2010 Garden Season Update #1

I’ve been busy watering and weeding our spring garden.  It’s all looking good, but I did learn a few lessons…
Lesson #1 – Peas are vines.  Yes, this may be common sense knowledge to most of you; however, to my non-gardening self…well, I didn’t know.  So, I spent Saturday making sure there was something for those sugar snap and English peas to latch onto so they could grow up. 
Lesson #2 – Squash gets huge.  Again, having been unsuccessful with our squash last year, I didn’t realize how big the bush variety would get.  Because of this, I had to move my 3 green bell pepper plants to another bed.  The squash was just overtaking that part of their bed.
Lesson #3 – Cabbage loopers are NOT my friend.  Those little boogers are so darn aggravating.  Caleb and I have spent numerous minutes picking all of them off, and he then puts them in his bug catcher.  However, in only a few short days, there are MORE!  They will eat your cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage leaves to pieces.  The aforementioned plants have holes in the leaves.  In fact, I went as far as digging up and tossing my 4 cabbage plants this afternoon.  After further inspection, I just didn’t see much hope for the cabbage.  Besides, we only use cabbage for coleslaw, and I can do without it or buy it at the store.  I did manage to buy a garden safe read organic and okay to use pesticide; however, I’ve yet to put it on.  I think I’ll do that as it cools off this evening. 
Lesson #4 – Strawberries are not fool-proof in the home garden.  I tried to plant strawberries last year, and it didn’t go so well.  We tried again this year, and I ended up digging them up and tossing them.  You see…unless you have the time to use the plastic and hill method that those big strawberry farms use, it’s not worth your time to plant them in your regular garden bed.  You can’t keep the fruit off the ground, and soon enough they will be covered with ants…pesky little ants.  Brian did buy me a Topsy Turvy; however, here where we live, they don’t keep strawberry plants available too long.  Unless you buy your stuff in March – mid-April, then you’re out of luck for the most part.  So, we’ll have to wait until next year to attempt strawberries again.  Luckily for us, there are several strawberry patches around, and we’ve been able to pick some.  We hope to pick some more soon if they are available.
Lesson #5 – Raised bed gardening is definitely the way to go.  With the exception of the few issues mentioned earlier in this post, our plants have really thrived in our raised beds.  I think a lot of it can be contributed to the soil which is a mixture of topsoil, mushroom compost, peat moss, cow manure, garden soil, and dirt from our yard.  It has really made a difference in the growth of our successful plants, and the ground stays softer and retains moisture better.
Lesson #6 – Once you find out what you can grow successfully, then stay within those bounds.  There’s no need to continuously waste time and money planting produce that just won’t work in your garden.  After this garden season is over, I will have a much better knowledge of what works for us.  I will also have some idea of how much produce to expect from what we’ve planted.  This will let me know what to remember when it’s time for the 2011 garden season.
Okay, so there you have it…just a few gardening lessons that I’ve learned this year.  Combined with what I learned last year, I should be all set for the 2011 season.  LOL!  Here are a few pictures of our garden.

Northeast bed with tomatoes, peppers, onions, lettuce, and squash. Squash blossom Big Beef Tomato Cherry tomatoes Romaine lettuce (We put grits in that little plastic container.  It is supposed to help with ants because they can’t digest it; therefore, it sort of blows them up).

Southeast bed with squash, zucchini, broccoli, and cauliflower Broccoli floret (I actually had to cut this off today because you’re supposed to cut the center head off before it flowers…this one was about to flower). Northwest bed with cabbage, peppers, sweet potatoes, onions, and lettuce (the cabbage is no longer there since I tossed it this afternoon). Green Bell Pepper Southwest bed with green beans and sugar snap peas Southwest bed with carrots and English peas

So, how is your garden growing this season?  Have you learned any lessons that you’d like to share with me?  I’m always up for a learning adventure.