You did pretty ell overall but I guess I've not got anything ti compare it to. Some disappointments and some good successes there though I'd say. Must be rewarding knowing you grew most of it yourself.
What are you going to do differently to improve the produce that didn't perform very well? If it's too complicated to explain just say so, I'll understand.
Good morning @galenkp, nice to hear from you again. Overall we are extremely satisfied with the produce we harvested this year, but like most things I do, it won't get by unless it's GI. There is always room for improvement in most things we do. I'm always willing to learn, even at 67. When learning becomes boring, I hope they're throwing dirt on my face.
Always a pleasure to answer any question that may arise from some fellow steemian READING my material.
The issues that we need to address in order to have every vegetable get a 4 star rating will include improving the composition of the soil. Changing the composition of the soil requires some time. With that said, in early November we added a substantial amount of organic matter to both the onion and garlic beds.
The sweet potatoes were planted wrong. When buying sweet potato plants, what you are purchasing are called a slip. When planting the slips, the well developed roots of the slips should be trimmed to a length of 6 inches, that was our first mistake. The roots of the slips must also be planted in a pin wheel fashion, this is something we didn't do last year.
The mistake we made with the carrots was my own fault. Crops should be rotated every year, and I was well aware of this, but with the carrots doing so well in the same boxes for two years, I tried to get a third year from the same raised planters. Next year we will switch the boxes we are planting them in.
The last thing we will do with all of the raised beds we plant in, is to pay extra attention the PH of each box, and the Totally Dissolved Solids, (TDS) of the dirt in each box.
Next year we will adjust these two factors to match the exact veggie to be grown in each box.
These are the instruments we use to do these tests.
Checking the PH is rather simple, while testing The TDS requires some time.
Thanks for showing a real interest in this post, I's greatly appreciated. I hope this reply answered your question.
If you decide to put that rocket between your legs anytime soon, be safe!
Firstly yes, I hear you...Many don't read your posts, or mine, or anyones! My wife, who is not on here, often comments about it and i just say, *"I do it for me, not them," and move on. Anyway, some read your posts and mine too so that'll have to be enough.
You know, I can't help but wonder about those whose lives depended on a decent harvest. Along comes the blight, aphids, frost, hail...And hey die through lack of food or income to buy food. These days not so much of course.
Seems like you have a handle on the mistakes of the past, and I love how you just take the blame for it..."Didn't cut the roots, planted carrots one year too many in that box." Shows character to admit blame.
I reckon dinner at your place would be tasty and the conversation intelligent, fun and engaging.
Thanks for your reply...Almost a post in itself. Might be a good idea to explain crop rotation, Ph and TDS in individual posts...A short series on gardening 101 maybe?
I first got involved with Steemit when my son @ryan 313 explained how it worked. He said it would be a great way for us to leave a journal of life here on the farm, @galenkp
I agreed and thought it would be cool for future generations to be able to check out some old geezers and the way they lived. A partial recording of Gram and Pop's Golden Years.
This is what really motivates me to keep on posting.
I like the idea of gardening 101.
Farmers have always been at the mercy of Mother Nature, what fortitude these unique individuals have. There are a lot of small dairy farmers in this region. Im' not sure how these guys can make a living. Over the summer, milk was selling in the local grocery stores for $1.54 a gallon. Over the past month the price has risen to $2.45, and I'm happy to pay the increase, hoping they're getting part of the increase.
Dinner at the farm with family and friends, are special times for sure.
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I agree on that it's a great way to document and order your thoughts and daily life and for someone as active in the garden as you I think it's awesome to do so.
Do you save links on a spreadsheet of all your posts? I do. I save them by main tag so I can then scan through and dig them up easily later if I need. Works for me.
Nice family gathering...Must be good to have them around.
A spread sheet outlining posts by their tags sounds like a great idea. Many times I will reference something I have included in another post, and it takes way to long to find the info.
thanks for the idea @galenlkp
It is...Has helped me a lot. This link will make the process easier.
https://helpienaut.github.io/steem/allposts.html
Thanks for the link. I've checked it out and I will start organizing my posts ASAP.