night in one of my new 4x4 beds. This is the 1st time I'll have the soil perfectly mixed, so I'm excited to see how well that bed produces! I planted 4 cantaloupe and 4 cucumber plants last night. I've yet to have cucumber plants that don't die on me this year. I bought an entirely different pack of seeds and from someone other than Ferry Morris. Not that all their seeds are bad, but the two packages I had just didn't do anything. So I had 3/4's of the bed still opened, so I soaked another handful of bush bean seeds and I just planted about 32 of those in that bed. And I didn't forget to inoculate them this time! YAY! I've got about 20 seeds left, so if I can find space for the last 20 seeds then I'm planting those too! I refuse to let the beetles get the best of me! So I'm planting more and I'm planning on keeping those under row covers until they're more mature and can sustain a little more chewing! Will keep you posted!

I'm getting pictured text messages from friends with their growing luck and it makes me smile! Keep growin folks!

,ijustwannagrow

Mad at my squash

Oh pickles as my 2yr old says! My squash PLANTS are growing, but SLOWLY and still only male blossoms opening up. But that's okay because the "Plan B" squash seeds I planted last week have popped up and I still have time to get some squash in before the end of the season. I'm so mad at the first bed of disappointing squash plants I could just dig them up and toss them in the compost pile! Still borderline ready to "go there" with those squash plants for sure!

But I do have 7 HUGE healthy so far zucchini plants that are up to my mid thigh and has big long beautiful male blossoms flowering out as of tonight! There were none opened up as of this AM, but on the way back from choir practice I ran by one more time and we're blossoming in the zucchini patch :D  The patty pan squashes are still growing rather well, so we'll see where they take us!  But I really would like to harvest some zucchini and squash darn it!

Garden update 06/09/11

My sweet 100's are now at 6ft tall and weighed down with little green & red tomatoes! And I know why they call this variety sweet 100. They are sweet & there are tomatoes everywhere! I have two of this variety and they are topping out at 6ft tall at this moment and still growing! Gotta love indeterminates :D  It's a surprise every time! My determinate heirloom varieties are as big as my fist and my mouth waters every time I go out looking for ANY little sign of ripening! It's like waiting for a new baby to come!

My pole beans are still looking like swiss cheese and I actually caught two different kinds of beetles on one of the plants last night! When I plant the next round of pole beans & bush beans I'll definitely be covering them with row covers or netting of some sort! Although I went over and took a look at my mom's garden and she doesn't have ONE chew mark on hers and it is tearing me up why every beetle in Davidson county is in my beans?

Anyway, the beans have reached up and begun to climb, so they're still hanging in there! My purple cow peas are chewed up as well, but still growing and still a really healthy green color! My zucchini and patty pan that I planted two weeks ago from seed are growing quickly! The hubs told me he saw a bloom on one of the zucchini plants already? I'll have to go check tomorrow, because he may be seeing the two squash plants I transplanted in that bed two days ago. My squash tank bed that has 8 squash plants is making great progress! I have 3 plants that will take over that bed and I'll pull the other 5 out to give the 3 strongest the space to take over that bed! I didn't expect all 8 to make it, so my try to carefully dig out the 5 squash and transplant somewhere else? Squash doesn't like to be bothered, so worth a shot since they're headed to the compost pile anyway?

The first two rounds of cucumbers have died! I think those seeds are the problem! I'm going to try and find some cucumber starters to plant so that I can get some cucumbers this season! I hate I wasted time thinking it was me and it was the seed the whole time!

Hope the nice muggy hot weather has inspired you to get out and grow some tomatoes and squash!

,ijustwannagrow :D

Pole Beans & Cow Peas update

Well, I see new growth on the beans & peas. I guess that's good news? I went ahead and re-dusted those & all the other vegetables with diatamaceous earth to keep ahead of the buggies. I've positioned the trellising over the pole beans now and they are tall enough to reach the second row of netting. So we're still growing at this point. I'll take small victories from day to day!
I've got 2 4x4 beds that I hope I can get filled up with compost/soil amendments by the end of the week before the rain hits this weekend. Not really sure what I'm going to plant in them other than more squash. I may save one of the beds for the beginning of mid July plantings.

Anyway, don't give up on your veggies!

,ijustwannagrow

Home from Vacation- Garden Update

We're baaaa aaaaack! I dreamed of my garden the entire time I was gone! I'm glad to be back home to be able to tend to what I have left and We'll start with the positive and say that I'm tickled my sweet 100's are really sweet and turning red everywhere. My large tomato plants are doing great! I have several tomatoes now as large as my hand. Still green, but hope they ripen in about two weeks. My corn is knee high in a week! How'd that happen? Still lookin good. Again have never grown and have no idea if I'll even get one ear of corn or not this year?

I visited several family member gardens while I was away and enjoyed viewing their vegetable selections and also how they layed their gardens out.

Squash plants are growing 



Moral of the story: I will not be vacationing in May from this point forward! LOL  Closer to beginning of August after the Fall crops have been planted! You live and learn! What can you do, but move forward?

I would have lost everything had someone not have watered my garden while I was gone. Thanks Mom!

Choose your vacation times wisely!

ijustwannagrow

Mexican Bean Beetle

So I'm determined to save my green beans if possible, and after researching various websites & photos I'm really sure that this is the beetle that is devouring my pole bean leaves!

http://www.ehow.com/how_2100139_get-rid-mexican-bean-beetles.html

I read the above article and other than the chemical pesticide recommendations that I won't be trying I think there is some pretty good advice to try. Unfortunately, too late for the floating row cover since the eggs have obviously already have been laid since I've got the beetle infestation! I'll be moving my Finch feeders over toward my greenbeans & cowpeas since they love those type of beetles! I can totally make some toad houses since they like this beetle as well. I know I have toads, because I've seen them around my garden because Savannah chases them yelling FROG...WIBBIT. Unfortunately, I've not seen them around my beans so I guess build the housing and they will come? LOL  Will continue to look for additional methods of combating them organically without the use of chemicals! I am currently researching one of my favorite online stores: planetnatural.com for natural/organic methods of extermination!

http://www.planetnatural.com/site/xdpy/kb/mexican-bean-beetle.html

I refuse to revert to chemicals!

,ijustwannagrow

1st tomato harvested

My mom tells me my 1st sweet 100 tomato was ripe enough to pick & eat today! So she picked and ate and told me all about it! I hear I have a jalapeno & bell pepper ready to pick when I get home Saturday. I'm informed that my pole beans are basically swiss cheese. Someone told me about beetle bags today. I don't know if it will work, but I'm going to Lowes tomorrow to find some and try it if it isn't too late! I don't wanna leave, but I can't wait to see my garden and how much a difference a week of hot temperatures with heavy rain has made in my veggies! Enjoyed visiting everyone's garden, garden spots, backyard sanctuaries, & raised bed gardens no matter how big or small they were! Thanks for sharing!

Hope you're all gardening & growing something, if not it's not too late to either throw something out or start planning for your fall crops!

,ijustwannagrow