Garden Growers

[92xj]

Has anyone purchased seed off of the internet?

If so, where?

How were your results?

Also, what type of soil/dirt/compost did you import into the garden?

I am going to be making a small garden in my small back yard and just brainstorming ideas. I have a pretty dang good plan of what I am going to do, but figured we coudl have a garden info thread again to have more information to search when growing season comes back around in the spring.

[Tominator]

It's about all I do when summer rolls around.

I've purchased from Gurneys in the past and I will if I ever need/want an exotic seed. Personally, I prefer the local markets for many reasons.

Soil prep is important. Are you talking veggies or flowers?

[92xj]

Veggies.

I am going to do a row or two of corn, would like two different types.

squash

jalapenos

tomatos

and maybe some sort of potato

[92xj]

I am going to block/frame out an area using rail road ties. Move the irrigation lines to the outside to make sure I still get the grass watered. In the blocked off area I will kill all the grass, import some sort of soil/compost. lay down my plastic or paper. Cut the little "X's" to plant the seed and then have a PVC drip water sprinkler thing run around all the "X's" under the plastic hooked up to a hose on a timer and keep it off of the irrigation zones.

[Tominator]

Boy, you've made all kinds of mistakes before you even started.

#1--Using railroad ties or treated wood is a big no no. Railroad ties are soaked in creosote and that can leach into the soil which in turn is taken up by your veggies. Ugh.

#2--Plant corn in blocks, not single rows. Corn is wind pollinated.

#3--If you plant 2 varieties of corn, make absolutely sure they are not hybrids.

#4--Sounds like you're overthinking this with plastic, x's, drip lines and irrigation, etc. All you need to do is spray with roundup, till the area, if your soil is crappy clay like mine, incorporate some spaghum peat or well composted (at least a year) manure, let it sit for a few weeks, spray anything that comes up, wait a day or two and plant what you want.

#5--You're mixing some warm weather stuff with cold weather stuff. Taters can go in early, mid to late April around me. The other stuff you mentioned are warm weather crops. I'd wait at least until mid May, preferably later for the other things. Peppers, squash, and corn are warm weather crops.

#6--Plural of tomato is spelled with an e.

Want any other beat downs, just let me know. I'm here for you.

[92xj]

Boy, you've made all kinds of mistakes before you even started.

#1--Using railroad ties or treated wood is a big no no. Railroad ties are soaked in creosote and that can leach into the soil which in turn is taken up by your veggies. Ugh. What should I use for the cheap price of railroad ties? could I not use plastic sheet between the ties and soil?

#2--Plant corn in blocks, not single rows. Corn is wind pollinated. - The rows should be very well protected from the wind with the house. Plus I think with my sun a block would not allow the back of the block to get enough of the sun. I am North, so I never really get direct over head sun during the summer, its still in the Southern sky. But I do get sun for 12 - 16 hours a day in this spot.

#3--If you plant 2 varieties of corn, make absolutely sure they are not hybrids. - send me some

#4--Sounds like you're overthinking this with plastic, x's, drip lines and irrigation, etc. All you need to do is spray with roundup, till the area, if your soil is crappy clay like mine, incorporate some spaghum peat or well composted (at least a year) manure, let it sit for a few weeks, spray anything that comes up, wait a day or two and plant what you want. - Soil is all sand here in the desert. Nothing else, no rocks, no nothing, just sand...

#5--You're mixing some warm weather stuff with cold weather stuff. Taters can go in early, mid to late April around me. The other stuff you mentioned are warm weather crops. I'd wait at least until mid May, preferably later for the other things. Peppers, squash, and corn are warm weather crops. - check

#6--Plural of tomato is spelled with an e. - I am trying to act like these Pac Northwesterns, sheesh

Want any other beat downs, just let me know. I'm here for you.

see above

edit: the coloring of text has been screwed up since the transfer to the new style forum. You should send an email to Scott. You seem to be good at that!

[92xj]

And what's wrong with my drip lines and weed control?

I dont want to have to work at this....

[92xj]

From Mid April to the end of September I will not see a drop of rain.

[redkneck]

Cross ties work just fine, creosote and all.

Get a load of some good well-draining dirt at the garden store, with lots of organics mixed in. Add some other things like peet moss if you like. You can grow a lot of veggies in a small raised bed. I buy dirt for about $20 a front end loader scoopful to ammend my thick clay I have that will not drain.

You need not worry with plastic sheeting or irrigation. You don't need long waterings, just a good shower wand to go over them by hand for just a bit. You never want to soak your veggies, just give them a good drink and let it drain, you'll have more fruit this way and less plant.

This last bed I did with cross ties is 3 ties long and about 30" wide. Works great.

[redkneck]

I will add that those cross ties are pretty ancient and not like a fresh one that oozes creosote or CCA on a hot day. If you pick them up at Lowe's or just steal them from the railroad track like I did :jaw: you'll find them to be about the same with basically nothing to leach out.

[92xj]

I am going to have to water a lot more than your folks back east and south. I get zero rain and have zero humidity. Its dry, I mean real dry. Think death valley dry. Just to keep the grass green and growing for the 5-6 months of no rain, 100 degree days and no humidity or dew. I have to water every zone of the irrigation system 40 minutes in the morning and 40 in the evening every single day. This is why I just want to hook up a hose on a timer to a drip style system.

[92xj]

I will add that those cross ties are pretty ancient and not like a fresh one that oozes creosote or CCA on a hot day. If you pick them up at Lowe's or just steal them from the railroad track like I did :jaw: you'll find them to be about the same with basically nothing to leach out.

Yeah, I would for sure try get the oldest and most dry I could find.

[wtnhunt]

Local feed store or coop for seeds and plants. Far as the soil prep, don't have a clue about the ties and plastic, we usually do a 1/4 acre or so for a garden which is too much area for doing that, we just use herbicides prior to planting, also usually will burn off the dead vegetation to help remove the fine seeds that are above the ground.

Have used horse manure disced into the garden in the past, got to be careful though you do not want to raise the uric acid level too much. Our soil is not the greatest but we do get decent yields, for corn you will want to side dress with fertilizer at intervals such as after the corn is 3-4 inches, then again around about the time it is about 3 feet tall or so.

[Hoosierbuck]

I would do a google search for a local gardening group or just find the best garden in your area and ask the owner for some advice. People generally love to share their expertise, and it seems like your particular area will present some rather unique challenges. Don't forget your local extension office and/or coop. Those places can be a wealth of information. Maybe even take a class at a local community college.

I have RR ties, old ones, and have never had a problem. My garden is like 16' x 40' is all, though. I love my rototiller. I built a compost bin this year and am looking forward to fortifying my garden next year with it. We do about 4 types of tomatoes, jalapeno, chili, and green peppers, summer squash, zucchini, pumpkins (never again!), and cucumbers.

Froze a bunch of tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, and made a bunch of pickles in addition to eating all we wanted. Fresh salsa is the bomb. I love my garden.

HB