How is your garden this year?

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okay I have to ask this question how do you all deal with squash, cucumbers etc that are like creeping vines. I had no idea how out of control they can be so I need a better solution for next year if anyone has any suggestions.
Hoe?

I've learned my lesson; sort of. Just two zucchini plants this year: 1 yellow, 1 green. There's only one lady at my husband's work that will take them anymore. ...two plants. geez.
 
Our cucumber trellis worked great this year...we have canned some dill pickles already. They are the spicy hot variety and I can't wait to try them (we put ghost peppers and habaneros in them).
 
I made a sign for my garden gate. Also put up a little shrine in the garden. I know the Hummel is not for outdoors, but hopefully the little roof will protect it. May take it in during the winter.

Have begun to pick a few of the apples. Planted another round of yard long beans and lettuce. My brown cotton plant is doing great. Hope to get a lot of seeds from it. The sweet potatoes are massive. Hope to have a few things to enter in the Fair next month.

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Thanks for the responses! I will have to get some cucumber trellis' next year. My cucumbers didnt go to wild like the squashes did. Ill probably have to plant less next year, I have about 5 in my space which isnt big enough and they are going nuts.

Our cucumber trellis worked great this year...we have canned some dill pickles already. They are the spicy hot variety and I can't wait to try them (we put ghost peppers and habaneros in them).

Hoe?

I've learned my lesson; sort of. Just two zucchini plants this year: 1 yellow, 1 green. There's only one lady at my husband's work that will take them anymore. ...two plants. geez.

I plant vines in a place where it doesn't matter--edge of the garden--and just let them creep where they will--into the trees by the garden, or across the lawn.

Cucumbers trellis very well.
 
Our espaliered apples are ripe. The Galas came on first and now the Golden Delicious are ripening. I made a pie yesterday. Not sure whether to make applesauce, or slice up the apples to freeze for future cooking. May dehydrate some for snacking.

Next crop of yard long beans is coming on well, and my brown cotton is setting bolls!
 
...I know the Hummel is not for outdoors,
I have that same Hummel hanging in my bedroom. My mother was a refugee (WWII Germany) and when the Russians advanced, she and my Oma (grandmother) were only able to take what they could carry; one item was that Hummel Madonna/Virgin Mary plaque. ...huge sentimental value for me.
 
Do you actually spin fiber from your cotton? OR???
I read about this cotton in A Simple Life magazine and ordered seeds. For $12 I got 8 seeds! I only planted 3 of them, as I didn't want to plant them all. They came up and then we got 18" of rain. Only one survived and it is in one of the raised beds. So I am hoping to get more seed. It is an ancient cotton, but difficult to process commercially as the fiber is shorter than white cotton so it never was planted in the USA commercially. I wanted it for decorative purposes, but if I ever was able to harvest enough I might send it somewhere to be spun. Cotton is related to the hibiscus, so the plant is attractive and the flower is gorgeous.
 
I read about this cotton in A Simple Life magazine and ordered seeds. For $12 I got 8 seeds! I only planted 3 of them, as I didn't want to plant them all. They came up and then we got 18" of rain. Only one survived and it is in one of the raised beds. So I am hoping to get more seed. It is an ancient cotton, but difficult to process commercially as the fiber is shorter than white cotton so it never was planted in the USA commercially. I wanted it for decorative purposes, but if I ever was able to harvest enough I might send it somewhere to be spun. Cotton is related to the hibiscus, so the plant is attractive and the flower is gorgeous.
Do you/will you have pics of the flower?
 
Have any of you all ever planted these:

http://www.rareseeds.com/mexican-sour-gherkin-cucumber/

Or even tasted them?

I think we are going to try them next year. Also we found a site were you can get 10 of the hottest pepper seeds. We want to put up a small greenhouse (just a small portable one) and try to grow the peppers and cucamelons.

Our garden did really awesome so far in the raised beds...we've been eating veggies and canning like crazy!
 
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Well This weekend just gone would be the first in a long time I could say that "better weather is coming "

Ill be tackling the vegie garden beds in the next couple of weeks, aerating the soil, adding chicken manure and redoing all the trellis that seems to have been destroyed throughout winter.

I hope to have them planted out by the start of Oct, once all the frosts have gone.

In the meantime with the weather being so good I ordered 6m of mulch to redo the front garden beds and I was happy with the result.

Unfortunately its only the start of mulching but has given me motivation to get the rest done before it gets too hot.

Mulch.JPG
 
Its a blend Marsha. I had the choice of pure pine mulch or the blend and I chose the blend. Someone once told me that pure pine mulch needs to sit for a while as it can make the soil quite toxic. Not sure if this was true or not but thought I better not risk it
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Its a blend Marsha. I had the choice of pure pine mulch or the blend and I chose the blend. Someone once told me that pure pine mulch needs to sit for a while as it can make the soil quite toxic. Not sure if this was true or not but thought I better not risk it
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I don't doubt that, I know some of it's canopy cover, but the pine needles and such make the soil acidic, which is why little grows under a pine forest. At least that's what I've heard.
 
Big, really huge... onions. Lots of them. Largest is about 8 lbs; seed variety of the biggies is Ailisa Craig exhibition. I don't do too many of the large ones 'cause the flavor can be "iffy" but these taste good and are perfect for big hamburger buns.

Now my fingers are crossed for our corn. We had some of our neighbor's corn yesterday. Pretty good. I opted for a later variety and have fingers nervously crossed as our nights get cooler. And I just might, might, might get some cantaloupes!!!
 
An 8# onion?! Wowzers!
Even if the seed variety lays claim to "good" storage, the large ones really don't store very well. I like to grow a few just to feel like a bad-butt, but I gave most of them away to a friend that lost her job. I hope I don't have to buy onions next spring, but I really didn't do too well this year with shallots which I've found to be the best for storage. oh well. ...there's always next year.
 
The motto of gardeners: there's always next year!

According to the Mesonet, our part of Oklahoma is officially out of the drought. Hurrah! They are predicting a cool, wet fall and it will take another year or two of normal temperatures and rainfall for the vegetation to recover. Hopefully that devastating drought of 2011-2012 is staying put in the record books.

Our pollinating insect population dwindled, too. No dearth of aphids, however...

I am taking onions to the Fair. They are small this year, due to the conditions in Texas when the sets were grown. But maybe everyone's will be smaller and mine will fair all right. At least it will contribute to the competition.
 
Hey AngC, I'm also in Arlington and am pretty impressed with your 8 pound onion! I have a big garden, too, and found a variety of onion that stores really well. The variety is called Copra and, stored in my unheated, darkened shop, lasts me until usually April every year. My corn ripened earlier than usual this year and we already processed it a couple of weeks ago. My winter squashes (butternut and ?) are loving this batch of rain!
 

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