August 13 Harvest

A few vegetables harvested within this last week from my raised bed square foot garden.

One Nantes and several Kaleidoscope carrots

In this one bowl are 2.9 lbs/ 1343g of Tami G grape, Beefsteak and Rutgers tomatoes and one bell pepper.

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Produce Harvested from Garden as of July 30

I have been keeping track of all the produce harvested from my raised bed square foot garden, with the exception of lettuce. Following are the vegetable varieties and their weights harvested since the first planting/transplanting into the garden on 20 April 2013. 

Clockwise from the top - Cherokee Purple, Mortgage Lifter and Rutgers

Starting with the most total weight to the least:

1. Mortgage Lifter Tomato - Heirloom 4.291kg/9.46lbs
2. Cherokee Purple Tomato - Heirloom 3.334kg/6.82lbs
3. Tami G Grape Tomato - 1.088kg/2.23lbs
4. Rutgers Tomato - Heirloom - 0.589kg/1.21lbs
5. Anaheim Pepper - 0.305kg/0.62lbs
6. Sweet Red Bell Pepper - 0.274kg/0.56lbs
7. Sweet 100 Grape Tomato - 0.267kg/0.55lbs
8. Mucho Nacho Jalapeño Peppers - 0.255kg/0.52lbs
9. Carmen Pepper - 0.09kg/0.18lbs
10. Kaleidoscope Carrots - 0.067kg/0.14lbs

Total weight of all produce through July 29 2013 from two 4' x 4'/ 1.219m x 1.219m raised beds was 11.034kg/23.26lbs.

That is an amazing amount of produce for July here in USDA zone 6B. It must be a combination of the raised bed, non-soil planting mixture, red plastic mulch, ambient temperatures and earlier than normal planting/transplanting. No matter what the reasons I am happy with production. I have the tomato seeds running down my chin to prove it.

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Raised Bed Square Foot Garden End of June USDA 6b

Below are photographs captured in late June of one raised bed square foot vegetable garden, bed 2.

Lettuce and carrots in squares #1, #2, #5 and #6.

Lettuce and bush beans in squares #3, #4, #7 and #8.

I have been picking the outside leaves from all the lettuce plants leaving the centers to continue to grow.

A close-up of a lettuce in square #3.

These bush bean seeds were planted on Sunday, 23 June in square #8. This photograph was captured Friday, 28 June. The ambient temperature and sunshine have kicked their sprouting into high gear.

Likewise, these Easter Egg Radish seeds were planted on Sunday, 23 June in square# 5. This photo was captured on Friday 28 June. They were planted in the same square that carrots were growing for the last two months.

This is bed 2 from the ESE side at 09:52am EDT. The nearest tomato is a Tami G grape variety. The tallest is adjacent to the Tami G, a Mortgage Lifter and was at least 5'/1.5m tall. Behind the tomato trellis squares #13 and #14 were planted with small watermelons. Squares #15 and #16 were planted with cucumbers. The plants in all four squares may be suffering from diminished sunlight because of the dense foliage of the tomatoes. They are not growing as fast as I think they should.

On the whole, I am satisfied with the progress.

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Raised Beds Progress

There are two raised beds planted as square foot gardens. Each bed is measured out into 16 squares. Numbering starts with the square on the near left as square #1 and and continues on to square #4 on the lower right. The row above has square #5 on the left and #8 on the right and so on until you get to square #16 in the upper right corner.

Above is bed #2 positioned northerly of bed #1. 

On April 20, lettuce seeds were planted in squares #1-Buttercrunch, #2-Superfresh, #3-Winter Density Green Romaine(Cos) and #4-Red Rosie Red Romaine(Cos). Carrot seeds were planted in squares #5-Kaleidoscope and #6-Scarlet Nantes.

On April 20 the following squares were planted with commercially started tomato plants, #9-Beefstake, #10-Mortgage Lifter, #11-Mr. Stripey, #12-Bonnie Grape.

On May 13, the following squares were seeded with varieties of lettuce, #7-Butterhead #8-Adriana MTO, #2&3-Red and Green Romaine(Cos) Mix.

On May 27 the following squares were seeded, #13&14-Watermelon, Bush Sugar Baby, #15&16-Cucumber, Tendergreen

Above is bed #1 which is southerly of bed #2.

On April 30 commercially started tomatoes were planted, #9-Super Sweet 100 Grape, #10-Black Krim.

On May 7 the following commercially started pepper varieties were planted, #1-Carmen, #4-Sangria, #5-Anaheim, #6-Mucho Nacho, #7-Red Bell and #8-Orange Bell.

On May 13 lettuce was seeded in squares #2 and #3. Unfortunately, I didn't note the varieties. #11&12 planted with Rutgers commercially started tomatoes. 

On May 27, #13 and #14 were seeded with Sweet Burpless Cucumber.

Above planted in bed #1, square #4 is an ornamental hot pepper called Sangria that has buds and blooming flowers visible.

