Hi Steve, welcome here. You're 10-12 degrees cooler at night than I am with only 30 miles difference so I'll leave the planting schedules to someone closer to you geographically. Some folks still grow Better Boys and Rutgers but I prefer to eat maters the whole time the plants are growing so It's strictly indeterminates for me....

Tom

Thanks Tom, your garden is amazing, the stuff you grow in such a small area is truly inspiring. I get a frost where I will have to scrap off my windshield two to three times a winter so there is a big difference. Hopefully someone will respond that lives close by or someone that also gets the frost a few times a winter. How are you setting up your SWC's this year ?

Hi Steve

I am in zone 9b, and I did get a few frosts last year. To help you in a better way, you have to let us know what you like to grow and eat.

As for me I will be starting cool season crops that my family likes, some greens, radish, onions, beets, carrots, brassicas family, different lettuces for salads, peas and some other crops that don't get bother by the cold.

Here are some of the crops I will be planting again, Swiss Chard and different lettuce.

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Mini cabbage Gonzales that I am growing now

This morning harvest, radishes that I cook them like greens for a minute or so and add a little butter, salt and pepper.

Silvia

Silvia, As usual, you ROCK!

Steve, thanks for the kind words. I'm moving toward variations of the SWC this year. My humidity here close to the water has been problematic for mildews and blight so I'm actually trialing a reverse SWC this season, using the wicking cup to wick water out of the soil mix instead of into it. Since the plants won't get as hot transpiration should be reduced, thus less need for moisture in the soil mix. Only time will tell if this theory is correct....

Tom

Silvia you don't have a green thumb I think both your hands are all green, I never see any bug damage on your stuff how do you manage that ? Photoshop LOL. Here is what I planted around Oct 1, beets, carrots, swiss chard, spinach, wax beans , pole beans( Kentucky Wonder), cukes, zucchini, onions-green bunch & large, lettuce, edible pod peas, peppers- green, banana and some med heat types and tomatoes- 3 types 12 plants total. Cukes, tomatoes & peppers were plants bought at feed store. Tomatoes have only flowers so I think I am late on those, peppers just started to show fruit. Pole beans- 9' tall and have 1" beans showing. I know Oct. was extra hot so that is why my chard, carrots, spinach, lettuce, radish, spinach is just now starting to grow. I made my 2nd planting of chard, spinach, lettuce and radishes 10/23. beets came up poorly and got destroyed by a worm that is inside the curled leaves. Cukes now have brown spots on the leaves. A lot to learn.

Thank you Tom, you are always so nice!

Steve, I think you have a lot of veggies covered. Writing everything down helps for next season, then you see where you made good and were you did not.

Warm season crops like tomatoes , peppers, beans, need a long warm season. If we still have warm days, then you will be fine. In the meantime, you are doing the right thing doing succession planting. I do the same thing, this way I have veggies for a long time and not all at once.

It is coming a great time to plant, there are not too many bugs and I usually do not spray when it gets colder.

Sorry about the beets, plant more in a different location, and not next to Swiss chard.

And what happened to the brassica family? You don't like them? They are very nutritious, I am sure you know that.:o)

Try to grow some Oriental greens, like Tatsoi, they are easy and tasty, I think I like them better than spinach...

For your next season, do you like to try your hand at growing tomatoes from seed? This way you will have more varieties and you can save your own seeds. Send me an email, if interested, I have some tomato seeds saved that I can share it with you.

Happy gardening season!

Silvia

Silvia I forgot to mention I did just put in some cauliflower, I do not have enough room to plant much else till I move my tom, cukes and peppers next year to containers. What do you do for your veg plants when a chance of frost comes along, cover them ? I found an Aug post I think and sent you an email about some seeds I guess it did not go thru. I will try again. When will you start your next tomato and pepper seed batch ? Where can I find the Tatsoi you mentioned, I would like to try that oriental squash that taste like a cuke as well, the one you and Tom talk about. Thanks again !!

I live in Brooksville, a little north of you, and have found the planting schedule put out by the agricultural extension office to be really helpful. It breaks the areas of the state down into specific locations according to state roads. I'd highly recommend you pick up one of these if you haven't already, although it sounds as if you're growing pretty much the right things right now. I grow mostly indeterminate tomatoes and use cages.

Steve, maybe I deleted by mistake. Try to put next time something like seeds for a subject line, this way I know...:o)

You are probably talking about the Painted Metki melons that are eating as cukes.

