Welcome gardeners!

[Butch 194]

Let's see pictures of your gardens. I'm building one for next year but don't think my soil is gonna be ready. Maine Dad, Micah, said to plant winter rye. I can't find any around here. I've been dumping plant and lawn clippings on the area and tilling under. Plus I'll till under this Falls leaves and lime the crap out of it but I don't think it will be ready. And my Troy-Bilt has leaking seals that I need to get around to fixing now.

But I'm interested in seeing pics of your gardens!!

[persof 14]

What about putting chopped leaves on my garden and tilling them in in the fall?

Will they be decomposed enough by spring? I have a 312-8 with tiller and 42" RD deck so if I add a tow behing sweeper leaves will be easy to collect - but - can I skip the formal composting in a plie step?

Francis

[Uncle BO 0]

try to stay away from oak leaves they add too much acid to the soil, they seem to decompose by spring (leaves). And get a soil test kit or get soil checked by a 4H extension service depends on the veggies you are going to plant be careful on the lime not to good for tomatoes. :)

[Raider 2]

I shred all leaves and other material that goes on the garden. Anything green gets composted first. A soil test is a good idea otherwise you're just guessing.

[stoneman 10]

good tip on the winter rye. make sure you get winter rye and not annual rye grass. " Lolium multiflorum " you only need about 2-3 lbs per 1000 sq. ft. and the planting depth is 3/4". you should be able to find it at a feed and seed supply or maybe even at a tsc if there's one around. i could send you some if you can't find it. the winter rye will germinate (if you get it in pretty quick here) in 4-5 days. annual rye grass takes 7-14 days, and is a much thinner blade and won't get near as big as winter rye. then what to do is as early as possible in the spring, before it enters it's seed cycle, . . . turn that rye over, and cultivate it. cultivate it good. what you are doing is adding organic matter to your garden and producing nitrogen. then here's another little tip. immediately plant some buckwheat. when it's about time to plant your garden, turn the buckwheat, cultivate and rototill. the rye adds great organic matter and the buckwheat chokes out lots and lots of weed seed. by the time you are ready to plant, most (not all) of those weed seeds have passed their germination cycle . . . therefore . . . much fewer weeds. unless of course you like weeding. :)

[bk-scouter 93]

Wow, these are great tips.

We did our first garden as a family this year and had a blast. It was originally my 9-yr old daughter's idea last year, so we thought to give a try. Hey, more oppurtunity for seat time, right?? With a lot of helpful info from one of my nice neighbors ( who has the BEST garden in our neighborhood) and some tilling time on the tractor, this is how we started out back in April...

Plotted a 25'x20' area in the back yard for the garden. Sprayed weed killer in the area, waited a few days then tilled through the top layer with the tiller I bought in February (BIG fun for me , wife just shakes her head... ) We have heavy clays in our soil, so my neighbor suggested a bag of gypsum and a couple yards of sand, along with the usual bags of manure compost. More tilling...

We put up poultry fencing with some used old steel fence posts I had laying in the back yard to keep the deer and rabbits out. We planted raspberry bushes in the middle of the garden. We have plans on moving those to the end of the garden this fall.

With the hot humid weather and lots of rain in the first half of the summer, by mid July the garden was busting at the seams.

Cucumbers, tomatos (large and cherry) ice lettuce, baby carrots, red potatoes, broccolli, yellow/white sweet corn (what there was of it ) green peppers, sugar peas, raspberries. Oh yeah, WEEDS too ! The tomatos and the cucumbers went EVERYWHERE

It was great fun and definetly doing it again next year

-BK

[Butch 194]

bk-scouter I don't know what happened to your corn but you do need multiple rows so it can cross pollinate. I'm hoping I can at least do 6 rows and I plan on staggering the plantings. Corn will take up the most area. I hope to be able to pick fresh corn over a 2 month period.

[bk-scouter 93]

bk-scouter I don't know what happened to your corn but you do need multiple rows so it can cross pollinate.

we planted 3 rows, and only had sporadic growth in 2 rows and the third never came up...

Good luck with yours Butch.

[persof 14]

Here are a few of my garden pics. I did not have the tiller to help me; but next year I will.

Thanks

Francis

[KC9KAS 4,741]

Start a compost pile..you will be very happy to have the organics for your garden, and you will be helping the environment by not sending the stuff to the landfills!

Worms really help a garden or compost pile too.

Do an internet search and you will find everything you need to know.

[Lane Ranger 11,029]

Some 1054 plowing photos

:)

[Roger from southern Iowa 1]

That 1054 did a fine job plowing.

Looks good.

[persof 14]

The seed packet said "compact vines"???

Thanks

Francis :woohoo:

[shorts 182]

I have 8 large oak trees to pick up after, we chop and bag the leaves then I feed them thru the shredder into the a new compost pile while adding septic tank enzyme addative and water as it builds. In the spring it gets fed thru the shredder a second time and into another pile where it gets some soil added in. The second year the compost gets stired with the tiller as it is used to pot plants and in the flower beds