Grinder's no-till vegetable garden

04/18

What a difference just six days can make!
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Transplanted 25 pepper seedlings into medium (18 per tray) pots on 4/16. Will do some more of the same in a few days.
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04/19

One last look at the prematurely started cherry tomato seedlings mentioned in the previous post… Unfortunately, they have nearly outgrown the patio environment, and there’s just no way that they can be adequately accommodated another four weeks, until the average last frost date, when they can be reasonably safely transplanted into the garden.
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On a happier note, the Opalka and Jet Star tomato seedlings mentioned in the previous post seem to be shaping up nicely, with the Jet Stars clearly taking the lead in that regard. Read online the other day that it’s normal for some tomato varieties to grow weird at first. While I haven’t found anything specific to either of these two varieties in that regard, it has already begun to appear that that is the case, which is a big relief.

04/20

More seeds started (96 cells on heat mat):
12 Chadwick Cherry Tomato (to replace those prematurely started seedlings mentioned above).
6 Fordhook Zucchini
12 Waltham Butternut Squash
6 Buttercup Squash
12 New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin
6 Connecticut Field Pumpkin
12 Tommy Apple Melon Cantaloupe
12 Strawberry Watermelon
6 Marketmore 76 Cucumber
12 Wild Italian Fennel
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Final seeds will be started as soon as heat pad space becomes available from 04/20 batch:
6 more Fordhook Zucchini
6 more Buttercup Squash
6 more Connecticut Field Pumpkin
6 more Marketmore 76 Cucumber

Just as with all other vegetable seeds (and herbs to some degree), more are started than will be needed in the garden; to allow for germination rate, for culling of weakest seedlings, and/or for replacement of transplanted seedlings substantially injured or killed by garden pests.
 
livewity said:
Where can I buy those containers?
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You should be able to find these kinds of trays and pots at any garden supply store. Many hardware stores have them too. I haven't checked, but I'm pretty sure Home Depot has them as well.

Might be kind of hot items right now with the COVID panic thought, so stock might be limited or depleted?
 
04/22

Transplanted 17 more sweet pepper seedlings into medium pots.

04/23

Final (indoor) seeds started:
6 more Fordhook Zucchini
6 more Buttercup Squash
6 more Connecticut Field Pumpkin
6 more Marketmore 76 Cucumber

Transplanted 16 Jet Star Tomato seedlings into large pots.

04/24

Set up much-needed additional window area (roughly east-facing - morning sun only, but better than nothing) for seedlings in dining room, upon unused door-on-crates.
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04/27

Transplanted 12 German Chamomile, and 6 Genovese Basil seedlings into medium pots.

04/28

Transplanted 8 Opalka Tomato (8 in total, culled all the rest) and 8 more (24 in total, culled all the rest) Jet Star Tomato seedlings into large pots, and 6 more Genovese Basil and 12 more pepper seedlings into medium pots.

As the vast majority of tomato harvest will be canned/frozen for sauce, it’s disappointing that the Opalka (sauce tomato) seedlings appear to be so much less promising than the Jet Star (slicing tomato) seedlings …which is why I chose to cull all but 8 of the former, while retaining three times as many of the latter, instead of the other way around. I’ll be kicking myself if it turns out that the Opalkas substantially outperform the Jet Stars in the long run.

04/29

Set up much-needed additional window area (roughly south-facing) for seedlings in bedroom, upon unused top-half of shelf rack for seedling heat mat in office.
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Removed seedling heat mat from shelf rack in office, to allow additional window area (roughly south-facing) for seedlings.
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Wish there were more south-facing windows.

Seems I’m forever moving seedling trays around to maximize available sunlight, with priority as follows: 1) vegetables 2) herbs and 3) ornamentals.

Transplanted 30 more sweet pepper seedlings (for a grand total of 84 pepper plants – nearly twice as many as last year’s 45 plants!).

04/30
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05/02

All seedlings outside for first time, one hour in full sun (beginning of hardening-off process).

