Wawa-melon: Second Shift

Shift Work...

Because I wrote my entry so early today it didn't include all of my gardening, so I decided to write a second entry. I haven't been able to do much work outside because of the crazy weather but I was able to sneak in some gardening in two shifts today. For the last few days the rain will pour down for 15 minutes then the sun will come out for an hour. I took advantage for the hours of sun we got before the 7pm downpour that's last until this point, 12am. I'll be picking up where I left off in my last entry.

Amending...

I amended the beds during the second break in the rain. I filled the wheelbarrow with compost and added perlite, just like before then created hills for the 7 square foot plots assigned to the sweet potatoes. I had to scoop the compost mix into the bed, rather than pouring, because it happened to be the one bed with completed fencing. It probably ended up helping me out because pouring would have been a mess and could have crushed the tomato-berry plant taking up the rest of the bed. It's interesting that the smallest fruit, tomatoes, take up the most space. The tomato-berry plant needs a 4x4 space compared to the 2x2 space the Parks Whopper and Atkinson needs. Once I completed the hills I grabbed the recycling bin and added the rest of the compost mix from the wheelbarrow into it. It really looked like I'd have enough to fill the bin but it didn't even fill a fourth of it. I went back for a second filling and Perlite addition. Instead of topping off the recycling bin I went straight to Patch because I didn't want to fill the barrow a third time to amend my plots. I had to scoop into the four plots allotted for sweet potatoes in my bed because it wouldn't have worked any other way. I added a scoop to each square foot then mixed it into the existing soil and scooped another 3-4 inches of compost mix on top. Smart Gardener recommended that I amend the top 8 inches of soil with compost so I mixed one large scoop at least four inches deep then added another 3-4 on top. I think this will give my sweet potatoes a great start. Once I'd added the extra few inches of compost to the plots the twine dividers were covered so I pulled them up and pushed the sticks holding them down just about an inch or two so that they would show but not look out of place compared to the other dividers. When that was done I smoothed everything out and cleaned up all the stray compost I'd spilled. I was careful not to make too much of a mess so clean-up was quick. Since I was already clean I decided to get rid of all the weeds I'd pulled and left collecting insects about a week ago. I wasn't able to get rid of them early because of the weather but I've wanted to so I gathered my pile and tossed it. When I cleared everything I noticed that the spot on the path that housed the weeds was covered in worms and potato bugs or rolly-pollies. The worms instantly started inching their way to the nearest soil and the "rollies" began to scurry. I quickly ran to grab anything to smash the RP's with, I found an old tree stake and started to smash away. I think I got most of them and it was kind of fun. I'm starting to think that RP's are much more dangerous and reproduction-happy than I originally thought. They are everywhere, everywhere. 

Georgia...

I finished smashing grabbed my wheelbarrow with some remaining compost and my shovel and headed back to the Georgia Jet bed. I wheeled the barrow past the gate into the drive way then went inside to grab my trowel, planting gloves, and the slips. I poured the excess water out of the Slip cup and headed back out to plant those babies. We ordered 12 plants but only had enough room for 7 in that bed, and I'm using my home grown slips in the 4 plots in Patch, so I rifled through the lot to find the best looking ones. I set them aside and started marking off 12 inches for each plot. Once I'd done that I planted them as high on the compost hill a I could and as centered as possible. I watered them very lightly because I knew the rain was coming and time was running out on my second shift. 

Seven Georgia Jet slips planted on hills. They look bad but the pamphlet said they would and that they'd survive & thrive.

Wawa-melons...

With the remaining compost mix I topped off the recycling bin and decided between peanut plants and watermelon plants. Since peanuts are a root legume I went with the watermelons. I used the 2 plants, planted from seeds on April 3, that were together in 1 newspaper pot because the recycling bin could only hold two, max. I noticed that a mushroom was growing in the pot. So I pulled it out, took the newspaper off (didn't have too), and planted them in the center. I can't wait for them to produce fruit. I love tiny things and seeing the first mini watermelons will be a thrill for me, haha. I finished planting and getting everything I needed inside right in time for the rain. 

