The Year Frost Increased my Harvest.

Last spring (Memorial day weekend)I slammed in a quick and Dirty Garden . 10 Tomato plants ,4 Cherry Tomato plants, 8 pepper plants , 8 cabbage . A few days later the news called for a killer frost . I slipped a mason jar over every tomato and pepper . It didn't help every tomato and pepper was sheared off at the ground . Since I planted them all deep only leaving the top row of leaves sticking out of the ground I figured a few would come back. So I went out and bought replacement tomato and pepper plants and planted them in between the corpses of the frozen plants. Well you may have guessed they all came back . I had twice as many plants planted half as close together. It wasn't great for the peppers but the Tomatoes loved it . some of the bumper crop of tomatoes still occupies my cupboards in jars mm . This summer I'm backing off on the number of tomato plants but I'm planting them 12 " center to center the second week of June

Garden Plan

What I really want this year is to maximize the use of my mower and tiller for weeding . And also plant the crops in closely planted beds to shade out the weeds. My starter plants have surprised me with their vitality this year so the above plan is scrapped. My garden is Closer to 120 ' X 30 ' and I'm still tilling and planting. I'm using a variety of bed widths cramming in compatible plants as closely together as I dare with massive amounts of manure and mulch. I'll post a sketch of the beast and some photographs the end of June.

Seedlings Popping Up

I haven't been blogging because I've been planting planting and more planting. The picnic table greenhouse is producing seedling at an alarming rate. I still fear and respect the early June frost so Ive only been planting frost resistant seedlings like broccoli , cabbage, and Seeds that shouldn't pop up until I'm well into June. I originally planned on a 30' X 60' garden. I'm gonna have to go bigger or kill some Innocent seedlings. hopefully in the next few days I'll start compiling my garden reading list. I've been able to temporarily keep the seedlings small by limiting the light they receive by doubling up the plastic and stacking the bricks higher for shade. I've pulled a couple of dozen seedlings out and replaced them on the table with cups with fresh seeds. every 5 days or so giving the removed plants more sun by moving them in and out of the garage .So hopefully I'll achieve a staggered harvest giving me more time to can , dry , and freeze my gardens goodness.

Picnic Table Greenhouse Update Seedlings Peeking Up

The seeds have begun to sprout 5 days after planting . The marigolds started sprouting . There are about forty marigold cups on the table . Rabbits are supposed to dislike the smell of them. The packet of marigold seeds were $1.20 and I still have quite a few seeds left which I'll sow directly in the garden . A Dixie cup costs about $.01 . and I probably used a penny's worth of potting soil per cup . I'm well a head of the $.30 cent each price for the marigolds at the garden store. I'm predicting the pumpkins cucumbers and squash will sprout around May 25.

Picnic Table Green House

This is a quick and dirty green house that I thought up this spring so I can save a few bucks on starter plants. Its made from a picnic table some bricks and sheet of clear plastic. I always pick up bricks when I see them discarded so I already had them and I already had the picnic table. The picnic table and Bricks are not harmed by this project so after the frost the bricks go back to the pile o bricks and the table becomes a table again.

Just line the edge of the table with a row of bricks. Stack 2 bricks in the middle of the table. Fill the middle of the table with your starter seeds in dirt . I use Dixie cups just because they are cheap and they biodegrade. Place a sheet of plastic over the table set another row of bricks around the perimeter to hold the sheet down and a brick in the middle. You shouldn't have to water often the bricks and plastic keep the moisture in. The bricks protect against wind. The two bricks in the middle help the rain to drain off the top but it's not perfect but it's cheap.