As more and more transplanted seedlings require more and more space; as springtime sun moves ever higher in the sky; and as a nearby large tree regrows its leaves, less and less direct sunlight can come into the south-facing patio, As a result, I anxiously await a sunny enough day with low enough wind and high enough temperatures for seedlings to be brought outside for the first time (for me, that means mostly sunny and in the mid-to-upper 50s or higher, partly cloudy and in the low 60s or higher, or cloudy and in the mid-to-upper 60s or higher). Thankfully, that day was today!
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Note:
While it can be quite tempting to maximize available sunshine by leaving seedlings outside all day (weather permitting, of course), best practice is to start with one hour on the first day, two hours on the second day, three hours on the third day, and so on (adding one hour each day), until the seventh or eighth day, when they can safely remain outside all day, or be safely transplanted into the garden, once the likelihood of frost has passed. Plants need time to adjust to the intensity of outdoor sunlight and climate (wind, and high/low temperatures and humidity). This process is called hardening-off. Last year, I rushed the process, and the majority of my seedlings ended up with sunburned leaves. While it didn’t kill any of the seedlings, it certainly was an unfortunate and easily preventable mistake.

Of course, wind is a major concern as well. Nearby buildings or other structures, and/or thick bushes, hedges, fences, etc. can serve as effective windbreaks. Keep a close eye on your seedlings and on weather conditions, and be prepared to take immediate action accordingly. An oscillating fan on indoor seedlings will help prepare them for outdoor wind, in addition to a number of other considerable benefits of air movement.


05/03

All seedlings outside for second time, two hours, mostly sunny (continuing hardening-off process).

Transplanted 5 New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin, 4 Buttercup Squash and 4 Fordhook Zucchini into medium pots.

05/04

All seedlings outside for third time, three hours, mostly sunny (continuing hardening-off process).

Transplanted 6 New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin and 6 Connecticut Field Pumpkin into medium pots.

05/05

All seedlings outside for fourth time, three hours (brought in one hour early due to wind), mostly sunny (continuing hardening-off process).

Transplanted 5 Waltham Butternut Squash, 6 Buttercup Squash, 6 Connecticut Field Pumpkin and 6 Waltham Butternut Squash into medium pots.

05/06

All seedlings outside for fifth time, five hours, mostly cloudy (continuing hardening-off process).
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Crowded patio.
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You are certainly earning whatever fruits those plants bring you come summer and fall. It should be a great crop. Looks awesome Grinder and makes me want to do another garden again this year.
 
JCsAudio said:
You are certainly earning whatever fruits those plants bring you come summer and fall. It should be a great crop. Looks awesome Grinder and makes me want to do another garden again this year.
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Thank you, John! It is a fair bit of work, and I tend to go the extra mile in any way I can. Sure wish I had a greenhouse, though. The plants would be better off, and I wouldn't have to keep moving them all the time. Now, when the time comes, if they'd just go ahead and transplant themselves in the garden, that would be great!

Given the considerably greater number of plants this year and the advanced maturity of the vast majority of those plants (compared to last year), if all goes reasonably well the harvest should be far greater than last year. Whereas most of last years' harvest barely fit into freezers, given the potential size this year's harvest, I'll be canning most of the tomatoes instead of freezing them.

My primary aim with this thread is to inspire others to give gardening a try, or to get back into gardening again. There's still plenty of time. :)
 
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05/07

All seedlings outside for sixth time, 5.5 hours, mostly sunny (continuing hardening-off process).
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05/08

Herb and flower seedlings outside for a few hours; all others inside all day, due to windy conditions.
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Transplanted three remaining oregano into round pots.

05/09

All seedlings inside all day, due to windy conditions.

05/10

All seedlings inside all day, due to windy conditions.

05/11

All seedlings outside for seventh time, 2.5 hours, mostly cloudy, brought in early due to rain (continuing hardening-off process).
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05/12

All seedlings inside all day, due to weather.

Transplanted 10 Chadwick Cherry Tomato - 8 largest into large pots, 2 smallest into medium pots.

05/13

All seedlings inside all day, due to weather.

Transplanted: 2 Fordhook Zucchini; 5 Fordhook Zucchini; 3 unknown late sprouts; 6 Marketmore 76 Cucumber; 5 Tommy Apple Melon Cantaloupe into medium pots.

05/14

All seedlings outside for 2.5 hours, partly cloudy, partially shaded through new leaves on adjacent tree (cautiously resuming weather-interrupted hardening-off process).
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Transplanted 6 Marketmore 76 Cucumber; 6 Tommy Apple Melon Cantaloupe into medium pots.

05/15

All seedlings outside for 4.5 hours, partly-to-mostly cloudy, partially shaded through new leaves on adjacent tree (cautiously resuming weather-interrupted hardening-off process).
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Transplanted 11 Strawberry Watermelon – last of veggies; 10 catnip; 12 Lime Aromatic Basil into medium pots.