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On the left are the asian cucumbers and the light colored is the metki, I will send you some of those seeds to try in the spring.

When you are going to make an order of veggies look if they have a section of Oriental veggies, then you can order tatsoi, a lot of places have it one of them is Evergreen. But with the shipping costs that the seed companies have , we have to be savvy and wait for a big order.

Here is the tatsoi I grew this past winter, it is the one bottom left.

Silvia

Steve,

I live fairly close to you in New Tampa (Bruce B. Downs/I75), probably no more than 5 miles south of your location.

You can get some good advice reading the threads here. Tom and Sylvia were of great help to me when I started, although I don't post much I do read the forum on a daily basis.

We are definitely in a much different climate than Tom, my tomato blooms were setting while his nights were just too warm. I also believe that St. Pete is much more nematode infested than North Tampa but the jury is still out on that.

I have about 250sq/ft of raised beds that I used for my garden. Some of the overflow is put into containers. My garden is set up on an irrigation timer which makes it much easier to maintain.

The University of Florida has a gardening guide that you may have read (see below link)

Florida Gardening Guide

I usually use the "central Florida" dates they list as my transplant dates. Most of my plants are started from seed and I do this 30-60 days earlier than the dates quoted. My seeds are started indoor under grow lights.

IÂve attached a picture of my garden. My house is only on a ¼ acre but I manage to have a good yield by devoting a 15x30 space in my backyard. The picture attached is from last year. Currently I have growing 11 varieties of tomatoes, 15 varieties of peppers, asparagus beans, Chinese cucumbers, 5 varieties of eggplant and just about every herb imaginable.

{{gwi:980717}}

Best of luck and let me know if you would like to get together and share notes.

David.

Wow!!!

David, you should be proud of yourself, what a beautiful and neat garden!

You and Steve are going to get along really well.

We love to see beautiful pictures and success stories just like yours.

Silvia

Silvia - great pics, please can you tell me what the root crops are in the lower right of your pic, parsnips ? carrots ?..... they are so beautiful and clean, but how do you grow them ? I tried growing roots in the ground and the nematodes and wire-worms ate into them... a losing proposition for me.... congratulations on your success, thanks, sally

David,

That's an amazing setup and results, Id say you've learned Florida gardening well ;-) GW is a great place to pick up tips on what works locally but it's clear you've done this a day or two somewhere along the line. Very nice!

Tom

Hi Sally

Thank you. The above picture has different color carrots. Root crops need a good soil, but if you don't have that , I also grew them in pots that I grow my tomatoes in. I also rotate the crops.

This bed had sweet potatoes in October, this morning lettuces and oriental greens are ready for harvest.

Here are carrots, beets and cosmos in containers last year

Silvia

This site and people are amazing,such a wealth of information and so willing to share it. I have learned so much in just a few weeks.
Silvia- Yes those are the cukes I was wondering about, thanks. I will get some of that Tatsoi, is it too late to start now ?
David- Wow that is one way to get out of cutting grass, by the looks of the way you formed your raised beds I think there is some sawdust in your blood like myself. Very nice. And yes I would like to get together and talk garden, let me know, you do not have an email address on your page, either do I yet I will try and do that and then we can trade phone #'s and what not.
Tom and calendula4- thanks
Thanks to everyone for the replies

Steve

In the "this morning bed", there are 4 squares. On the upper left is leaf lettuce, the upper right is tatsoi, the bottom left is an oriental brassica choy sum, and the bottom right is italian lettuce lollo rosa.

All the leafy greens are good to be planted now and later, you can sow every week to have fresh supply.

Wait for the mail that I sent you...

Silvia

Woo Hoo the mail is here the mail is here!
Silvia- Thank You so very much, never expected the large variety you sent me I will put them to good use. I will plant the Tatsoi tomorrow, the Red Lime-sorry but what is it and how to plant ? Googled it and all I found was a Zinnia but the seeds look like a squash. Also start the Metki and Papaya Sweet when ?
Thanks again Silvia your the best !
David my email address is up now send me note and maybe we can get together.

Silvia- sorry I should have read the earlier post again where you said to start the Metki in spring

Hi Steve

I am glad that you got your seeds already. I started the Metki (used as a cucumber) in spring and also the papaya sweet (pumpkin) can also be used when young as a squash.

The squash need a longer season to ripen, and the metki is planted the same time as a cucumber.

