Last year, I decided to try growing beets for the very first time.  It's not that Sue and I have a passion for them; in fact, prior to a single dinner two or three years ago, neither of us had eaten a single beet during our entire nearly-30-year marriage.  


But that dinner a few years ago consisted of some beets sent to us by my friend Jeff in Michigan, and were prepared by he and another visiting friend, Patrina (from Australia!), who were both staying with us while attending our annual Tomatopalooza event.  Jeff's beets were roasted alongside potatoes and onions, seasoned by olive oil, salt, and pepper.  It was a simple but delicious preparation that encouraged me to try to grow them myself.


So last year I dug up the two back rows of the garden and dedicated them to lettuce, beets and radishes - with only the lettuce from transplants.  Though not a total failure, the beets germinated spottily, required thinning to give them sufficient room (beet "seeds" are more like clusters of seeds, producing clusters of plants in most cases!).  Then the weeds got into the act, and, despite a few decent sized (and yes, delicious!) beets, I was not impressed.


So, being someone who actually enjoys transplanting thickly planted cells of seeds to individual pots, I decided to experiment with starting beets the same way that I do tomatoes, peppers, lettuce - everything, really - and see what happened.  I planted 10-15 of those large, lumpy "seeds" per small cell in plug flats, waited for them to germinate, and then, when large enough, popped out the cells and put a small seedling each into the cells of my plug flats.  One fringe benefit was immediate - the iffy-germinating Burpee Golden Beet (at least when direct seeded outside) thrived and actually germinated far better when started indoors.


So, armed with my nice healthy beet transplants, I prepared the back two rows of my garden, and amidst radishes, lettuce and greens, transplanted my nice healthy beet seedlings 3 inches apart.  They took like champions, growing nice and sturdy, and this method made weeding much easier.  Over the last few weeks, we've harvested a bounty crop of smooth, succulent beets - and are making good use of a new favorite, the beet greens.  Below are a few pictures of our results.  

So, mission definitely accomplished!  No more direct seeded beets for me!

let's finish the discussion on Container gardening.  We've covered the rationale for growing in containers, as well as the types of containers to use.  We've talked about keeping it as inexpensive as possible by not going fancy or high-tech.


If you are going to re-use containers from last year, and are going to grow peppers, tomatoes or eggplant, it is a good idea to bleach the pots first, to eliminate any possibility of bacterial, fungal or viral diseases carried over from the previous season.  Though not the most fun gardening task, it can be made pretty easy and quick by partially filling a large trash can with water and adding half a bottle of bleach.  (be sure to use gloves....I also do this outside).  I dip the pots into the dilute bleach, and use a brush to lightly scrub the bottom and sides of the pots.  Rather than rinse with clean water, I then just invert them in the sun to allow for the pots to dry.  They are then ready to go.


As to what to fill the pots with:  this is the one area that I don't "go cheap".  I also don't reuse the potting mix year to year for tomatoes, peppers or eggplant, starting with new material each season - again, to minimize possibility of diseases.  I use 2.5 cu ft bags of soil-less mix, such as Miracle Gro, mixed with 25 lb bags of composted cow manure - both available at the big home stores like Lowe's or Home Depot.  The reason for the soil-less mix is its lightness and porosity.  Because it doesn't compact and turn to muck when wet like soil, it makes for happy plants.  Of course, if you have access to supplies of nice fluffy compost, you could use that instead of the soil-less mix.  At the end of each season, I empty the pots into a pile, with the used mix fine for flowers or herbs or mulching the garden beds the following season. 


As far as feeding, I like to grow my tomatoes quite lean and actually don't add anything for a few weeks; after that, I use a slow release, balanced granular food such as Vigoro or Osmocote.  If the plants look like they need a boost while in mid-season and growing vigorously, I will use the "blue stuff" fertilizer - Peter's or Miracle Gro soluble plant food.  Don't forget - when growing in pots you need to water frequently, so nutrients can leech out of the mix quite quickly.


Once I settle my plants into the growing medium (being sure to plant deep, as tomatoes will root all along any buried parts of the stem; I do this to peppers and eggplant as well), I put a heavy layer of mulch into the container, covering the medium completely to a depth of 2-3 inches.  I use fresh grass clippings (we don't treat our lawn with anything).  This layer of mulch helps conserve soil moisture, and breaks down to feed the plants as well.


Finally comes the matter of supporting the growing plants. It is difficult to grow indeterminate tomatoes in the middle of a patio or driveway because of the inability to pound a sturdy stake in or near the pot.  That's why I grow mine at the driveway edge, with an 8 foot stake pounded into the ground next to the pot into the lawn.  If you are growing determinates or dwarfs in pots, then a relatively short stake (4 feet or so) in the pot should work fine - and you can always use the metal tomato cages that you can find in garden centers that are 3-4 feet tall.  When using stakes, I use twine to tie the plants to the support.


