Urban Gardening...it's a jungle out there...

[taldesta]

I've had good success gardening in containers and raised beds during the last few years. With attention and a little light it's possible to grow much in an urban setting.

Ok ... also read your comment on the composter over in food and drink. I have three going; one strictly for kitchen and two others on the property for garden type waste. It takes a while to be able to judge the efficacy and maintenance ... but I am interested in various types and would appreciate any experience you might have to share.

 

[22-rimfire]

I was left many tomato cages by the previous owners ( deceased) once they give out, I will make my own. I have a small 2 cycle tiller . I have made do with small spaces for gardens for so long now I have room to spead it out I am going to enjoy the room . Plus I waited many years to afford a machine like I have . I'm going to use it. When I was raising lots of tomatoes I set fence post and ran ropes between them and tied the tomatoes up to that . I would have an acre garden if I had the room
Roy

I don't have the room and envy your new set up. We raised about 100-125 tomato plants. To say we had lots of tomatoes in the latter part of the summer to early fall was an understatement. I probably wouldn't have an acre garden now, but something about your size would be manageable but I would like to have room to expand the garden if needed. I love to work in the garden..... or I guess I mostly do. I don't much like spending whole days weeding. So mechanizing as much of the hand work is a godsend.

We used a large Troybilt tiller. I'd love to have the room to use/play with a machine like that. Is mowing the grass with it as fast as with a riding lawn mower? I have a push mower. My yard size and personal health don't justify a riding a mower to me (yet).

In the last house we owned, we had 1/2 acre+ and I would have eventually purchased a riding lawnmower for that to allow my wife to mow the grass more easily since I traveled a lot back then. Not a problem yet where I am.

 

[JCavSD]

I recently read about a variety of corn that can be grown in a large flower pot (http://www.burpee.com/vegetables/corn/corn-on-deck-hybrid-prod003168.html). I'm looking for things like this for next year that I can grow on a deck or in other areas of the yard that won't support a proper garden.

 

[plumberroy]

Is mowing the grass with it as fast as with a riding lawn mower?

Not quite I have just a tad under 1/2 acre My tractor (they are cosidered a 2wheel or walking tractor) has a working speed in high of about 2.5 miles per hour. low is about 1.25 It also has a travel gear for tavel with a sulky or trailer of 8 mph the next size machine has a 3.3 mph 3rd gear.

I recently read about a variety of corn that can be grown in a large flower pot (http://www.burpee.com/vegetables/cor...rod003168.html). I'm looking for things like this for next year that I can grow on a deck or in other areas of the yard that won't support a proper garden.

I saw that I think any small type of sweet corn would work as long as it is planted in a clump like that

 

[plumberroy]

good stuff picked this morning

 

[taldesta]

Nice harvest, early season too! I can't brag of having anything to pick just yet but the signs are on the vines!

Spaghetti squash

Scarlet runner beans

Of course, salad makings are on second crop as they come early here as well.

 

[bored2deth]

Looks like some of you guys are enjoying some really nice gardens! My experiments, so far, have been interesting. I've probably ending up coming to conclusions which were obvious -- bigger plant = better crop. However, I have gotten ten nice cucumbers off of one plant which has set in it the same little black container I raised it in which was probably 2x2 in. The hanging plants have seen few insects, no disease, and has started to produce quite a few squash. My tomatoes, which were grown in pots, turned into trees....one actually became so loaded down (and I was away for a few days) it fell apart...I guess I'll pickle the green ones. So far I've found myself to be as adept a gardener as martial-artist or marksman...weird.

So, all in all, I've come to some conclusions of my own.

For an Urban Garden (or Urban Survivalist garden) it may at times prove more suitable to grow plants which are either produce continually or have a long shelf-life.

Cherry tomatoes/Tommy-toes and other smaller tomato varieties. (These can be easily pickled, and tend to have heavy yields, some of up to 300 fruits per plant).
These can also be dried and bagged easily.

Potatoes (decent shelf life) Heavy in starches and carbs. Can be replanted.

Onions can have a fairly long shelf-life, especially if hung in a well-ventilated and dry area. One of the easiest of all plants to grow, and one large bulb can yield several in it's place once planted and matured.

Peppers (Bell peppers) like tomatoes, tend to be continuous growers. Some species can be pickled or frozen, while others can be smoked or dried.

Okra tend to have a continuous production, and these can be pickled well. They can also be dried, I've been told (would probably work well in a stew or soup).

Jerusalem Artichoke (as potato, and they will drive you NUTS.)

Summer Squash tend to have a continuous production as well, these are adaptable, and can be used in a wide range of recipes. I've been told they can be frozen or dried.

