GMG Green Thumb Club

[Irons]

After a horrible spring weatherwise, summer has entered with a vengeance. Temperatures this past week have been in the 90s (35c), and tomorrow is predicted to approach 100. The vegetable plants have exploded with growth thanks to the sudden blast of heat and sun. Now, the challenge is to keep them sufficiently watered until we get some significant rain.

Hot! About 6 or 7c down on that in my neck of the woods but sweltering nonetheless. Usually not until August 1st when picking toms in earnest, not this year! They are already in production! As always winners and losers in the garden. I had a lovely raised bed of ten calabrese all perfect but only managed to harvest two as the heat stress triggered bolting for the rest.
Mini Munch cucumbers are a joy. I pick a couple (from three plants) each day which we have for lunch along with beetroot and a lump of cheese.

[Szykneij]

Mini Munch cucumbers are a joy. I pick a couple (from three plants) each day which we have for lunch along with beetroot and a lump of cheese.

Sounds tasty! Most of my small (and some large) cucmbers never make it to lunchtime or into the house. I end up eating them off the vine.

[Kalevala]

Sounds tasty! Most of my small (and some large) cucmbers never make it to lunchtime or into the house. I end up eating them off the vine.

Sort of like eating crunchy cucumber water?

K

[Szykneij]

Sort of like eating crunchy cucumber water?

K

Yes, with a cherry tomato chaser!

[Szykneij]

Today I finally had a chance to start the garden cleanup after a few weeks away and a number of rehearsals and events that kept me extra busy.

  In the past, I pulled out my dead vegetable plants by the roots, but this year I'm cutting them off and leaving the roots in the soil. As part of the "no dig" method, leaving the roots to decompose and add nutrients back into the soil makes a lot of sense. It also doesn't disturb the soil structure, and even though most of my vegetables are grown in containers, I think it's a good way to go.

  I usually wear gloves when I know I might be handling thorny or other nasty plants, but since I was only cleaning up the tomato plants, I didn't bother. Bad mistake. There was a pokeweed plant lurking in the tomato patch that gave me an allergic reaction, causing my hand to swell up and become very itchy. A couple of Benadryls helped, but I still made a visit to the local urgent care facility to make sure I wasn't in trouble. Luckily, the allergic reaction didn't seem to be bad enough to warrant additional treatment.

[Irons]

Today I finally had a chance to start the garden cleanup after a few weeks away and a number of rehearsals and events that kept me extra busy.

  In the past, I pulled out my dead vegetable plants by the roots, but this year I'm cutting them off and leaving the roots in the soil. As part of the "no dig" method, leaving the roots to decompose and add nutrients back into the soil makes a lot of sense. It also doesn't disturb the soil structure, and even though most of my vegetables are grown in containers, I think it's a good way to go.

  I usually wear gloves when I know I might be handling thorny or other nasty plants, but since I was only cleaning up the tomato plants, I didn't bother. Bad mistake. There was a pokeweed plant lurking in the tomato patch that gave me an allergic reaction, causing my hand to swell up and become very itchy. A couple of Benadryls helped, but I still made a visit to the local urgent care facility to make sure I wasn't in trouble. Luckily, the allergic reaction didn't seem to be bad enough to warrant additional treatment.

I'm fully into the no dig movement. Results this year have been spectacular with the only disappointment being carrots which were not part of no dig system. Instead of digging trenches, with all the work that entails, I simply dropped a seed potato in a hole made by a bulb planter into a no dig bed. No earthing up. Unbelievable harvest of both Jazzy and Cara - double the crop with minimum effort.
I am fortunate in access to two stables locally. A team of us with three or four cars regularly go in convoy "muck collecting". Hard work loading but we have a laugh, and without cost as the stables are more then happy the muck mountain is diminished somewhat.
The only caveat with no dig is a constant supply of either composted green waste or manure is essential.
   

[Kalevala]

Today I finally had a chance to start the garden cleanup after a few weeks away and a number of rehearsals and events that kept me extra busy.

  In the past, I pulled out my dead vegetable plants by the roots, but this year I'm cutting them off and leaving the roots in the soil. As part of the "no dig" method, leaving the roots to decompose and add nutrients back into the soil makes a lot of sense. It also doesn't disturb the soil structure, and even though most of my vegetables are grown in containers, I think it's a good way to go.

  I usually wear gloves when I know I might be handling thorny or other nasty plants, but since I was only cleaning up the tomato plants, I didn't bother. Bad mistake. There was a pokeweed plant lurking in the tomato patch that gave me an allergic reaction, causing my hand to swell up and become very itchy. A couple of Benadryls helped, but I still made a visit to the local urgent care facility to make sure I wasn't in trouble. Luckily, the allergic reaction didn't seem to be bad enough to warrant additional treatment.

Sorry to hear about your reaction!  Glad that it wasn't worse.

Is there enough room in your pots to do the No Dig method?  Particularly in ones that you grow plants like tomatoes in?

K

[Szykneij]

Sorry to hear about your reaction!  Glad that it wasn't worse.

Is there enough room in your pots to do the No Dig method?  Particularly in ones that you grow plants like tomatoes in?

K

Thanks. My hand looks worse today, but feels better. I'm running out later for some hydrocortisone ointment and non-drowsy antihistamine.

Each spring, I take about 40% of the previous year's soil out of my containers and amend what's left with compost and/or manure and fresh soil. The old soil I also amend to use elsewhere.

It will be interesting to see how much the roots of the removed plants have decomposed. In any case, they'll remain in the mix to help feed the new ones. Technically, because I'm removing the top layer of soil from the containers, I am disturbing the surface microbe environment. But, rather than mix the new material in with the old as I used to, I'll just add it to the top of each pot. Not a strictly no-dig procedure, but following some of the concepts.