Victor did good. He got 0.5-inch diameter, 7-foot long bamboo poles in yesterday. I picked up 30 for less than $1 each. I haven't quite decided how I'm going to do it, but I'll be tying and caging the plants as they grow. These poles are much much sturdier than what i was using. I put three in each bucket, and tied them at the top. They're very strong, and should hold up the tomatoes very well.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Bamboo Tee-Pees
Victor did good. He got 0.5-inch diameter, 7-foot long bamboo poles in yesterday. I picked up 30 for less than $1 each. I haven't quite decided how I'm going to do it, but I'll be tying and caging the plants as they grow. These poles are much much sturdier than what i was using. I put three in each bucket, and tied them at the top. They're very strong, and should hold up the tomatoes very well.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
5-Gallon Bucket Summer Tomatoes: Phase 2
I thought for sure that some of the tomato seeds I planted in June would die. Every single one is now a healthy transplant size. I couldn't believe it. I had originally intended to grow 6 plants (two of each variety) in 5 gallon buckets, but with such seed-sprouting success I expanded to 9 buckets.
I planted 3 of each variety (Arkansas Traveler, Sweet Chelsea, and Texas Wild) in a five-gallon bucket. To prepare the buckets, I drilled 8 1/2" diameter holes around the base, and covered them from the inside with window screen. Then I filled them up with potting soil. This will hopefully provide more than adequate drainage in the bucket. After planting, I fertilized with fish emulsion, and put several handfulls of mulch on top.
All the books and websites say to make tomato cages out of concrete reinforcing mesh, but it is way too expensive. It would cost ~$25 per cage, and I'm not going to pay it. For the short term, I put the skinny, cheap bamboo stick in the buckets, and tied them at the top to make a bamboo tee-pee. Victor ( Plants for All Seasons ) is ordering some more robust bamboo poles for me to make my own cages. It will take a little more work, but save lots of money.
I put the buckets against the east side of the house where they'll get good morning sun, but will be shaded from the scorching afternoon heat. I put them up on cinder blocks so it would be easy to mow and trim the grass around them.
After all this work, I now have 9 thriving transplants that will hopefully produce tons of tomatoes this fall once the weather cools down enough for them to fruit. I had 30 plants, and only planted 9, leaving me with 21 healthy plants to try to find homes for. I gave a bunch to Nick at church, but I still have 13 or so.
I'm a bad influence on children:
I planted 3 of each variety (Arkansas Traveler, Sweet Chelsea, and Texas Wild) in a five-gallon bucket. To prepare the buckets, I drilled 8 1/2" diameter holes around the base, and covered them from the inside with window screen. Then I filled them up with potting soil. This will hopefully provide more than adequate drainage in the bucket. After planting, I fertilized with fish emulsion, and put several handfulls of mulch on top.
All the books and websites say to make tomato cages out of concrete reinforcing mesh, but it is way too expensive. It would cost ~$25 per cage, and I'm not going to pay it. For the short term, I put the skinny, cheap bamboo stick in the buckets, and tied them at the top to make a bamboo tee-pee. Victor ( Plants for All Seasons ) is ordering some more robust bamboo poles for me to make my own cages. It will take a little more work, but save lots of money.
I put the buckets against the east side of the house where they'll get good morning sun, but will be shaded from the scorching afternoon heat. I put them up on cinder blocks so it would be easy to mow and trim the grass around them.
After all this work, I now have 9 thriving transplants that will hopefully produce tons of tomatoes this fall once the weather cools down enough for them to fruit. I had 30 plants, and only planted 9, leaving me with 21 healthy plants to try to find homes for. I gave a bunch to Nick at church, but I still have 13 or so.
I'm a bad influence on children:
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Pickles!
We've had so many cucumbers, I thought it was time to do something with them. I googled a no-cook pickle recipe, snuck off to the store, and got pickling.
I also pickled a small jar of jalepenos and banana peppers. These are all "refridgerator pickled". While they have to be kept in the fridge, they're also ready to eat after 24 hours. I'll let you know how they taste.
On a side note, my summer tomatoes are doing great so far. I'll be transplanting them to their buckets this weekend.
I also pickled a small jar of jalepenos and banana peppers. These are all "refridgerator pickled". While they have to be kept in the fridge, they're also ready to eat after 24 hours. I'll let you know how they taste.
On a side note, my summer tomatoes are doing great so far. I'll be transplanting them to their buckets this weekend.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
