The Final Layout

[MickinMD ★]

I moved some extra/backup plants into new seedling cells

Here's how my veggies will be arranged this year.  I have to move the outside planting of tomatoes up a week to May 8th, which is still safe but with less of a margin, because my plants are growing too tall.  I took out the middle of the three grow lights over them.  I added a couple 6-cell trays in front-right so some late-germinating plants can get enough light.

 

 

[Further]

They've been growing !!

[Further]

I've learned to put my plants far enough apart that I can weed with a lawnmower...

[Johnny Come Lately Name]

18 hours ago, Further said:

I've learned to put my plants far enough apart that I can weed with a lawnmower...

Gotta be careful not to mulch up those plastic trays, though.

[Johnny Come Lately Name]

Do your New Ace peppers have really thin walls? 

I always used to grow them because they'd ripen in 70 days, which is perfect for our short growing season and I hate unripe (green) peppers. They always used to be fairly thin-walled though.

[MoseySusan]

On 4/13/2024 at 5:10 PM, MickinMD said:

which is still safe but with less of a margin

Do you have some sheet plastic in case the overnight temperature drops? 
 

My neighbor across the street grows all kinds of vegetables and potatoes. And marijuana. His wife has legal permission to grow up to five plants. He said that last year he harvested 5 pounds of buds. But he “doesn’t touch the stuff.” 

[MickinMD ★]

12 hours ago, F_in Ray Of Sunshine said:

Do your New Ace peppers have really thin walls? 

I always used to grow them because they'd ripen in 70 days, which is perfect for our short growing season and I hate unripe (green) peppers. They always used to be fairly thin-walled though.

I only grew New Ace last year and did it because it was supposed to grow slightly smaller than avg. sized bell peppers but 30% more by weight per plant than avg.

But, in my hands, it grew really big - as far as my growing goes - bell peppers.  I didn't notice thin walls.  It produced well in 2023 with 10 through September then 1 in Oct. and 1 in Nov.

I also grew one Lady Bell Pepper in '23 and it grew 25 peppers, though some small ones!  Since I was (and am) trying different peppers so I keep track of when and how many I pick (records below pictures).  Here's a big New Ace from Last Year from the plant that grew 12 peppers :

 

 

R8S1: New Ace Bell Pepper, Red

           7/29: green pepper 4”, a couple 1.5”

           8/12: green pepper 5”

           8/30: 1^st New Ace Red Pepper picked, 5”

           8/30: about 8 3” to 4” New Ace Green Peppers, some smaller, some blossoms

           9/6: picked 1 4”, 7 oz. red New Ace

           9/12: picked 2 New Ace

           9/18: picked 2 large red New Ace

           9/22: picked 1 red (very large), 1 green for spaghetti sauce canning

           10/3: picked 3 large red, 1 more (green) on plant

           11/4 pick 1 2.5” x 4” green pepper

           12 peppers picked, 10 red, 2 green.

 

R7S1: Lady Bell Red Pepper

           7/29: two 3” dark green peppers

           8/7: two 4” dark green peppers

           8/19: picked 1^st red Lady Bell Pepper

           8/25: picked 2^nd red Lady Bell

           8/30: about 8 green peppers, at least 5 3” or more.

           9/6: picked 4 4” all 4.6 oz. plus 3 smaller red Lady Bell’s

           9/18 picked 5 3-4” and 4 2” red Lady Bells - 5 more green on plant

           9/22 picked 1 3.5” green (to make spaghetti sauce)

           10/3 picked 2 2” - 4 (green) more on plant.

           10/14 picked 2 small (2”) - 2 more very small on plant

           11/4 picked one 2” and one 1”, both red.

           25 peppers picked altogether, all red

 

 

 

[Ralphie ★]

Wow, you are making me look like a total slouch!  My lettuce is snot doing very well. I think I planted it 2soon and it does snot seem to have recovered yet, and most of the romaine got too cold and died. The leaf lettuce is doing better, but still not very well. 

[MickinMD ★]

7 hours ago, MoseySusan said:

Do you have some sheet plastic in case the overnight temperature drops? 
 

My neighbor across the street grows all kinds of vegetables and potatoes. And marijuana. His wife has legal permission to grow up to five plants. He said that last year he harvested 5 pounds of buds. But he “doesn’t touch the stuff.” 

I have plastic paint tarps, in case the temp drops and hopefully won't have to use them.

[MickinMD ★]

4 hours ago, Ralphie said:

Wow, you are making me look like a total slouch!  My lettuce is snot doing very well. I think I planted it 2soon and it does snot seem to have recovered yet, and most of the romaine got too cold and died. The leaf lettuce is doing better, but still not very well. 

Most of the fun I'm having in the garden is from growing tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers I've never grow before.  10 of the 14 tomato plants are varieties I never grew before, the other 4 being too good to skip: 2 of the incredible Sun Gold cherries, 1 incredible productive into November Yellow Pear cherry, and 1 considered-the-best-in-taste Brandywine beefsteak being my only repeats.  6 of my 8 peppers are varieties I never grew before, 1 Lady Bell and 1 New Ace Bell, both red, being the only repeats and I'm growing sweet peppers that are not bell peppers for the first time this year that are carrot or scimitar shaped: Golden Marconi, Jimmy Nardello, and Peppigrande - the last being seedless or near seedless.

I haven't done lettuce since the 90's, when Internet information was limited and most of what I knew came from Dick Raymond's The Joy of Gardening.  He had a TV show on PBS sponsored by Troy-Bilt Tillers somewhere around the 90's.

Today, I usually Google whatever seeds, seedlings, when ripe, etc., look at several pieces of conflicting advice, then pick the ones that make the most sense. But I still refer to some books like Raymond's The Joy of Gardening and Craig LeHoullier's Epic Tomatoes.  My sister has gotten into Mel Bartholomew's Square Foot Gardening books.

 

[Razors Edge ★]

On 4/13/2024 at 7:10 PM, MickinMD said:

I moved some extra/backup plants into new seedling cells

Here's how my veggies will be arranged this year.  I have to move the outside planting of tomatoes up a week to May 8th, which is still safe but with less of a margin, because my plants are growing too tall.  I took out the middle of the three grow lights over them.  I added a couple 6-cell trays in front-right so some late-germinating plants can get enough light.

Are you revamping the layout due to the ground wire?

[Johnny Come Lately Name]

14 hours ago, MoseySusan said:

. But he “doesn’t touch the stuff.” 

Tongs?

[Johnny Come Lately Name]

2 hours ago, MickinMD said:

Most of the fun I'm having in the garden is from growing tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers I've never grow before. 

I tend to avoid the stuff I can buy locally and plant the stuff I can't.

I grew these one year and they were amazing. I have always been -meh- on watermelon but these tasted like you'd dumped sugar on them and each melon was just enough for one person.

The following year I planted them again and they didn't do squat. Wrong conditions.

When the retirement garden goes in, I'm building a special bed, just for them.