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Author Topic: Neglected Veggie Garden  (Read 5095 times)

Offline Sean Kelly

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Neglected Veggie Garden
« on: October 31, 2008, 06:44:09 pm »
So I was a bad farmer this year.  I let my bees run wild, never built a chicken coop, and let my fresh tilled garden go to weeds instead of planting.

The bees will be fine with 3 deeps full of honey on each hive and I'll get a coop ready this winter for spring chicks.

But my garden makes me worried.  We plowed new ground, tilled the soil, and even put fresh manure out.  That's as far as I got mainly due to the lack of spring this year (winter straight to summer which killed 3 of my hives) and cause of the extra work it takes having a new baby in the house.

The weeds this summer were taller than me.  Everything went to seed and I'm gunna have a really terrible time with weeds next season!  I went out and mowed down everything and found tomato, carrots, and sunflowers that reseeded from last year!!!

EVERYWHERE there were these little red berries from a heavy ground cover plant (I've seen them before in nurseries and they took over my veggie patch).  I'm afraid these berries will kick start a new batch of horror next season.  What should I do now to winter for a "weed free" season next year?  Should I cover with black plastic?  Spray herbicide?

Sean Kelly
"My son,  eat  thou honey,  because it is good;  and the honeycomb,  which is sweet  to thy taste"          - Proverbs 24:13

Offline Brian D. Bray

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #1 on: October 31, 2008, 08:00:35 pm »
Rake, sift, and cover.
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Offline Cindi

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #2 on: November 03, 2008, 09:25:04 am »
Sean, oh I know what you are talking about!!!  My veggie gardens were just about the same.  We didn't harvest much of anything, except beans.  The horrible spring that went from winter to too-hot-summer-to-too-cold-summer, yep, yep, that be our year too.  It was a nasty.  We only got about 2 meals off our asparagus patch, which normally we eat maybe at least 20.  That was a teller of the tale for surely.

The black plastic that you want to put down won't do a ding dang thing.  Black plastic is used for solarization (well, my opinion). I don't believe for a minute that our climates get hot enough early enough in the season to do any good, it is time for planting long before the seeds are cooked beneath the soil.  It really is a waster of time to do this.  AND...forget herbicide crap, you don't want that in your vegetable garden, which the produce you will be consuming.  I do not agree with herbicide use in the veggie garden.  Some say that for example, Roundup, becomes inert, once it hits the ground.  But I still have my reservations about that and wouldn't even think once about application to the food garden.

Do as Brian said, rake, turn under, over and over and over.  I wouldn't bother to cover though, my preference.  Like beekeeping, as a question and you will get 10 answers.  There will always be weeds in the gardens, I can't imagine anyone having a weed free garden.

I have this horrible weed that has now spread to my main vegetable garden.  Over the years in my main vegetable garden I have been so anal about this being a weed free garden, it almost had become.....until this year, when I was so neglectful with working the gardens. 

It is common purslane aka --  Portulaca Oleracera.  It is a nasty, nasty, nasty, weed.  It is used in our big city for a garnish for salad, and is a highly prized garnish -- but they must grow it in controlled places.  This is a flat growing plant, succulent leaves, creates a massive mat.  Has absolutely invasive roots and spreads like the frickin' dickens with its millions of seeds that burst and fly everywhere.   And it has.  It has now invaded my main veggie garden, and this upcoming year I am going to have to work so hard to erradicate it from there, I don't know if I can, but I can be pretty aggressive when it comes to weed removal, it is just a matter of getting on my hands and knees just a little more often, if the weather is better this upcoming year, then I will have that gumption.  Eeeks, I am ramblin'....

Good luck Sean, a baby in tow can really set back the time one has to spend on other things.  You have had a very busy summer, that is clear and plain to see.  Next year this little one will be walking around, wanting to eat all the weeds that you kick out of your garden, and then there will be even more work, hee, hee.  Enjoy that baby, such a lovely little darlin'.  And have the most wonderful day, great health wishes to us all.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline Kathyp

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #3 on: November 03, 2008, 10:19:21 am »
sean, it was a bad year.  i got a few veggies but not worth all the work i put into it.

cindi, here is my weed.  it's saving grace is that the bees seem to like it, but it takes over everything by mid to late summer.

http://picasaweb.google.com/pearce.km/GrandkidsAndAdrianAndLisa?authkey=gW99brtVmp4#
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline Cindi

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #4 on: November 03, 2008, 10:40:58 am »
Kathy, I think I know that weed.  I have never looked at it really closely here, but I have something that I think is pretty similar and yep, yep, it is an invasive thing.  I have it mostly eradicated around my place now.  It is very beautiful, your pictures show that.  I always pull up every one that I see because I know how invasive it can be.  Well....I don't get all of it, just where it doesn't belong. 

