Spring Fever

[luckydozenfarm]

Not sure about you guys but down here this weather is killing me right now. I got the disc out and started working my ground for the first time this weekend and now I wake up to a layer of ice and wintery mix. I have all my seeds in and I've got the plan all laid out on what I'm going to start planting where and now it seems like winter again. If it weren't for my elms starting to bud out I would think Spring was months away.
I got my seed potatoes all cut up and doused and they are sitting in a bucket of mulch on my patio.
I have my flats started with my tomato and pepper plants planted. (gonna try some Hatch peppers this year)

Like a racehorse at the gate...cmon spring!!

 

[tbow388]

I am ready for spring. This winter has been way to cold in the south.

This weekend I am tilling all of the garden and making a new corn patch.

I have broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower growing in the house and will plant it in another week or so. I won't be able to plant anything else until mid april.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Hell yah, nothing's better than fresh sweet corn...

 

[tbow388]

I am moving mine out of the garden this year. Last year everyone wanted corn but I only grew enough for me.

I think I am going to plant 4 - 25' double rows.
2 rows a foot apart, skip 3 feet for tiller then another 2 rows at a foot apart. I hope it turns out good.

 

[tbow388]

This was last years.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Nice garden man...yeah looks like that spot may be a bit shady too for corn anyway.

 

[tbow388]

I had good results last year. 2 good ears per stalk.
My best growers were tomatoes. I am not quit up to the commercial gardener guy down the road that I help. He averages 20 pounds per plant. I only got 10-15 pounds per plant. Still that was enough for me to put up for winter and also sell 100 pounds.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

2 ears per? That's great...yeah tomatoes are probably my favorite also. They are the one thing that tastes 100% better if you grow them yourself vs the grocery store. They are also the most work but the most profitable...I got about $1.25 per pound wholesale last year.

My kids like me to grow watermelons if we have the time and room.
The farmer market buyer in our town doubled his order of 1015Y yellow onions and I got them in the ground over Thanksgiving, and now I realize that I may not have the room for as much corn this year.
Your squash plants look super in that pic..do you guys have those stinkbugs that cover squash plants like we do?

 

[tbow388]

Havent had any stink bug problems. My squash was a flop this year. I don't know why they didn't produce good.

Watermelons take a lot of space. We planted 160 last year. I got 2 and they were awesome. Much better than a big chain watermelon.
I get 1.50 a pound for tomatoes. I ask the guy that I help what he is selling them for and use the same price. I don't want to be lower than he is.
They are a A LOT better than any store bought tomatoes.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

$1.50????? I need to up my price then. The good thing is there aren't a lot of farmers in our area willing to fulfill tomato contracts, too big a gamble for an acre or two of tomatoes. I have a contract now for 25,000# of red globe tomatoes @ $1.25/lb. and a 5000# order for beefsteaks @ $1.30/lb. I got 20% upfront to get started and rest payable upon delivery. I got about 4000 plants in flats that just came up this week. We can use a few good tomato pickers come late June, I'll send you directions..LOL

 

[tbow388]

You grow a hell of a lot more that I do!!!

I had 25 tomato plants last year at home. Down the road I helped with 400. I can't imagine 4000.

The guy that I help has been teaching me these last few years. He is 77 and has been farming his whole life. Cant read in books what he can teach from experience. I am very thankful to him. Every year I get to learn a little more and he lets me cut wood on his land (I cut, we split and divide the wood).

2 years ago I was in charge of okra while he was on vacation. 1000 feet of it. That is all he said to touch. That is all that I did. He was impressed enough and said I followed his instructions enough that I could do more last year. I did a lot more!!! I got to help plant and take care of a good deal of what he grew. I was still not allowed to mess with his tomatoes. This year will probably come with some new responsibilities for me. Maybe even some tomato picking.

He won't teach you much at one time. He said it took him a lifetime to learn what he knows and isn't going to just "give it away"
Now that I am in the mid 40's I understand that. I do 90 times more of helping him than he does me. He teaches me 100 times more than I can teach him. It's a good trade.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

I had a guy like that around when I was younger...my grampa....He was from Iowa and he spent his whole life husking corn by hand and feeding pigs. I've liked gardening since I was a little boy. I went from a shovel, hoe and rake to almost 500 acres..he was the best guy to have around before you could google a problem on the internet..

 

[farmer steve]

hey LDF, about 10" of snow on the ground topped with an inch of ice.Spiring Fever.
FS

 

[luckydozenfarm]

Steve I don't know how you northerners can handle this cold weather. I was out changing the ball joints of this customer's truck and even in the shop its 36 degrees in here. I can barely feel my hands...but hey we did get a tiiiiiny bit of "snow" this morning. BTW..I got me 5 acres worth of RR Sweet corn seeds again this year. Last year was a trial test of that RR corn, going big this year for sure.

 

[farmer steve]

LDF,you'd like sawin wood @15*with -0* wind chill. gonna do the RR sy bicolor this year sv9014sb.the RR temptation worked good last year.

 

[luckydozenfarm]

hhaha...yeah are you trying RR Obsession II? That's a great variety. I took your advice and I got some RR Temptation because some people around here wont buy bi-color from me. weirdos....

 

[farmer steve]

don't grow any of the supersweets.got weirdo's up here to. the think ss have a to crunchy skin.