If anyone might be thinking about growing a garden this year: Burpee's $10 Money Garden Good Deal

[1776Forever]

Burpee's Money Garden

http://www.burpee.com/product/id/112011.do

$10 of seeds produces over $650 worth of vegetables!

Major savings for people who grow their own vegetables!

A well-planned garden will result in a 1 to 25 cost-savings ratio, meaning $50 in seeds and fertilizer can produce $1,250 worth of groceries purchased at a supermarket. And all you need is a small, sunny plot to enjoy these big savings.

In addition to cost savings the taste of homegrown vegetables is vastly superior to store-bought and their nutritional value far exceeds vegetables that line the shelves of supermarkets a week or more after being picked.

Each Money Garden contains packages of six easy-to-grow varieties capable of producing $650 worth of vegetables on a mere tenth of an acre.

..........

We will be doing this and hope the weather will hold out and help us out!

[mzteris]

1. I dreamed about making a garden

last night. A few tomato plants, some red/yellow/orange peppers, maybe a cornstalk or two, and, of course some beans.

This morning I got to looking at my backyard, yeah, morning sun/afternoon shade - and how about those "fall plantings"?

My daddy always had a "garden" in the backyard (usually every available inch and usually the size of some small farms. lol all of which he turned by hand, but I digress. . . ) I suppose I remember SOME of that, but I don't remember much about planting, picking, and putting up. Now that it looks like eating is about to become a luxury, I think I should brush up.

[1776Forever]

2. It's mostly about the soil. We will have to bring in a lot of compost & soil here where we are.

As for putting it up I do a lot of freezing. You can just put all your left over veggies in a couple of freezer bags that make great vegetable soup really quick. The rest will be eaten by us and our friends and family. I love the tomatoes grown in Ohio soil! Nothing better! There is just something really special when you pick and cook your own food. It is great for a family project too! Good luck!

[soothsayer]

4. cehck out earthboxes. pricey but they work so very well (if you have sunlight0

really bountiful

[1776Forever]

7. Thanks - I will do that!

Here is the website:

http://www.earthbox.com/

And here is one on how to build your own!

http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-your-own-Earth-Box/

:hi:

[Arkansas Granny]

8. I'm going to try something new this year - straw bale gardening.

http://www.nicholsgardennursery.com/strawbales.htm

This way I can grow things where the conditions are best without doing a lot of digging. It sounds really interesting. I also plan to do some container gardening. It's just me so I don't need to plant large amounts of any one crop. My main objective is to grow a salad garden - a couple of tomato plants, cucumber, lettuce etc. I'd be really happy if I could get 3-4 salads a week out of it.

[1776Forever]

11. Sounds interesting - take a look at the following link - looks good too:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-your-own-Earth-Box/

[Arkansas Granny]

12. That looks interesting and it's something I could make.

It would really save on watering.

[1776Forever]

14. I heard their may be a drought this year in the Midwest. Would be good to be ready for anything!

:woohoo: Thanks for mentioning that!

[madrchsod]

3. "victory gardens"...

good way to raise some money at the farmers market.

[tridim]

5. I just saw "Coraline" and I want her garden.

I always grow tomatoes and peppers, things I can't afford to buy at the grocery store any more.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

6. Was that a good movie?

I've seen the commercials and was surprised to learn it was stop-motion.

It's all models. Not cgi.

[tridim]

9. Very good, but I was pissed because it wasn't in 3D at the theater I chose.

I'm going again tomorrow.

Stop-motion animation is a dying art, I'm very glad these filmmakers are sticking to the old school.

I'm betting it might be the last stop-motion feature ever.

[Gonzo Gardener]

19. Link to Coraline's garden here...

http://www.coraline.com/

You can visit her garden and create new flowers!

:hi:

[Love Bug]

10. How big is a tenth of an acre?

I don't do math well! :crazy:

[1776Forever]

13. Here is a lay out of 1/10 acre plot -

4,000 Sq. Foot Vegetable Garden = 12 beds

http://onestraw.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/18-acre-market-garden.pdf

And here is a good article on how and what to grow a garden on 1/10 acre:

http://onestraw.wordpress.com/sub-acre-ag/1-acre-sustainable-market-garden/

One Straw: Be The Change

.1 Acre Sustainable Market Garden

For my winter project this year I have undertaken the design of a small, sustainable garden either for market or canning. It is far from finished, but thought I would through it out to the blogosphere to get some more input on it.

