Starting a garden, what should I grow? (Favorite seeds, etc?)( - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 04:49:04 pm
content: My sweetie and I have finally decided to make a small enclosed garden frame to grow herbs, high value veggies etc. In order to keep deer out we're basically making a box with open sides out of wood thats covered with a screen material so they cant nibble which they will do if we let them. . (They tend to eat other plants we've grown like flowers and bulbs,killing them rapidly, this has been a real downer although if I was a starving deer I would probably eat tasty sprouts too, we cant blame them for doing what comes naturally.. ..We have lots of deer here and also lots and lots of cute squirrels. There are also rabbits, groundhogs, (large rodents) and chipmunk (tiny, lightning fast rodents with racing stripes) And lots of birds, including crows,sparrows, etc.So we're making an enclosed little frame to grow our own food plants in. First we have added some basil so we can have fresh pesto.. What would you plant and why? We live not far from New York City and tomatoes (both the big beefsteak tomatoes and cherry tomatoes are definitely going to be grown here. Also we like cucumbers and asparagus. Also I like the little purple potatoes..What are your favorite vegetables for growing, and seed companies?

author: xrunner
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 04:59:45 pm
content: Funny you should ask. I just started a garden this year, haven't had one since I moved in here. I eat salads all the time so I wanted to start off simple. What you see is radishes. I planted four rows (two different varieties), then 10 days later four more rows, and ten days later four more rows. That's all I have room for now. In the heat of summer I will try banana peppers, then in fall ... who knows?

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 05:09:26 pm
content: Radishes are pretty.. I used to have a friend out in California on the north coast (where gardening is just so fruitful because of the ever present moisture and fog.. ) and she grew lots of rhubarb, which is sort of related to celery, but its red and sweet. She used this to make rhubarb pie which was just delicious.. Pretty too because of the red color.There are all sorts of amazing widlflowers that grow around there., Its one of the best areas for local food.. Also fish, like salmon. There is nothing like fresh caught salmon for taste.. And they also can sometimes be just huge. Enough to feed a large group of people.The Eureka area is good for local food goodness.. Deep in the redwood country.

author: Microdoser
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 05:13:20 pm
content: Oregano, put it in a tub, and it comes back every year. Cut it when it's growing and dry it out. A big tub will give you a whole years worth once it's established. You can do the same with thyme. Plant out a Basil every year for the same.Butternut squash grows like mad and keeps well over the winter, we still have some from last year.You'll always get a good crop from Runner or French beans, they grab nitrogen from the air so when you compost the plants, you end up with more nutrients in the soil than you started with. They grow tall so put them at the north side so they don't shade other stuff.I'd only grow Asparagus if you have loads of space, they take up a lot of space for what you get, and you have to keep them undisturbed and well fed for a couple of years before you harvest them.Tomato varieties I love are BrandyWine to get a perfect burger slicing tomato, baby plum for eating, San Marzano for sauces.You can get winter lettuce which will grow fine as long as the temperature is warmer than freezing. You can even plant 2 inches off the root end of a Lemongrass stalk in spring and get 10 fresh stalks by the end of the summer.I've just started off my extra hot chillis, stir-fry chillis and jalapeños for pickling.We are lucky that the main animals we get are foxes and badgers. They mainly eat the sweetcorn (out of what we plant) so we don't plant that.

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 30, 2022, 10:36:34 pm
content: Quote from: cdev on March 29, 2022, 04:49:04 pmBrilliant!

