I started building my raised beds today..... I'm itching to go!

[Papa2X]

Don't know if this is the right place to post, but it seemed OK.

So, I am putting in ( 6 ) 6' x 2' raised beds. I bought untreated lumber, and I am making them into cold frames / raised beds. When I take the film off I will have to put netting over the plants because of all the deer we have in our area.

So, I may even add more beds... but for now the plan is:

8 tomato plants..... hierloom, if I can get them
10 - 15 hot pepper plants, including Bhut Jolokias
2 cucumber plants
snap peas
a bush bean plant
cantaloupe - maybe 2 or 3.
Various herbs
possibly a watermelon plant
Mint - but in a container

and beyond that, I don't know.... maybe an eggplant for my wife, as I will never eat it, LOL.

It's going to be a very expensive year this year due to all the wood, but I am hoping to get 5 - 7 years out of each bed before the wood needs replacing.

What will be in your garden?

[BlackKat]

That sounds amazing, and I've been reading a lot about raised beds. Never had my own garden, but I plan on starting one this spring time. I want to have spinach, cucumber, bell pepper, tomato, parsley, cilantro, green beans, hot peppers, strawberries, lettuce (is it hard?) and not sure what else... I have a very limited space but it will be an experiment considering I've never done this before. I have gotten loads of books to research gardening. Can't wait! Yours sounds fantastic. Post pics please!!

[SunshineMN]

I'd definitely do parsley, cilantro and basil. What about kale? I'm jealous of people that have room for a garden!

Hey Papa do you have a dehydrator? I hear there is a really excellent recipe for eggplant bacon (I think it's Alissa's) out there you may want to try. :)

[Papa2X]

I'd definitely do parsley, cilantro and basil. What about kale? I'm jealous of people that have room for a garden!

Hey Papa do you have a dehydrator? I hear there is a really excellent recipe for eggplant bacon (I think it's Alissa's) out there you may want to try. :)

LOL, I will as of Tuesday. I bought mine from Amazon yesterday.

BTW, BlackKat..... go to youtube and search for Bag Garden.

[PunkRotten]

I am doing;

6-7 Heirloom tomatoes
7 pepper plants, 5 hot 2 sweet. Actually one of the hots is a Serrano I overwintered so it is going on its 2nd year.
Bush beans
Small watermelon
Small Cantaloupe
Pickling cucumbers as well as salad/snacking types
Lots of herbs. My garden already has 3 different mints; Sweet mint, chocolate mint, and Lemon balm. Rosemary, sage, lavender, garlic chives, parsley, and yarrow. I am starting up chamomile, anise hyssop, more parsley, cilantro, Dill, and several kinds of basil.

Green onions/scallions
Cape Gooseberry -taste is a mix of tomato and pineapple.
Lettuce
Several flowers, including some edible ones - Marigolds, nasturtiums, impatiens, and several Sunflowers.
Also got garlic I started Fall last year and will harvest around July this year.


I also have 2 trees - Goji berry and Lemon Tree.


For fall I will be planting Beets, Carrots, radish, bush beans, Lettuce, Cilantro, Parsley, Dill, Kale, Garlic, some Basil.

Some of the warm weather stuff survives year round in my zone. I am in Zone 9/10. Basil, Tomatoes, peppers, beans, all the herbs I grow all overwinter. But some of them will slow down or go dormant for a short period like the tomatoes, peppers, basil, and beans. But once late January and February roll around they start growing again. I have a Black Cherry Tomato that overwintered. I started it late last year in mid September cause I was doing an experiment to see how a Fall sown Tomato plant would grow. It grew to about a foot and started growing some flowers and even tomatoes, then just stopped growing until late January and now is growing again and producing ripe tomatoes. But I will be ripping it out come Mid April and putting in a whole different plant.

[PunkRotten]

That sounds amazing, and I've been reading a lot about raised beds. Never had my own garden, but I plan on starting one this spring time. I want to have spinach, cucumber, bell pepper, tomato, parsley, cilantro, green beans, hot peppers, strawberries, lettuce (is it hard?) and not sure what else... I have a very limited space but it will be an experiment considering I've never done this before. I have gotten loads of books to research gardening. Can't wait! Yours sounds fantastic. Post pics please!!