Mushroom in my watermelon seedling pot. 

Two watermelon seedlings planted, May 11, 2013.

Diggin' for Gold

Filling the Beds...

I spent most of today outside in the chilly clouded weather finishing the filling of the beds. I had to fill the wheelbarrow, add Perlite, mix the Perlite, wheel to bed, and pour. Digging into the pile and filling the wheelbarrow was one of the hardest parts but unlike I expected it was not the hardest part. I think the hardest part was pouring the compost/perlite mix into the actual beds. The beds were not anchored to the ground so tipping the enormous industrial size wheelbarrow over the edge would cause the bed to move and most of the compost mix would remain inside. I'd then have to rake the mix out, shake the barrow, and/or push it all the way over so that it was upside down over the bed. I had to do this all without shoving the bed over too much because once the beds were a certain amount full they could not be straightened out properly. Let me tell you, beds arranged the way that our beds are arranged do not look very good when they are crooked. The most visually appeasing part of laying them out as we did is the lines, straight lines across the space. Anyway, I had to do this about 5 or 6 times. It took me awhile. After I'd had filled all the beds I filled the wheel barrow one more time and spread the contents between all the beds just to make sure they were properly topped off. Then, I raked them all out making sure that the compost was level and the corners were filled in, it was hardest getting the corners filled because I tried doing so without tossing any compost mix out of the bed. 

Tomato Tepees...

After I filled the beds I worked on the tomato cages made of bamboo, done tepee style. What I did to make them was take 3 bamboo sticks make all of the ends level on one end and wrapped a rubber band around them. Then I'd spread the tepee out and take one more bamboo stick and break it into 3 pieces attaching them to the 3 sides of the tepee with 1 rubber band for each end of the broken piece. This made a tier for the tomatoes to rest on. That way we won't have to tie the stems to the tepee. The tomato will find its own way up the tepee-stake and rest its stems on the ledges. I made 3 more before running out of bamboo. We'll need one more pack to make 2 more tepees, one for the green beans, and a trellis for the squash. I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to make the trellis but I have a couple ideas. I also saw some very cool easy ones on Pinterest that I may want to copy. When I was done I placed all 5 of the completed structures outside in the beds they'd be living in this spring and summer. I wanted to make sure that the sizes were adequate. They looked good, if you asked me. I went back inside to work on seed tape directly after finishing the tepees. 

Bean Tape...

My last garden task for the day was to make seed tape for the green beans. We have very few items planned for the garden that are cool/warm weather crops but the ones that we do have are a little late. We need to plant them as soon as possible. So I wanted to make sure that the one that the one crop that needs the longest cool/warm weather was ready for tomorrow before I completed my "gardening" day. I cut 12" strips of newspaper and mix flour and water to make a paste. I used a ruler to mark every 3 inches with a pen and put down a drop of flour paste on each mark then dropped a bean in the paste. It went much quicker and was much easier then the carrot, radish, and spinach tape because the beans are so much bigger. I was done in a few minutes and left them to dry. Before I cleaned everything up I went upstairs to strain the other seeds that were soaking. I wanted them to dry out a bit for tomorrow when I make their seed tape. When I strained the Mesclun mix I noticed that many of the seeds had pre-germinated  a bit during there soaking. So I left them in a little water and will just broadcast them on there plot. I put the spinach seeds and mesclun mix in separate zip lock bags and finally finished everything I'd set out to do for Potagar Schoultz today. 

Once I plant the cool/warm weather plants I'll be focusing my attention on Patch Market and the tests I've been waiting to get results from... some have produced results that I just haven't had the time to tell you about but don't worry I'll report everything later in the week. I should be done with the Potagar for a little bit, anyway, after tomorrow. 

FYI- Tomorrow is officially our Last Frost Date, April 16 2013!

Potagar Schoultz with filled boxes and tepees in place.

Sugar Baby!

Watermelon...

