A Cooperative Learning Project
Okra: attractive plants, good okra – research germination anomalies, warm soil before planting?
Sunflowers: did well this year – grow same variety next year?
Three Sisters bed: better than last year, but the squash plants needed more sun, and the beans pulled the corn over – move the corn & beans to the center of the bed with the squash around the outside, plant squash same time as other squashes, plant beans 1 week later next year.
Powdery mildew – grow resistant varieties where possible
Squash vine borers – grow resistant varieties where possible, experiment with non-surgical methods
Cucumbers: did well, excellent yield (many dozens) – give a bit less real estate, grow pickling type on arbor next year
Pumpkins: disappointing yield (@ 12), lots of powdery mildew
Watermelons: good yield (@ 20), some vine withering, a few rotted and a few were harvested too late
Winter Squash (Delicata): disappointing yield (@ 12), lots of vine borers – give more space?
Zucchini & Zephyr (Summer Squash): good yield, compact plants worked well in space
Beets: tried many varieties, but plants didn’t thrive – research varieties & techniques for next year
Carrots: cold spring got them off to slow start, sowing late crop between rows of early crop helped
Parsnips: grew well, but needed to be thinned more
Potatoes: plants did well, but yield was disappointing — try different supplier and/or planting farther apart
Radishes: early crop grew best in periphery beds on gate side of garden
Salad Turnips: grew well in borrowed space at beginning & end of season (like Radishes)
Sweet Potatoes: planted our own slips over several weeks, grew well but most tubers scrawny – try to get known good variety for slips next year.
Turnips: new variety grew fast, well and tasty, but lots of insect damage to roots
Eggplant: Italian, Asian & White, plants less robust – result of weather or fertilizing or location in garden?
Peppers: the best year ever, all varieties (bells, poblanos & chilis) did well – repeat varieties, staging
Tomatoes: many suffered from diseases, good long yield from remaining plants – grow more resistant varieties next year, cover soil with landscape fabric to warm it before planting, experiment with clover groundcover, repeat sucker experiment, plant some in lettuce bed, try a grafted plant, more normal-size varieties & fewer zebras next year?
SMALL: Sun Gold*, Super Sweet 100*, Green Grape*
MEDIUM: Mountain Magic, Stupice^, Ramapo*, Paul Robeson^, Green Zebra^, Red Zebra^
SAUCE: Granadero, Mariana*
* varieties we should definitely consider next year
^ varieties that failed
Tomatillos: grew well, caging worked great – try one purple plant, start seeds a week or two later than tomatoes next year
Bush Beans: all did well, wonderful varieties, didn’t last quite as long as last year
Dried Beans (3 sisters): planted closer to correct time to climb corn, good yield, tasty
Fava Beans: badly attacked by aphids, fairly low yield of very tasty beans
Peas: only early snap-type germinated, good yield. Broadcast late bush variety Super Snappy did well – try bush type shell pea in spring next year?
Pole Beans: Romanos planted early (where shell & snow peas crapped out) did well on trellis. Kentucky Blues planted after peas (which were slow this year) were last beans in garden.
Soybeans: good yield, plants seemed to mature over a shorter period than last year
Arugula: did well in shady spot, needed 3 plantings this year
Basil: started indoors and from seed in garden, all did well
Bok Choi: first planting did well, subsequent plantings did less well – one planting next year?
Cilantro: did well, needed 3 plantings (only got 2), not very popular – less next year?
Kales, Collards & Swiss Chard: seeded in garden, excellent spacing and productivity
Lettuce: need to plant every 2 weeks for continuous harvest – try new butterhead & romaine varieties?
Mesclun: did well, but not terribly popular – plant less or use space for lettuce next year?
Spinach: success! great germination and beautiful early & late season plants (left to winter over) – repeat next year?