Are there any gardeners out there that can share some info ?

@free_man (7330)
United States
April 10, 2011 8:01pm CST
First let me tell you about our garden. The soil is hard and rocky. We have for the last 3 years put some really good soil in there and put saw dust one year. But the ground just isn't much better then it was the first year. So we have to plan out each row of what and where we have to plant what plant. Last year we planted the cucumbers and the tomatoes so that they both had some wire to climb on. It worked out pretty good but was a pain in the bottom to get to the tomatoe or the cucumbers. So we are trying to find out what kinds of vegetables grow good together. We got our tomatoes in today they are in a row all to themselves this year. And the cucumbers are all by themselves in a 8x8 L shaped row next to where we will put a fence! So can anyone give any good advice on how and what to plant together? Do you know any good garden sites that you are willing to share? Thanks to all for any and all help! Happy My Lotting my friends!
2 people like this
6 responses
• United States
11 Apr 11
Well last year we made boxes to put soil in for our garden and that made a very big difference in how good we did. I like to plant sturdy plants that vines can grow on such as corn with gourds. I also but basil with the tomatoes. I was given this tip by our local Garden gnome (a gentleman who gardens and sells his produce at the town square who looks like a gnome) and it was great I had basil plants as big as my tomatoes!
@GardenGerty (157027)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Planting basil with your tomatoes is supposed to make the tomatoes taste even better. I love doing that.
2 people like this
• United States
11 Apr 11
Out tomatoes where OK but we had such a drought and nasty winds that we lost too many and they where all like raisins almost as fast as they turned red.. I am hoping for better this year.
@free_man (7330)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Hi OpinionatedLady. Thanks I am going to try that this year. I love getting tips on the garden and how things grows. Does it really make the tomatoes taste better? Hi GG. I heard that too. Have you tried it?
1 person likes this
@peavey (16936)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Garden Web (http://www.gardenweb.com) is the best, in my opinion. Register for the forums there and you can ask whatever questions you have. You might be interested in companion planting, too. There's a list on this page of what grows best next to what: http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/complant.html There are several places to find similar lists. Do you make compost? That's probably the most important thing to getting and keeping the soil in good condition.
3 people like this
@free_man (7330)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Hi Peavey. Thanks for the sites. Oh yes we make compost. We love growing things so we keep a compost pile set up for the garden every year.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157027)
• United States
11 Apr 11
In addition to reading online, you can go to your library and read issues of Organic gardening. Where I live now was at one time several apartments and the ground was mostly gravel just under the soil. It has taken me many years to get a garden spot built up. On the other hand,our neighbor put in a new fence and we built up a narrow bed along side of it with cinder blocks. I bought a lot of good soil to put into it, and have grown tomatoes there twice now, and some peppers and basil. It is important to rotate your crops, so this year I put peas in that narrow bed, as they are an early crop and they affix nitrogen to the soil. I will probably put cucumbers in when I take them out as I can put fencing up for them. With such poor soil, raised beds and composting are the two things I would suggest to you. I noticed someone mentioned corn with another plant, and that is actually a Native American concept called the three sisters. You plant corn, and pole beans to climb it, then plant squash or pumpkins at its base to shade the weeds out and cool the roots. The beans are also a crop that adds nitrogen to your soil. I would say if you put sawdust on the soil you needed to add some green waste as well such as grass clippings to make it decompose. Some people like to bury banana peels with their tomatoes, I have never tried that but I do put some Epsom salts in the soil with the tomatoes.
@free_man (7330)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Hi GG. We did the three sisters last year it did really great we put that in one spot with pure top soil. I didn't know about the epsom salt. Will try it this year though.
1 person likes this
@marguicha (214281)
• Chile
2 May 11
If your soil is poor, probably the easiest and cheapest way to have a vegetable garden is to make some raised beds. There are lots of good ideas on how to make them (with pictures) online. Imade a couple of raised beds last year basically because it´s easier for my back as I don´t have to bend so much. I mixed garden soil with compost, some coarse sand and some good vegetable soil from the market.
@marguicha (214281)
• Chile
5 May 11
raised beds - The raised beds after the harvest.
These are the raised beds I made for veggies.
@free_man (7330)
• United States
5 May 11
Hi Marguicha. We are making raised beds this time. We have been putting garden soil in with the garden soil already. It has been this way for 3 years. But this year we just decided to make raised beds. Thanks for the response I will look online. Thanks again.
• Philippines
11 Apr 11
did you try planting on buckets? i saw this video on youtube where they plant tomatoes, eggplants and other vegetables on buckets, even potatoes, garlic and onions too. in that way, you dont have to worry having a hard and rocky soil in your garden. all you have to do is buy a good planting soil, put it in the buckets or even drums that has been cut in halves, and then plant your vegetables there. you can even transfer it to one place to another. i even try planting at styro boxes, its also handy =)
2 people like this
@free_man (7330)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Hi Martha and welcome to my lot. No haven't tried planting in buckets yet. But have salt lick drums will try that in a couple of them. We use our salt lick drums to get gravel soil and mulch. So have to find a couple that are wore out to try and plant plants in them. Thanks good ideals my friend.
1 person likes this
@dlpierce (495)
• United States
11 Apr 11
My husband is the gardener at our house. We have poor soil here so he makes his vegetable garden in beds like you would for flowers. Each year he adds top soil and compost and manure to make rich soil. He puts a wooden frame around each, tomatoes and onions in one box and cucumbers and carrots in another, maybe string beans and corn in another.
2 people like this
@free_man (7330)
• United States
11 Apr 11
Hi Dlpierce and welcome to my lot. Thanks that all sounds like a good thing. Does the onions make the tomatoes taste different? The ground here is so hard the carrots we planted last year was only about 2 inches long and really fat....LOL Didn't look much like carrots.
1 person likes this
@dlpierce (495)
• United States
11 Apr 11
The onions have no affect on the tomatoes and can be harvested and replanted through the entire growing season. I'm talking about green onions, if you want them to get big bottoms they should be left the whole growing season and I think my husband bent down the tops as they began getting tall for some reason to get bigger onions.
2 people like this
@free_man (7330)
• United States
5 May 11
Hi Dipierce sorry it took me so long to respond. Putting in more vegetables took longer then what we figured. Thanks going to grow some onions and tomatoes together in a spot with nothing but garden soil. Will put in some cucumbers and orka there too. Thanks for all the advice my friend.