Harvest Time Knives!!

[313 Mike]

....and so it begins! 2016 garden is up and running. So far we have carrots, radishes, beets, Swiss Chard and peas in the ground, onions going in later today. Still too cool for peppers, tomatoes, cukes and herbs yet.
Anybody else up and running yet?

[tongueriver]

We haven't planted anything yet; it was snowing this morning. We have purple spinach and two kinds of lettuce nicely up volunteer. We get it without planting for a few years now. I always let a couple plants bolt and shake the seeds out 'wherever.' Hoping for rabbit-free pole beans this year.

[treefarmer]

Mike, we've been tryin' but it's too wet! Planted squash the Thursday before Easter and the seed rotted or were sanded by the heavy rain. The red field corn finally came up, it was planted the same time, but it is too wet to cultivate as we've continued getting rain. Maybe in a day or so we'll try again. The raised beds with the tomatoes and peppers are alive but not flourishing yet due to the cool nights, still in the high 40's at night .
About all we could do now is plant a tractor and they don't usually germinate.
Treefarmer

[313 Mike]

Tongue River...nice to get some volunteers stepping up! Never had purple spinach before, sounds interesting. I like ha b ing a variety of greens, they are expensive to buy in the store and never as good as freshly picked!
Phillip, hopefully things dry out and warm up for you soon...

[TripleF]

I can't have a garden, but I do love this thread....I'm a subscriber!

Thanks Mike!

[9ball]

We just got our lower garden plowed and finished tilled. I am looking forward to this year. Corn seed cost more than the jar kind if that makes any sense.
Photos of this year and last, nuthin' special.......yet.

I need to work on my web/pitcher skills

9ball

[313 Mike]

9 Ball...are those trellises all for beans? Looks like you had a bountiful harvest last year! Looking forward to seeing how your plot progresses, post up some more pics as the season progresses. Those Tomato Case knives are outstanding! Where is this Tomato Festival, and do they have a Case special edition made up every year? Too cool...

[9ball]

We only been selling the Festival knives two years, but it started in 1992. And yes Case makes them up for us. We are on the poor side of the French Broad River, a bee line from SMKW off of 61. The photos/images are just inventory shots and not very good quality.

The fence rows are for any thing that grows like a vine, 'maters, fancy gordes, some squashes, that kind of thing. I am down sizing and may start above ground gardens this year or next. Less weeds and pests, it is easier to control and Work. Here is some shots from past years of the fence rows at work. As you know.......It is "Labor Intensive"

9ball

[junebug]

2016 CROP......(SNAPS SPENDERZ , AND FIRES UP FARMIN' SEASON RIG - WAA-BAHHH!!!! )

[9ball]

From what I see Bugg, that be some fine lookin' soil. Do you put out sweet potaters? And that mo-sheen.......I thought about one of those for my buckit list

[junebug]

Thanks 9BALL
NO, NO POTATOES "YET" ,BOY I WISH,I LOVE TATERS, HOPE NEXT YEAR TO THOUGH
WE DO HAVE: MATERS,BELL N' CHILI PEPPERS,CUCUMBER,SQUASH,ZUCCHINI,CILANTRO,WATER MELON , STRAWBERRIES,EIGHT ALMOND TREES, TONS OF DIFFERENT TYPES/KINDS OF SUCCULENT PLANTS ............
MAYBE 1 ERR 2 OTHER THANGS TOO I WILL ASK TIFF


HET ...AND YER DERN TOOTIN' BOUT THAT SCOOTER........... THAT FARMIN' MO-SHEEN DOUBLES AS A MUDDIN' RIG ON WEEKENDS, AN A RESCUE UNIT COME HIGH TIDE

HERE MA DOZER N HEDGE TRIMMER

[tongueriver]

Snowing again today; Aaarrrggghhh. But just in case things happen quick I got me zucchini knife ready at a moment's notice.

[junebug]

4TH STRAWBERRY OF THE YEAR!!
WOULD SHOW THE OTHER 3...BUT TIFFER GOT TO EM FIRST

AND RANDOM UPDATED GARDEN PIC

[junebug]

[Miller Bro's]

JB, how do you keep the weeds from growing?