The tomatoes planted back on April 20 have progressed to the point that they need support. I started to rip some lumber to make four more trellises. I hope to have them finished and installed soon.

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Direct Planted Vegetable Seeds Sprouting

Vegetable seeds were directly planted into the growing medium on 20 April, 2013. These photographs were captured on 4 May, 2013, two weeks after direct planting.

  

In the plastic boxes were planted ... 

 

I don't remember exactly what I planted in those boxes. I didn't write any notes about these boxes as I did for the raised beds.

Between the open packets of seeds and the visual clues, I believe I planted bunching onions, beets, swiss chard and radishes.

In raised bed #2 the lettuce was peeking out of the slits I cut in the red plastic mulch.

The started tomato plants are showing evidence of growth. I have already been thinking about supports/trellis for the tomatoes and cucumbers to be planted in early June.

Carrots are peeking through the plastic mulch.

Close up of some lettuce.

Once the secondary leaves are opened I will begin to thin down to a few plants per slit. A little later the space will go to the strongest single plant.

I purchased two more varieties of tomato plants - Super Sweet 100, a grape tomato, and Cherokee Purple, an heirloom. I planted them in raised bed #1.

I try to keep the producer's plant ID with each plant.

I visit the home center often to look for new arrivals of tomatoes and peppers. If they ever arrive, I will round out my tomato purchases with a Rutgers variety and a Marglobe variety.

The Rutgers is suppose to be close to the taste of Jersey tomatoes, a familiar flavor from my childhood. Jerseys were tomatoes grown in New Jersey when Campbell's Soup had a tomato soup canning facility in Camden, NJ.

Marglobe I will plant for its abundance of fruit production. The grower touts 50lbs/22.7kg of Marglobes per plant per season. I will need to keep up with watering to fill 50lbs of tomatoes.

I can hardly wait to bite into one of these beauties. Teeth snapping through the red skin, juice popping into the air and seeds dribbling down my chin and onto the front of my shirt. I'll swoon from the odor of vine ripened tomato as the acid cuts into my sun parched lips. Is there anything better? Well, maybe there is. This has got to be a really close second, right?

Good gardening!

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Garden Seeds

I planned to have three plantings for this growing season.  With my square foot garden plot plan finished, I purchased some seed packets at Lowe's.  I based my decisions on several criteria.

• Type of vegetable

• Planting time

• Days to harvest

• Height of foliage

• Easy to grow

Above is my early planting grid.  At Lowe's, I purchased bunching onions, carrots and snow peas along with their inoculant.  I liked the varieties of lettuce and radishes I saw in the Johnny's seed catalog.  So I will be online to purchase the other seeds at Johnny's Select Seeds.  I looked online at seeds from Totally Tomatoes and like what I saw there, also.  Here is the problem with mail order, shipping and the price of the seeds themselves.  The difference in the price of seeds isn't that great especially if I can only get those seeds online.  However, the cost of shipping must also be considered.  I think it is better to order all your seeds from one place to keep the ratio of shipping costs to seed packet as low as possible.  At a Lowe's store the prices are lower and there is no shipping (there is the cost of gasoline, though).  Plus if I made an error in choosing seeds, I can return them without spending money for return postage.  But, Lowe's doesn't have all the varieties I desire.  So, I will order some seeds from Johnny's.

The second planting will follow the above grid.  I purchased the melon, cucumber and zucchini seeds at Lowe's.  I still need lettuce, beans, peppers, and tomatoes.

The final planting will follow the above grid.  I will have enough seeds remaining from the early planting of carrots, lettuce and radishes.  I need to add broccoli and cabbage to my order.


Lowe's also sells vegetable plants when the weather warms a bit.  I like the plants sold under the Bonnie Plants label.  I perused their website and chose tomato and pepper plants that I wish to purchase.  I talked to the Assistant Store Manager in charge of the seasonal area at Lowe's to see if they can request the kinds of plants to put into their store.  I was informed that Bonnie Plants places their plants in Lowe's on a consignment agreement.  Which means that Bonnie Plants decides which plants to deliver to Lowe's.  I guess I need to contact Bonnie Plants.


Here are the Bonnie Plants I would like to purchase for my garden.


Tomato
• Mortgage Lifter 
• Black Krim 
• Black Cherry 
• Super Sweet 100 
• Sweet Cherry

Pepper
• Cajun Belle 
• Cubanelle

That is my plan.  I have about one month before my early planting.  I will order the seeds from Johnny's and they should arrive in time. If not, I will look for seeds at other local stores.  I am sure I can find seeds there that are close to my criteria.


I will email Bonnie Plants and see if I can request the above plants delivered to my nearest Lowe's.  I have one month to ready the soil and prepare my supports and stretch string to delineate the grid.


Are you planning your garden?  Leave a comment and tell us about your 2012 garden.


PS - At the last minute I found a free shipping code 12-1005 that saved me $10.00 at Johnny's.


©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved