Vegetable garden

"cathyxyz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Sheldon said:

cathyxyz wrote:

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Or the birds get to the seedlings, as was the case with us. We have
enclosed our veggie garden with very fine shade-cloth over a framework
- keeps birds out and lets the sun in. 😉

<snipping>

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That's too much like work and wasted dollars... put up a few decoy owls
and whirligigs... they look really k-ewl and they keep the mauraders
well at bay.

<snip some more>
We have real owls. They are obviously not "union members" cos they did
NOTHING.... 🙂 Maybe some "Sheldon-puppets" would do the trick 🙂 heh heh heh

For deer there's no getting

Quoted message said:

around it, you'll need a fence.

We have an electric one... that seems to keep deer out (or bokke as they are
known here... 😉

Unless I had a very small garden or

Quoted message said:

wanted to protect a few individual plants but covering an entire garden
with netting is something I wouldn't consider.

We only covered 12 x 30 feet... just to give the seedlings a chance... before
moving them onto the 25 acre plot (that we use the trimmer-from-h*ll on) ....
😉

Cheers
Cathy - who is still researching her family trees, or is that roots?

WOW! The most we have to contend with are green fly and squirels! Definitly not
exotic! 🙂

Sarah

Terry Davis said:

I just purchased a home in the country and I am thinking of starting a
small garden to grow my own veggies. I have a wife and a daughter so
the garden will feed 3 people. Is this idea economically feasible or
would I be better off just buying my veggies at the market?

How many in this group grow your own veggies for cooking?

Terry

We've been married almost 39 years and have always had a veg garden.
When we lived on the east coast, we grew everything from asparagus to
zucchini in a 40x120 ft. garden. Potatoes, four or five kinds of
tomatoes, strawberries, summer and winter squash, many kinds of peppers,
cantaloupe, three kinds of corn, etc.

Now that we are in Colorado with its iffy climate for gardening (with
snow possibly as late as June 8 and as early as Sept 2.) our garden is
tiny--tomatoes, golden zucchini, and flowers. Oh, and a whiskey barrel
full of herbs.

It's worth having a garden if you enjoy puttering around and picking
things you grew yourself. If it's just another dreaded yard chore,
forget it.

gloria p

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Sheldon

<snip>For deer there's no getting
around it, you'll need a fence. <snip>

6' high - minimum
Speaking from experience.
Dee

We've discovered that deer don't like to jump into small, enclosed
spaces. So a 5' fence will keep them out of a 10'X10' garden. A
friend had a big garden about 8'X50', but the deer wouldn't jump in
because they didn't like the skinny, enclosed area. Maybe we're just
lucky, or there's plenty of other forage, but so far so good for the
last several years. (Okay, blast away, but that's what we've
discovered with our deer.) I was out on my deck last night and saw the
first buck of the season munching next door. I went out and set up a
temporary fence around my tomatoes, the real fence is one chore for
this weekend.

On the subject of saving money, if you figure in your time, you're
probably buying expensive vegies. But I'd say you can save money on
herbs. A small bunch of basil is $1.50 or more in the market. Just
plant it and leave it. The deer won't touch the herbs, so that's not a
problem. Just before dinner, go out and pick what you need for that
dish. Rosemary takes care of itself, mints do fine with some water,
oregeno needs water, but not much else, and fresh herbs cost an arm and
a leg in the stores. And fresh herbs are never very fresh in the store.
So if you don't have much space, or even just some containers, herbs
might be the best bang for the buck.

Ken

Terry Davis said:

I just purchased a home in the country and I am thinking of starting a
small garden to grow my own veggies. I have a wife and a daughter so
the garden will feed 3 people. Is this idea economically feasible or
would I be better off just buying my veggies at the market?

How many in this group grow your own veggies for cooking?

It depends on how big your garden is, how much work you want to put into it
and how much you can put up for use later. When I was a kid we used to get
enough beans out of our garden that we could freeze them and have enough
beans for dinners several times per week for the rest of the year. Corn is
cheap and easy to grow and has become absurdly expensive around here over
the last few years. Tomatoes also tend to provide a real bounty.