author: jpanhalt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 30, 2022, 11:04:02 pm
content: I grow rosemary and Italian oregano. Italian oregano is milder than the common oregano in stores and seems very hardy. It is similar to marjoram and drys and stores well. I grow mine in a pot that moves indoors in the Winter. As for rosemary, my mom had a huge bush that was as tall as me and wider than I could reach (in SoCal, so winter was not an issue). It had silver leaves and had a very mellow taste compared to the green pine-like taste of fresh rosemary you find in stores. My current bush is in between. I am still searching for a more mellow variety. It is fairly hardy, grows well from cuttings, and in Northeast Ohio, I have it in a large pot that I move into the garage in the Winter. It will stand a little freezing, but not like we get up near Lake Erie.Chipmunks are a pain, but they are very dumb and "walk the plank" traps are effective. Sunflower seeds work well as bait floating in the water. Groundhogs don't seem to bother the herbs much, but I trap and eliminate them because they are a nuisance in other ways. Squirrels are tougher to deal with. A ≥ 800 to 900 fps (i.e., subsonic) air powered pellet gun is all you need. I also use poison bait, but that would not be permissible if you have any pets or other domestic animals around.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2022, 10:57:19 am
content: My partner, who has a veg patch and fruit patch out back, suggests:Rhubarb (low maintenance other than regular watering and annual manure/fertiliser)Swiss chard, especially the rainbow varietyFrench beans (they grow up a wigwam or other structural support so don't take huge amounts of ground space)Raspberries (can be trained along a wire so don't take up too much space)And she says a personal favourite is jostaberries, but they are vigorous growers so require space and annual pruning.

author: fperona
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 03, 2022, 01:22:23 pm
content: Hello,Last spring I started with gardening as well. This year I'm growing my "Combo Salad", which is tomato, basil and coriander. Also, a couple of varieties of chilli, artichokes and sunflowers.But be aware of the risk of starting seeding tomatoes and, after a couple of months, finding yourself designing a complete system to germinate and nurse seeds in a temperature and humidity controlled environment.Success!

author: Siwastaja
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 03, 2022, 01:44:02 pm
content: Tomatoes. You can make your own ketchup. Very healthy.Raspberries. Store-bought jam sucks because it's 30% berries, 20% water and 50% sugar. Maybe you could get something better by paying premium, I don't know, but we just make our own jam (2/3 berries, 1/3 sugar) and oh boy it's so good.Strawberries, for the same reason.Apple tree or two, but that will take a long time to start producing.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 03, 2022, 02:02:40 pm
content: We definitely plan to grow tomatoes because we eat a lot of them. So we know we would be saving money. Also making jam would be just great, would love strawberry and blueberry raspberry jam, for muffins, homebaked sourdough bread, etc.We know Berries and apples grow well here because this neighborhood previously was an apple orchard, lots of berries also grew wild here, when I was a kid, and also I was surprised to find out when reading up on its past that it used to be the site of an airport! Way back in the 1930s and earlier.Don't know the history, this was some time ago, before the aerial photos that I have were made. It was during the early days of aviation in the US too. There used to be a lot more small, owner-operated airports here. Many of them were bought up and around here, two were turned into shopping malls.I am sort of an aviation buff also.Wish there were more historic photos of NJ out there so I would know more about land use in the past around here.Seaking about living near airports.. Does anybody know about Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles, CA? Its right underneath the takeoff runway for LAX! That was one of my favorite beaches when I was a kid spending my summers in LA. I used to paddle surf a lot. Also loved swimming a lot, even long distances on my little paddle board. I used to basically almost live in the water.https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=617

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 03, 2022, 02:39:19 pm
content: I have heard of jostaberries.. They are a hybrid a cross between black currants and gooseberries. I have had drinks served around here made from them. Its popular during the summer. They say it takes as much as 3 years of growth before they produce. The beries are also a good antioxidant. So pretty healthy. Good for ones eyesight.We are starting to consider various means of scaring animals away from our garden and its kind of funny seeing what works and what doesn't.Some of the various decoys to scare off animals seem to almost attract them, perhaps they want to make the pont that they are not stupid enough to be fooled by them! Some of the gadgets advertised are kind of funny. For example, fake owls with terminator style red LED eyes that flash when they detect motion!Looking forward to the challenge.Quote from: jpanhalt on March 30, 2022, 11:04:02 pm

author: david77
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2022, 10:58:11 am
content: If you're into tomatoes & jams, try tomato jam. Soooo delicious!