Lettuce is not hard at all it is quite easy. But lettuce is a cool weather crop an does better started in Fall. And you can grow it all the way up to early Spring. I am trying a more heat tolerant variety and will see how well it does during Spring and Summer. Since it is so hot here in Summer I expect it to bolt.

[MysticTree]

What to grow and when depends where you live. Here in the UK in February at the moment the soil is too cold and wet to grow things but soon I can start to sow and plant and I find this time of year both frustrating and exciting.

We will be growing:
Potatoes
corn
beetroot
carrots
beans - 2 or 3 types
Jeruselem artichokes
kale
onions
various salads
tomatoes
cucumbers
courgettes
peas
various herbs including parsley, thyme and mint
Spinach - for us and for the hens because they absolutely love spinach

You can see the yet-to-be-planted veg patch here on RFT
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?67592-How-does-your-garden-grow

[Mary Kay]

I agree...definitely kale. And when you do watermelon, get one of those "wider-than'tomato" trellises that are slightly shorter for the watermelon vines to begin to climb. This will save you some room.

I've been gardening for years and in 1999, I spent $3,000 to get a 50 fr x 50 ft chain-link fence around my garden. I had them bury it a foot below grade and then they topped it with barbed wire. Yep, this keeps the deer and other critters out. Worth every penny. You may want to consider this.....I was told they'll last around 30 years. Here's a pic from 2008.

If I had to do it over again, I'd have left a little trench right under the fence (remember, it's buried a foot below grade) and I'd have filled it with cement right under the chain link fence....because it's a real pain in the butt to keep the grass down. Only about 4 inches wide though --at grade so that you can mow right up to it.

Also, I left a 2 ft border of grass around it - within the fence, and this turned out to be a good idea. Good for putting the wheel barrow on it, having the roto tiller have a place to turn around etc.

HTH,

Mary Kay

[PunkRotten]

Nice garden size MysticTree.

[MysticTree]

Thank you ... it should prove very worthwhile :o)

[Mary Kay]

Hmmm, unable to post the pic of my garden....Am trying again....

Can't do it. It keeps showing up with a red exclamation point next to it. Guess I'm doing something wrong. Sorry....

Mary Kay

[MysticTree]

did you remember the file extension? That's the bit I always forget if I have trouble with posting pictures or are you using the upload from computer function? Lots of people have problems with pictures these days it seems since the board was updated.

[Traceyraw]

I saw the raised beds made from cynderblocks. the outside smaller opening were used for herbs. Good luck and enjoy the veggies of your labor.

[SharonC]

So interesting to see what everyone is growing in different areas - enjoyed everyone's comments! I am in Texas (Dallas area).

In the fall, planted Swiss Chard, Kale, Lettuce, Radish (mainly for the tops) - everything is still going. Will be sad to see the kale and lettuce go when the weather gets too warm.

Just planted more Parsley, Cilantro, and Arugula.

Before it gets too hot, thinking of doing Carrots and Beets in pots.

Also, have Italian Dandelion seeds that I have been wanting to try.

Reading more about Lambsquarter and Sorrel this morning - think I found a good spot!

Planting TOMATOES this week (I order hard to find heirlooms from www.tastefulgarden.com).
Especially excited about the new Rosella Purple Dwarf and Pink Berkeley Tie Dye.

Next - Cucumber, Squash, Malabar Spinach (not a true spinach but thrives in heat).

AND lots of different Peppers and Basil (holy basil is my new find).

Hope to get okra in sometime later.

Herbs thrive here and are scattered about - Rosemary, Mint, Oregano, Thyme, Sage, Lemon Balm, Lemon Verbena, Anise Hyssop, Chives, Society Garlic, Stevia, etc.

Wish I had room for an orchard and a vineyard, but only have one Grapevine and two Blackberry shrubs. Looking for a good spot for a Pomegranate shrub/tree.

Papa, I hear you about the itching!

Have not heard of Bhut Jolokias (Ghost Pepper) so looked it up - 'The Guinness Book of World Records' ranks 'Bhut Jolokia' as the hottest chili pepper in the world with SHU exceeding one million units. SHU for extremely hot Chili peppers exceeds 100,000.

Coming from a Texan who grew up in Louisiana, they sound a little too hot!!!

Regarding the heirloom tomatoes, have you tried the blacks (my favorite) - Cherokee Purple, Black Krim, Carbon, Black Cherry, etc.