To remind on watering.....the worst thing you can do to plants grow in containers is to let them dry out for an extended period, especially if there are fruit on the vine.  This is a sure way to end up with blossom end rot on the developing fruit.   Plants tell you when they need water - if they look really wilted on a hot day, give them a drink!  If you use good planting medium, as I described above, you can't really over-water!  In the mid-summer, with mature plants, I actually water each morning and each late afternoon, letting the hose run into each pot for 20 seconds or so for a 10 -15 gallon pot - water will run out of the bottom, which is fine. 


So there you have it - in three parts, quite a lot of information on growing tomatoes, peppers and eggplant in containers.  If you have any additional questions, ask!

Hopefully my blog readers will enjoy what I'm currently doing with this site - alternating more detailed articles on some of my methods or projects with more briefgress reports and updates.  Of which this will be one!


On a day like today (low 90s, no rain for a few days), the number of containers in the driveway (and lack of drip irrigation) make regular watering a must.  And that is what I am about to do once I jot down this quick entry.


In the main garden, the back row is now cleared of beets and lettuce and ready for the indeterminate tomatoes that will go in this weekend.  The double row of potatoes, now mulched back to soil level, are thriving, with vigorous, health vines.  We are picking excellent summer squash, and the blueberries are starting to blush.  We are pleased to see that our garlic is bulbing and scaping; I hope to harvest all of the Ajo Rojo this weekend so I can plant more beans.  The front row of dwarf tomatoes are mulched, staked and caged.


In the driveway, a few tomato plants look a bit iffy (typical for each season - it is hard to bat 1.000!), but I am very pleased with how things are growing...if a bit mystified that the dwarfs in the black plastic grow bags are doing much better than those in the white grow bags.  We've got tomatoes setting on a few plants, eggplants starting to blossom, many hot peppers with open flowers, and sweet peppers showing small buds.


Finally, the water scarecrow sprinklers may be what is keeping the deer away.  For that or other reasons, they've yet to nip our driveway plants, even in the absence of any fencing.  Strange, but positive news!


On go the "garden clothes", and off to water!

One of my main gardening beliefs is that it should NOT be an expensive hobby.  Yes, I know - all of the fancy gadgets that are on display at garden centers or adorning pages of glossy catalogs look pretty seductive.  


But is it essential to buy expensive gadgets and pots?  Nope.  Think about it - the essentials of gardening are seeds (then seedlings), something in which they grow, something to hold that in which they grow, water and sun - and perhaps some additional nutrition as the season wears on and the plant exhausts the nutrients in its immediate vicinity.


Seeds are pretty inexpensive, and even in many cases free - if you have friends who are avid seed savers and have far more than they need.  If you want to start with seedlings, there is some cost involved, though, again, savvy shoppers can find good deals.  The "dirt" - that is an area that I don't want to skimp on if growing my plants in containers (poor drainage and/or disease can end many a gardener's dream of a bountiful harvest).  


As to what to put the soil and seedling in, you can purchase expensive containers and pots at stores or in catalogs, or you can go with the least expensive option, or reuse containers that shrubs or trees or perennials come in.  I've been known to stop by the side of roads to gather nice large black plastic pots that either flew out of someone's truck, or were tossed there by someone who obviously didn't need them.  Then there are Grow bags - inexpensive, reusable, and pretty easily portable, as long as they aren't too large.


I've found that saucers aren't needed, and color, though it could have minor effects, isn't really all that important.  I think it is wise to avoid clay/terra cotta, due to its porosity, hence poor water retaining ability.  Drainage holes in the bottom are essential.  Bleaching prior to use is recommended, in case there are soil borne diseases embedded in the walls of the container.  I've found that plants in containers sitting right on my concrete driveway, perhaps due to the baking heat of the direct sun, out grow (in speed) and, in the case of eggplant and peppers especially, out-yield those grown in the garden soil.  


Below are an array of the different types of pots I am using - 10 to 15 gallon large ones for indeterminate tomatoes, smaller 5 gallon pots or grow bags for peppers, eggplant and dwarf tomatoes, and very small - half gallon - black plastic pots in which to grow hot peppers sufficiently large to give them a good test.

I am sure that many of you have all sorts of questions about container gardening.  Please be sure to either post a comment, which I will respond to, or send an email.  A few things to be covered in my next Container Gardening blog post - what to put in the pots, fertilizing/mulching/watering, and providing support.


I hope that this is helpful to you!

We used to have a driveway.  But I figured out that the place in our yard with the best sun exposure is even better suited for an additional garden.  So, between mid March (when we use it for our Seedlings) and mid October, our driveway becomes a perfect place to grow tomatoes, peppers and eggplant in pots.