Design Goals:

* Replicable: It should be simple and flexible enough to implement in backyards across the country
* Scaleable: It must be flexible enough to run from several hundred sq ft up to several acres
* Low/No Input: Long Term fertility is maintained on site with minimum eternal fertilizers through cover crops and no till practices.
* Low Pest: Ecological Farming practices implemented to reduce pest pressue by attracting and keeping on site populations of beneficial organisms and heavy emphasis on healthy soil for healthy plants.
* Low Tech: Site to be managed with hand tools and hopefully chicken “tractors” instead of rototillers. This improves soil, cuts start up costs and reduces carbon footprint.

[Tashca]

29. Very good

In the mid-80's I experimented with deep beds. I made each of them 5' by 20'. I would add more each year....I dug them by hand and it was a grueling task. They were very easy to care for and unbelievable yields. I had them for several years and then moved. In the last few years I have moved several times. I still dug them and I narrowed them down to closer to 4'. Easier to reach across. My kids knew to never step on them.....this is crucial. I experimented with cover crops with good results. I absolutely abhor rototillers....they are terrible for soil structure and set in a layer of compaction. What you have laid out are basics of long term soil health....and thus healthy plants. Very good!!

It's interesting that you posted this.....my wife and I just today made a website that will be a source for cover crops and natural soil amendments in smaller quantities....We hope to be up and running by mid-summer.

[SpiralHawk]

34. Four feet is generally the best width for a garden bed...

...because then you can reach easily into the middle, having unstrained access to the entire bed. If you get much wider than that, then you are leaning, stretching and inevitably straining...

[Love Bug]

33. Thanks!

[customerserviceguy]

15. Need some advice from growers

All we have is our back deck, no plot of land to call our own here in condoland. It's also fairly shady there, not much direct sunlight, except in the late afternoon. Can someone suggest a veggie that would provide a harvestable crop back there?

[1776Forever]

18. Saw this on Huffington Post today - Talks about berry's but I think you could use this for anything....

The following is an excerpt from Fresh Food from Small Spaces: The Square-Inch Gardener's Guide to Year-Round Growing, Fermenting, and Sprouting by R. J. Ruppenthal. It has been adapted for the Web.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/17/urban-farming-grow-berrie_n_167709.html

A central problem for many of us who garden in the city is a lack of light. This is covered extensively in the vegetable chapters. I mention it again here only to note the problem that shade poses for growing fruit. In short, most fruit trees require nearly a full day of sunlight in order to set and ripen fruit. So what can you do if your only available growing space gets only a few hours of light per day? Here I have two pieces of advice: First, if you are gardening in the southern United States or anywhere with hot weather, then this small bit of sun might be enough, since some trees prefer partial shade in hot summers and can even get burned in full sun. So be courageous and try planting something there. Second, there are a few berries that are proven to be good shade producers, so you can try one of these even in partial shade conditions. In their natural environment, as lower-growing shrubs in woodland areas, many berry plants are used to partial shade. Blackberries, for example, can set nearly a full crop on a few hours of sunlight per day, and other, less common types of berries are solid shade producers as well.

..........

Maybe you could get this book at the library and take a look at it. Sounds like a good one for you to reference!

[customerserviceguy]

21. Thanks!

Being from the Northwest, I seem to remember blackberries not needing a lot of sunlight, and being able to grow anywhere!

I was hoping for some plants that were not too big, I really don't need the condo nazis coming down on us too hard. Maybe some tomatoes, and some herbs for cooking?

[1776Forever]

25. Here is a neat link too for making your own "earthboxes" to grow in small spaces.......

http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-your-own-Earth-Box/

[1776Forever]

26. Sorry dup.

[dixiegrrrrl]

16. Burpee is NOT our friend.

In very big with Montasano and other huge seed companies.
Heavy on the hybrid type seeds, which means you have to buy seeds every year.

Gardening is great, and open pollinated, ( non-hybrid) seeds are best.

I use rareseeds.com
and
seed savers exchange.
Besides getting seeds you can use every year, you support small businesses.

I have been an organic gardener for 20 years.

Happy Gardening.........