PunkRotten,
Sounds like you have such a great growing season - overwintering really warm season plants and not too much heat in the summer. I use shade cloth in parts of the garden in the summer, and even then, it is brutal. If I don't get tomato plants in now, many do not have time to set fruit before it is too hot, and then they struggle. I have found that rainwater helps a lot - just bought another rainwater barrel - plants can really tell a difference!

MysticTree,
If your growing area is like I imagine, the good side is taking a break in the winter and then growing many different veggies without worrying about too much heat.

I have thought of growing Jerusalem artichoke over the years - heard they are invasive - always looking for the perfect spot!

Mary Kay,
If I ever move to deer country, I will keep this in mind. I back up to a nature conservancy - no deer, but lots of rats, possums, armadillas, and skunks. So far, the rats are my biggest problem - have lots of Texas rat snakes, but they are not doing their job!

[Papa2X]

LOL, Sharon... the Bhut Jolokia was the hottest pepper in the world... It has been knocked back to 2nd hottest pepper in the world... the new one is called something like "ScorpionX"... supposedly 2x hotter than the "ghost pepper".

[Papa2X]

Oh, and I bought a grow light and a seed warming mat tonight.... That should just about be all the "hardware" I need for this year.

[MysticTree]

LOL, Sharon... the Bhut Jolokia was the hottest pepper in the world... It has been knocked back to 2nd hottest pepper in the world... the new one is called something like "ScorpionX"... supposedly 2x hotter than the "ghost pepper".

Sweet peppers for me all the way.

[Mary Kay]

TraceyRaw--I like that idea of cinder blocks for the raised beds---with the holes in the blocks for herbs. Cool.

And MysticTree---Thanks for trying to help me post my pics...but I don't know what you mean about the file extension....Sigh...Thanks anyway. Darn, I kind of wanted to show off my garden!

And do you folks who have raised beds ever feel the need to till. From what I understand with raised beds - if you have lots of organic matter in your soil, there's not much need to till. Just wondering.

Inspirational hearing about all these gardens.

Mary Kay

[PunkRotten]

Sweet peppers for me all the way.


You build up a tolerance to hot peppers. Years ago I used to think jalapenos were hot. Not so much anymore. Then I thought Serrano peppers were hot. They are a really common pepper used in salsas. Now I find them not as hot anymore but they still have a nice bite to them. Now I am going even hotter now. I am growing some stuff in the 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville range. For reference jalapenos are around 5-8K scoville and I think Serranos are like 15-25K scoville. A lot of the hot peppers I hear have great flavors aside from the heat. Some have fruity or citrus undertones to them but often not tasted due to the heat. Some people say that once you get a tolerance to some hot peppers you really can taste the real flavors.

[MysticTree]

And MysticTree---Thanks for trying to help me post my pics...but I don't know what you mean about the file extension....Sigh...Thanks anyway. Darn, I kind of wanted to show off my garden!

Mary Kay

and I really want to see it.

The file extension is the bit that goes after the dot .jpg for example. I often forget to add that bit when I am typing in the location manually.

[Papa2X]

So, I am wondering... can coconut shells be used for compost? I have 2 of them put aside, waiting to see what people think.

[SunshineMN]

Coconut shells and composting (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MufttcKYTx8). I realize he's using young coconut shells and you probably have mature ones but I'd still think yes. In fact, when I'm ready to grow wheatgrass inside I plan on using a coconut shell based product (http://www.amazon.com/Cocotek-Hydroponic-Growing-Mats-Barleygrass/dp/B000E3ZG8Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1330552208&sr=8-3)! :)

Btw, there are lots of other creative things you could do with coconut shells. I think it would be cool to line a flowerbed with them as a decorative border. I've read of people using them for growing small amounts of herbs on a windowsill. Hmmm... I need to go buy some coconuts. Hehe...

http://www.ehow.com/how_6500970_preserve-coconut-shell.html

[PunkRotten]

You can compost Coconut shells but they take forever to break down. If you can you should try to break them up small as possible. Same with sticks people usually will run them through a type of shredder. But I don't have access to a shredder so I just take a shovel to the coconut shells and smacked them a few times to bust them up.

[Traceyraw]

I have a composter. I put everything I can in it.

[Mary Kay]

Thanks MysticTree...I was trying to add a pic the same way I add an attachment to an--so email, for example --I wasn't trying to type it in manually...I'll try that sometime...it's just too late though and I really need to get to bed!

MK