The red lime is a citrus that I have right now producing wonderful juice. I used for everything in my cooking. I heard that the seeds have to be fresh to germinate, that is the reason that I open one red lime and sent you the seeds, I hope you get lucky and they do well for you, you can start them now.

My red lime, this was taken in October, now is has more color, I love it!

Check with David about when he plant his crops, he is already a pro...

Silvia

Duh ! So the the red lime is a citrus- Sorta makes sense- silly me. I will get them in some planting soil today, how old is the red citrus you show in the picture- 2 -3 years ?
Thanks again

Steve

All my plantings are 2 years old or less, the red lime is going to be 1 year old this winter, I bought it in a 5 gallon nursery pot. I can not tell you how good it is, I made the best salsa this year for friends.

Also I forgot, David, if you see this I don't remember sending you any tomato seeds that I saved, if you want to try them for next season, I will be glad to send you.

Steve, when you talk to him, let him know...

Good luck with your plantings!

Silvia

I just found the FL forum, I have been posting in the Tomato forum the whole time! lol.

Steve, I am very close to you as well, right off 1-75 and Fletcher(USF exit), next exit down from David.

I live on a cattle farm, and am only a 3rd year gardener, so I have much to learn as well. I am currently limiting myself to tomatoes and peppers, I love salsa and hot foods. I tried lettuce/broccoli/carrots/radishes, but the lettuce and broccoli didnt do too good.

I have some pepper plants that are a couple years old now, I just cover them durring frost. This winter I am going to try using water jugs durring frost. The big Zepherhills water jugs, just cut off the bottom and put it over the plant. Its like a mini greenhouse. I start pepper seeds in November for a March 1st plant out. I currently have 3 bhut jolokia(ghost chili/current world record holder) seedlings going. And should have some more cool varieties from the tomato/pepper exchange.

For tomatoes I try to follow the 2-season approach. I start seeds January 1st, plant out March 1st. Then I start seeds July 1st, plant out Sept 1st. I might try to get some shade cloth and try to get them through the summer next year.

-Corey

Ha Corey glad you you found this section. As usual the more I learn here the more I realize I know very little on gardening. So much to learn I needed to start 20 years ago. But I really enjoy it. I had my first picking of pole beans today stir fried them up with some green onions from the garden, a little garlic(store bought)and some juice from one of the 4 ( he he) key limes off my tree. Life is good !
Do you plant in the ground or in containers or both ?
Thanks for the info on planting dates. Did not know what a bhut jolokia was, googled it and watched a guy eat a whole one, whoa not my thing. Was at Tijuana Flats last night and tried a few hot sauces, jalapenos with some sweetness is more my style.

Steve, you are going to be in a good company!

Hi Corey, and welcome to the Florida forum!

When I was a young girl, I lived for a while in Nepal and got to sample the bhut jolokia peppers, whoa. They were so hot, that I got sick for a few days, maybe it was the combination with the new food I sampled. :o)

Now I am growing Padron peppers, and they said the way they eat in Spain is to fry one and eat it, so I did that, I thought dragons were flying. Now I put them in the salsa together with other hot peppers like hot Portugal that is milder. I made the salsa medium for girls and hot for men :o)

Corey, I brought from Jamaica seeds for Scotch peppers, if you want those and if you don't already have it, I can send them to you.

Silvia

sorry for the late reply

Steve, I plant my tomatoes in raised beds and my peppers are in the ground. I am also building an Earthtainer SWC this year as well. Also, I'm growing the Bhut Jolokia as a novelty. If I use it, it will have to be diluted or a small piece in some chili. Even though its supposed to have an awesome apricot flavor, its also supposed to be like drinking battery acid with shards of glass. LOL

Silvia, Thank you very much for the seed offer. I have not grown the Scotch Bonnet yet, but its on my list and the seeds should be here anyday. I am interested in your Padron pepper if you have any seeds left over.

Corey

Corey

I have a few Padron pepper seeds that I can send you and will also include some tomatoes. Send me your address to my email.

Silvia

Here is a site I regularly check to keep me in line about what phase of the moon I should be planting what.

As to the exact dates for different locations, I tend to wing it a bit. I can get away with season extension a bit as much of my planting happens in an Aquaponics system. Aquaponics is a great way to avoid nematode problems and I get to harvest catfish and tilapia from my garden as well as veggies.

Here is a link that might be useful: Farmer's Almanac