Differences between revisions 17 and 40 (spanning 23 versions)
Revision 17 as of 2012-03-20 04:50:43
Size: 6686
Editor: BtTempleton
Comment: lima beans, flowers, anise and cumin
Revision 40 as of 2013-01-29 20:24:20
Size: 7442
Editor: ClintonEbadi
Comment: feasibility is important
Deletions are marked like this. Additions are marked like this.
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= Timeline =

 * February 10th: need to be germinating anything like peppers growing from seed
 * March 1st: cut off window for growing basically anything from seed
 * April 1st-10th: Last frost date, in theory

The garden beds should have soil in them before mid-March (try early March), but not mulched until after the ground warms up.
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Current status is: germinating for the first time. Anything related to keeping seedlings alive (light) is completely untested, but, assuming pieces of random advice from scattered forum postings across the Internet can be trusted, might even work. In 2012, seed propagation was an experiment in failure. Major problems:

 * Attempted to propagate too many things
 * Attempted to propagate difficult things
 * Used tiny cells to start, waited too long to transplant many, killed several during transplantation/pruning.
 * Using an air duct as a reflector hood was only effective at helping to keep them warm. We really need a sheet of mylar or something instead, or nothing.

Things that did work:

 * The seed starting mixture and fertilization regime seemed adequate.
 * Water procedure (fill tray and allow starting mixture to suck it up) worked well.
 * Plastic wrap was indeed adequate for germination. Use less water this time around however.

Possible solutions:

 * Germinate fewer things (probably herbs, a few weird peppers)
 * Have the garden ready early enough to plant things like the melons directly in the beds
 * Use the medium peat/cardboard pots to start a single seed, and instead of thinning later accept that a few will not survive hardening off.
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    * 3 Tbsp lime (antifungal properties?) when 1 part = 1 gallon
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 * [[http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100204114/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053|10inx5ft duct]] cut into 10-11" wide pieces as makeshift reflector hoods (hack! not sure if it's even worth it ...)
 * Lots of 5000K / 1500 lumen CFLs + extension cords + [[http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100170446/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053|pluggable light sockets]] (because I'm not confindent in my ability to wire things that have to be left on for 16 hours at a time without causing a fire) = 2 CFLs per tray, attached to a cheap square plug, ziptied to the copper wire supporting the reflector.
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== Seeds to Order == == Seeds to Acquire ==
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 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1347|Yellow of Parma Onion]] -- storage
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1454|Long Red Florence Onion]] -- fresh
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=394|Borettana Yellow Onion]] -- "ideal for kebabs"!
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=392|Ailsa Craig Onion]] -- fresh
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=350|Fractal broccoli!]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1507|Carrot]] -- can grow in shallow soil
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1289|Sunflowers]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=112%28OG%29|Parade Cucumber]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=112%28OG%29|Lettuce mix]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=46%28OG%29|Swiss chard]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=607|Christmas Lima Bean]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1065|Spider Flower Mix]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=784|Moonflower]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=786|Bee's Friend]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=269|Anise]] for ClintonEbadi
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=462|Cumin]] for ClintonEbadi
For 2013, it's probably too late now.

Marigolds, yarrow, potatoes?
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=== Not Germinated Yet ===

 * German Chamomile (pending indoor germination)
 * Dill (pending indoor germination)
 * German Chamomile
 * Dill
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 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1347|Yellow of Parma Onion]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=394|Borettana Yellow Onion]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=350|Romanesco Broccoli]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=112%28OG%29|Parade Cucumber]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=46%28OG%29|Five Color Silverbeet Swiss Chard]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=607|Christmas Lima Bean]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1024|SSE Lettuce Mixture]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=245%28OG%29|Waltham Butternut Squash]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=927|Early Hanover Melon]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=40%28OG%29|Amish Melon]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=645%28OG%29|Aurora Pepper]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=269|Anise]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=462|Cumin]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=1289|Sunflower Mixture]]
 * [[http://www.seedsavers.org/Details.aspx?itemNo=269|Spider Flower Mix]]
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=== Germinated === == Plants to Germinate ==
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==== Herbs ==== Easy:
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 * "True" Lavender
 * Sweet Basil
 * Oriental Basil
 * Flat Leaf Parsley
 * Chicory
 * Basil
 * Dill
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==== Peppers ==== = Transplants =
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 * Cayenne Pepper
 * Habanero Pepper
 * California Wonder Pepper
 * Sweet Banana Pepper
Given the effort required to germinate a lot of things, we'll probably have more success just acquiring transplants for most things.
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== Currently Germinating == == Needed ==
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Organized by the tray they are in. Details on start dates &c coming once ClintonEbadi is unlazy enough to double check the labels on the germination trays. I seed everything in increments of ten cell peat pots.

