i just purchased a Russian variety that appears to grow
unbelievably huge tomato's with streaks of a dark color
on them like swirls or stripes....interesting but the vigor
and SIZE of the flowers are giant compared to say big boy
or better boy (the standards) as in twice the size of those.

The wife boogied to Florida and left me a surprise on the cellar steps
a small basket because she stole a parts box to pack something and transferred the contents to a small round basket....unknown to me!
well i stepped on the edge of it and nearly went head over into a roll down the stairs but luckily had a firm grip on the railing. Still i rolled my left ankle
semi spraining it... so now i'm moving yards of loam and compost 50/50 mix with two sprained ankles... sitting here for a moment to put on a spandex brace
on what was.... my good ankle :doh: tons of transplanting to do. yep
~
I don't think you'll get blossom rot joe and they say epsom salts gives them a quick magnesium fix that prevents blossom drop.... look it up on utube

Where did you buy this ?

And correct me if I am wrong but , just getting loam and a bunch of buvung (sp) 4.99 20lb bags cheaper and some 10-10-10 as I did way cheaper :)

purchased at Zecco brothers in Northboro on rt 20 right beside that place with the gigantic rooster .
A 3 yard minimum for deliveries but they have compost that is screened and mixed with the loam for the mix.
508 393 8240.. i got 4 yards.... which filled that bed in the picture
that's ...............4' feet wide 30' feet long by ten inches deep...
~
so figure out how many of those bags stacked to reach a ten inch height
and measure the bags for length and width and then do the math
Peter.

I hope you are right... I've been through it before...

Take care of that Ankle... I re-aggravated my bad knee( MCL sprain) last Sunday... too many hours at sea... I am walking like Walter Brennan ( stumpy)...( I believe the movie was Rio Lobo)

LOL JOE...i walk like WALTER (Stumpy) on a good day

to much sea time.... yep you go to step and the boat turns/tilts towards ya and it's pull city
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...ob1/Stumpy.png
as for the ankle roll i'm workin through it...
================================================== ================================================== =======
oh BTW way back in the good ole days Walter Brennan, a friend of my Father who was a senoir vice pres @ state street bank in Boston
would have Walter visit with him and discuss investment strategy... or something similar

That's were I got mine :)
Nice guys , I buy everything from them

GOT CRITTER'S ?
 

I have them Galore.....

and some are the Antler Variety :hs:

Went out back to grab some shade screens to bring up
and when i went to see how the "wild" pea's were doing
i noticed that i had visitors LARGE ONES....

"i'LL get you my pretty and your little fawn too" LOL

Picture 1 :small one's tracks -> prolly a yearling

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...eerTracks2.png
picture two: BIG MAMA or Papa :huh:
dunno yet- outlined in red
A huge track

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...EERTRACKS1.png

Favorite time of year
is when i see these
in a week i'll be eating peas
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...b1/FLOWERS.png

I had to replant mine....but they are sprouting nicely, so very soon.

I have been getting some lettuce this week. Tomorrow the Summer Squash, Zuchini and Butternut squash get planted

i have 25 3 gallons planted with butternut waitin to pop
same number of 3 gallons in green leaf lettuce and extra broccoli
the zuke's are growing super fast.. prolly have one in weeks
they are also in pots but 5 gallon and bigger eventually i'll elevate them
to eye height... for easy harvestin... planting 50 red bell peppers today
and too much more to list and building the second big bed which is
gonna get spiked with my small worm bins then i'll dump wheel barrows
of the soil/compost on top of them and start them new again but i'll be switchin
over to georgia JUMPERS which dance like they're getting shocked with a tazer lol

man is it Hot and MUGGY have to take ALLOT of refreshment breaks

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...ob1/newbed.png
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...nob1/WORMS.png

Everything is going great... .. the new asparagas bed is sprouting.... now the battle with the chipmonks in the strawberry patch has resumed!

