Our 2016 Vegetable Garden

[chuckwood]

I'll let you know after my final seed collection. I have created a bottle neck in my Dr. Martin seed supply. I planted about 60 seeds and only one survived to maturity so all of my seed stock if from that one plant. That's not very good plant breeding and my not be representative of what Dr Martin really is. It does look just like Dr Martin and my even be superior in some ways but I have no way of knowing. It is true Dr Martin though and it is what I will be growing from now on. Maybe in a couple of years I'll buy some Dr Martin and plant a small plot and do some comparisons, maybe not. At the present time I have about 60 perfect Dr. Martin seed. These seed are hard to get to come up as the seed is so big that it is not lifted out of the ground on it's own power. I plant Dr. Martin so the eye is down and the back of the seed is at 1/4 inch below ground level. Went the start to come up I can seed the soil crack and then I 'birth' them by pushing some soil away from the seed so it is exposed entirely with the radicle growing firmly in the ground and the seed halves (cotyledons) exposed. On may the seed coat (testa) must be pealed off by hand or the cotyledons never separate from each other. Then I put chicken wire cages over the new plants so rabbits etc. don't get to them. Sometimes I start indoor is styrofoam cups. This is a more sure fire method.

https://www.boundless.com/biology/t...zation-190/development-of-the-seed-725-11954/

My doc martin seeds, all ten of 'em, are in the freezer right now. I'm going to order more of them so I'll have enough to plant on my 90 feet or so of trellises next year. This year's lima crop didn't produce as much as I'd hoped, although I got around seven bushels of beans. I got greedy, planted them too close together at around 18 inches, and got huge masses of leaves and vines but not as many beans. It also took a very long time for the beans to mature at around 5 months. Next year I'm planting pole limas at least three feet apart and a couple weeks earlier than I did this year. Today I'll be canning lima beans. The instructions that came with my small packet of doc martin's said to first soak the seeds in wet towels and get them germinating first before planting them.

 

[Del_]

Here is our lone Dr. Martin plant, 2016. The lower leaves have been deer nibbled. The poles are 10ft. apart.

 

[chuckwood]

I know, bet she don't like cats either!!

She's ok with cats. It's rodent type creatures that get her going. Possums, groundhogs, rats, rabbits, squirrels, etc. There's nothing that gets her more frustrated and wound up than squirrels, they always get away from her by going up a tree. She learned the hard way to leave skunks alone.

 

[amberg]

Here is our lone Dr. Martin plant, 2016. The lower leaves have been deer nibbled. The poles are 10ft. apart.

View attachment 538891

I take it that you have not had any frost yet.

 

[Del_]

I take it that you have not had any frost yet.

We have had frost and the plants are showing it. The pole limas are going down.

 

[amberg]

We have had frost and the plants are showing it. The pole limas are going down.

Frost got mine also, ( King of the garden ) The vines were beautiful all summer, but they never had a single pod on them this year. I never had that happen before, Any ideas?

 

[jollygreengiant]

Frost got mine also, ( King of the garden ) The vines were beautiful all summer, but they never had a single pod on them this year. I never had that happen before, Any ideas?

Did they have flowers on them?

 

[amberg]

Did they have flowers on them?

Actually I did not see any, That is what I am trying to figure out. I think the wife pulled 3 pods of the vines with no beans in them. They were new seeds this spring from Southern exposure seeds.

 

[jollygreengiant]

Actually I did not see any, That is what I am trying to figure out. I think the wife pulled 3 pods of the vines with no beans in them. They were new seeds this spring from Southern exposure seeds.

Well it's likely one of two things. Either the variety was a dud or they were very stressed at some point. I'm thinking it's the latter right now. If they are really stressed, or if it's very hot and dry when they are flowing, it can cause them to not put on any flowers.

I can't say how mine did this year. I planted bush beans beside the tomatoes. Which worked well until the tomatoes decided they needed more room...

 

[amberg]

Well it's likely one of two things. Either the variety was a dud or they were very stressed at some point. I'm thinking it's the latter right now. If they are really stressed, or if it's very hot and dry when they are flowing, it can cause them to not put on any flowers.

I can't say how mine did this year. I planted bush beans beside the tomatoes. Which worked well until the tomatoes decided they needed more room...

Don't think it was stress. plenty of water and fertilizer .

 

[Buckshot00]

Got the tiller out today and tilled half the garden.

 

[amberg]

Got the tiller out today and tilled half the garden.

Good luck, Hope the weather holds out. Feels like spring up here now. I have seen 3 feet of snow in march several times.

 

[Buckshot00]

Tilled the other half yesterday. I'm not planting anything before April this year.