I wish that I knew the name of it.  Do you know?  Have a great and awesome day, great health wishes to us all.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline Kathyp

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #5 on: November 03, 2008, 11:51:19 am »
i have no idea what it is, but you are right, it is very hardy.  it seems to prefer certain types of soil.  it also seems to like cleared ground ( my garden) somewhat like fireweed.  it doesn't move into areas with thick grass or weeds.

the bees just love it.  it is alive with bees late summer when other things are done blooming.
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline Sean Kelly

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #6 on: November 03, 2008, 01:15:56 pm »
Cindi, I'm not sure if it's Common purslane.  The leaves look the same but this plant grows out like a spider and hugs really tight to the ground.  I know I've seen these in landscaping before like at the grocery store or at gas stations as a maintenance free ground cover.  Hardy bugger and a real fast plant!!!

Sean Kelly
"My son,  eat  thou honey,  because it is good;  and the honeycomb,  which is sweet  to thy taste"          - Proverbs 24:13

Offline Scadsobees

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #7 on: November 03, 2008, 01:47:48 pm »
sean, it was a bad year.  i got a few veggies but not worth all the work i put into it.

cindi, here is my weed.  it's saving grace is that the bees seem to like it, but it takes over everything by mid to late summer.

http://picasaweb.google.com/pearce.km/GrandkidsAndAdrianAndLisa?authkey=gW99brtVmp4#

Kathy, that is "smartweed".  Really, though, if it were so smart it would stay away, since it usually gets ripped up.
Rick

Offline Scadsobees

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #8 on: November 03, 2008, 01:55:04 pm »

EVERYWHERE there were these little red berries from a heavy ground cover plant (I've seen them before in nurseries and they took over my veggie patch).  I'm afraid these berries will kick start a new batch of horror next season.  What should I do now to winter for a "weed free" season next year?  Should I cover with black plastic?  Spray herbicide?

Sean Kelly

I get little red/purple berries too, I think it is something in the belladonna family. Purslane has seedpods, not berries.

Herbicide is pointless at this point, since your problem is with the seeds.  Solarization is good to try, but are you going to get the heat/sunlight before next springs planting?

PREEN, if you are planting seedlings.

Plastic cover is great for things like tomatoes, peppers, cabbage etc, just put the plant in a hole in the plastic .  That way nothing else can grow through.  I use mounds of dirt between the rows so that the water will funnel to the plants.

As far as row plants such as beans, corn, sunflowers....weed weed weed, maybe mulch the aisles.  Once the plants are germinated you can apply PREEN and then you only have to worry about what is already growing.

I find that the spring is the worst, peaking in June, then the lack of water keeps new seeds from germinating for a while.

Rick
Rick

Offline Sean Kelly

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #9 on: November 03, 2008, 02:42:01 pm »
I'm in the Seattle area, there's never a lack of water year round!  lol  j/k

I'm really curious to find out what this weed is called now.  Been spending half the day today looking through pics on the web.

I think I'm gunna try wide row planting this year and seperate each row by a strip of grass that I can mow.  Makes weeding that much easier.  Either that or do what my old neighbor does, tills between each row.

Sean Kelly
"My son,  eat  thou honey,  because it is good;  and the honeycomb,  which is sweet  to thy taste"          - Proverbs 24:13

Offline Scadsobees

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #10 on: November 03, 2008, 03:56:13 pm »
http://www.dgsgardening.btinternet.co.uk/weedlf.htm

Ok, I've got trailing nightshade all over my property.
Rick

Offline Brian D. Bray

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #11 on: November 03, 2008, 07:35:05 pm »
You can make a real tasty salad out of sheep sorrel, lambs quarter, chickweed, cress, and wild chives or parsley.  Not all those weeds should be thrown away, compost what you don't eat.
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Offline Cindi

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Re: Neglected Veggie Garden
« Reply #12 on: November 04, 2008, 10:17:50 am »
Rick, what an excellent site, I am not kidding.  I still have some weeds around my place that are not yet identified.  One day I will get them figured out.

Hey Sean, good luck to find out what the invader of your garden is.  Why don't you phone a nursery, define it, maybe they can help you.

Brian when we were kids we would eat that Sheep's Sorrel, it has a very sour taste and we loved it.  It grows everywhere here, and I still like to take a bite of it now and then, eating that pleasant taste.  That wild greens salad that you defined, wow!!!  I can't now wait until the spring brings on the fresh new sprouts.  Anytime you want wild chives.  My gardens are full of them.  I have divided thousands of clumps of chives because I have too many, thrown them in the compost piles (which are all over the place, in great mounds), I have chives coming out my ears.  I haven't purchased green onions in so many years it makes my head swim.  And we eat green onion chives like there was no tomorrow around here, our main staple in our diet.  They all all just about died back down now for that winter rest,  but they will be the first to poke up the beginning of January, so their rest is short.  Have a most wonderful and awesomely great day, great health.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service