MY corn is finally sprouting ....
the back Garden went completely wild -oh well lousy with deer anyways
so i won't plant it til much much later...fall gardens do better.
i have 20 or so Hubbard or butternut squash sprouting in POTS
Luckilly i am doing both pots and beds because the SLUGS are kickin my A$$
so i go around sprinkling table salt on them turning them to orange Goo
works very well because you cannot handle them...worse than eels

i found a hard shelled one the other day which i had never seen before

i have a new chore....picking Peas...while the ANN peas produced real fast
i'm not that impressed with the bush variety thus far... and i think
they need a sorta Minnie tomato cage http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c66/ravenob1/huh2.gif
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...b1/Garden3.png

Even though I use tomato cages for tomatoes.. they are better suited for eggplants and peas.. I've used them for cukes before as well...

agreed Joe
 

so in the new bed.... (2nd bed)

the one that has 6 worm bins of worms and castings dumped into it
will have a solid fence built First along the south side then i'll plant the climbing sugar snap peas which i'll bag and vacume seal
and they will grow like Gang Busters...i'm sure.:uhuh:

Cabbage is looking good...already been getting lettuce for the table. Put in the Tomatos, Squash, and peppers yesterday...

I hate coming here and seeing pictures of Raven's garden. Makes me jealous.

You and me both......

midnight Patrol
 

ran off a big RACOON...getting bird seed

i'm making sure the mice are not digging up my corn plants
as seen below as little tiny green spikes

the starchy kernel changes from dry starch to very sweet
as it germinates so it is a prized food for F-ing rodents

you have to make your presence known during this stage
or risk loosing them all because they dig them all up-bastids

oh yeah: you can save money by cutting up an old venecion (sp) blind for plant tags

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...redpeppers.png

Going for a little ride my friend
 

It's about freakin time :rotf2:
I got one before the damage :fury::fury: is done ....

Just going to drop him off in a UDL next to Ravens Minty garden :uhuh:


One down :jump1:June 2 2012

no worries Matey

fur flies round hee-ahh :btu:

this years garden is the best it has been in 10 years... although I have "suckered" and even pruned branches.. they look like an overgrown forrest( mainly due to my lack of dilliegance when on a fishing binge).. but they are loaded with fruit...the big boy's in the picture get any taller and I'l have to stake them from the dog wood!...you'd never know i gave 30" between plants...a mixture of organic and chemical fertilizer seems to be what they wanted..

i've got some of them Plumb jobs too
a tomato paste tomato
ate my first cherry tomato yesterday, always on JULY 10th :huh:
but the big boys will be soon
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...b1/tomatos.png
some corn and hubbard squash coming along nicely
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...andHUBBARD.png
and the morning glory vines are takin off....
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c66/ravenob1/mg.jpg
been spraying for cucumber beetles with safer insecticidal soap

yup.. mostly plums.. I make about 5 gallons of sauce a year( last year being an exception).... i grow a few big boys for the table...I dont have alot of room but make the best of what I have..

That's all we do is the plums, and they are doing great , all green but the plants are huge...
As for the rest of the gaden , one tiny cuke , I would guess in two weeks I will have hundreds ... , been picking the seat peas for a week , a long wait for them , not sure the heat likes them to much
have to pick the couliflower tonight or before this weekend . I will post a pic
Peppers are just OK , squash is not so good this year but I did move them all to a new location and maybe better luck next year...
sweet potatoes ae looking good , as they did last year and I received crap in the fall. I changed brands as a local farmer told me I had planted the wrong ones for NE :)
The pole beans are 10 ft high
My reg potatoes are flowering as we speak
I planted spaghetti squash and they are wild , I had no idea they would run like a pumkin , and run and run
I have been watering every day and tossing in some 10-10 -10 2 times so far

And I can't wait to go fishing with Joe in the fall

Peas Good, Cabbage Good, Tomato Plants are taking off...

Zuchini and Summer Squash suck this year...same with da Cukes

zuchini's are flourishing ....and these all grown in big pots
but speaking of Fall....the fall garden out produces the spring garden 2-1
in my opinion, as it's getting progressively colder NOT warmer
and the cole crops love that....nothing wants to BOLT
the time to plant seeds IS right now

I'm putting in a couple of different beans in this week...want to also freeze some for the winter.

I have some space , what u talking about for the fall ?
Peter

definitively Broccoli , lettuce red sails is just awesome
Kale for soups and stews is unbeatable(another cole crop)
sugar snap peas,they go with everything,
celery , onions (scallions)
carrots, beets... all depending on what you like of course.

the germination rate for broccoli seed is nearly 100%
so don't sprinkle the seeds thinking -> OH i'll thin later.