The best thing about growing your own vegetables is the access to garden
fresh produce. Some things, like root vegetables are sometimes better after
a period of storage, but most things are a lot better fresh out of the
garden. Asparagus is right at the top of the list for me, followed by peas,
beans, tomatoes, strawberries and raspberries. Sometimes it is more about
the freshness and quality than savings.

If you have to buy a rototiller, you might as well get a good one and make
the garden bigger. It will save you countless hours of heavy digging.

Terry Davis said:

I just purchased a home in the country and I am thinking of starting a
small garden to grow my own veggies. I have a wife and a daughter so
the garden will feed 3 people. Is this idea economically feasible or
would I be better off just buying my veggies at the market?

How many in this group grow your own veggies for cooking?

Add us to the list of those who grow their own. As is clear from the
responses so far, your veg and herb garden(s) can be large or small, a
lot of work or a little, and the varieties grown are limited only by
your climate. (don't bother trying to fight that, by the way) My
advice is to start small and see whether you like it. It's fairly
simple to get started and doesn't have to be a lot of work. There are
endless resources of information out there. You'll know soon enough
whether it becomes a chore or a pleasure. If the former, then say the
hell with it, if the latter, you'll still be doing it when the mortgage
is finally paid off. -aem

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Terry Davis) said:

I just purchased a home in the country and I am thinking of starting a
small garden to grow my own veggies. I have a wife and a daughter so
the garden will feed 3 people. Is this idea economically feasible or
would I be better off just buying my veggies at the market?

How many in this group grow your own veggies for cooking?

Terry

Our yard is short on sunny spots, so we grow herbs instead of
vegetables. i have parsley, mint, thyme, and chives in a large
windowbox, a large pot of oregano, and a rosemary bush that we
inherited. Later on I'll plant some basil seedlings.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

Our garden consist of just 1.5 acres,but not that much work,because
we still have the four tractors/ implements from when we planted a whole
lot more.We don't use weed killers or chemical pesticides and like
knowing our produce is 'clean'.

Cindy Fuller said:

Our yard is short on sunny spots, so we grow herbs instead of
vegetables. i have parsley, mint, thyme, and chives in a large
windowbox, a large pot of oregano, and a rosemary bush that we
inherited. Later on I'll plant some basil seedlings.

Good luck with the basil. It needs lots of light, especially of it is the
purple ruffled variety.

Puester said:

It's worth having a garden if you enjoy puttering around and picking
things you grew yourself. If it's just another dreaded yard chore,
forget it.

I used to like getting stuff fresh from the garden, but never much
appreciated the work involved. I used to spend at least an hour every night
weeding and cultivating. The soil here is very rich. After all that work
through the week I would go away for the weekend and when I got back the
garden was overgrown with weeds again.

I once asked my wife to hoe the weeds in the garden while I was at work. I
came home to find nice straight rows of weeds. She didn't know the
difference between weeds and bean plants. She was so out of touch with
gardening that she would go out to the fruit and vegetable garden and buy the
same stuff that we were growing in the garden. Then the black walnut trees
got big enough that they ruined the garden in that spot.

My vegetable garden is now restricted to a corner of the flower garden where
I grow herbs and a few tomato plants. In one corner of the yard I have a
bunch of raspberry canes, and last weekend I planted to rhubarb plants. I
think my wife has the right answer. When the stuff is ripe in the garden it
is dirt cheap at the neighbours' vegetable stands.

T said:

Our garden consist of just 1.5 acres.

*Just* 1.5 acres, why that's some 65,000 square feet, enough space to
grow a multitude of crops for about 20 large families... what do you do
with it all... I'm serious... because I have a hard time using all I
grow on *just* 2,500 square feet, and I give away about half to
neighbors.

Sheldon

Dave Smith said:

Puester said:

It's worth having a garden if you enjoy puttering around and picking
things you grew yourself. If it's just another dreaded yard chore,
forget it.

I used to like getting stuff fresh from the garden, but never much
appreciated the work involved. I used to spend at least an hour every night
weeding and cultivating. The soil here is very rich. After all that work
through the week I would go away for the weekend and when I got back the
garden was overgrown with weeds again.

I once asked my wife to hoe the weeds in the garden while I was at work. I
came home to find nice straight rows of weeds. She didn't know the
difference between weeds and bean plants.

