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Post by Cyngbaeld on Mar 31, 2013 21:15:44 GMT -5
I start potatoes in a trench too.
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Post by Granny Smith on Mar 31, 2013 21:19:01 GMT -5
I do, too. I also hill them (even higher than the corn)
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Post by Cyngbaeld on Apr 1, 2013 7:04:44 GMT -5
Yes, they need to be hilled. Hard to do in sand though. Also, in fire ant territory, hilling invites invasion so I don't like the hills too high.
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Post by Valerie on Apr 1, 2013 13:00:59 GMT -5
I've give up on potatoes, except the sweet kind. I think we have infected dirt or something. Every time I plant them, I wind up with nothing, or with little scabby, nasty looking lumps. So I'm not even spending the time and space on taters any more! I think, now that I think about it, that I'm not going to build any of my garden up in mounded rows like you see in pictures. It doesn't make much sense to raise the plant roots up above the water and into the heat. The sun bakes that ground, so you'd think the roots would be much cooler and find moisture easier at ground level, rather than jacked up. I think I'm going to rake it smooth, dig trenches for the corn, and plant the rest right at ground level, but still in rows. Do y'all think this is wise? What is the purpose of heaped up rows anyway, or is that just because it's how the machinery does it? I'm doing this by hand and would be quite happy not to try to heap up rows and make them stay that way.
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Post by Valerie on Apr 1, 2013 13:02:16 GMT -5
Also, I find it interesting that the longer I attempt gardening, the more I discover that I don't know. It's amazing how there is always so much more out there to learn!
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Post by Cyngbaeld on Apr 1, 2013 14:24:39 GMT -5
Main reason I do raised wide rows is to have ditches in between for irrigating. If you use a sprinkler you want it flatter anyhow. Most people aren't gardening in sand so they need some drainage for their plants and do better with raised rows.
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Post by Valerie on Apr 1, 2013 21:59:54 GMT -5
Yep, I water with a sprinkler. That makes sense about the sand, Kim. Leave it to our part of the world to always be different! Sometimes I think it must be like living in Australia.
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Post by Cyngbaeld on Apr 1, 2013 22:12:45 GMT -5
Different all right!
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Post by Valerie on Apr 12, 2013 15:58:45 GMT -5
Hey, y'all, when I plant the corn, should I still put down 2 or 3 seeds at a time, and then pinch off the scrawny ones later?
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Post by joanfromzone6 on Apr 12, 2013 17:22:56 GMT -5
Hey, y'all, when I plant the corn, should I still put down 2 or 3 seeds at a time, and then pinch off the scrawny ones later? yeah, that probably is the best approach - rather than pinching off the most vigorous ones - there's nothing wrong with keeping the show-offs -
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Post by Valerie on Apr 13, 2013 6:27:49 GMT -5
LOL, thanks!
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