Looking good

[gypsyman]

I've got about 90% of my garden in. Tomatoes,peppers(hot-mild-red-yellow,) cuc's,Zuchini,Kohlarbi, and a few others. What was nice, I made a top link for my tractor/disc. I had to shorten a stock one about 4''-5'', as a standard Class 1 was to long. The front row of blades didn't touch the ground. So, the disc worked great, and I bought a new(to me), rototiller. A real tank, a John Deere 820. It has an 8hp B&S engine. Rear tine, like a Troy Built. But much heavier. So, looking for a good year. gypsyman

[Ranger99]

well good luck.
i don't guess i'm familiar with
that last vegetable.
i had a stump hole i filled in
and decided to make a squash hill
out of it for this year and planted some of that
winter squash the other kinfolk here suggested.
with these last good rains and hot sun that stuff
has jumped up to about 9"
we shall see. . . . . . .

[Ranger99]

is that tractor an older one?
way back when a buddy and me
used to buy and sell and fix old
tractors we had to shorten some
category 1 top links for john deere
m's and mt's.
just curious

[longwinters]

What does one do with ,Kohlarbi?


I planted everything above grade today.  Tomatoes (Park's Whoppers, Celebrity, 4th of July and a cherry tomato).  Egg plants, celery, bell peppers ( red, yellow, orange), Jalapenos and horn. 


Long

[Ranger99]

hope those cold area gardens work out.
if the rains hold up, i'll have a mater
or two to sample pretty quick. the biggest are about
half-dollar size. already had 1 onion to
sample. not quite baseball size.


i get the impression that things grow
faster in the colder climates. some folks
ive talked to before said vegetables grow
faster. we just have the advantage of
frost-free growing earlier, then the heat
and drought kick in.

[gypsyman]

The tractor I have, is a Yanmar 1810. It's about 25hp. Yanmar is a Japanese company, that built John Deere compact tractors for about 20 years or so. Might still build some for them, not sure. Well, when I bought a double row disc from a Tractor Suppy close by, the top link that came with the tractor, was to long. It wouldn't let the front row of blades dig in. So, what I did, was buy another top link, unscrew it, take the body and shorten it with my chop saw about 5''. Weld it back together, screw the ends back in, and bingo, both sets of blades are cutting. Ranger, the Kohlarbi is quite simaliar to a turnip. I like to eat them raw, little salt, or steam them with a little butter. gypsyman

[Ranger99]

ok
i'll have to let you eat my allotment of those
and the turnips too. i can do the taters and carrots
and onions, but that's about all the root vegetables
i care for. and garlic.


i'm familiar with the yanmars. i still have a small
one . they are well
built and had built some of the first commercially
available diesel equipment. they rate their tractors
by pto hp so yours would be 18.1 pto hp.
seems like a regular category 1 link would have fit,
but i've messed with enough of them i realize
sometimes you have to make do. i have to service mine
within the next few days. as far as i'm aware, they don't
sell yanmars commercially in the u.s. anymore, but
some of the "u.s." tractor companies still sell
yanmar-built u.s. branded units like cub cadet.


good luck with it

[longwinters]

The tomatoes I plant are, at most, 65 dayers.  Peppers etc have to be done by mid-Sept before frosts start to hit.  I don't know if our plants grow quicker in Zone 3-4 or not...but I try to play the odds in my favor.


Long

[cjclemens]

In the last couple weeks, I managed to finish getting my garden in.  As far as tomatoes and peppers go, I only had Roma and Beefsteak out there last year.  This year, I had planned on doing it scientifically and planting a few different varieties to see what I like, in terms of variety and yield.  Since we've had so much rain, I ended throwing everything in the ground in a hurry.  Its not very neat, but it'll work.  The tomato varieties that ended up in the garden are:  Better Boy, Beefsteak, Early Girl, Roma, Amish Paste, Speckled Roman, and San Marzano.  Pepper varieties include: California Wonder, Golden Wonder, Sweet Banana, Biggie Chile, Cayenne, Early Jalepeno, "Fooled You" hybrid, and Pepperoncini.  It's a heck of an experiment, but it'll be interesting to see what happens!

Not to brag, but I was picking tomatoes well into October, last year.  Like I've said before, I believe I'm just far enough south that I have a  decent growing season, and just far enough north that the summers are tolerable!

[longwinters]

You certainly have a wide variety.  Should be fun.  Who used to say "no brag....just fact".  Was that John Wayne?




Long

[FPH]

My dogs decided ti "TILL" my ground a bit finer,,,,,,Just one problem.......my maters were looking good.

[Ranger99]

mater plants from the 2nd planting
using burpee seeds are chin/bottom
lip high now, full of half-dollar sized maters.
hope the squash does as well with the
guard-toad to watch over it.
been using onions for a while.

[Old Syko]

You certainly have a wide variety.  Should be fun.  Who used to say "no brag....just fact".  Was that John Wayne?




Long

No John Wayne just Walter Brennan


Not a valid youtube URL[/url]

[longwinters]

Thats it!  Always like the show THE GUNS OF WILL SONNET, or what ever the name was.


Long

[cjclemens]

No brag, just fact...I do like that. It definitely has a ring to it.

Anyway, I can finally say my garden is looking pretty good. I just have a little more weeding to do, and ill be caught up. I had to replant some sweet corn and green beans to fill in where deer and rabbits munched em off pretty good, but all that has popped up already. They may chomp on it again, but at least it'll keep em off the rest of my plants for a while.

Potatoes are starting to bloom, pole beans are starting to climb, and I have a few tomatoes that are about the diameter of a half dollar now. The better boys and the Roma's were the first to set fruit, but everything else is blooming like crazy. After a rainy, wet start to the season, I finally have the feeling that things are lookin happy and healthy out in the garden.

[Ranger99]

got a few maters today, a bell pepper,
already been using onions.
so far so good (knocking on wood)