 * nicht!

GT,,0,, is allocated to Chamomile+Dill, GT,,1,, and GT,,2,, are unallocated

== Seedlings ==

 * ST,,0,,: 2x Chicory, 3x California Wonder Bell Pepper
   * 2012-03-03: Chicory dried out during the day! Bottom watered 3 cups
   * 2012-03-03: Transplanted first tray of Bell Peppers with significant germination
   * 2012-03-03: Fertilized lightly
   * 2012-03-05: Last two Bell Peppers germinated (also fertilized when transferring)
   * 2012-03-07: Thinned Chicory
 * ST,,1,,: 2x Sweet Banana Pepper, 2x Orange Habanero, 1x Cayenne Pepper
   * 2012-03-03: Watered
   * 2012-03-03: Fertlized lightly
   * 2012-03-05: Watered
 * ST,,2,,: 3x Sweet Basil, 2x Oriental Basil
   * 2012-03-05: Watered
   * 2012-03-09: Thinned all basil
   * 2012-03-09: Fertilized lightly
 * ST,,3,,: 3x Parsley, 2x Lavender
   * 2012-03-05: Parsley has germinated! (way, way early)... in the windowsill since I'm out of lights
 * Bell Peppers
 * Bannana Peppers
 * Parsley
 * Rosemary
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Cedar or Pine? Cedar may last longer, but this is being used at most 2 seasons... depends on the cost.

 * [[http://www.homedepot.com/Lumber-Composites-Boards/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbqmcZ1z0ywvw/R-100008466/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053|1x12x10 pine board]] is $20 for 10', but if we want 4' beds that's an awkward length
 * [[http://www.homedepot.com/Lumber-Composites-Boards/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbqmcZ1z0ywwnZ1z0ywvw/R-100077293/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053|1x10x12 pine board]] is also $20 for 12' and would get us three sides of a 4'x4' frame per board
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Soil: http://www.areamulchandsoils.com/mulch%20price%20page.htm ($20.50 per yard^^2^^) Soil: --(http://www.areamulchandsoils.com/mulch%20price%20page.htm ($20.50 per yard^^2^^))-- The minimum order is way more than we need, so it looks like we'll be buying sacks at a garden center (the overall cost is about the same, but we get half the dirt, bummer).
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Might need gravel for drainage. Strata:

 * 3" (overflowing top of bed) mulch
 * 10" compost/soil/perlite/vermiculite mixture
 * 1" of mulch
 * tilled earth
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We could make it square meter gardening, but the book recommends 4'x4' grids so we'd be losing some space, and wood in America comes in feet :(  * 5'x3' raised bed
 * '''4''' 5'x16" beds, around a 6' tall garden trellis cube made of electrical conduit (Five 10' boards)
  * Two are built, two are not (but ends cut). We might want to build only one or zero more, and instead put down weed barrier inside the trellis and setup the teepee thing for squash instead.
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Available (to us at least) board sizes are either 1x10x12 or 1x12x10; we want the beds to be at least one foot so square beds are wasting not-to-useful-sized pieces of lumber. Maybe a non-square design: 6x3 feet? 5x3? === Main Plot ===
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Assuming use of 10' lumber ... 5x3 + 5x3 + 4x4 uses 5 pieces of lumber, with 6' of the last piece unused (throw in another 5x3 bed and piece of lumber to fix that ...). Or, 6x3 + 5x3 + 4x4 with no wasted lumber. First step: allocate each square roughly so that we can visualize the garden. Unspecific order (easier to perform plant location optimization after we know how many squares of each will be grown).
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{{drawing:garden-layout.adraw}} (doesn't work, Steve's wiki is too old) || || 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 ||
|| 1 || cayenne pepper || cayenne pepper || nil || parsley (4) || marigold (5) ||
|| 2 || onion || bell pepper || cilantro (4) || onion || onion ||
|| 3 || lettuce || lettuce || onion || plum tomato || plum tomato ||

