We’re feeling springy up here in northern Minnesota! Our first pepper and petunia seeds are popping up. Boy, do they like the rock wall behind the little greenhouse. The woodstove is on one side and the warm rock wall behind, and a window beside them. You can see the little grins on the seedlings’ faces when they come up.
In a week I’ll be starting tomatoes. Yesterday I put all of the new types of tomato seeds we’ve ordered this year together and then counted them. Wow, more than 25 NEW varieties. Then there are the OLD ones we love and will keep. Will, get out Old Yeller, our bulldozer — we need more garden!
We got a phone call yesterday morning from Chiwon Lee, a professor at North Dakota State University in Fargo. We had met at the Northern Plains Sustainable Agriculture Conference this spring and talked for a long time about hardy fruits and tomatoes, both specialties of his. He wondered if he could come visit us. Of course, we said YES! He brought a nice couple with him and we had a great time talking fruit and tomatoes. As NDSU has bred many early tomato varieties, he brought some of their seeds for us to try and I gave him many of our favorites along with some scion wood from our apple trees and a wild elderberry.
He brought us a whole carload of GREEN things! Seedling rootstock from Russian pears, apricots, Nanking bush cherries, and even grafted apples. Then there were four Easter lilies, a beautiful flowering house plant, and a HUGE hibiscus! We were floored! He also brought some tomato seedlings and grafting supplies and taught us how to graft tomatoes. And he showed us how to graft a tomato scion onto a potato rootstock, making a topotato (or whatever). I’m sure our grandkids will love those!
You never know when you’ll meet wonderful people with like interests, do you? — Jackie
Howard, Where do you live? I think you are doing a great job in raising your crops and such quantity under cooler conditions. Thanks for sharing! Cindy
I will look at your seeds and see about ordering some for next year. I have tried wall o waters and that is not enough to get ripe tomatoes outside most years. Our nights are too cold. I tried the wall o waters to protect early tomatoes in the hoop house and sun scalded the plants and set them back because I didn’t pull them quick enough on a hot day. I put about 20 plants in the hoophouse with IRT plastic mulch and this year I will try löw hoops and row cover for early protection with the tank top propane heater ready if the temp really drops.The rest go in grow bags in the greenhouse which has a wood stove.
I grow provider green beans in the hoop house by transplanting them through IRT mulch. A 3foot by 20 foot bed gave us fresh eating and 60 pints of canned beans last year. Peppers and such are in the green house. Corn does not grow outside and I don’t have hoophouse space. I grow pickling cucumbers in hanging baskets over the beans and we did about 30 pints of pickles. Zuchini do fine in the hoop house with IRT but havent enough room for winter squash inside. I’m going to try low hoops with plastic ready to go over the row cover on the coolest nights.
A ll the cool season crops like potatoes carrots and cole crops do fine outside.
Howard
Wally,
It was Spencer who had the cut foot and he is doing great. The bandage came off and it’s healing nicely. He doesn’t even limp a bit now. Whew! That sure scared me with all that blood on the floor!
Howard,
Did you check out our website, http://www.seedtreasures? We, living in Northern Minnesota, specialize in very hardy, northern-producing tomatoes such as Glacier, Morovsky Div and Doucet’s Plum Red. And using Wall’O Waters REALLY boosts our spring growing, even more than hoop houses as it warms the soil, making very strong roots.
Deb,
Yep, I DO love seeing those little seeds sprout and promise food and flowers!! And, yes, I had my stress test yesterday. Tomorrow I’ll find out how I am. (The stress test isn’t for stress but to check on my heart and circulation as I’ve been having chest pains and shortness of breath.) Hopefully it’s nothing serious. After all, spring is here!!! No new baby goats yet. We bred them so they’d have babies when its warmer so we don’t have to worry about blizzards and freezing.
Anita,
I will let you know. It’s not something we’d do as homesteaders as the yields of both tomatoes and potatoes is not that great. But it is interesting and novel. The grandkids will love them!
I have been waiting for you to update this blog. It was worth the wait. How is Hondos’ foot doing?
I wish we could seccessfully grow tomatoes outside but we are stuck with hoop house and greenhouse production. Even so we have had little luck with most standard varities because of the cold nights. I just started 50 plants from a total of 15 varities mostly northern or Russian bred. The best producer the last two years is Early Tanana. The only source I can find for this variety is Denali Seeds (on line as Best Cool Seeds).
I have found that I gain more by using heat and protection to extend the season into early May when we generaly have sunny weather and long daylight than to try and extend it after the fall equinox when we are loosing seven or eight minutes of light a day.
We are going to try Hansens bush cherries this year because of your suggestion.
Howard
Love seeing those seedlings poke up! What a great visit with your new friends.
What an exciting visit and how nice that you both shared your knowledge and
your plants and seeds. Good begets good. Seeing your petunias and pepper plants must really bring you joy. There is something about a very tiny seed like a petunia that has everything in it to become a lovely flower. Have been wondering if you have had your stress test yet? Although I don’t see Jackie Clay ever being stressed, ha ha. You are the easy-goingest woman I know and always ready with a smile. No pretense. Just good wholesome fun, making the best of whatever comes your way. Do you have any new baby goats yet? Would love to see pictures when they arrive.
I saw in one of my seed catalogs this year a topotato things! It was very strange looking, tomatoes on the top and potatoes down in the pot! You will have to let us know how that does!
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