Aside from being the location in our yard that gets the most direct sun, there are other reasons why I've gone in the direction of container growing.  First is the ability to control the quality of the soil that the plants grow in.  After growing tomatoes in our main garden for more than 10 years, soil borne diseases were increasing to the point where a substantial portion of each year's plants were dying prematurely and yield per plant was decreasing at an alarming rate.  By using pots that can be bleached each season and using sterile soil less mix, the plants have a significantly better chance at making it through the season sufficiently healthy to provide a decent crop.


Second, and this pertains primarily to eggplant and peppers, my theory is that these heat loving plants enjoy having their root zone baked in the hot sun.  I've found that yields are far higher with container grown plants than when grown in the ground.


Finally, having the plants right outside my garage door provides an ability to make closer and more frequent observations of the plants and fruit.  On my way out the door to work, and following my return home, the plants are right there in my face, making it easy to spot problems and progress.


Of course, no gardening activity works perfectly....but I will save the issues of container/driveway gardening for another blog entry!

After the crushing heat and humidity of the past few days, the crisp, cool air that this morning provided just felt incredibly refreshing.  And the beautiful day that followed provided perfect conditions to make some great progress in the garden.

So it was a day for:  weeding (garden edge, garlic), picking (lettuce, beets, radishes, garlic), planting (the front garden row dozen dwarf tomatoes, some flowers and herbs), transplanting (Red Russian Kale and Swiss Chard into large pots to make room for more tomatoes), mulching (an area on the side yard behind the driveway, on which pots of flowers are now sitting), staking (all of the driveway plants in pots), and making some garden observations on a small audio recorder.

So what's left to plant in the garden?  Two rows of beans, once the garlic is ready to pick, and two rows of indeterminate tomatoes in the back of the big garden.  I've also got quite a few flowers to spread around here and there, mostly a few different types of Hibiscus, and red or salmon colored Salvia Coccinea.

Each year I fill my pots/gardens/driveways with a dazzling assortment of hot peppers.  It's kind of a no-brainer....easy to germinate, to transplant, to grow.  Not bothered for the most part by diseases or pests.  Not fussy in their growing location - big or small pots or the garden soil.  And they are prolific - yielding much more heavily than sweet peppers.  Finally, many are absolutely beautiful, with striking foliage and fruit colors.  Oh yes, did I mention that they can be eaten (with great care!).  


I hope to blog quite a bit this year about the various peppers I am growing.  Today, I took some pictures of a few of the more interesting ones, shown below to exhibit the array of variation in those that have purple or other colors aside from green in the foliage.


Below, starting at upper left and moving right, then repeating for the rows below:  Bolivian Rainbow, Filius Blue, Fish, Gemstone, Golden Nugget, Little Nubian, Peruvian Purple, Pretty in Purple, Spectral, 
 Trifetti, Variegata, and Vietnamese Multicolor.

After growing many of these for a number of years, you do learn the young foliage colors.  The darkest by far as young seedlings is Peruvian Purple.  The variegation comes on very early for Trifetti and Variegata, but takes a bit of time for Filius Blue, Fish and Golden Nugget.  In all cases, the purplish cast to the foliage is more intense when the plants are grown in full sun, and as the plant matures.


In a future blog on this topic, I will show what the fruits look like on these plants.  To me, they are amongst the most beautiful of garden plants, and fit just as well in the flower garden as they do with the veggies!

http://www.news957.com/


Go to the link above and choose to listen live at 11 - 11:30 AM EST.  I am humbled to have an opportunity to answer questions on a Sunday garden show called The Weekend Gardener, out of Halifax, Nova Scotia.  I was fortunate to do several of these last year, and it is great fun!  


This is Niki's garden blog -http://yearroundveggiegardener.blogspot.com

Here we are in early June, and today and tomorrow are to be in the mid-90s with high humidity.  But the garden tasks can't wait, so it is a matter of pacing yourself and moving slowly, finding shade for some tasks....and lots of water, and fruit breaks.


Here's the wish list of accomplishments for today:  find a nice obelisk for our new Clematis (Lady Di), pull dirt and mulch over our second row of potatoes, stake up all of the driveway indeterminate tomatoes (20 climbs up and down the stepladder to hammer in those 8 foot poles)...and if enough time and energy, plant the front dozen Dwarf tomatoes in the garden and cage them.  And for sure, give everything a good watering, if we don't get a hoped-for thunderstorm.


That leaves a few more tasks for tomorrow - mow/mulch, stake the driveway pots, plant some more flowers and herbs, and get to weeding the big garden.  We also need to start picking more garlic and drying it for braiding - the garlic rows will hold bush beans.  The final garden task will be to fill the back two rows with up to 40 indeterminate tomatoes.  


Off to the Farmers Market to buy veggies and fruit!