You need to become familiar with "weed block"... Leevalley.com has the
best, BEST quality by far. I carpet my entire garden with weed block,
virtually zero weeding. I also use weed block over the entire surface
of all my shrub and flower beds, and around every recently planted
tree. It may at first seem costly but it lasts a long, looong, loooong
time, and saves innumerable hours of boring weeding. I'm not even
careful with preserving, I leave my veggie weed block down all winter
and then roll it up for tilling come spring, and then put it back...
and still it's very serviceable 10, 12, 15 years.

http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.aspx?c=2&p=10350&cat=2,2300,33272

Sheldon

On the other hand....last year I bought 600 concrete blocks to build raised
beds in which I'm playing with square-foot gardening. There's no way that
I'm going to save money there.

Maybe not that year, Bubba, but it is a one-time expense. After the beds
are constructed all you have to buy is seeds! The first year you might have
spent $600+ but if you only spend $10 a year on subsequent years over a ten
year period that averages out to only $70 per year. I'm sure that most
people spend more than that on produce annually.

chula

Sarah wrote:

<snipping>

Quoted message said:

WOW! The most we have to contend with are green fly and squirels! Definitly not
exotic! 🙂

Sarah

Never a dull moment around here... 😉 We don't have any lions though...
(well I haven't seen any yet).... 😉
Cheers
Cathy

--
I don't suffer from insanity - I enjoy every minute of it

All the posters have given you great advice. I want to toss my half-penny
in too. From your post, it sounds like you have not gardened before. If
this is true, my advice would be to start very, very small. There is quite
a trick to making things grow and to being prepared for all that can go
wrong. Engage these folks here in in-depth suggestions and ideas. Read
every thing you can and check out the Web.

Look around your yard. See a rabbit? No. Well, you will see an army of
them once you plant something. Got birds, snakes, grasshoppers, crickets?
Live in fire ant country? Ever see Bambi around? Got beautiful
butterflies? Like escargot? Wildlife is a wonderful thing unless you have
a garden.

What kind of soil do you have? What do you need to add to it? Got
nitrogen? Different veggies and fruits need different things. Melons need
hills of sandy loam. Blackberries need a high water table. Can you drain
your garden if you get too much rain? Can you water it if you dont get
enough?

What kind of a dad are you? Can you tell the difference between your brand
new green babies and a killer weed when they pop their little heads out of
the soil? Do you know which babies need to be staked and which ones need
lots of space to crawl along the ground?

How much do you plant? One stalk of corn will give you 3 4 ears. 1
cucumber vine will give you a ton of cukes. Well, not a ton, maybe, but it
sure seems like it!

Ahhhhh, yes, the joys of gardening! Im not trying to discourage you, but
there is a lot more to it than tossing a few seeds in the ground. Thats
why I say, if you are new to this, start small. Fresh fruits and veggies
are without compare and it would be a great family hobby and wonderful for
your child to see and learn.

Elaine, too

Shaun aRe said:

"T" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Fresh garden veggies are a whole lot better than those shipped in to
stores.My wife canned 40 qts.of tomatoes last year.As soon as corn is
picked,the sugar starts turning to starch and by the time it arrives at
the outlet,it has lost taste.Few people know this,because not many have
tasted fresh picked corn.

Heheh, so true! We have a corn BBQ on the plot itself at least once a year
around corn harvest time, just to taste it at its very best - delicious! A
real eye opener for me the first time that was...

Quoted message said:

Shaun aRe

I totally agree! When I was a kid, my grandfather would say, "put the
water on to boil. I'm going to pull some corn." My grandmother would put
the pot on and we would head to the back porch ready to shuck the minute
he got back. There was nothing like it. There still isn't. Oh, and those
tomatoes! One year we had "tommy toes". My friends and I would eat them
right off the vine. My grand mother said there wouldn't be enough for a
"mess" if we didn't stay out of them. I must have been 6 or 7 when my
friends and I started taking a butcher knife to the garden, pulled a
watermellon off the vine, sat down right there and cut it open, sliced it
up, and ate it. All my grandmother said was, "you kids be sure to bring
that butcher knife back, ya hear? ... and watch for snakes!" Geez, times
have changed!

What wonderful memories!

Elaine, too.