author: jpanhalt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2022, 11:40:59 am
content: RE: Pest repellantsMost do not work, particularly for rodents. The phrase "annoy and ignore" applies. However, annoy can be enough to make them relocate.My pole barn has a loft around about 2/3 of its perimeter for additional storage. The original builder included an office over one section with glass/rock fiber insulation on top and sheet foam between interior and exterior walls. There is no food or grain stored in the barn, but the top of that office was a nest for rats. Lighting in that area was with overhead fluorescent lights (a total of 12, 8' bulbs in 6 fixtures). That used a lot of electricity, so I turned them off when I was not there. With no lights at night, they had favorite "watchout" locations on overhead rafters. The concrete floor under those areas was disgusting. Poison bait didn't work.In early Spring, 2021, I installed 8' LED bulbs -- a total of 4 in two strings of 2. Watts used by a single string hardly made a difference in the electric bill (a separate meter with minimum charges). I leave one string on constantly and the mess on the floor is greatly reduced. I suspect the rats are not gone, but have simply moved to a more friendly location. This Spring will be the litmus test of whether that annoyance has worked. If not, the office nesting ceiling will be removed.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2022, 11:51:26 am
content: Quote from: david77 on April 07, 2022, 10:58:11 amDo you have a recipe for that? Asking for a friend...

author: david77
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 11, 2022, 06:09:44 am
content: I made it last year for the first time.This is straight Tomato jam:https://www.ichkoche.at/paradeisermarmelade-rezept-219469Here with Tomatos & plums:https://www.gutekueche.at/zwetschken-paradeiser-marmelade-rezept-34411Sorry, only German.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 11, 2022, 09:23:45 am
content: Thank you

author: geggi1
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 11, 2022, 10:44:34 am
content: onions and garlic are a pretty safe.If you plant it along the edges of the beds it will also to a degree repel slugs.

author: Jester
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 11, 2022, 12:06:00 pm
content: Tomatoes and cucumbers.My late grandfather rode his bicycle until he was 99, probably partially because he ate the fresh vegetables from his garden. He would plant 100 Beef-Steak? tomato plants from the previous years 10 best plants in the windows every year while the snow was still on the ground. From those 100 seedlings he would pick the best 10-15 and move them to his mini-greenhouse while the temperature outside was still too cool at night and then finally to the garden when it was safe.The best tomatoes ever, delicious so much flavour. I miss gramps tomatoes 🍅

author: madires
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 11, 2022, 02:12:31 pm
content: Grow what you like and the environment supports. Many vegetables prefer a specific soil, location (sun-wise), humidity and what have you. For example, tomatoes don't like rain. Put them under a roof. Make your own compost! No need for expensive fertilizer. Some combinations of vegetables help against pests.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2022, 07:13:32 pm
content: parsley and cilantro are super robust, you can leave it alone pretty much after throwing seeds in the ground and they will outpace the weeds etc.. They also will last you past thanksgiving. Other herbs will get obliterated if you don't maintain them, but these are some tough customers. Sage too, but you need to figure out how to use it well.

author: xrunner
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2022, 08:54:48 pm
content: First batch of radishes.

author: TimNJ
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2022, 03:26:10 am
content: Tomatoes for sure, if you like them. We all know supermarket tomatoes are trash, mostly because they need to be hearty enough to withstand transit etc, which coincidentally makes them pretty bleh tasting. I bought a Sunkist tomato from....Michigan (!) the other day, and let's just say underwhelmed is an understatement.The heirloom varieties like Cherokee Purple or Mortgage Lifter are incredible, if you've never had them.My father really become an amazing tomato gardener over the years. I would say his biggest 'secret' is good soil. No food scraps go in the trash, everything goes in compost. Mix in some 'brown matter' into your food waste (dead leaves, etc.) and you'll have some great soil.