[1776Forever]

17. Found this on their site - Not saying you are incorrect - I am sure you know more then I about this.

From site:

Burpee is still a family seed company and still in the Philadelphia area. Today we are owned and operated by George Ball Jr.

http://www.burpee.com/category/customer+service/about+burpee.do

[dixiegrrrrl]

32. Thank you for the nudge..I need to clarify what I said.

Burpee DOES carry some Seminis seeds, and Seminis is now owned by Monsanto.
Burpee is a family seed company. The source of some seeds is the issue.

Other familiar seed catalog companies that purchase from Seminis are Jung Seed, Johnny's Selected Seeds, and Park Seed.

These seeds will be hybrid, but not labled if they are GMO.

Again, my own preference is to buy from companies that can vouch their seed is grown by
non-GMO growers.
And it is kinda nice to help preserve endangered seeds.

[OhioChick]

20. Thanks for posting...

Even though my property is the size of a postage stamp, every Spring I plant a small garden filled with veggies.

I'm longing for Spring and getting my hands dirty. :D

[stuntcat]

22. I'm gonna garden my butt off :D

My aunt starts a bunch of plants for me every spring, and I plant a few things of my own, then with the stuff she brings me I have so much food growing, I've been doubling it every year. Last year the squash bugs killed my three big squash plants :( , but I had so much of everything else. I have a lot of herbs too! :bounce: I can't wait for Spring.

I think I'll order this ty!

[XemaSab]

23. I built a square foot garden last fall

I was truly skeptical about it, but it has worked beyond my wildest expectations.

You can build one on your lawn, you can build one on your driveway, you can build one on your roof, you can build one on your balcony... you can build one anywhere. :D

[nc4bo]

24. Gurney's is running an online special. Save $25 when you buy $50 worth of anything until Feb 18th.

If you've gotten their snail mail catalog, it has the same offer but you have until March 18th.

http://gurneys.com/default.asp

I'm going to start one this year. Asked hubby what part of the yard I could use and he gave me a choice spot that's flat, in full sun, near a chain link fence for vine plants and close to the house and water hose.

For good old fashioned plants that you can actually save the seeds and replant the following year, look for heirloom seed companies. Google it up.


http://www.heirloomseeds.com/ and http://www.heirloomseeds.com/main/index.html

http://www.victoryseeds.com/

[Gonzo Gardener]

27. I hope your seeds sprout!

I've experienced multiple failures with Burpee seeds.

It's a big, big disappointment after spending all that time and money preparing, planting and watering to have nothing breach the surface on about 50% of the seed trays.



:hi:

[1776Forever]

30. I have too with lots of seed companies seeds - I am going to start some next week

They do have a guarantee on their site:

The Burpee Guarantee

We guarantee all products in this catalog to the full amount of the purchase price. We shall refund your money or provide a replacement, anytime within a year if you are not satisfied.

AND believe me I will hold them to it! I don't need a bunch of them to sprout as there is just my husband and I and I don't know how big we want to go with this. I am looking at the earthboxes another DU told me about. I found a site that tells you how to make your own. Looks good:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-your-own-Earth-Box/

[wiggs]

28. Even better (in more ways than one): find a seed swap near you

Gardeners will bring their saved, open pollinated seeds. You take, you give...sometimes just take. It's a neighborly, community activity.

Hunt around. See if you have a local Food Not Lawns chapter (see www.foodnotlawns.net for the original one) or try www.freedomgardens.org These are great resources for those looking for good local food, self-reliance, environmentally responsible living, neighbor and family orientation, etc. and may list local activities for your area.

January 31 was international seed swap day....lots of events nationwide.

Kudos to those participating in vegetable and fruit gardening!!

[1776Forever]

31. I just joined the Freedom Gardens site and a group near me! Thanks!

Really a very nice website! I am looking forward to learning and sharing with my group!

[Tracer]

35. I grow rocks.

To clarify -- every time I put a shovel into my garden I hit baked potato-sized rocks. Every year, the freeze/thaw cycle pushes the little bastids up to the top.

I've spent years digging them out and improving the soil and now manage to grow some pretty decent perennials. Veggies? Not so much. Way too much shade in my yard.

Last year, I grew some tomatoes in pots (avoiding the rocks) only to have them smashed to bits by a freak hailstorm.

For inveterate gardeners though --- hope springs eternal.