Friday, January 07, 2011

Cauliflower

A note to myself: Snow Crown Cauliflower (Johnnys). High quality, smallish heads, but very quick to mature. Planted tight--maybe 12" center in raised row of compost. Sowed in cells Oct 1, transplanted 3rd week of Oct; harvest ready Jan 1 after exceptionally cold December. Could have started them earlier--next year, Sept 15.

4 comments:

B said...

Regarding green beans: I plant Contender green beans at Rosh Hashona and harvest those at Thanksgiving. After that I don't plant beans again till Valentines, then I plant every 2 weeks till April Fools. I don't plant after April Fools again till fall.
Mosaic Mom
Tavares

joaniebaby said...

Hi Michael. I'm a South Volusia newbie gardener. I'm about to build a raised bed garden. As you already know, our soil is basically sand. When I get ready to put soil in my raised beds, can I incorporate the sandy soil into the compost or soil I will be using? Is there a type of soil you have tried that would work best? I hope to be growing lettuce, radishes, carrots(half long)and lavender and other herbs now. Then tomatoes once it warms up a little. Thanks.
-Joan

Michael said...

there are a lot of ways to approach it... generally i think it's a bad idea to incorporate our sand into the compost you spread. better to lay in on top of the soil, and then a heavy layer of mulch atop that. most plants, esp annuals that we grow in the veg garden, don't need much more than a thin layer of soil... maybe 4". i don't use raised beds, per se, but instead i heap the compost directly where i'm going to plant, then plant directly in there. mostly raised rows, with the furrows between heavily covered in mulch... then, what had been furrows become rows the next succession of planting.

but my beds have been in active use for years, and at this point there's 5-6" of good soil on top of the sand, constantly replenished by mulch and more compost... it's a process, not an event.

joaniebaby said...

Thanks. I have been looking into this lasagna gardening method I came across. I think I am going to try that as well.