T said:

Fresh garden veggies are a whole lot better than those shipped in to
stores.My wife canned 40 qts.of tomatoes last year.As soon as corn is
picked,the sugar starts turning to starch and by the time it arrives at
the outlet,it has lost taste.Few people know this,because not many have
tasted fresh picked corn.

I used to work for Pioneer HiBred International - the largest corn
producting entity in the world. Every Friday in season, the guys would
go to the sweet corn field and pick a pick-up load and then we'd meet
at the local park and BBQ corn. Nothing better! And they grew DeKalb
sweet corn because it was better than own own! Then we'd all take
grocery sacks of left-overs home for the weekend. Nothing better than
fresh Iowa-grown sweet corn.

-L.

Good question,Sheldon.We used to sell fresh veggies to a friend who
owned a restaurant on Cape Cod,he loved our tomatoes & corn(we grow the
SE type that retains its sugar long after being picked).We also had
local people who liked organic produce AND,with five kids and their
families,we have no trouble getting rid of our veggies.Also have 40
blueberry bushes,which we share with the birds🙂Ah,good o'l blueberry
pie.Also some fruit trees,like apple,cherry,peach plus American black
walnut trees.Wife still cans and vacuum packs some veggies for
freezing.Remember,tomatoes are sun lovers,won't well in shady
locations.

Yes,Elaine,times have changed,not for the better in many cases.We
enjoy living out in the 'country' and we feel our kids grew up better
because of it,not afraid of hard work.Are they successful,well their all
working,one makes $106,000 a year.No poblem with drugs,one smokes,one
has a beer once in awhile.My wife and i don't drink or smoke,never have.

[email hidden] (Terry Davis) wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

I just purchased a home in the country and I am thinking
of starting a
small garden to grow my own veggies. I have a wife and a
daughter so the garden will feed 3 people. Is this idea
economically feasible or would I be better off just buying
my veggies at the market?

do you want fresh veggies in season or do you want to
can/freeze/preserve all your veggies?
if you're a novice gardener, you might want to start small &
just grow for in-season use. you can always make a garden
bigger, but weeding & keeping up a big garden may be just too
overwhelming as far as time & effort if you're just starting.
my main veggie garden is 60 feet by 150 feet. i'm a slave to
weeding (not this year! i put cardboard & mulch over the
entire thing. hopefully i'll have some time for the other
gardens now). i also have a cutting garden (flowers) & a
kitchen garden & herb garden. we're thinking of putting in a
pond & converting a half acre of soggy ground to a bog garden
this year (hence the need to have time for other things
besides weeding<g>😉
for ease of growing, and an attractive garden, i highly
reccomend Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew.
depending on your location, you may be a bit late for
planting some veggies this year though, but you can certainly
get the bed ready for late crops & next year.

Quoted message said:

How many in this group grow your own veggies for cooking?

i have 17 varieties of tomatoes started (plus pumpkins,
watermelons, peppers, etc)... it's been too wet to get peas in
& i'm bummed about that! i'm hoping it stops raining *real
soon now* or i'll be starting my corn indoors too :p
oh, one tip: do NOT EVER plant more than one zuchinni! i'm
serious.
lee

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

cathyxyz said:

Shaun aRe said:

....... and if you're like me, you'll cry when a whole
bunch
of your seedlings suddenly up and die for some reason
and there's no time to plant more for the season,
heheheheheh!

Or the birds get to the seedlings, as was the case with
us. We have enclosed our veggie garden with very fine
shade-cloth over a framework - keeps birds out and lets
the sun in. 😉

That's too much like work and wasted dollars... put up a
few decoy owls and whirligigs... they look really k-ewl and
they keep the mauraders well at bay. Cabelas.com has the
best deal on owls and there are many websites selling very
nicely made whiligigs at good prices, or there may be local
craftsmen selling them close to where you live.

good advice Sheldon... but don't forget to move the owls &
whirligigs around. if the varmits get too used to seeing them
they start to ignore them.
also, AOL CDs make pretty good bird scaring devices. anything
you can string up that moves & flashes seems to work, at least
for a while.
i tie bits of holographic ribbon in & around the blueberries
& i don't lose many to birds (goats & llamas love blueberries
so we had to double gate the pasture. Stupid Goat uses his
horns to open the regular gate latch...)
lee