05/16

All seedlings outside for 5 hours, mostly cloudy, partially shaded through new leaves on adjacent tree (cautiously resuming weather-interrupted hardening-off process). Tomato seedlings out in garden in evening for first overnight.


05/17

All seedlings in garden for 7.5 hours, mostly cloudy. Tomato seedlings remain in garden all day and for second overnight.
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Belatedly thinned basil (both types, Lime Aromatic and Genovese) and catnip.

NOTE: I should have known to thin herbs and flowers soon after germination. While it is necessary, thinning now might be too late - certainly far from ideal!!!

In hindsight, it has become clear that I started the majority of the vegetable seeds too early, as most seedlings have gotten a bit too big to practically manage – with some worse in this regard than others.

05/18

All seedlings in garden for 8 hours, mostly to partly cloudy. Tomato seedlings remain in garden all day and for third overnight.

Transplanted (and thinned) 6 Common Thyme into medium pots.

First seedlings (17 in total) transplanted into garden, one day ahead of schedule!
5 Jet Star Slicing Tomato
5 New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin
3 Fordhook Zucchini
3 Buttercup Squash
1 Connecticut Field Pumpkin
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Looking good Grinder. You inspired me to do a garden this year again but I didn’t go to anywhere near the tender caring great lengths you have to get things going. I just went to a nursery and purchased some tomato, Squash, and cucumber plants. I also have some carrot and potato. I did however mix in some leaves and manure into the soil for some extra nitrogen I hope.
 
Glad to hear it, John! Nothing wrong with purchasing starts. Wish I was better set up for carrots and potatoes, and beets, turnips, leafy greens and such. Maybe next year.

88 seedlings in the ground as of yesterday (32 tomatoes, 3 sweet peppers, and 53 squash and pumpkins. 8 of the 10 cherry tomatoes need another week or two for their roots to fill-out their large pots before I can safely transplant them).
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Didn't plan on having so quite so many squash and pumpkins, but given the number that died last year I started plenty of extras and then decided to go ahead and transplant them all. Now that nearly all of the squash and pumpkins are in, it's on to peppers (84 of them! LOL), and then cantaloupes, watermelons and cucumbers ...and then on to relocating perennial herbs from the garden, and then transplanting new ones (also outside the garden) ...and then on to transplanting all the flower seedlings.
 
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Whoa! Just three tomato plants and two squash plants give me more than I can eat and you have 32 and 53 respectively. You may as well register your property as a farm so you can take advantage of the tax benefits. Looking real good.
 
05/28

Transplanting continues…
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Finally began to notice (haven’t been paying close enough attention) Striped Cucumber Beetles and clear signs of their damaging effects on many cucurbit (cucumber, squash, pumpkin, melon) seedlings. Removed one each badly damaged and dying Fordhook Zucchini and New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin.

05/30

Transplanting continues…
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Cucumber beetles on every cucurbit. Massive infestation. Zucchini are hardest hit so far, looks like none of them will survive.

202 seedlings are in the ground:
24 Jet Star Slicing Tomato
8 Opalka Tomato
2 Chadwick Cherry Tomato
12 Connecticut Field Pumpkin
11 Tommy Apple Melon Cantaloupe
11 Strawberry Watermelon
10 Marketmore 76 Cucumber
10 New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin
10 Fordhook Zucchini
10 Buttercup Squash
9 Waltham Butternut Squash
3 mystery squash/pumpkin
21 California Wonder Pepper
14 Red Marconi Pepper
12 Golden Calwonder Pepper
11 Sweet Hungarian Banana Pepper
10 Rainbow Blend Pepper
8 Purple Beauty Pepper
6 Cubanelle Pepper

06/01

Morning frost finished-off the cucurbits (all but a couple watermelon seedlings and one field pumpkin suffered serious frost damage). It’s just as well, as the cucumber beetle infestation was well on the way to killing them all anyway. A handful of pepper plants are badly damaged as well. Tomato plants and the vast majority of pepper plants have suffered no visible effects.
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06/02

Transplanted final seedlings into garden:
12 Lime Aromatic Basil
12 Genovese Basil
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06/03

Removed all 86 cucurbit plants from garden.
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Relocated first 5 of 17 perennial herb plants (thyme, sage, catnip, fennel) from garden to new ornamental/herb garden area.
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06/04

Direct sowed seeds (leftover from April seed starting) in all 86 removed cucurbit locations:
12 Fordhook Zucchini
12 Waltham Butternut Squash
12 Tommy Apple Melon Cantaloupe
12 Strawberry Watermelon
12 Buttercup Squash
12 New England Sugar Pie Pumpkin
10 Marketmore 76 Cucumber
4 Connecticut Field Pumpkin

Fingers crossed…

Relocated 4 more perennial herb plants (more thyme, sage, catnip, fennel) from garden to new ornamental/herb garden area. 8 more to go.
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Always enjoy seeing the updates to your garden... that sucks about the beetle infestation, I have a slug problem eating the few green bean shoots that I have, need to put some bowls with beer in up there to take care of them. Unfortunately, a lot of my garden has become overgrown, just not had time to pull weeds and so they are somewhat taking over. I do have the previously mentioned green beans, as well as some peas that are growing OK, a few potato plants, cucumber, rhubarb and a grape vine that are doing pretty decently though.

I also in among the weeds have turnips, carrots and radish, but, my 5 year old helped sow those seeds and so they are not in easily identifiable lines! Still, worst case I am getting the area ready to really work on things fully next year.
 
naiku said:
Always enjoy seeing the updates to your garden... that sucks about the beetle infestation, I have a slug problem eating the few green bean shoots that I have, need to put some bowls with beer in up there to take care of them. Unfortunately, a lot of my garden has become overgrown, just not had time to pull weeds and so they are somewhat taking over. I do have the previously mentioned green beans, as well as some peas that are growing OK, a few potato plants, cucumber, rhubarb and a grape vine that are doing pretty decently though.

I also in among the weeds have turnips, carrots and radish, but, my 5 year old helped sow those seeds and so they are not in easily identifiable lines! Still, worst case I am getting the area ready to really work on things fully next year.
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Thanks. Yeah, garden pests... and weeds... Ugh! Ah well, we can only do what we can do, and try to learn what we can in the process.

Did you end up using any sort of mulch? Barring that, perhaps you could try woven ground cover fabric next year. I foresee a time when my wood chip supply will have decomposed to the point where it no is no longer adequately effective as weed control, at which point I will probably use woven ground cover fabric.

How cool and fun to have your 5 year old helping you plant the garden!
 
I did use mulch, what I think my main issue with the weeds was not putting a thick enough layer of mulch down. The areas is thicker its much easier to control. I'm likely going to use some kind of weed sheet next time and cut openings for seeds.

It's great having him help, he loves planting seeds and hopefully it gets him eating a wider variety of vegetables of he's growing them as well.
 
naiku said:
I did use mulch, what I think my main issue with the weeds was not putting a thick enough layer of mulch down. The areas is thicker its much easier to control. I'm likely going to use some kind of weed sheet next time and cut openings for seeds.

It's great having him help, he loves planting seeds and hopefully it gets him eating a wider variety of vegetables of he's growing them as well.
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When I originally created the garden area from lawn, I simply used all the wood chips I happened to have at that time and did the best I could to distribute them evenly across the entire area. Fortunately, that turned out to be an average of about six to eight inches of well settled-to-densely packed wood chips. Even so, some pesky stuff still manages to get through here and there.

And then there's the considerable issue of dealing with such a thick layer of wood chips while planting/transplanting, which (in my case, at least) tends to preclude small/closely spaced crops such as carrot, radish, turnip, beet, lettuce, etc., which tend to favor loose soil in prepared beds. As the wood chips break down however, and presuming I finally get around to planting a late summer/early fall tillage crop of minowase daikon radish, my densely packed sandy loam lawn soil should gradually become increasingly light/loose, rich and fertile, without any need for tilling and its attendant disadvantages. It's been a hard slog, but for better or worse I'm convinced that this initial investment in considerable inconvenience and additional effort will pay off in the long run.

Good plan. Cutting (burning) holes in weed fabric for seeds/seedlings will control weeds far more effectively than planting in gaps between sheets.

Once you've introduced your boy to the joys of munching in the garden, he'll be hooked for life. :)
 
06/06

Relocated eight remaining perennial herb plants from garden to new ornamental/herb garden area. As normal, freshly transplanted fennel plants looking droopy and sad. Like the others, they too will perk up in a day or two.
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06/07

Remaining eight cherry tomato seedlings transplanted into garden (finally!). Culled one of the two earlier transplanted cherry tomato plants, due to unidentified pest/disease issue, and replaced it with one of the eight, for a total of nine Chadwick Cherry Tomato plants.
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With all the herb plants relocated, there's an unobstructed path between the fence and tomato plants. Nice!
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