Get the most out of your garden

[Lazy Gardener]

The purpose of this thread is to help us gardeners to think outside the box in terms of crop management:
1.companion planting.
2. interplanting.
3. succession crops.
4. extending the season from the front and back end in the typical garden.

There is a lot of literature about companion planting: statements about how one plant "likes" an other or otherwise benefits from close proximity of that other plant, and how some plants are antagonists.

I would like this thread to be anecdotal in nature: Tell us what YOU'VE tried. Tell us what has WORKED FOR YOU. And tell us what has not worked the way you expected. If possible, place your information under the appropriate heading noted in first paragraph. Some bits of information may come under more than one heading.

I'll start with a single entry:
2. Interplanting: I never dedicate space for radish. But, I use a LOT of radish seed. French Breakfast is by far my favorite b/c of it's nice shape, it's tenderness, and non biting flavor. I sow it among any greens, in my carrot bed, at the ends of any planted rows. It acts as a marker, to remind me that I've already planted a crop there. It's also a space saver. It establishes quickly, shading out weed seeds, while the intended crop (such as lettuce) gets established. Then, those radish plants get removed, allowing more space for the lettuce.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Now, here's an interesting little chart. I found it to be quite the eye opener. This information can be put to good use: What can the gardener do to ensure good germination when direct sowing? There are several methods that can be employed.

1. Pre soak or even germinate your seeds, and sow them on a warm day. If you use any of these methods, you need to be careful that you don't soak them too long. That will encourage rot. And, if you pre-sprout your seeds, they must get planted immediately at the first sign of germination. Pre-sprouted seedlings are very delicate, and it's easy to break the root or cotyledons off... which will kill the sprout.

2. Pre-heat your soil. I employ this practice when ever possible. I hang on to large sheets of plastic, and use them multiple times. Covering the soil with plastic before planting works best if the plastic is in direct contact with the soil. When it's time to plant, it's best to remove the plastic so you don't scorch the seeds when they sprout. Even a day or two of extra solarization will do wonders to warm up a bed before you plant it. Then, you can move that sheet of plastic on to the next bed.

Depending on the temperature, and the crop, I may trench the rows under the plastic. This works especially well with corn. Dig a 4" furrow, and plant the corn at the bottom of the furrow. You can then leave the plastic in place. The furrows result in little inverted grow tunnels. Of course, you must monitor soil temps and remove the plastic if things heat up too much. Then, as the corn grows, it's a simple matter to use a hoe to pull the soil up around the plants. Thus, hilling your corn, and killing any weeds that sprout in those little trenches.

3. Sow in a low tunnel, or erect a low tunnel over your row/bed after you've sowed your seed. You can also use milk jugs, or wrap a tomato cage in plastic. I even lay tomato cages on their side down the length of a bed, and lay the plastic over the cages. This makes an instant low tunnel if you stake down/ weigh down/ or bury the sides of the plastic with soil. Beware: tunnels and plastic containers quickly overheat. You must monitor the climate inside!

 

[wyoDreamer]

It DOES NOT WORK to ignore the garden and loose the onions and peas in the 3' tall weeds, lol. The peas will use the weeds to climb on, but then you will need to leave the weeds in place as a trellis...

 

[Junebugaboo]

So glad I stumbled across this thread...will definitely be trying tomato cage tunnels for my peppers. Even though I'm in zone 9, it doesn't get hot enough for them until September.

One thing that really worked for me and that I've been continuing to do is a fall crop of fava beans on one tier of my terrace to rejuvenate the soil...grows pretty well over winter and really starts to blossom late February and March (the bees even come out for this!). You can harvest the beans really young or wait until the pods are monsters, but a lot of people I know that grow them don't even eat them (they are pretty time-consuming to process if you're drying the beans). They just grow them for a cover crop.

After they died back the first time I grew them, we cut their stalks to the ground, left the roots in, and eventually planted about 12-14 Roma tomatoes in that spot. And holy WOW, we've never had a tomato crop like that. Granted, we also had a lot of Brandywines, Beefsteak, and cherries. I really can't remember how many cans of sauce and salsa, frozen sauce, pizza sauce, bruschetta, etc. we had that year, but it was more than enough to last us until the next year! The fava beans worked wonders...

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Your nothing is certainly something. You've learned how to produce a bumper crop of pumpkins without: dedicating garden space, having them take over your garden, and without having to spend time meeting the water and nutrient needs of these heavy feeders.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Bee, you have my cheeks in pain from smiling at your last post. Um.... I'm betting that you have plenty of self sowing going on. But... you have many intercessors. All those lovely flower seeds are being turned into eggs!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I finally got around to at least "thinking" about some gardening. I've moved several of the big cattle protein tubs to a move convenient place. Most of the previously purchased dirt has settled down to the point where they're only about 1/3 full. So, I moseyed out to the barn and shoveled up a garden cart full of well aged poo. It's likely mostly goat poo with a bit of horse mixed in and some well composted hay droppings. I'm going to mix that in with the soil already in there and see if I can make anything grow! Yay - got my hands dirty and it feels great!

 

[NH Homesteader]

Thus far nothing interesting lol . I quit planting pumpkins, I just throw seeds in the manure pile from the barn. I've never grown such lovely pumpkins. Other than that... I've got nothing!

 

[tortoise]

Interplanting / Living mulch: I am working on establishing groundcover in my garden as part of trying to go no-till. I started some white clover last year. I will be adding more clover and also creeping thyme this year. I used a lot of herbs as well and let them go to seed. I am hoping to choke out all the weeds! If a weed can grow there, why not an herb?

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Thyme is supposed to repel insects. There are a lot of herbs and weeds that can be used. Pennyroyal, mints, Russian Sage, Citronella, Rosemary, Lemon Balm, Bee Balm, Lavender. It's always my intent to dry some creeping Charlie for the nest boxes and coop, but I've not gotten around to it. I'm hoping to get some Artemesia growing this summer.