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2022, 06:03:36 am
content: We grow our own herbs. (Oregano, chive, basil, dill, etc) There is nothing like fresh herbs but bunches at stores are relatively expensive and most go wasted. By growing our own, it's available and we can pick the amount we need. Selection can be tailored to your likings of food. Someone above said dills are hardy. My experience is they are rather delicate in Florida. They flop over easily as major root ball always grows above ground for some reason and leaves are left unsupported.Just one word of caution... Oregano grows like crazy and takes over the whole space killing off more fragile plants. We always have a dedicated pot for this.We also grow a Meyer lemon tree. We get over 100 fruits each year, but all in a span of 2 months or so. We can only use a few ourselves. Most are given away to more than willing friends.

author: HwAoRrDk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2022, 08:33:51 am
content: I would imagine trying to grow cucumbers in New York state without a greenhouse would be challenging. Wrong climate, isn't it?In my experience it's pretty difficultnotto be able to grow blackberries and raspberries.Those suckers will grow practically anywhere. Build a frame and/or string some wire to tie them to so they don't drape on the ground or get damaged by wind. Also, with blackberries, have some self-restraint when it comes time to pick the fruit. They may look nice and dark and ripe, but will still taste tart. They're ripe only once the berries are no longer firm - i.e. they're slightly squishy.

author: madires
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2022, 10:16:27 am
content: Quote from: tkamiya on April 16, 2022, 06:03:36 amLemon balm grows like weed over here. Also thyme.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2022, 12:14:17 pm
content: Even self-seeded 'trash' tomatoes that grow on the outskirts of the compost heap and are too late in the season to ripen properly can be useful and delicious. A few years back, I noted there were a lot of tomatoes growing in the nearest flowerbed to where the kitchen drain had been overflowing. They were slow to set fruit and most of them only cherry tomato size. By the first frost, most were still green or only slightly ripe, though the birds had got a few that ripened earlier. I picked over 5 lb of green tomatoes and made green tomato chutney to a traditional recipe, ensuring the sugar content and acidity were high enough for it to be shelf stable, then bottled it properly in canning jars for maximum shelf life. The drains have since been re-lined, so no more 'trash' tomatoesbut I'm still using up my shelf-full of green tomato chutney.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2022, 05:10:58 pm
content: Plant a few marigolds, and a few nasturtiums, which will both provide you with natural pest control, for the first, and the second provides a tart tasty salad green, plus the flowers are edible as well. Dandelion also works well, though it can be invasive, and it works well as a green in cooking, though best to remove the flower heads and not let them flower or go to seed, as they will be forever there.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2022, 10:01:15 pm
content: So, a bit of an update. Now we have a bunch of seeds started, we're growing them in various plastic containers that let the sun in. As soon as it warms up a bit more they will go into the ground.We have lettuce seedlings, radishes, broccoli, some thyme, basil.. I also went to Github to find what they had 9on gardening and downloaded a bunch of stuff, which I am looking through.I am wonderng what kind of electrically activated valves to use. For watering. As it seems that is the first place to start as far as involving electronics. At least to keep seedlings from dying if we forget to water something.One of the intriguing things on github are databases of plant species data.. Which I havent really looked at much. But which sound useful.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2022, 10:06:57 pm
content: Quote from: madires on April 16, 2022, 10:16:27 am

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2022, 10:19:08 pm
content: Quote from: TimNJ on April 16, 2022, 03:26:10 amYes, I used to do this composting thing when I lived in Northern California and it really works, suddenly almost without any real work I had a gorgeous, big garden. It was a great place for growing almost anything. I used coffee grounds, table scraps, also bought some chickenshit from Ukiah Real Goods (who also had everything for off grid power one could imagine) and that just made the garden go nuts. Wow..That was an absolutely great place to be for this. We were housesitting a 50 acre "hippie parcel" in the hills above Redwood Valley. It was a real paradise.. The roads had very colorful names and the area had am amazing bunch of people living there.. Really a fun place to be..

