Garden Ideas and recipes

[BuckImod]

Hey Guys,
I am going to do something I have never done on my own before. In an attempt to reduce the amount of grass I have to cut,and to also start a new hobby of sort. I'm going to plant a Garden this year. When I was a kid my parents and our neighbors always had a garden. I can still remeber my neighbors always had fresh Tomatoes and Green Onions. Could anyone who has done this and/or normally does this,post up your tips,proccedures,guidelines,etc. Also if you have some good canning recipes,etc post those up as well. I got a couple magazines with some ideas. I found a good recipe for salsa. I love canned Bannana Peppers and I have gotten different tasting ones from different people.
I have about 6 acres, so room for a garden is not a problem,but most of it is on a hillside. I don't know if that will make a difference with water run off. I am also considering building raised beds from cedar and filling them with dirt. If I do this is there a certain dirt mixture I should use,or should I go to lowes and buy a bunch of planting soil? By when should I have everything planted?

Thanks for any help any of you can give me!

[BuckImod]

I tilled up a small plot out back. I put in some brocoli and beet seeds. I read the farmers almanac and it says the last frost for this area should be april 29th. Then going to plant some more seeds,and then some plants. My kids have been showing alot of interest in this. I had them picking and tossing rocks. I'm looking forward to seeing if I can make this work as a rookie farmer. I have found some fresh salsa recipes I'm looking forward to trying and sharing with ya'll.

[Rckcrwlr]

Cilantro and lots of it.

I hope you have more luck that I did with trying the family gardening. It is now a raised flower bed.

[BuckImod]

I hope you have more luck that I did with trying the family gardening. It is now a raised flower bed.

lol,Me too! I am really excited about this. I have family that live down in Beallsville OH. They come up and visit my parents atleast once a month. They always bring food that that they have grown in their gardens.The last time they were up,they brought pickled beets,home made bread and butter pickles,Home made hot pepper mustard,and pepper relish. It was so good! I would like to be able and do that. I live on 6 acres of what was farm land at one time. It seems like a waste to not utilize some of it for something other than out of control grass/weeds!

[Rckcrwlr]

...always bring food that that they have grown in their gardens....home made bread...

Seriously...do it. It is just one more thing to make family memories. They will stay with them a lifetime. Trust me, I know. My kids bring up tons of things that we have done in the past. Some I don't want to remember...even as recent as last night we were laughing about the past, and they are 18 and 15.

[Tubby T]

If you used a garden tiller and it used to be farm land, the first thing to do is look for arrow heads.

If you have kids and they show interest you can get a lot of seeds started inside. You can get seed pods and seeds just about anywhere this time of year. I have always had an easy time with tomatoes, corn, carrots, cukes, peppers. It's really up to you. Seeds started inside are easy to water and tend to.

If you live on old farm land, you might want to consider a deer fence. Nothing to elaborate just enough to keep those pigs out. On more than one occasion I have lost big portions of garden to deer.

Herbs are incredibly easy to grow. They are basically tasty weeds and really only need water and sun. (you need herbs,tomato and peppers for home made salsa)

Wooden stakes for plants are cheaper than cages and they don't rust.

Some berries need to be planted early like strawberry.

If you want to grow grapes for making homemade wine, the plants usually take 3 to 5 years before they produce suitable fruit. But so worth the wait.

If you do a garden next year, try to cover the old one with pig or horse manure in the fall and let it sit all winter. Till it in early spring to mix it in. you shouldn't need to fertilize much after that.

[BuckImod]

If you used a garden tiller and it used to be farm land, the first thing to do is look for arrow heads.

If you have kids and they show interest you can get a lot of seeds started inside. You can get seed pods and seeds just about anywhere this time of year. I have always had an easy time with tomatoes, corn, carrots, cukes, peppers. It's really up to you. Seeds started inside are easy to water and tend to.

If you live on old farm land, you might want to consider a deer fence. Nothing to elaborate just enough to keep those pigs out. On more than one occasion I have lost big portions of garden to deer.

Herbs are incredibly easy to grow. They are basically tasty weeds and really only need water and sun. (you need herbs,tomato and peppers for home made salsa)

Wooden stakes for plants are cheaper than cages and they don't rust.

Some berries need to be planted early like strawberry.

If you want to grow grapes for making homemade wine, the plants usually take 3 to 5 years before they produce suitable fruit. But so worth the wait.

If you do a garden next year, try to cover the old one with pig or horse manure in the fall and let it sit all winter. Till it in early spring to mix it in. you shouldn't need to fertilize much after that.

Great Tips,Thanks!.....on the seeds started inside. Is it too late to do that now? what type of containers do you use,and what kind of bedding? Should I just go buy a couple bags of the plant soil at lowes?

Thanks again Tubby! I appreciate the help.

[BuckImod]

I am getting ready to plant the major crops this weekend. I did plant some brocoli and beet seeds a couple of weeks ago. I was checking tonite and the seads have begun to morph into some small plants! This getting exciting now!....lol..... Anyhow, I will be planting corn,Okra,watemelon,cantaloupe,Bannana peppers,Jalepenos,tomatoes,cucmbers,green beans,and Zucchini. I am also going to make some raised beds with different herbs,and some strawberries. I hope this turns out well!

[Rckcrwlr]

Sounds exciting...hope the deer don't enjoy them. that's what turned my garden into a raised flower bed.

[Jester]

Gather some hair from when you get hair cuts and spread it around the perimiter of your garden, and in between some of the plants. Will help with deer and almost eliminate rabbits.