Re: Re: Houston sq. ft. gardening
Chelle,
I haven't had the guts to trellis watermelon yet, but I'm trying some Burpee
Fordhook Hybrid watermelons on the ground. The seedlings are ready, so I'm
putting them into the soil mix in a new 4'x4'. The muskmelons are on the
trellis. One thing I can say is that the muskmelons last year seemed
unaffected by the heat and drought. In fact, they liked it! I had several
vines of two types of cantaloupe, and I didn't know what to do with all of
them. We ate a lot of very good cantaloupe.
My soil is still pretty dense stuff, so I'm going to add more organic
matter, probably peat, vermiculite and composted manure. The tomatoes are
just beginning to bloom set and bear. The Super Sweet 100 cherry tomato is
getting rather large, about three feet high, and will probably end the
season well over twice that tall. The Supersteaks are catching up, but they
are covered with blooms on top. If these blooms set, I'll actually have
some luck with tomatoes! The Brandywines are considerably slower moving -
last year they fruited at Christmas! I was a little late this year getting
them in (loony weather played a part, as you know), but I'm looking forward
to starting a fall crop from seed in mid summer. And then there's the great
corn experiment, probably Early Sunglow and G90. I'll be out working
nitrates into my beds later tonight.
Phil
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michelle Yard" <Myard@ix.netcom.com>
To: <sqft-l@xena.pkiclue.com>
Sent: Friday, May 10, 2002 2:11 PM
Subject: [Sqft-l] Re: Houston sq. ft. gardening
>
> Hey Phil, I am in Houston too, actually Katy. You're right about the soil
> probably being our biggest problem. That and all us transplanted Yankees
> planting too late in the season. After 20 years here I've gotten over the
late
> planting. As to soil, this year, I (actually dh and sons) built three
four by
> four raised beds with trellises attached. I filled with a modified mix.
I just
> felt as though that was too much peat for Houston's hot/dry/soaked
climate. So
> far so good. Last year we grew watermelon, but not trellised. It was
volunteer
> melon actually, and we got some good melons. Hadn't thought to try to
trellis
> it, I just stick it in where I don't have anything else growing and let it
run
> wild. Melons seem to like our climate (all those melon farms out here
can't be
> wrong). I'll be curious to see how you do with the recommended soil mix.
I
> hope I'm not sorry.
>
> Right now in my new beds I have tomatoes, pole beans, butternut (winter)
> squash--volunteer, bell, jalapeno and sweet banana peppers. Also yellow
and
> zuccini squash. Not that any of that has edible fruit yet,but it won't be
> long. What would anyone recommend for those pesky squash vine borers.
They get
> me every year. It's too hot for row cover down here, I've found.
>
> In hot, hot Houston,
> Chelle
>
> _______________________________________________
> Sqft-l mailing list
> Sqft-l@xena.pkiclue.com
> http://xena.pkiclue.com/mailman/listinfo/sqft-l
>
_______________________________________________
Sqft-l mailing list
Sqft-l@xena.pkiclue.com
http://xena.pkiclue.com/mailman/listinfo/sqft-l