Winter Squash have a long shelf life and are also continuous producers but tend to be very slow growers. Some, like the butternut, may require additional or special attention, but they are certainly worth it.

Turnips/beets/radishes -- These have a decent shelf life, and are easily grown. They may even be grown in a small space, IF you like to pick them small. If picked small, the greens are also more tender and palatable.

All of the plants above, I've proven to have quite a knack with, and have been able to grow them all in small spaces with strong production.

 

[taldesta]

B2D Thanks so much for your garden update. My sense is that growing is for anyone interested, whether for need or enjoyment. I like that you have concentrated on small spaces, less resources, less time, cost and energy to produce. :thumbup:

I would be very interested in how the water/nutrients were delivered to the 2 x 2 in containers that produced so many cukes. So much from so little space saves resources, time and money.

Also, hope I read this correctly, the hanging squash - what container type and support system for the heavy fruiting plants?

My small vegetable garden just off the kitchen porch ... beef steak tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, basil, thyme, parsley, green onions, garlic, lettuce (ongoing plantings), spaghetti squash (stores at least a year mostly) The squash and beans will be preserved, as well as much of the tomatoes, parsley, basil, thyme.

Mostly, I love that spaghetti squash and scarlet runner pole beans are subsistence foods and also make me look like more of a gardener than I have the brag rights for.

My changes this year include budget buried soaker hoses (on quick releases). No top watering, no slugs, no powdery mildew on the vines in spite of all the rain. All fruiting held well above the ground with the help of a little vine training along wire fences! Much less time watering, essentially little work.

Over the years, buried hose does not suffer from uv degradation and can last far longer.Plus, on clear hoses, clogging growth inside is not encouraged by exposure to light.

Drip waterers for this garden, using old old hose pieces. I am having a little fun keeping the pest controlling toads attracted to the garden. (goes to say, frogs welcome) The chicken waterer is set on top of a low profile 'toad house' made of rock slabs.

The drips fall to a plop and ripple in the full basin. It is a gravity feed system (syphon). The very small and low 'water tower' needs filling every three days or so - and maintains a fast paced flow to two drip waterers.

The gravity drip feed system also works beautifully for my cascading birdbath that waters plants in the lower garden ... and it flows from a much larger container that needs refilling perhaps every week and a half. Am working to rainbarrels coupled into the eavestroughs for future.


Double fencing keeps the pups from eating the tomatoes off the vine. The blackberry bushes are propped up high to keep them safe as well.

Scarlet runner pole beans are planted elsewhere and serve many purposes including landscape camo for the drilled well head.

Shades of Jack and the Beanstock. OK .. I need a ladder to harvest the Scarlet Runner pole beans ...

... but the leaves covering the s/w window cool the shop, spiff up the cinder block and the vines do sport some awesomely pretty flowers!

Much more so, I would love to see the 'after' pics that PlumberRoy must have! I am totally and more than prepared to be humbled.

 

[bored2deth]

Very well done!! Bravo! Beautiful garden!

 

[willseeyalater]

Scarlet runners are a great plant. Years ago I added a string trellis system to the side of a farm house (the group home for adolescent boys where I worked). On the west facing exterior (hot sun all afternoon) I planted a forty foot intermix of scarlet runners, Beefsteak tomato vines morning glory and cardinal climber vines. It was organic with our hobby farm setting with goats and horses providing all the manure for manure tea you would ever need We had green beans and almost football sized tomatoes for many meals and the flowers were a visual treat. An added bonus was all the hummingbirds that came to get some nectar.

 

[bored2deth]

B2D Thanks so much for your garden update. My sense is that growing is for anyone interested, whether for need or enjoyment. I like that you have concentrated on small spaces, less resources, less time, cost and energy to produce. :thumbup:

I would be very interested in how the water/nutrients were delivered to the 2 x 2 in containers that produced so many cukes. So much from so little space saves resources, time and money.

Also, hope I read this correctly, the hanging squash - what container type and support system for the heavy fruiting plants?

I just now found your questions. The 2x2 containers (which are really just large black seedling starters, which you can find at most nurseries) sit in a larger container, which feeds the plants by the water seeping up inside the containers via a hole in the bottom (prevents powdery mildew). Cukes will grow more efficiently in a gallon container, but if you are limited in space and have a large number of plants...the seedling starters can work quite well. Also, I found that by allowing them to crawl up a stake or a post makes them grow more efficiently still.