Today was not much of a gardening day for me. It rained this morning so the outdoor bed in Patch, the Topsy Turvy, the spinach and the 5G strawberries was watered sufficiently. By the time the rain had stopped the heat had broken. It did warm up quite a bit from last night's chill but it wasn't even close to the 90's. The cooler weather isn't meant to last which is okay with me because the watermelon seedlings like the heat. The rest of my plants can tolerate the kind of heat we're looking towards; high 70's and low 80's. As I was putting out the greenhouses and checking on things I noticed that there were 4 watermelon plants. Three in one neat row and 1 in another newspaper pot. It was interesting to me that they sprouted where they did. They sprouted in 1 row to the far left of the pot.I'd originally planted 4 seeds in each corner but my guess is that the first watering washed them around. I take care to water gently when planting and otherwise so that I don't over-water but it seems that didn't matter much in this case. Like I mentioned before, the watermelon seeds actually germinating were my "reach." I told my mom this and she said that, that was weird because "in Honduras people spit [the seeds] out all over the backjard and they grow, with a lot of melons." I replied saying that was probably due to the heat and of course her reply was "well I used to see them growing all over the mountains where it was cooler and they were so big the men had to carry them on the shoulder." I'm still excited though and feel like the seeds germinating proves my green thumb but disappointed about the fact that they've germinated lined up in one tight row because that means that I won't be able to separate them to give the extra's away. I'll have to transplant all 3 and thin the weakest. The 4th germinating seed, in a separate pot, unluckily isn't looking very strong, which makes sense, I planted four seeds in that pot and only one has shown its little face or large face, if you're thinking comparatively. I forgot to check if one pot was primed and the other wasn't if so I'll let you know the results in tomorrows blog. 

Topsy Turvy...
Everything else seems to be doing really great except for the Topsy Turvy. One plant died and the other I was able to revive but the ones that are in there and not dead aren't looking too good. I feel like all the roots were dragged down out of position when I added the layers of soil and watered. I am so happy that I got extra's. I knew that the strawberry was the one thing I wanted results from because they're my favorite fruit and because of last years death. So the extras were a must and I am so glad I did buy them. If the Topsy Turvy doesn't end up working out (predicting that will be the case) I'll get at least (hopefully) 5 pints from the 5G bucket and 2 from the other container I plan to fill with the remaining plants. That should be enough to satisfy me, this year anyway. 

Home Depot...

Hours after tending to my gardening at home I made a trip to Home Depot for Mike's dad. He wanted to get the other 4 raised beds that he needs for his garden, Potagar Schoultz. I offered to do it so I did. I went to Home Depot asked someone where they were and once directed headed out to the Garden Center to get them. I thought they would be much heavier so as I looked for the right size I was plotting how I would get them on my cart and into the car. They turned out to be extremely light. So light I was able to carry two at a time up the hilled driveway when I got home but we're not there yet. I found the right size in 2 places and picked the spot where they were on the ground to choose from. I picked one and noticed that the grooves weren't cut out all the way so I put that one back and carefully looked through each one, picking the 4 best I saw. Once I had them on my cart I went over to the vegetable plants just to have a look. It turns out that Home Depot has recently switched from cool weather to warm weather veggies. The last trip they didn't have squash, cucumbers, zucchini, or cantaloupe. This time they had all of that and a million tomato varieties. I wanted so badly to pick up a squash or zucchini plant and maybe even a melon plant but I resisted. I knew that I didn't have space in my garden and Mr. S didn't say I could pick up anything for there garden. After taking a look at everything and really just admiring the plants I headed inside to take a look at the seeds. I figured if I couldn't grow any of those seedlings because I don't have the space I could at least test growing them from seeds. I've had such a great time testing everything. So I picked up a packet of zucchini seeds and kept looking. I realized that zucchini needed 36" so I put them back and grabbed a packet of crookneck summer squash (only needs 18') I figured maybe I could find a space for one 18 inch plant if it did germinate. I just couldn't resist. So I grabbed the packet and forced myself to leave because if I'd stayed I would have ended up picking out 7 more seed packets to "test." 