Cilantro and dill might be better off in a small bed (or buckets) of their own, allowed to self-seed throughout the summer.

=== Garden CUBE ===

 * Move butternut squash to main plot + teepee and vine eggplant instead?

|| || 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 ||
|| 1 || crookneck squash || crookneck squash || nil || nil || ''this row is actually spaced 18"'' ||
|| 2 || Amish melon || Amish melons || hanover melon || hanover melon || nil ||
|| 3 || cucumber || cucumber || lima bean || lima bean || nil ||
|| 4 || Slicing Tomato || Slicing Tomato || nil || nil || nil ||

Squash plants should be a couple feet apart and will need support for the fruit at some point.

=== Teepee ===

Kill grasses, level out a bit, and put down weed blocking fabric in the middle of the trellis. Build a 2'x2'x12" bed and a tripod for the squash.

Butternut squash?

=== Containers ===

''Take inventory of available container'' -- ClintonEbadi <<DateTime(2013-01-29T20:24:04Z)>>

Onions? More herbs?

 * Habaneros x 4
 * Bannana Peppers x 4
 * Overwintered peppers x 1
 * New bell peppers x 2
 * Aurora Peppers x ??
 * Basil x 6
 * Overwintered Rosemary x 2
 * New rosemary x 3
 * New mint x 2
 * New catnip x 1

=== In the yard somewhere ===

Possibly just mix a bunch of herb seeds together with a bit of sand, toss in a spot near the edge of the yard, and cover with a thin layer of topsoil.

 * Chamomile
 * Chicory
 * Anise
 * Cumin
 * Lavender
 * Rosemary (good hedge for the front!)

= History =

 * /GardenLog2012

----
CategoryEvergreen

Timeline

  • February 10th: need to be germinating anything like peppers growing from seed
  • March 1st: cut off window for growing basically anything from seed
  • April 1st-10th: Last frost date, in theory

The garden beds should have soil in them before mid-March (try early March), but not mulched until after the ground warms up.

Seed Propagation

In 2012, seed propagation was an experiment in failure. Major problems:

  • Attempted to propagate too many things
  • Attempted to propagate difficult things
  • Used tiny cells to start, waited too long to transplant many, killed several during transplantation/pruning.
  • Using an air duct as a reflector hood was only effective at helping to keep them warm. We really need a sheet of mylar or something instead, or nothing.

Things that did work:

  • The seed starting mixture and fertilization regime seemed adequate.
  • Water procedure (fill tray and allow starting mixture to suck it up) worked well.
  • Plastic wrap was indeed adequate for germination. Use less water this time around however.

Possible solutions:

  • Germinate fewer things (probably herbs, a few weird peppers)
  • Have the garden ready early enough to plant things like the melons directly in the beds
  • Use the medium peat/cardboard pots to start a single seed, and instead of thinning later accept that a few will not survive hardening off.

Process

  1. Staring mixture: 1 part vermiculite, 1 part perlite, 1 part spaghum peat moss
    • 3 Tbsp lime (antifungal properties?) when 1 part = 1 gallon
  2. Fill peat trays 1/2-3/4 full with mixture
  3. Put 2-3ish seeds per pot to maximize chances of success (ClintonEbadi is perhaps a too-cautious person at times)

  4. Cover to the recommended planting depth
  5. Fill drainage tray with 3 quarts water (overfilled the first with a gallon, underfilled the second with two quarts, three seems to be enough to keep everything properly moist)
  6. Insert and mark seedling trays with business cards (variety + planting date + # of seeds/cell + expected germination date)
  7. Wrap the whole thing up in plastic wrap and wait

Equipment

  • 7 drainage trays capable of holding 5x10 cell paper/peat starter cell pots (I'm going for easy transplantation here) (GTn = Germination Tray N, STn = Seedling Tray N)

  • Storage rack for seedlings and germination trays

Seeds to Acquire

For 2013, it's probably too late now.

Marigolds, yarrow, potatoes?

Available Seed

Plants to Germinate

Easy:

  • Basil
  • Dill

Transplants

Given the effort required to germinate a lot of things, we'll probably have more success just acquiring transplants for most things.

Needed

  • Bell Peppers
  • Bannana Peppers
  • Parsley
  • Rosemary

Garden

Construction

Several small raised beds due to limited areas that receive enough sunlight, root infested soil (well, living in a forest does have its disadvantages), crappy soil, large drip lines, etc.

Soil

Soil: http://www.areamulchandsoils.com/mulch%20price%20page.htm ($20.50 per yard2) The minimum order is way more than we need, so it looks like we'll be buying sacks at a garden center (the overall cost is about the same, but we get half the dirt, bummer).

Strata:

  • 3" (overflowing top of bed) mulch
  • 10" compost/soil/perlite/vermiculite mixture
  • 1" of mulch
  • tilled earth

Layout

Pending raised bed plans... at first glance, Square Foot Gardening looks like a reasonable framework to sketch things out.

  • 5'x3' raised bed
  • 4 5'x16" beds, around a 6' tall garden trellis cube made of electrical conduit (Five 10' boards)

    • Two are built, two are not (but ends cut). We might want to build only one or zero more, and instead put down weed barrier inside the trellis and setup the teepee thing for squash instead.

Main Plot

First step: allocate each square roughly so that we can visualize the garden. Unspecific order (easier to perform plant location optimization after we know how many squares of each will be grown).

1

2

3

4

5

1

cayenne pepper

cayenne pepper

nil

parsley (4)

marigold (5)

2

onion

bell pepper

cilantro (4)

onion

onion

3

lettuce

lettuce

onion

plum tomato

plum tomato

Cilantro and dill might be better off in a small bed (or buckets) of their own, allowed to self-seed throughout the summer.

Garden CUBE

  • Move butternut squash to main plot + teepee and vine eggplant instead?

1

2

3

4

5

1

crookneck squash

crookneck squash

nil

nil

this row is actually spaced 18"

2

Amish melon

Amish melons

hanover melon

hanover melon

nil

3

cucumber

cucumber

lima bean

lima bean

nil

4

Slicing Tomato

Slicing Tomato

nil

nil

nil

Squash plants should be a couple feet apart and will need support for the fruit at some point.

Teepee

Kill grasses, level out a bit, and put down weed blocking fabric in the middle of the trellis. Build a 2'x2'x12" bed and a tripod for the squash.

Butternut squash?

Containers

Take inventory of available container -- ClintonEbadi 2013-01-29 20:24:04

Onions? More herbs?

  • Habaneros x 4
  • Bannana Peppers x 4
  • Overwintered peppers x 1
  • New bell peppers x 2
  • Aurora Peppers x ??
  • Basil x 6
  • Overwintered Rosemary x 2
  • New rosemary x 3
  • New mint x 2
  • New catnip x 1

In the yard somewhere

Possibly just mix a bunch of herb seeds together with a bit of sand, toss in a spot near the edge of the yard, and cover with a thin layer of topsoil.

  • Chamomile
  • Chicory
  • Anise
  • Cumin
  • Lavender
  • Rosemary (good hedge for the front!)

History


CategoryEvergreen

EvergreenGarden (last edited 2014-04-01 11:39:39 by ClintonEbadi)