Inside the Garden Gate... Planning the Garden for 2018

Garden 2017 was a lot of fun...it was allowed to be fun. It didn't have to be serious; I wasn't retired then. Now, the gardening IS serious business, it'll have to provide income, instead of just amusement! So, I've got to plan extra hard.

There are the 6 inch pots for the herbs to buy, the large pots for our larger crops, the 4 inch peat pots for easy transplanting without harming our delicate roots, soil, plant markers...seeds, tubers, more seeds...

There's the planning, the space, and the time!

So, I wandered on over to Amazon.com to shop. There are the new items, like these cloth planting tubs, called Grow Bags! They've been available for a while, now...long enough to have a track record. And, it's good. They actually end up costing less than traditional plastic pots, and the ratings were great! 942 5-Star ratings on Amazon...not too shabby! I'll be using these for my Tomatoes and Squash, Cucumbers, Beans, Melons...oh, heck, I'd better go add some more packs to my cart! These come in a 6 pack for only $13.99...they're said to be reusable. I figure, at that price, it'd be okay if they do only last a year!

Another new crop that I've never attempted, seriously, to grow, is Potatoes. The Pinterest hacks on making nesting potato pots were interesting, but seemed a bit much. While at Amazon, I found this...

Now isn't that clever??? It's got drop drawers!!! Supposedly, you can grow potatoes towards the bottom, layering up as your plants begin to grow; with other plantings towards the top...carrots, onions or tomatoes. Now, to find a reliable source for seed potatoes, or work on doing that myself. These guys come two to a pack, for $13.99. My carts still open over there, too... I'm doing pricing comparisons on the peat pots and the 6 inch pots for the herbs that will be sold from the seed discs. Their link is http://www.amazon.com

One thing that I learned, over the course of the past few growing seasons, is that I can start some starts!!!

So, this year, I'll monetize that skill, selling starts, along with my candles and early season home made jams, on the Porch Stand this Spring. As of today, my plans are over the top...they'll probably have to be whittled down, for the sake of realism! (I've always been a big dreamer!)

One of my homesteading friends on Steemit had mentioned Johnny's Select Seeds as a good source for quality seeds. They do have some seeds on their list that I haven't been able to find...White Sage being one of them. Although it's currently out of stock, they will have it at some point, in the future!

And they have Seed Discs, which are plantable discs impregnated with the seeds available for some of their herbs...I'm ordering Thyme, Cilantro and Arugula in disc form this year...they're designed to go straight into a 6 inch pot, and it looks to be the ideal way to guarantee even germination. Those will be good from a sales point, I think.

While shopping, I also picked out some Vertissimo Chervil, Mexican Tarragon, Red Rubin Basil, Thai Basil and some Genovese Compact Basil. I'll let you know how these do, as we go through the growing season. If you want to check out Johnny's, their site is https://www.johnnyseeds.com Give it a look, see!

Then I wandered over to Burpee.com ...oh, heavens...I really should stay out of places like that! My shopping cart is still open, if you must know, and the shopping excursion is not finished. I really want to try planting eggplant this year...dreaming, dreaming!

I've got a few selections of Bean Seeds selected, the Tri Color Beans, above, and some Fordhook Limas and some Runner Beans, those will be geared up for sale as starters. Of course, I'll plant some for home, and maybe we'll harvest enough to sell, when that time comes. We'll see how the harvest goes. ;)

On to the Burpee Squash Department...beep, beep! I've got seeds on hand for some of my Winter Squash...the Sweet Reba Acorn Squash, Buttercup Winter Heirloom and just needed to round out the selections...I like these because they're cute. These are Summer Scallop Blend Squash. We call them Pattypan. They're tasty, too, but mostly they're cute! Who doesn't like cute food?

Anyway, while I was there, I put some Pic 'n' Pic Summer Squash in my cart, as well as some Fordhook Zucchini. I can start squash like a planting beast...but I've not had much luck with beyond that start stage...They look like they really want to do something...then...fizzle! If I can sell my starts in early season, I think I'll be doing okay. And, of course, we'll try again, this time in a different location, to see if that helps! They're at http://www.burpee.com

I've got quite the serious collection of seeds that I've been gifted, with some very interesting items to plant, so it's going to be an interesting 2018 growing season!

The Tomatoes this season are going to be fun! I was gifted several varieties of packets of heirloom varieties, Rutgers, Brandywine Pink, Cherokee Purple, Black Krim and Green Zebra...and I've got Red Currant Cherry Tomatoes and Beefsteak, along with my reclaimed cherry and grape tomatoes seeds in the form of withered tomatoes. I'll plant our Roma Tomatoes from slices of withered tomatoes. The germination rate is spectacular with using sliced tomatoes. And, of course, I'll be doing Tomatillos, again using the slice planting method.

And, the Peppers! My ratio of starts to fruit harvested is skewed on these, too...I'll be paying more attention this year and learning from last! There are still the leafy greens to consider...Kale, Bok Choy, Lettuces...and, Cucumbers for salads, Cucumbers for pickling...Carrots and Scallions and Fennel, oh my! And, we haven't even made it to the Beans and Peas that I have on hand! !

Somewhere, in all of this, we'll set up the chicken coops...hopefully! I can't do, physically, what I used to be able to do, so I need help with the heavy stuff. I've gotten connected with some good chicken people online...gotta love them!...and I'm researching and filling in my knowledge gaps. I do know that my neighbors would not take kindly to having some crazy rooster crowing at the crack of dawn, so I'm limited to hens for eggs, but I'm good with that! Maybe I can get a few friends to go in on a Community Coops project...we'll see how it all unfolds.

According to my grand plan, all plants will be available as starts...so I'd better get busy, get off this keyboard, and finish, or I'm going to be left out in the cold! And, as we all know...I don't like the cold! So, until next time, my friends, Steem on!