First sprout of the summer garden!

Planted two boxes of tomatoes and peppers last Saturday. First sprout today!

Summer Feast tomatoe. 

This was late March, but failed to publish.  Just noticed it today and re-published. 

Winter garden update

Picked a full bowl of snow peas and some overgrown red leaf lettuce. Also pulled 3 heads of bock choi. 

Found a ton of bugs (aphids I think) all over the Brussels sprouts, Colliflower, and a little on the new growth of the Kale. Tons of slugs, mostly on the bock choi and butter lettuce. 

Fava beans

Cut back fava beans, leaving the roots. Plants were ~ 2 1/2 to 3 feet tall, about the same height as the fence. 

Garden update - 12/27/13

Fava Beans

- Doing well and healthy

- Growing much higher at far end (5") vs. Middle (2"), due to sun exposure

Veggies

- Doing well and healthy

- Some slugs found on leafy greens

- No yield yet other than large leafy greens picked from outside of plants

Greenhouses & Cold Boxes

Prune date - 12/25/13

Cherry tree

Grape vines

Notes from "Grow Biointensive: A Beginner's Guide in 8 Easy Sessions" DVD

Cover crops:

Fava beans

Cereal rye

Vetch

Triticale

Barley

Alfalfa

You can plant cereal rye and fava together. They last through winter and take off in the spring. 

Alternate grains and legumes YoY. 

Diakon will burrow into the soil and the roots will compost. Improves soil in addition to crop yield. 

Parsley and Celery attract beneficial bugs. 

Tree collards can be grown year round. 

Seed beds:

Can be any size, either 3" or 6" deep, depending on crops. 

First bed: scatter seeds by hand. Transplant healthy seedlings to second bed, evenly spaced apart in hexagonal (off-set line) pattern. Transplant to garden when ready in same pattern. Use a small stick to measure distance between plants. 

Prepping soil:

Double dig

Rake to level

Add fertilizer

Add compost

Aerate with rake

Water unless you a replanting right away