My COVID-19 garden

[Durgan]

I only grow two or three rows about 1.5 feet apart and mark the seed with a fiber rod. I dig about a foot around the rod and seldom spear the tubers.
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31 August 2019 Potatoes (Harvest)
Posted on August 31, 2019 by Durgan
http://durgan.org/2019/August 2019/31 August 2019 Potatoes/HTML/ 31 August 2019 Potatoes
Eleven potato plants were dug a total of 27 pounds for cold room storage. Five Norland and six Yukon Gold. The yield was under 3 pounds per plant, which is low, expectation is from 4 to 8, but the quality is perfect no hollow centers. A stake at planting marks the seed potato and this facilitates hand digging, since the vegetation is absent when harvesting.New potatoes always grow just above the seed in about a foot diameter.

 

[Richandtd]

Years ago I got a rear tine tiller and put my rows wide enough apart to run the tiller between but that was a lot more work than keeping the rows 4 foot apart and tilling between rows with the lil tractor. Found on my property was a single row potato digger and and old non 3 point hitch disk to pull with the tractor but just using the turn over plow and the tiller work better for me. I’d be happy to see any pictures you want to share. I have no claim to be an expert at anything dealing with a garden and so I planted the beans IAW the instructions on the package. When my tomatoes do get to the garden they will be 4 foot apart in the rows with a lil dill between each at the 2 foot mark and I’ve got 22 1/2 feet of

I'd love to see a picture of that potato digger..if you don't mind. I've been using a single middle buster and/or shovel but too many cut potatoes for me. Thanks.

My post hole digger is laying up against it. I was told by the neighbo that it was a converted single row peanut digger. One year I used it to dig up 300 plants. And it was all my lil 17 hp tractor struggled to complete but it managed.
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[Meadowlark]

Thanks. I've never seen one of those...but looks like it would work. I'm assuming one could not find that at your typical tractor implements store, LOL.

 

[Richandtd]

Getting bigger every day

 

[Richandtd]

l’ve got 48 bamboo poles in the ground waiting for these lil tomato plants to get big and strong enough for planting. Still have 52 more bamboo poles to set in the other garden. About 50 pepper plants sweet, hot and regular are still under the grow lights. So do I sprinkle a little seven dust in the hole when planting with a little more around the plant?

 

[Richandtd]

The 104 tomato plants need to get just a little bigger to be put in the 2 gardens they each have their own bamboo pole sitting in a watering trough.

 

[oneeye]

Wow, you've knocked it out of the ball park! Don't let anyone tell you how to start seeds or grow seedlings because you are kicking ###!

 

[Richandtd]

Planting and watering the companion seeds for the tomato gardens putting in carrots, basil and radishes between where the tomatoes will be planted

And this is how I water

 

[Durgan]

I see you have plenty of trees. You do a wonderful job. Maybe too much labor.

May I strongly suggest placing wood chip mulch all over the garden. Bare ground grows nothing. I started using much a few years ago and never looked back. I get ten yards delivered for $135 into my driveway and disperse it by wheelbarrow.

I only have slightly less than 1/2 an acre which is plenty for growing for two. Only about 3000 square feet under cultivation. The mulch has been composted about a year and it is worked under each year and almost completely disappears. I use it primarily for moisture retention.

 

[Richandtd]

I run my tiller between the rows and then use a 4 foot landscaping rake to pull fresh tilled soil up the mounds and that controls most of the weeds. You are correct it is a lot of work but it’s a labor of love. I was not planning a garden this year but with all this virus stuff I’m keeping busy just wife and me. I grew up in the city so I don’t have much of a back ground in gardening. When my Dad was gardening I was chasing girls.

 

[Durgan]

You do very well. I hope you haven't given up on the girls. What do you do with the abundance of what you grow? Your seedlings are marvelous.

With the Covid 19 and the coldest Spring I have ever had in this area, I haven't got anthing in yet.


I pressure can slurry/juice all and sundry. My unique method.

 

[Meadowlark]

Your schedule is almost opposite mine here in zone 8. I just harvested and canned carrots and you are just now planting. I'm in the process of harvesting potatoes and sounds like you haven't planted yours yet. Soon we will be canning tomatoes and you haven't put yours out yet.

Interesting to compare. Proper use of equipment reduces the labor in a large garden to a fraction of what a small garden without equipment requires. My compliments to you on your use of your equipment.

Perhaps you will find the next pictures of my old, old 6 sweep cultivator on the back of my garden tractor. I can cultivate my entire garden in significantly less time than it takes to weed a section of a typical small garden.

 

[Richandtd]

That is quite interesting way to weed but with my 6 foot bamboo poles for supporting the tomatoes wouldn’t work for be. These are seeds that were in the refrigerator for the last 5 years and we probably got carried away but so be it. I do enjoy not watching any TV news and it is so peaceful working my garden that wasn’t planned for. I do happen to like spaghetti but I do realize that I’ll have hopefully a lot of tomatoes that will need a new home and my Ruritan Club has a lot of older people that also like tomatoes so there it is. And it is fun to keep posting what’s going on. Hope you and your family are all doing good.

 

[Mak33]

Amazing, great job

 

[Meadowlark]

That is quite interesting way to weed but with my 6 foot bamboo poles for supporting the tomatoes wouldn’t work for be....

My tomatoes are approaching 6 ft high and 3 ft wide now and I just lay out my rows accordingly in advance and run the cultivator on outside of the plants are can be seen in the second picture above. Sure saves a lot of work. I believe that cultivator was hand made by some enterprising gardener possibly as much as a century ago. It totally obliterates weeds quickly.