We planted today

SilverSage

SilverSage

Resident Crone
So we spent the day planting...............

Lettuce - 2 kinds
Arugula
Tomatoes - 2 kinds
Herbs: Basil
Parsley - 2 kinds
Dill
Cilantro
Thyme

The chives and rosemary are still around from past years.

We'll probably add more next weekend.
 
buzzard767

buzzard767

golfaknifeaholic
Gold Site Supporter
The warm weather has finally arrived in Florida. Good call on planting the tomatoes because of the recent price increases. DW and I can't do much as we are still in between houses. We do have a smallish Meyer lemon tree in a pot and several herbs growing. Earlier today DW mentioned getting some tomato plants.

How large a garden area do you have, SS?
 
Mr. Green Jeans

Mr. Green Jeans

New member
It is time for early crops in my neck of the woods. I got beet seeds in last week and if the rains hold off, peas Monday or Tuesday. I have heard of possible vegetable seed shortages. Haven't experienced that yet but I can say some seed prices (peppers for instance) have jumped up in price.
 
SilverSage

SilverSage

Resident Crone
buzzard767 said:
How large a garden area do you have, SS?
Click to expand...

I don't really have an 'area' Buzz. The rosemary bush is next to the garage side door. The lettuce is planted outside the lanai door. The herbs are in a patch between the pigmy palm and the giant scheffelera, and the tomatoes are over beyond the crepe myrtle. The 5 citrus trees line the rear property line. I am hoping to put in some Florida bluebery bushes along the back fence between the meyer lemon and the kumquat tree.

I just plant stuff everywhere!
 
Maverick2272

Maverick2272

Stewed Monkey
Super Site Supporter
We are just starting to plan out our area and what we are going to plant this year. On the list so far: Butternut Squash, several types of peppers, collared greens, kale, tomatoes, and hopefully some more lettuce, herbs, maybe scallions if I can fit them in.
 
suziquzie

suziquzie

New member
I'm jealous. :(
The closest I can get to planting right now is starting my seeds.... but I guess that's better then nothing!
YAY DIRT! heehee :)
 
Fisher's Mom

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Y'all are inspiring me! Until I got my aerogarden, I have never successfully grown anything. Now, I can't imagine not having fresh basil available to me all the time. So maybe I'll venture out into the dirt now. I've heard that cucumbers are pretty easy to grow. Is that true? Any advice for somebody looking to get dirty for the first time?
 
BreezyCooking

BreezyCooking

Banned
Fisher's Mom said:
Y'all are inspiring me! Until I got my aerogarden, I have never successfully grown anything. Now, I can't imagine not having fresh basil available to me all the time. So maybe I'll venture out into the dirt now. I've heard that cucumbers are pretty easy to grow. Is that true? Any advice for somebody looking to get dirty for the first time?
Click to expand...

Not necessarily true. You need to do some reading &/or internet research. One person could have cucumbers coming out of the ears; another could have yellowed withered leaves covered with Cucumber Beetles. Unfortunately there really are no "easy" or "difficult" vegetables. It all boils down to how diligent you are as to the care each veggie needs.
 
Fisher's Mom

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Damn - I knew there had to be a catch. LOL

OK, so I think I'll choose a couple of things and read up a lot so I know what to do and see what happens. Thanks, BC.
 
C

ChowderMan

Pizza Chef
Super Site Supporter
FM -

it's not quite so dire. you do need to keep in mind your location - Texas tends to the strong sun, hot and dry side. the 'dry' you can overcome with a garden hose. the 'too much of a good thing' sun is trickier for some crops.

so one theory is: start early and beat the heat - you can basically retreat in July . . . come Sept you can usually get a second crop as your frost free season is also longer.

easy stuff to grow
peas - start 'em early - they won't take heat but you can get a nice batch before that happens
beans - green, wax, limas (a fresh lima is a whole different bean . . .)
leaf lettuces & green onions/scallions - get them going early because they won't take the heat
zucchini - one, two plants - they are prolific
cucumbers are easy - but don't like getting dried out - they get stunted and the fruits get bitter
tomatoes
peppers of every sort
sweet corn - but be aware it takes up a lot of space vs yield - plant in blocks, not rows

my best tip for hot areas is mulch mulch mulch. use grass clippings, no grass? - use straw - 4-6 inches deep. helps enormously with keeping an even soil moisture and not cooking the plant roots. I often buy straw bales, run it through my "leaf shredder" to make it a bit finer.

some not so good choices for the beginner in Texas:
leaf crops - spinach, kale, etc don't do heat well - they'll bolt.
same for "head lettuces"
the crucifer family: broccoli, cauliflower, et al, need a longer growing time and don't tolerate heat - prone to cabbage worms
potatoes - don't take heat well - need to go in early in your area
brussel sprouts - prone to aphids - they can take out your whole crop
 
Cooksie

Cooksie

Well-known member
Site Supporter
Fisher's Mom said:
Y'all are inspiring me! Until I got my aerogarden, I have never successfully grown anything. Now, I can't imagine not having fresh basil available to me all the time. So maybe I'll venture out into the dirt now. I've heard that cucumbers are pretty easy to grow. Is that true? Any advice for somebody looking to get dirty for the first time?
Click to expand...

Chowderman mentioned garden hoses. You might want to try soaker hoses so that you can get deep watering with less run-off. I had to water container tomatoes every day last year, and they really could have used a twice a day watering.
 
GotGarlic

GotGarlic

New member
Lots of good advice from Chowderman, FM. I'd also suggest that the crops that won't do well in the summer could be planted in the fall for a late fall harvest, and here in southeastern Va., we often have different types of lettuce, Swiss chard, etc., through the entire winter. We just harvest the outer leaves and let them continue to grow. With the freezing weather and repeated snowstorms this year, it didn't last as long, but that's not typical.

Also, herbs are pretty easy to grow, especially rosemary, thyme and sage - they don't like too much water or fertilizer. And we have a bay tree out in the herb garden that's about 15 feet tall. Mint should be put in a pot because it can be invasive and take over your garden. I keep mine in a terra-cotta strawberry jar.
 
High Cheese

High Cheese

Saucier
Fisher's Mom said:
Damn - I knew there had to be a catch. LOL

OK, so I think I'll choose a couple of things and read up a lot so I know what to do and see what happens. Thanks, BC.
Click to expand...

I also found that it's not only your region, but your actual soil and sunlight available in your particular yard. I experimented with a few diffrent crops over the past few years and found a handful that responeded well to my soil. For instance, everyone says it easy to grow bell peppers, well I can't grow them for crap. Someone I know across town can get a bazillion peppers and I might get 2 from each plant. Lettuce, tomatoes, eggplant and a few other all grow very well for me so that's what I'll be focusing on this year. Then only set aside a small area for experimenting with new plants. I could go crazy and get my soil tested, yadda, yadda, yadda but I like to keep it simple.

So don't get disheartened if something that "should" grow in your area doen't do well.
 
Fisher's Mom

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Thanks, everyone! This is such good information. So maybe I'll plant 5 or 6 things and see which ones do the best here in San Antonio in my crappy soil. I'll take pictures and post them when/if anything grows.
 
M

Meme4251

New member
FM, when I use to have a garden years back, I had good luck w/shallots, squash, green beans, and tomatoes. Trying to think what else cause I had usually a large garden when we built our home out in the country. If I can get anything to come up out of the ground, I know damn good and well you can....LOL....If I can think of the others, I'll let you know....Take care dear!:)
 
Fisher's Mom

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Thanks, Meme!!! I was thinking about green beans and tomatoes and rosemary. I would love to have sweet corn, but I have a lot of raccoons. I'm afraid they would like corn. LOL
 
vyapti

vyapti

New member
I've got seeds beginning to sprout and all but one of my raised beds built. Not the clock's ticking. I've got to build one brick bed around my brick patio, bring in and haul 5 or 6 yards of dirt (including the lawn area) and have an obligatory family vacation--all before I can plant my seeds, hopefully in early April.

Fisher's Mom said:
Thanks, everyone! This is such good information. So maybe I'll plant 5 or 6 things and see which ones do the best here in San Antonio in my crappy soil. I'll take pictures and post them when/if anything grows.
Click to expand...
That's my approach. Each of the last couple years, I plant a little of everything and see what grows. Last year I had a zucchini plant that grew all the way across a 12' bed and gave me a whopping three zucchini ... but I had tomatoes coming out my ears, so I'm happy. This winter I planted cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. The cauliflower died, but watching the Brussels sprouts bud is totally amazing. I never knew how those tiny cabbages grow.
 
M

Meme4251

New member
FM, I didn't never have any luck w/my corn and never grew any herbs but tomatoes will do very well. Try you some different types of tomatoes as I always got mine at Walmart here and they had so many different types to choose from. You can't go wrong either. Like I said, beans, cucumbers, onions, and (especially yellow which I prefer the white), oh, and the tomatoes grow very well down here and should in your area I would think. You are more than welcome.....Meme
 
Deelady

Deelady

New member
I am anxious to see what plants revive from my planting last year! I know they wont all return but I'm hoping enough do since I doubt I will get to plant again this season. But a good amount of Tulips have already been popping up from nowhere!! My favorite flower :D :D
Oh and I can't wait to get a basil plant for the season....YUM!
 
Maverick2272

Maverick2272

Stewed Monkey
Super Site Supporter
Fisher's Mom said:
Thanks, everyone! This is such good information. So maybe I'll plant 5 or 6 things and see which ones do the best here in San Antonio in my crappy soil. I'll take pictures and post them when/if anything grows.
Click to expand...

You can always compost to improve the soil, that is what we did here. In some places the soil was like clay, so we planted natives first, then after a couple of years dug them out and put in the veggie garden. After a couple of years with the natives there, the soil had turned rich and black.

I remember one trick we did growing up concerning tomato plants. We would take the large coffee cans, remove the bottom, then push it about a third of the way into the soil before planting. When it came time to watering, we just filled the can up and let it soak in. The water did not run off nearly as much, and we always got a great crop of tomatoes.
 
buckytom

buckytom

Grill Master
we get lots of grape tomatoes regenerating every year, too. along with lettuces, kale, parsley, and pumpkins.

i try to scoop some of them to be replanted in more orderly rows. the rest get yanked, turned in, or just trampled.
 
SilverSage

SilverSage

Resident Crone
I had rosemary, chives, parsley and leaf lettuce all come back up from last year. I really don't know how they made it through the hard winter we had this year, but they did!
 
SilverSage

SilverSage

Resident Crone
We got our first tomato of the season! :clap:

Unfortunately, some little critter got to it before we did. So we just cut that side off and threw it in the compost bin; he'll get plenty to eat there!

Here's our half.
 

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Keltin

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
SilverSage said:
We got our first tomato of the season! :clap:

Unfortunately, some little critter got to it before we did. So we just cut that side off and threw it in the compost bin; he'll get plenty to eat there!

Here's our half.
Click to expand...

Woo-hoo! That is one beautiful mater! I'll take a 1/2 dozen please!!! Great job! :clap:
 
Fisher's Mom

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Well, I cleaned out my aerogarden last night. The last batch of basil had finally bolted and I'm ready to start a new crop.
 
Mama

Mama

Queen of Cornbread
Site Supporter
SilverSage said:
We got our first tomato of the season! :clap:

Unfortunately, some little critter got to it before we did. So we just cut that side off and threw it in the compost bin; he'll get plenty to eat there!

Here's our half.
Click to expand...

Nice looking tomato SS! I hope that wasn't those dadgum tomato hornworms that got your tomato SS. They got ours a few years ago and every time I thought we had gotten rid of them, they'd pop up again.

We have a small backyard garden where we planted 3 kinds of tomatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, green peppers, jalapeno peppers and banana peppers. I've got blossoms on the tomato plants but no tomatoes yet.
 
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