I headed over to the indoor garden space at the front of the store where they keep the Perlite. I know, I know I said that if the Bulk-man said that Mr. S. didn't need to add Perlite then he shouldn't waste the money. The thing is I tested some of the compost and it didn't have a drainage problem, not at all, but I could see it happening. So if Perlite can only help and not hurt then I figured it was better to be safe and add/buy the Perlite. For all of that compost he would only need 5 bags at $4.00/bag. I think the $20 is well spent considering that the beds were like $300.00 and the compost was $118.00. Why potentially waste all that money plus all the money on the 72 individual plants needed to fill Potagar Schoultz when $20 on Perlite could eliminate any potential problem with drainage. Plus, I think the Perlite makes the compost look more aesthetically pleasing, again worth it for $20. You put all this work and money into making something produce well and look nice so why not? 

I paid loaded the car and got everything into the backyard, or like my mom would say the backjjjard, all on my own. I was happy to do it and happy to be given the task. I've been getting so used to having a lot to do outside that today would have been a little dull without it.  

Bush Sugar Baby, planted in 4 corners, germinated at 7 days in a row.

Single Bush Baby in 2nd pot.

Revived strawberry plant from near death in Topsy.

March 29 - April 10, 2013

Seascape, died in root dragging dry-out during Topsy transfer.

Greenes Fence cedar raised beds, 4ft. x 4ft. x 7in.

Outdoor Patch & Vid2

Planting more...

This morning and afternoon I worked in the scorching weather planting more watermelon seeds, almost all of the rest of the strawberries, watering, and planting another round of Lemon Balm. 

I planted a few more watermelon seeds in the hopes that they would germinate like a few of the others have and I'd be able to give them to AFAC. I didn't plant them all in the beginning because they were my "reach" plant. If they did germinate then I'd planned to grow more. Not all of them have, yet, but I do hope they will. I planted the new pots with compost, perlite, and organic potting mix. I think the compost will give the watermelon seeds the kick they need. I also planted the seeds that were in the bottle. They weren't doing anything at all so I guess those are our results. You cannot pre-germinate scarified or any watermelon seeds. I am hoping the ones in the bottle will germinate in soil so we'll have some data on whether or not scarifying helps any. 

I planted some more Lemon Balm because I'd forgotten to plant a control group. The cups I did plant of Lemon Balm were with primed seeds that actually turned out very difficult to plant. I still don't know that I got any of them in the pots. I have a few more days until the proposed germination time is up so I guess we'll find out soon. In the mean time, I wanted to make sure I had both primed and controlled groups trying to germinate. Lemon Balm is really amazing in deterring pests, it smells great, and is used for medicinal purposes. It would be nice to have some around. 

I replaced 2 of the strawberry plants (from the top 2 ports) in the Topsy Turvy. One had completely died because the roots weren't covered and one was almost dead. I was able to revive the second by removing it from the TT planter and planting it back in a cup with mostly compost. It has perked up a lot since. I added two new plants to the TT and more compost and soil to make sure that the roots were fully covered and watering wouldn't wash them out. So far Topsy Turvy is getting a thumbs down. Because I can't rely on the TT planter, and I have extra strawberry plants, I planted the 5-gallon bucket I painted with 7 strawberry plants. I poked holes in the bottom of the bucket with nails and a hammer and planted along the rim so that the plants would hang over the edge when they got tall enough. That way I don't have to worry about rotting fruit. I'm hoping one of the two planters or both gives me a good harvest. In case your wondering, I'm able to plant that many plants in a small container because 1) I don't plan to let the runners grow and 2) the plants don't need as much space when they've got a "wall" on one side. 

After I planted and watered the 5-gallon bucket I carried it over to Patch and set it down while I grabbed 3 bricks to lay under the bucket. The bricks have 2 holes in them and will help with drainage for the planter. This will be a test of which works best... more traditional planter or Topsy Turvy Upside Down planter?

Thinning seeds after step 2 and tour of Patch Outdoors.

Making the planter hammering nails in to make holes.

Planter completed and set on bricks to help with drainage.

Dirty Deeds

Soil Troubles...