[junebug]

MB, Mostly Tiffer handles it, but we both try to do a walk thru twice a day.........where we hand pick any we see a sproutin'

Before we get started each year, i cover the area with a tarp, and that clears the area of anything before we get planting, then it's all about daily hand pickin them lil boogers before they get a chance to grow

[Miller Bro's]

Before we get started each year, i cover the area with a tarp, and that clears the area of anything before we get planting

That's a great idea, I might try that myself next year

[junebug]

COUPLE PICS FROM LAST FEW DAYS................

[313 Mike]

Looks like your plot is coming along nicely Bug! I have a few rows of carrot sprouts, some beet sprouts, some pea sprouts, some swiss chard sprouts... and some onion shoots so far! Still far too chilly for tomatoes and peppers yet up here....hopefully soon though....

[treefarmer]

There are no Harvest Time Knives in this post but a report on the anticipated victims of the Harvest Time Knife follows:
We finally got a break in the rain and was able to get a pretty good stand of yellow straight neck squash. There are 2 rows about 100 feet long, enough to share with the neighbors and then some.
The raised beds are planted with tomatoes, peppers, bell, sweet banana and jalapeno.
There is a hundred foot row of Market More cukes that is trying to come up, doesn't look like a good stand, several long skips between plants .
The red corn that was planted before Easter and went through all the rain looks awful! Some germinated late and it is 12 inches high and the plants that were not affected by the "sanding" and the excess water are way up past waist high. If it was regular field corn seed I would have disked it under and started over but seein' that it is the solid red seed we have been tryin' to grow for several seasons, I'm going to hope we make a few good ears for next seasons seed. When we first planted the red seed, it made about 50% solid red ears and each season it does better. Last season a patch my friend planted came out at about 90% red. This all started after I salvaged corn that was knocked down by the picker in one of our fields. The corn seed planted was a mixture of several old time varieties and ever so often a solid red ear would show up. These we saved for seed and are trying to get it to come back all red. You ask why? Just something to do, we've named it Smoker Corn to honor the old Mennonite farmer that planted the corn on our farm several years ago. He has since passed on to meet his just reward. I'll include some pictures of our old friend Mr. Raymond Smoker doin' his thing the old way.
Treefarmer

yellow straight neck squash

raised beds, 'maters and peppers

Mr. Smoker planting corn in 2011

Red ears of corn

[313 Mike]

Great post Phillip! Looks like you are set up.for success, ol Mr. Smoker looks like quite the character, those kinda folks are a treasure indeed.
I was fortunate enough to harvest a couple yellow morels this morning, found a bunch more but they ere all dried up....these are keepers though. Still hunting for more....

[jerryd6818]

That kinda looks like Grand-dad on that corn planter 'cepten he didn't have them rubber tired wheels on his or the extra seat and that sure ain't Ole Charlie and Marthie pullin' it. Ahh, the good old days. I loved that old man more than life it's self.

Anyhow, I got my Big Pink put out this past Sunday. I changed locations with it this year. We'll see how it does. I need to get out there with the hoe because if I don't, I'm going to have a bumper crop of weeds.

Edit: I need to get a sturdier tomato cage. Those are as flimsy as all get out. And it's not near tall enough. Any suggestions before the plant gets too big to swap 'em out?

[treefarmer]

Jerry,
Look at the green stakes and brackets in the raised bed picture. Miss Joy bought a bunch of them several years ago. The brackets can be put at any level, moved or removed, pretty handy for 'maters. They are designed to use 4 stakes per plant and come with a bunch of braces, so I figured to use 3 and that way make the mess go further(improvise-you've heard that word before ). You can also tie twine to these stakes without it slippin' down. Wallyworld .
Treefarmer

[313 Mike]

First harvest of the year...Cherry Belle Radishes...buttery smooth and a little peppery. Love the spey blade for veggie work.

[jerryd6818]

Got it covered. This should do the trick.