Bad idea.... broccoli loves to be 12 inches apart and if
you transplant it ....they don't grow as big.

if they have neighboring plants touching them they head for the sky.
Better to deep water overnight with the hose trickling
then regular water on top of that....after they sprout

anytime its going to rain...water the crap out of the garden so the rainwater
can penetrate and not stay in the top 3 inches of soil because it gathers nitrogen out of the air as it falls.

for broccoli: Better to drop one seed into the palm of your hand
and carefully put it in place. I like to use a light topping
of vermiculite "coarse" on top to keep the soil from drying out.

the growers supply shop next to (home depot) actually in between HD and the 140 turn-off...
in Shrewsbury has it for a great price....much cheaper than those worms way thieves.

you can also experiment with pre-soaking and or pre-germinating seeds
until you see them double in size or noticeably swell
even a dozen at a time. 2-4 hours

Especially with sugar snap peas

i'd soak them over night then place them in a big zip log freezer bag
slightly open so they breath...(in the dark)and you exhale into the bag hole
to give them some c02 (on occasion)

....doesn't hurt to give them some B1 to stimulate the
root growth by a factor of 100 times normal. usually its
like 5 drops per gallon of water so the liguid will last a whole season
because yes...it's pricey but man does it work!

the reason my plants look healthy is because i take worm castings out of my bins
and add it to the plants on occasion to both fertilize my plants -intoduce worms
worm eggs and "bed run" the white worms extra small and the mini reds as they adapt better than tossing breeder size in there as they will wander...
then i replace the castings i took out with more loam /compost mix so they have fresh bedding. i have to order another 50 lb bag of purina worm chow again!$20.00 bucks at the local feed store ....actually in Acton

the tiniest frog...
sitting on top of
my plastic watering can sprinkle cap
half the size of my little finger nail.....
i let the faucet drip a little into a raised pot
that has a under liner on it creating an Oasis

I play horse shoes at a farm and was talking with them last night
We both agree that our squash are gone for 2012 ... wtf happened ?
kind of just stopped growing and died away
same as my house , too hot this year maybe ?

what kind of Squash? as my butternut is going gang busters....
but yes the Zuchinni is saying goodbye much earlier than expected
so i am going to replant it...since i use pots [ie BIG pots ]
i have the option of moving them inside a protected heat-able space.
tomatoes are crankin as are peppers, banana peppers, carrots and broccoli
is now topped....but still producing from the side branches ...ok

but here's a cool tip (pun intended)
about Broccoli ...
you can leave the worn out vines (stalks) in the ground right thru october
and after you get your first fall frost they not only "Don't die"
but they get stimulated to grow again as if its Spring and they
soon rejuvenate. so leave some around even if for nothing else to grow some seed and you'll be surprised.

Also as an experiment i tried growing them on the North side of the house in complete shade
except for maybe the last 2-3 hours of the day of afternoon sun
and they grew just fine....plenty of tops for dippin in sour cream dip

so there is no such thing as
awe man i
haven't any sun on this side of my house :bc:
because that is horse "cagada" (s__t) :uhuh:
Try it and see

slug control:
instead of spreading poison or wasting good beer
i simply went around on rainy mornings when the slugs were out in full force
and sprinkled some regular table salt on them
and slowly but surely i WON the WAR..... :happy:

Another good control is to lay down a piece of plywood
which they will take refuge under during the night. Then lift and use the old
salt shaker in the morning.

First garden this year. Very pleased with the results so far. Ate the first tomato today and first crop of beans are just about ready. Ton of tomatoes but they're a bit small.
http://i382.photobucket.com/albums/o...1/d98cc8e8.jpg

http://i382.photobucket.com/albums/o...1/027c8e50.jpg
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Oh yeah...tomatoes (31 plants) broccoli, cauliflower, wax beans, green beans, cherry hot peppers, pickling cucumbers, banana hots and some herbs. Probably tone a bit down next year but I've become obsessed with the garden. Out there every day several times checking it over
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Looking good Bob