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2022, 10:22:07 pm
content: QuoteI followed an Indiegogo campaign for an automatic plant water:http://daisy.si/It worked well enough that my partner (who has the green fingers around here) actually asked me to get another one, despite the cost. (Although since I was paying I'm not sure her natural aversion to letting go of money kicked in.)

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2022, 10:30:56 pm
content: Green Fingers! what a great expression..This is Siouxsie and the Banshees, from a great 1980s album..Here is a water-saving passive radar idea..Just for future reference, one can determine how much water is in soil by comparing the reflected signal from GPS satellites by polarization. Reflection will reverse the polarization. Two good circular polarized directional antennas will allow you to ascertain which earth in a fairly large area is damp, and which is dy by the ratio. One could use two conical log spirals of identical size on a tower to cover a fairly large plot. And possibly save a lot of water. Modern dromes can use RTKlib for precise drone positioning and carry a moisture sensor over a considerable area. The presence of precisely located GNSS signals lends itself to a system to conserve water 's automation. Clearly this is an idea whose time has come because of the maturing on several relevant technologies and their sudden low cost due to mass production.Receiver could be stationary on a tower or carried by a drone. (would have to be designed to be light, I have an antenna that would work for this, it is made around a cheap styrofoam cone.There is a marked difference between the ratio of LHCP and RHCP that depends utterly on the water in the soil.One will need a well made dual polarization conical log spiral antenna such as the one described by Dyson. It should be made by wrapping a floral art cone with the right copper shapes as described by Dyson. One needs to overlay four windings two in the LHCP two in the RHCP direction. This makes a very useful antenna for a number of applications. Due to the phase center of both antennas being nearly identical. Such an antenna would be useful for ground penetrating radar as well, which this idea kind of is.. a poor mans ground penetrating passive radar based on the free GNSS signals.Antenna looks like a pointy barber pole, a bit. Its fed from the front tip which is the area of directionality. It functions like an LPDA except its circular. Such an antenna was made once by the University of Illinois's famous ECE department.Since one knows quite precisely where the GPS satellites are, (the signal source to be reflected) - A log spiral is an ideal GNSS antenna. In fact the GPS satellites own antennas are conical log spirals.Reflections from well-hydrated soil will predominate more and more LHCP. I will have to hunt the reference down, this was the subject of a paper in the GNSS literature from some years ago.Could be useful in saving lots of water, I bet.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2022, 11:21:33 pm
content: I'm sure that would be fantastic on a farm, but perhaps just a little over the top for a vegetable patch

author: mon2
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 02, 2022, 01:40:26 am
content: Brandywine tomatoesBrandywine tomatoesBrandywine tomatoesBest tomatoes I have ever tasted. You should be able to source starter plants soon according to our pcb designer who got us hooked on these puppies.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 07, 2022, 03:47:03 pm
content: My wife just got clay pebbles for growing stuff and everything she has grown using them (so far basil and radish) looks really healthy and big. They are porous and suck up nutrient-laden water through capillary action, it seems. They look ideal for tomatoes! Mmmmm!

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 07, 2022, 03:50:26 pm
content: Quote from: dunkemhigh on April 18, 2022, 11:21:33 pmIt would but I am trying to think of ways farmers can grow food crops in high tech ways so they can get other jobs..too.All kinds of companies are trying to figure out ways to get themdependenton them. To grow food. And get a cut. Not good.

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2022, 01:42:04 pm
content: If you're in the UK, I suggest you get your seeds here:https://realseeds.co.ukThey have no weird hybrids so you can actually collect the seeds and not get mutant plants afterwards. The "telephone peas" are pretty amazing. I mostly do tomatoes, herbs and peas and that's about it these days. Don't have the time, space or energy for anything else.Also don't do it to save money - it's more expensive than buying stuff