shopliftinginva said:DutchDutch said:Really, just take your veggie peelings throughout the summer and throw them in a bin under the sink. When it's full, dig a hole in the dirt, dump the peelings, cover. Lather, rinse, repeat all summer. The next year your soil will be so much better.Oh, I should have explained. Our "soil" is clay. Hard as rocks when dry, sucky like cold modeling clay when wet. It would take a ton of work to dig out an area and get real soil put in.At our last house, we had a lot of clay. In fact, the house was located on what used to be a clay quarry and brick factory which were developed during the big "brick boom" following the Chicago fire of 1871.

To deal with all that clay, I had a couple of cubic yards of coarse sand delivered, which I mixed with our compost, some purchased mushroom compost, peat moss, and local soil.

We made a raised plant bed from that, which was very successful - we had one of the best gardens in the neighborhood. Having a raised garden bed helped a lot with the drainage, too, which can be bad in clay.

has anybody had any luck keeping the rabbits and squirrels away from the garden,last
yr they ate more tomatoes than i did

Just ate my last avocado from this harvest
Probably had well over 250+ avocados

WillaD said:Xnarg said:WillaD said:has anybody had any luck keeping the rabbits and squirrels away from the garden,last
yr they ate more tomatoes than i didAt our current home, we pretty much gave up trying to battle the rabbits. We're a short distance from a forest preserve and no matter what we do here, they're still going to come in from the preserve to eat our plants. We are planting things they don't like to eat.

We have trouble with chipmunks. They tunnel under our front walk, causing the paver stones to collapse. The last two summers I set up a "swimming pool" for them, consisting of a plastic trash can filled about 3/4 with water and a wood plank from the porch to the lip of the trash can. I float a couple of handfulls of sunflower seeds on top of the water and put a trail of seeds up the plank. The chipmunks don't seem to realize there is water under the seeds and they fall or jump in to get the seeds. I dispatch between one or four per day using that technique.thanks,i will keep asking around maybe someone will have some way to rid my garden of themSome of our neighbors have turned their gardens into fenced fortresses to keep the rabbits out. It seems to work, but it just looks to formidable for us to enjoy - we don't like looking at all that metal fencing.

I transplanted a 6 pack of Sweet 100 tomato plants and they seem to be thriving so far. Told my boss I would give him 2 plants because 6 is waaaaaaaay too many for me (if they all survive me, that is).

Other than herbs (sweet basil, rosemary, peppermint, spearmint, thyme, cilantro, parsley and lemon sage) I don't think I'm going to plant anything else. Water-rationing takes the fun out of gardening for sure.

formattc said:I strayed this year on my tomatoes, just to try something different. I always grow indeterminate varieties but this year I switched from Big Beef to Park's Whopper.
My bell peppers are always Bell Boy. I'm in Northern CA aka food snobbery capital. There are a number of heirloom varieties of tomatoes that I like but Sweet 100s are soooo yum and very prolific. Sometimes I stand in the yard, harvesting and snacking on them.

re rabbit deterrents, isn't red or black pepper sprinkled or sprayed in the garden supposed to be effective?

Bought one of those topsy turvy upside down planters to try this year. I am going to grow strawberries in it.

I used to grow tomatoes in the ground but found I can grow them just as good in containers.
Usually have them planted by now. Am lagging this year. Probably going to plant them this weekend.
I plant a variety of the large tomatoes and I also plant cherry. Usually plant peppers and some other stuff too.
I have TONS of lemons on my tree this year.

i made a tee pee frame from bamboo poles and planted edible pod beans around it. also put in some sunflower seeds. tomorrow i will probably put in the onion sets and carrot seeds. i need to pick up some parsley seeds for that part of the garden too.

my 3 tomato plants that i put in a big round planter are doing well. my leaf lettuce mix in the window box on the porch are just starting to come up.

i love planting season.

does anyone here grow their own potatoes, and if so, what variety?