I was online just looking up some information about natural fertilizers for strawberry plants and happened to come across both of the specifications on the two types of soil I had purchased. Both said in bold lettering "Not for use in containers." So I kind of started to freak out thinking MY BED IS ONE LARGE CONTAINER and then pushed it to the back of my mind and continued looking for strawberry plant fertilizers, without much luck. The next day I start looking into the MG soil and Scott's soil. It turns out that they aren't for containers they are to be used as amendments for ground soil. Now what do I do, I bought 12 bags of the wrong soil and did all this work for what? I wasn't planning on mixing in any of my ground soil. That's why I did all that work with the raised bed. So that I wouldn't have to, ugh! Growing veggies is 50/50, water and soil, and I happen to get 1 fifty wrong. Fantastic. I couldn't sleep most of the night thinking about what ingredients were in potting mix and what was in what I got. I finally fell asleep at about 5am only to have to get up at 10:30am to help my mom run some errands. We spent the day out together and I forgot all about my soil problems. The second I got back, my problems were back. Not being able to relax I got up and went down to the local hardware store to check out the ingredients in potting mix.

Hardware Home Depot...

At the hardware store I took a look around for 1 bag identical to mine and placed it next to an overturned bag of potting mix to compare. It turns out the only difference in the MG potting mix and the garden soil is Perlite or those little things that look like broken up Styrofoam. So I asked the attendant if that was true? Was I getting it right? Did I just need to add Perlite? He said that as far as he knew it wasn't Perlite but Vermiculite that I needed to add. He showed me where both were shelved. I took a look at them both and then went back to the two bags for comparison. I didn't want to go against what he'd said so I headed to Home Depot for Perlite. I know that it's a good idea to add Vermiculite but as far as making the soil I bought into potting mix all I needed was Perlite. 

At the Home Depot I grabbed a cart and started searching for Perlite. It was nowhere to be found. I started getting really frustrated with my particular Home Depot this had happened once before, under stocking. I was going to leave but then this really nice older woman (seemed like a big gardener herself) asked if I needed any help. I said 'yes' and asked for the Perlite. She showed me exactly where to find it, INSIDE. They don't keep it out in the garden center but inside in the garden section. I grabbed two bags and headed to the seed racks. I grabbed 2 packs of Cherry Belle radishes and a pack of watermelon seeds, just for fun. Then I headed back out to the garden center to get some Organic Potting Mix for the strawberry planter. Considering, that I was making my own potting mix and I had read that poor soil would kill my berries I wanted something amazing and pre-mixed. I looked at both the MG organic and the Vigoro organic potting mix. Vigoro had Perlite in it and MG did not. Want to guess which one I got??? Duh! The Vigoro. I'd learned my lesson. I didn't actually know if Perlite was organic but the rest of the components matched MG ingredient for ingredient. 

Back in Patch...

Once I had unloaded everything from the car and into the garden I went into the house to grab my gloves and put on my boots. Perlite should only be worked with (apparently) when wearing gloves. I took that warning seriously for my hands and feet. Back in the garden... I unhooked the twine I was using to section off the area into square feet and started chopping up the soil. At first I was using a small hand spade and it was taking me forever and ever to mix even the first few inches. Then I grabbed an enormous shovel and started hacking into the soil just to get it loose and to make a hole to pour in some Perlite. I poured, mixed, and moved. Poured, mixed, and moved. I was sweating like a pig and cold at the same time. It was windy and freezing every time I stopped mixing, pouring, moving. Finally, I got back to where I started pouring and mixing and the entire raised bed was now speckled in white. It looked good and I could see that the soil even looked lighter. It may have been my hopes coming true in vision but I really think it did. I bought 8 quarts of Perlite and mixed in about 6.5 quarts. I don't know if that was too much or too little but every bit of soil now has a fine coating. THANK GOD! I would have never chosen to do it this way if I had known better but trust me next year I'll do it this way again (it's cheaper). I'll just mix in Perlite as I had soil. The hardest part about this was trying to get the Perlite all the way down to the bottom of the bed. I replaced the twine and went inside to collapse. I was tired, cold, sweating, and not rested but I was anxiety free for the moment!