Calling all gardeners!

[kmcconaughey]

Kevin,

<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>quote:</font>

No one in the family likes them except for the tomatoes in ketchup!<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>

You'd like 'em if you ever tasted a fresh picked organically grown Brandywine or Rose heirloom tomato. I'd send you one but I don't think it'd survive the trip. )

 

[bnecker]

Kraig-

With 'maters like that on a bun, who needs hamburger to ruin it ! ? ! ? !

 

[lbuttke]

Can't hardly waite untilI get to put some seed in this ground.

That is, if it will ever quit snowing and warm up.

 

[F12Mahon]

Speaking of garlic I love the stuff. When my youngest daughter was two one sunday morning we were just ready to leave for Sunday School and walk into the kitchen and there she was chewing on something. Asked here what she was eating. "one of those" pointing at a clove of garlic. Sigh, gonna be late while she gets her teeth rebrushed. She sure had a smile on her face though while she was still chewing.

I have about 16 each of beefsteak and jellybean tomato seedlings started. Right now they are about 1 3/4 inches tall. Haven't grown much this past week. I also have a bulb of California white galic to separate and plant.

 

[kmcconaughey]

Time to plant garlic. I broke apart a bunch of garlic bulbs into the individual cloves in preparation for planting. Some of the cloves were huge, ping-pong ball sized, and this isn't even elephant garlic. I tilled a trailer load of compost into the garlic bed this past weekend. Tonight, weather permitting, I'll plant it.

 

[kmcconaughey]

My daughter and I got the garlic all planted last night, 210 cloves planted this year.

 

[rmunday]

Kraig -

Did you hand plant? How big is the garlic plot?

We harvested just under 500lbs of garlic from the property garden this year.

Going down this weekend to do this falls planting. Neighbor tilled in compost last weekend for me. He also has a potato planter we're going to try it instead of by hand (major PITA!).

Now I got to find a faster way to cut scapes! Doing them by hand really sucks!

 

[kmcconaughey]

Rick, WOW 500lbs!! Yep hand planted. This years plot is only about 3.5' wide by about 15' long.

 

[rmunday]

How many pounds did you pull from that plot?

We were totally surprised when we weighed it in! I'd figured probably close to 300 but the scales said otherwise.

The potato planter did make it about 50% easier. There was still a good bit that didn't hit the row right or get deep enough... And they're about 6" apart (we had them at about that spacing last fall), but the rows are 15" or so apart.

My concern now is how many of them are in wrong or too deep and won't recover? But, it's a learning process...

 

[kmcconaughey]

Rick, last years plot was 2 beds, each were about 3.5' wide by 9' long. I never weigh what I harvest. I've had cloves that were put in upside down that grew fine, the shoot and roots know which way is up and which way is down. They are usually shaped kind of funny and a little smaller though.

 

[rmunday]

I heard the same from someone in another forum too, they grow fine but can wind up a bit misshapen (sp?).

I actually like the way the garlic came out this year, it's actually a little "soft" in flavor. I can use MORE of what we kept in food and nobody will be none the wiser!

 

[kmcconaughey]

Good garlic harvest this year! I haven't counted the bulbs yet but the average is as big or bigger then all my previous years biggest bulb and the biggest is a dandy.

 

[kmcconaughey]

I think I planted too many grape tomato plants! I planted 12 plants 6 "Sweet Olive" and 6 "Cupid". The Cupid is better tasting and may just be the best tasting grape tomato out there. I've been picking just about every other day for 2 weeks and except for the first picking, each time I pick I get about this many:

I don't seem to have any trouble getting rid of them though. I think I'm the most popular person at work and at church right now!

The paste tomato plants: 12 "Bellstar" and 6 "Hard Rock", the heirloom tomato plants: 6 "Brandywine", 6 "Rose" and 6 "Oregon Spring" tomato plants have also been productive as have all the varieties of pepper plants. My wife has canned one batch of tomato sauce and one batch of salsa. I think see's planning on canning another batch of salsa today.

 

[digger]

Kraig,
You can throw some down this way anytime now.

 

[kmcconaughey]

Charlie, you want me to throw tomatoes at you?

 

[digger]

If your arm's that good, fling away and i'll net'um!

 

[lbaker]

Kraig-When do you pull/dig your garlic? I usually let mine go until seed heads are on. We don't use much but give lot away. How about the soil ie; loose/clay/fertilize etc.? Interesting to grow. TIA.

 

[digger]

Hey!
All you garden type guys, Anyone have some good mild horse radish?

 

[kmcconaughey]

Lyle, in Wisconsin where I garden I dig up the garlic when the tops yellow and start to flop over which is usually in mid to late July. Garlic likes a well draining soil it also likes the soil to be rich in organic material. A sandy clay loam like I have is darn near perfect especially if I amend the planting bed with lots of compost.

BTW, if you look down this page a bit you'll see a photo I posted last April (photo was actually taken in September, 2002) of a couple of hamburgers with Brandywine tomato slices on them. Anyway, last night we had hamburgers/cheeseburgers with equally nice Brandywine slices. YUM!

 

[kmcconaughey]

Time to plant the garlic! At least it is time in West central Wisconsin. I got a bunch of bulbs separated into individual cloves. Some of the cloves are huge!