Are you planting a FALL garden?

[gary350]

"pac choy is a good substitute for lettuce." Got me on that one... what is a good substitute for lettuce? Wife likes spinach best but I cant seem to get that to grow very well and have tried Malabar Spinach...which grew well but we its a little "strong" taste for us so still looking for a substitute. I just put a strip of arugula, red leaf and romaine in the ground so waiting on that to come up.

I gave up on spinach. 3 weeks ago my neighbor planted spinach it looks good. I think I just learned how to grow spinach. LOL. He sprayed with 7 dust $20 a gallon at Walmart. 7 dust worries me I never put toxic chemicals in the garden.

 

[PaulZone8b]

Hmm, I do have 7dust and it has been used for generations, so I feel pretty safe there. My spinaches have never looked "good" and full though. We did get 2 plants to produce some and we harvested a few bottom leaves, let it keep going, harvest a more bottom leaves, etc.. so that worked for a couple plants, but just no great success with the other plants. I am going to try again when it cools off some.

 

[Meadowlark]

Spinach is difficult to grow, almost impossible, for about 9 months of the year here. That is why I switched to Malabar Spinach. I've found that the mildest lasting leaves are the youngest, not surprisingly. We are absolutely loving the Malabar this fall and picking almost every day.

I've had pretty good luck with Romaine in the past and have it planted again this year. Also, I'm trying several different varieties of lettuce this fall in HK containers (see list above) and hoping to find one or more that tolerates my 8b climate.

As for potatoes, I had also given up on whites mainly because of low production. I produce a minimum of 10 pounds of new red potato per one pound of seed potato, but the whites often only produce 2 pounds per or less and just not worth the effort.

I found some white seed potatoes this year on Amazon surprisingly while searching for white sweet potatoes and they arrived in excellent shape...so one more time to give the Yukon gold another try.

 

[gary350]

And for potatoes... I have almost given up on the whites. We are doing 2 varieties of sweet vining potatoes which actually produced a few good ones in 2 fabric containers and now growing more of those in the ground....but the white potatoes all come up fine, stalks look decent and 2 ft tall and then the caterpillars get going which I put BT on to kill and then the blight comes....which I cant seem to fight with all this rain we seem to get this summer. And cant get white potato seeds anymore, so we are waiting for those so we can try again..although I am not confident anything will change. I am pretty sure its blight with the leaves and stems getting yucky. I need a white potato that resists blight I guess.

I am getting very close to giving up on white potatoes in TN best I can grow is 1 lb new potatoes per plant. In Illinois my grandfather grew 4 lbs white potatoes per plant. I have tried lots of things still can't grow more than 1 lb per plant. My fall white potato crop is always better than my spring crop I think it is the cooler wet fall weather that helps. TN weather is hot 100 degrees and 1" of rain per month June t6o Sept white potatoes don't like that. Red Pontiac potatoes are hot weather plants I can grow 4 lbs of red potatoes from each eye and not even try but we like white potatoes best. 2 weeks ago I learn my neighbor buries a soaker hose next to his potato cuttings then covers them up. 2 times a week he gives his potato row 5 gallons water with the soaker hose. LOL wow that is a new idea I need to try next April. If I had never seen my grandfather grew 4 lbs of white potatoes per plant I would think my 1 lb per plant is good. YouTube shows a lot of folks that grow 1 lb white potatoes from each eye. Best white potato crop I can grow is 10 cuttings in a car tire, after plants are 10"tall add 1 more car tire, when plants are 20" tall add 1 more car tire. Pour 5 gallons of water in the car tire stack once a week. Fertilize with 6-12-12 a few times and 0-20-20 a few times. I often get 30 lbs white potatoes from the car tire stack. Tires get old black rubs off it makes me look like a coal miner wife won't let me in the house. LOL. Tires had to go.

 

[PaulZone8b]

Well we in southern SC have had 3+ weeks of on/off rain so wayyy too much rain for plants that want more sun and less water. My 7 rain barrels have stayed full for weeks and havent even touched them to water the gardens since so much rain. With all this rain, here comes the blight. Here is my section where I just planted these sweet potato cuttings from the container we just harvested. We grew that sweet potato in a container with the vines growing straight up a string and was 90% pf the time green and healthy. THIS time we are planting in the ground and I am going to sink the vine in the ground every 2 ft or so as it grows longer and have seen vids where every spot you do that..you get more tubers there too. So we will try that.

 

[PaulZone8b]

In case you are wondering... notice the left side (with cage) rows are in a different orientation than this new section next to it. I started watching vids on "electroculture" and hearing its important to plant your rows in North/South direction and bury a metal wire with the magnets on the south side of that wire. So I did this new section in N/S direction and buried my wire...and now plants are planted over the wire... so we shall see. (Note...I also wear my tin foil hat as I am planting). kidding.

 

[gary350]

Spinach is difficult to grow, almost impossible, for about 9 months of the year here. That is why I switched to Malabar Spinach. I've found that the mildest lasting leaves are the youngest, not surprisingly. We are absolutely loving the Malabar this fall and picking almost every day.

I've had pretty good luck with Romaine in the past and have it planted again this year. Also, I'm trying several different varieties of lettuce this fall in HK containers (see list above) and hoping to find one or more that tolerates my 8b climate.

As for potatoes, I had also given up on whites mainly because of low production. I produce a minimum of 10 pounds of new red potato per one pound of seed potato, but the whites often only produce 2 pounds per or less and just not worth the effort.

I found some white seed potatoes this year on Amazon surprisingly while searching for white sweet potatoes and they arrived in excellent shape...so one more time to give the Yukon gold another try.

White sweet potatoes are easy to grow in TN they love our hot 100 degree dry summer weather they like full sun all day. I rake the vines in a circle around the plant and force it to stay in an 8 ft circle. I usually get 15 to 25 lbs from each plant and 20 lbs is very typical from each plant. 4 or 5 plants gives us 100 lbs of white sweet potatoes. Young leaves are good to eat like spinach & lettuce.

 

[no green thumb]

Walmart hard neck garlic has been in refrigerator 2 months they are ready to be planted Sept 1st.

There are several volunteer potatoes coming up from the potatoes rows I dug up in June. Lost marble size potatoes are growing plants, I transplant them to rows.

I have, 30 broccoli, 30 cauliflower, 5 cabbage, seeds growing ready to transplant Sept 1st.

I have 500 carrots seeds sprouting in a jar of water inside the house. They need to be planted Sept 1st.

Our first frost is about Nov 4th. We often have 60°F to 50° weather during the day in Nov & Dec and freezing temperatures after dark.

Hello where do you live? I'm interested I'm in Washington. Thx

 

[gary350]

Hello where do you live? I'm interested I'm in Washington. Thx

We live 30 miles south of Nashville TN town called Murfreesboro TN.

 

[no green thumb]

Thx

 

[Ruderunner]

Gary, ever heard of Uncle Tony's Garage? Iirc he's near you.