Tomato plant progress

It is now July 13th and I believe my tomato plants are going to beat the 10 foot mark. Here is the current progress. My one son is over 6 foot tall and the other son on his shoulders is about 5'8, so here is a picture of them standing behind some of the tomato plants. Here is my oldest boy hand for comparision of the tomatoes. My wife picked our first tomatoes today and we have been canning. She did some beans and pickles today. I also had my first Organic Gardening Seminar today. I believe it when well. It is free and about an hour lecture with questions and answers afterwards. If you are near the South Central Virginia area and like to attend just e-mail me at Growingitorganically@gmail.com.

Progress of Garden

Hello,

I have not posted for a little while. We have had graduation for my oldest son from highschool as well as the homeschool convention here in Virginia. Of course the garden has been going strong with picking, canning, maintaining, as well as eating. No ripe tomatoes yet, but I have some plants over 7 feet tall and loaded with tomatoes. The compose tea seem to be going strong and the garden is looking good. All of the people who have been using the tea can't believe the difference. Another gardener friend of mine has been using the tea on certain plants and the plants he has used the tea on, he is guessing are over 7 feet also. Here are a few pictures to show you the progress. My tomato stake go up about 12 feet and my friend goes up 14 feet. The wheelbarrow is loaded with beets and the squash is growing like crazy. I am trying to be patient on my first fresh tomato sandwich of the year. If you look at the last post you see how much the tomatoes have grown.

Here is a quick update on the garden. We have been picking a lot of lettuce. Our lettuce was put in an earth box we made, so as the temperatures are warmer, I just moved it into the shadier part of the yard. Hopefully it will stretch through the season. I have zucchini starting to come in, along with broccoli, beets, and some carrots. The strawberries have been doing well and are starting to slow down. The tomato plants are really taking off. The beans and potatoes are blossoming. Here is a little video and some pictures of my attempt to get a 15 foot tall tomato plant. Just look how big the leaves are. On Thursday I will have an article about bermuda grass.

Bug repellant recipes.

Hi again!
I had a request to put up one of my homemade bug repellants on the post so here you go. I have researched and checked out several recipes. During my research I found that most bugs do not like oil or fragrant smells so I just combine the two. The one I am trying now is a mixture of canola oil with the crushed leaves of sweet basil, organo, lemon balm and peppermint. I use a mason jar and just throw the crushed leaves in and let them soak. Before I go out I just pour a little on my hands and wipe it on my skin.
To test it I went to the garden without any repellant and the bugs just loved me, especially the gnats. I came back in, wiped some on, and went back out. They left me alone and I was able to weed the garden un- bothered. My wife applied some before going on a family picnic in the mountains last week and she noticed how the mosquitoes left her alone.
You can experiment with different combinations, such as olive oil, mineral oil, vegetable oil, etc. and with different fragances, such as basil, eucalyptus, cloves, geranium, peppermint, rosemary, lemon balm(citronella), onions, garlic, and feverfew. You can plant many of these herbs and have a ready supply for the repellant as well as for kitchen uses.

Pickings

Hi all! I just had to do a quick post on the harvest today. Here are pictures of some of are latest pickings. Here is broccoli that I picked just a few minutes ago and the pea plants that are coming into blossoms. Here are some pictures with the tomato and potato plants with my daughter for some comparison. We are also picking strawberries and they are very sweet. I am still waiting for the first tomato sandwich with fresh homemade bread.

How the Garden is Looking!

It is May 8 and the garden is looking good. I don't know about you, but I can hardly wait to sink my teeth into a tomato sandwich. We are already picking spinach and lettuce. The strawberries are coming along, so I need to protect them from the birds. Here are a few pictures to compare some of the beds from April 30 and May 8. I have been using compost tea. According to John Evans who holds 18 Alaskan record and 9 Guinness Book of World Records the tea is what he attributes to his success. Here is another little money saving trick, which I will try soon is a mosquito trap. It came from a Japanese school project. Excuse me if I give it in English. Take a 2 liter soda bottle, cut near the top of the straight part, so that it can be inserted later. In the bottle put warm water with brown sugar and stir. After that insert a spoon full of yeast. Do not stir! The yeast will produce the CO2 that will attract the mosquitoes. After inserting the top, duct tape together so they hold, then tape black construction paper around it, so light does not get through. Mosquitoes like it dark. Set the trap outside in some corner. It should start to collect mosquitoes. Dump it about every two weeks. I will also post a copy of mine when I finish it and let you know how the collections is coming along.

Gardening Prizes

Here are a few of some of my prizes from my garden. If you have any prizes or comments, please send them to me.

I would like to tell you what I am working on this year. First, I am growing a Big Zac tomato. From my research I think it is one of the largest varieties to grow. Second, I am seeing if I can get a tomato plant to reach at least 10 feet. I am trying all kinds of things, so I will keep you posted. This morning I noticed a few strawberries on the plants, so I guess that I need to put up the chicken wire to keep the birds out. I am also working on more rain barrels to catch all the good rain water. I know some people are worried about mosquitoes. You can put screen or a lid on top of the barrel. A friend puts minnows in his barrels to eat all the mosquito larve that swim in the water and uses some of the minnows for fishing too. On my barrel I made an overflow so once one gets filled it will fill another. I hope some of these ideas will inspire you in your gardening efforts.

Thanks!