The squash I have which ranges from winter to summer squash (butternut, patty-pan, and both crookneck and Dixie hybrid) I have grown in both sitting AND hanging containers. So far, though, the hanging containers (turvey tomato hangers) have beaten the half-gallon sitting containers by twice the amount of production. I only water the hanging plants so much as until a few drops of water fall (prevents powdery mildew). This also allows me to check the leaves for insect larvae, eggs, and the layers themselves. In each hanging container there are atleast three plants (in this they seem to shade one another, and I've yet to find a sun scalded fruit). The containers on the ground are fed by sitting the container in a slightly larger container. This also conserves water, which would be important if you say, relied on captured and stored rainwater for your garden.

Overall, it takes a minimum of water to feed the plants, but being a hot summer they have to be watered every other day it seems. I also use mulch around the base of the plant (or in the top of the hanger), to minimize water loss and keep heat around the roots. I feed them organic humus and compost, along with sometimes organic manure. Also, by using containers I've been able to grow fruits and vegetables without the need for pesticides. I've been able to keep them relatively pest-free due to the presence of spiders/ladybugs/manti, and I regularly check the leaves for eggs and the like. This also tends to keep rabbits, mice, rats, cutworms, slugs, and other pests well away.

I've also found that kiddie pools can prove to be a valuable gardening vessel. These can act like an inexpensive raised garden, so I may try to replicate the watering system with these. I believe if I were to use gravel or another material to separate two pools, but to allow water to reach the upper one inside the lower pool, that it may work. I'll have to try that soon.


I also find that planting in smaller spaces/containers allows plants to be started earlier, and kept alive longer by the use of cloches (which is like a mini greenhouse, and keeps the cold air/frost off of the seedlings/mature plants).

Next year I plan to plant Jerusalem artichoke, which is a heavy and tough spreading plant.

 

[taldesta]

Scarlet runners are a great plant. Years ago I added a string trellis system to the side of a farm house (the group home for adolescent boys where I worked). On the west facing exterior (hot sun all afternoon) I planted a forty foot intermix of scarlet runners, Beefsteak tomato vines morning glory and cardinal climber vines. It was organic with our hobby farm setting with goats and horses providing all the manure for manure tea you would ever need We had green beans and almost football sized tomatoes for many meals and the flowers were a visual treat. An added bonus was all the hummingbirds that came to get some nectar.

Hummers and spaniels apparently!

B2D ...... Thanks for this information. Appreciated. Ingenuity around watering with simplicity is a challenge. A little time setting up can save a lot of work for sure.

OK ... I've tried the tomato hangers, also used them for other plants. Good to know the heavy fruiting plants are candidates as well. When I did the tomatoes, I found that there needed to be a cage to stop the plant from twisting its stock in the wind anyway ...

When I experiment with perennial invasives, I plant them where their spread is in the mower path ... in case they don't work out :grumpy: If they do, I just have less mowing to do

Thanks again.

 

[bored2deth]

B2D ...... Thanks for this information. Appreciated. Ingenuity around watering with simplicity is a challenge. A little time setting up can save a lot of work for sure.

OK ... I've tried the tomato hangers, also used them for other plants. Good to know the heavy fruiting plants are candidates as well. When I did the tomatoes, I found that there needed to be a cage to stop the plant from twisting its stock in the wind anyway ...

When I experiment with perennial invasives, I plant them where their spread is in the mower path ... in case they don't work out :grumpy: If they do, I just have less mowing to do

Thanks again.[/QUOTE]

No problem I just recently lost my summer squash due to pickle worms, and they are a pain in the hiney. I had to cut down and bag up all of my summer squash plants, most of which were just coming into full maturity and bearing. It was...pitiful. I still have cucumbers and tomatoes growing, as well as new squash plants coming up. This time I will experiment with cayenne pepper spray, as well as wrapping the base of the plant. I'm thinking the pepper spray should work well enough.
I'll set the new seedlings out in about a week or so, and this time I will make sure those little snots can't get at them. Bad enough I had to deal with rabbits.

Here's what I learned on dealing with vine-borers, pickle-worms, and the like:

Wrap the base of the stem with nylon (such as a stocking) or something similar, or spray with BT mixed with safer soap. I've also heard cayenne pepper mixed with water can be sprayed -- will be trying both. Also, either bag up or burn the affected plants (same with powdery mildew, etc.) Prevention is more or less key.

Also, I will add that I had put the summer squash in late and if I had of had them in at the right time, I would likely have avoided the worms. Annoying. I didn't get mad, really, a little annoyed, but I learned a lot from the experience. Plant early, take precaution, prevent, and rotate.

 

[Amarion]

My lovely wife asked how long untill I have the entire back yard tilled up ? When we bought this place there was a 25x25 garden space
Roy

Gardening is a very interesting hobby and i also like it and have a little garden too.You are superb you have enough space for little garden.


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