Son Of Jimbo's Troll Garden

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

The summer was a scorcher with little rain. Peanuts don't care. Hot and dry suits them fine. Peanuts are legumes and make their own nitrogen, so fertilize with a low or no nitrogen fertilizer. I use 2-8-8.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Peanut Harvest 2014
8 Pounds Of Raw Peanuts

I Get Twice As Many Peanuts When Grown In The Ground Vs Containers

 

[box13]

I planted onions in a foot deep bed of horse shit that has just accumulated there for years.

The Walla-Walla's are awesome. Big as softballs. I should have grown zucchini but I didn't. Even with it being August, I probably still have time here.

Am I a troll now? Sometimes I do feel that I need to get in touch with my inner asshole.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I wish I could garden. I can't even keep a damn basil plant alive.

Basil grows wild in my yard, I pulled a pile of it outta the peanuts. But it only grows in close proximity to my lilies. It likes shade but not too much. I assume the seeds blew in from somewhere.

I need to write a gardening primer for folks who need a firm basic grasp of plants. Not rocket science. Not mysticism.

Start here: Use rainwater to germinate seeds.

 

[LWulf]

My family had a small farm when I was a kid. We grew lots of vegetables and even had some chickens (not as easy as you might think).

I have my sights on making a "controlled environment agricultural" farm but the initial costs are beyond reasonable, even if you start out small.

The benefit to CEA is the reduced amount of resources needed to work with, combined with a mechanically predictable yield each season. I'm very green though and would still use rainwater, but in a more controlled sense (sorry I'm not big on giving out secrets (nothing that new but I have innovations nobody seems to have thought of yet)).

 

[Lord Pmann]

I don't have a clue what I do wrong. I was given a beautiful potted rose and followed the care instructions to the letter... it was dead within the month.

You have a brown thumb. *giggles*

 

[Cathleen]

I don't have a clue what I do wrong. I was given a beautiful potted rose and followed the care instructions to the letter... it was dead within the month.

I have a friend like that, I tell her "Buy them big, kill them slow."




I want those peanuts -- all of them. I've developed a little callus on my finger from shelling them. Yummy.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

1/2 Gallon Of Roasted Peanuts From My Harvest.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Strawberry Guavas taste like strawberries.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Guava's Come In Many Varieties Of Various Sizes And Flavors. This Is An Indian Red Variety. Its Tennis Ball Size And Tastes Like A Cross Between A Pear And A Strawberry. They Are So Aromatic A Blind Man Can Find Them In The Dark. WALMART sells them for $3 a pound.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Its time to start the Fall Garden.

I allocate 3 months for the Fall Garden: September, October, November. And plant veggies that prefer cooler, dryer weather with moderate sunshine. That is, tomatoes, turnips, cabbages, scallions, carrots, and onions.

I plant scallions and carrots in milk crates. A milk crate is the right size for one bag of compost. I line the crate with a black trash bag, punch a drain hole in the botton of the bag, then fill the bag with compost.

Tomatoes, cabbages, and turnips go in planters. Each plant gets 4 square feet of space.

The large onions go in raised planters of various sizes. I build my planters 2x2, 2x4, and 2x8. All sit on 2 foot legs with 12 inch sides. Onions need lotsa sunshine to reach jumbo size (3 inch diameter).

I anchor tomato plants to bamboo poles 5 feet tall above the soil. I fasten the plant to the pole with plastic cable ties. Do not fasten the plant snug, it needs room to expand as it grows tall. I generally harvest 500 to 750 tomatoes from a dozen plants.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Jimbo, care to tell me the best way to start a box style herb garden and keep the damn thing alive?

Plants hate boxes, so use a box that's spacious enough. That is, a box that retards drainage so that more water seeps into the soil rather than drain away down the sides of the box or container. My basil thrives from the mist I create when I water my fruit trees.

Apply liquid fertilizer with a spray bottle. The leaves will absorb the water and nutrients. In fact I buy packets of fertilizer spikes ( one dollar at WALMART) and stick the small spikes around the box or container. The spikes are high nitrogen that leafy plants prefer.

I protect my herbs from the midday Sun. They get morning and late afternoon light, but large spider lilies shield them from the strongest light.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Two years ago I planted a Thai White Guava in a bad spot with too little Sun. It looks like Hell.

So I dug it up and dumped it in a plastic bucket, then put it out in the Sun. After 3 days it looks much better.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Should I start from seeds or just get plants?

Depends on how impatient you are. If you use seeds collect some rainwater to germinate them.

My rule of thumb is: If I know how to start from seeds I start from seeds (because plants are expensive). It took me 3 years to master starting broccoli from seeds. Florida soil is a killer for broccoli seeds. So I don't use garden soil to start them.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Tomorrow is September so I'm planting seeds this week: Tomatoes, cabbages, turnips, carrots, and scallions. Hardy fare that doesn't require cool temps like other stuff.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

September 5

Most of the seeds sprouted.

Rain water makes a big difference in the germination time. Use bottled water if you have no rain. City water is fulla chemicals to kill the poop and pee germs we drink. The chemicals also kick seed ass.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I have a FARMER BLACKTHUMB account at YOUTUBE, and I been thinking about making tutorial vids for gardener wannabees. Expensive books hit the high spots but much of gardening involves sweating the small stuff.

That is, offer vids that demonstrate the results of using city water vs rain, old seeds vs new, how to transplant sprouts to the ground, how to prune and stake tomatoes, etc.

I need to find some bib overalls.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Pulled the first sweet potato up today. It weighs 35 ounces.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Here's a tutorial for you.

I use 12-16 ounce Styrofoam cups to grow seeds in.

1. Poke a couple of drain holes in the bottom of the cup.
2. Fill the cup with good soil almost to the rim. I stay about 1/2" below the rim.
3. Sprinkle seeds over the soil...no more than 6. All of them wont germinate is why. Plus you can transfer sprouts if none germinate or the cup spills, if you have extras.
4. I usually wet the soil with rain water or bottled water before I cover the seeds with more soil. 1/4" or so is enough. Carrots use 1/8th inch. The seed package has depth recommendations. You can always add soil if the plant flops over on its side.
5. When the plant has 2 sets of leaves on its stalk its ready to transplant.
6. The Styrofoam cup happens to be the right size to fit in a hole you make with a mechanical hole digger. Its a simple hand tool that's cheap.
7. To get the plant outta the cup I use a sharp knife to cut the cup on 2 sides. I pull half the cup away from the plant and soil, and lay the plant/soil atop my hand, then slip it into the planting hole. Should be a perfect fit.

Here's the hole maker. Perfect for a small garden. Note how its tapered like a cup.

http://thumbs4.ebaystatic.com/d/l225/m/mxBWsN62Z5AKjh1jrSLsduA.jpg

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

How To Make Cheapo Planters.

1. Get A Plastic Milk Crate
2. Add Drain Holes In A Trash Bag.
3. Put The Bag Inside The Milk Crate.
4. Fill The Bag With Soil.

 

[Que]

Pulled the first sweet potato up today. It weighs 35 ounces.

That is some tuber!

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

That is some tuber!

I just saw some much bigger. I wasn't impressed with my guys taste. Smaller is sweeter.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Fall Garden Sprouts

 

[Que]

I just saw some much bigger. I wasn't impressed with my guys taste. Smaller is sweeter.

Yeah, that's my line with teh ladeez.

 

[Aphro]

Yeah, that's my line with teh ladeez.

*tee hee*