Ann, your container garden is positively inspiring.

I am not sure my "garden" fits the classic definition, but I just moved into my home last week and the backyard took my breath away. It still does. Too late this year to do much with it as far as planting vegetables, but next year...

Jo

I live in a tri-plex with only 3 apartments. I asked if I could have a little garden, and I can, so a friend and I went dumpster diving and got some beautiful wood to make a raised bed.

I only got some pepper and tomato plants in the past 3 weeks and I'm stunned, the tomato plants are flowering. Since it's happening so late in the season, I'm hoping I have fruit. But with our summer being in record temps for heat, I'm sure something will come of them.

The first thing I got was some lovage and chives from a friend. Love the lovage.

This is the lovage. It tastes like celery.

I think I'll pick up a basil plant yet. I might keep it in the pot or stick it in the soil. Does it spread like mint, or will it keep compact?

Jo, Your yard looks lovely. Love the gate.

Jasdip, nice that you can have your own garden. Basil doesn't spread like mint.

~Ann

My backyard garden.....taken several weeks ago.
I have green beans, Swiss chard, tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, cilantro and tomatillos and onions.

Everything looks so lush! My efforts have been so-so. My herbs are doing well though something is nibbling them, earwigs I suspect. My cilantro bolted. I am going to plant more and keep in a shadier place. My tomatoes are producing slowly, I've only had three cherry tomatoes that have ripened. Lots on the vine. I had a problem with ich worms that seems to have been resolved with the application of repellant made from garlic and red pepper flakes and a bit of dish soap. My 2 zucchini plants remain infertile. Many blossoms, not one squash has appeared.

I'll take a few pics. Not much to show really!

Eileen

Eileen,

I'm just down the road from you east of Bakersfield and itâÂÂs just too hot this time of year for cilantro. I got one of those plastic planters about a foot long and maybe 5 inches deep planted cilantro in February. I have it in a sunny window in the pantry room. IâÂÂve been clipping it since May and the great thing is it just keeps growing back. I donâÂÂt know how long it will keep going but I will plant some more and see if I can keep it during the winter.

Claudia

Growing them under cover is the only way we can get vine ripened tomatoes. On Father's Day weekend these were pathetic...maybe a foot tall, bottom leaves white from shock from a cold, wet spell even though they were in a cozy greenhouse.

They look a little scraggly today because I clipped out suckers on the indeterminates and wove the stray vines through the fence. Lots of blossoms, but all I could find was one ping pong ball-sized Black Krim and a few pea-sized cherry tomatoes.

Everything we have is fried. Weeks of hundred degree temps and drought doesn't help. In March/April everything is so beautiful, I love being outside, but I know, even when I am planting our tomatoes, that I will not want to be outside in July.

Every one has such impressive and productive gardens.

I grow about 70 tomato plants in a small suburban garden with nosy neighbors and large shading trees.

I have developed systems which worked for me for many years, in particular, a support system without stakes and cages, a system of support which promotes good plant health and nearly invisible.

At the moment my plants are about 8â tall. My system can support plants up to 10â tall and had held up well in very strong wind storms.

Some old pictures. It has been raining for me to take new pictures.

Dcarch

Holy crap, Dcarch! Don't leave us hanging. Share your secret/method for getting humungous tomato plants with not stakes, that I see.

I believe it's called 'camera angle', (sorry Dcarch,
but I could hear you snickering). I once made a sunflower
appear 20 ft. tall, using a similar strategy.
And I once was on a fishing trip and only caught one
small bass. So I rigged up the camera to be real
close to the fish and I stood back a ways and in the picture it looked as if the fish was huge, and my buddies
that could't go on the trip were so jealous.

It isn't camera angle. Dcarch is an expert when it comes to growing tomatoes.

You might want to check out his system here:

dcarch's system

Scroll down.

Thanks Ann, I have forgotten about that thread, not having visited that forum for a very long while.

That support system works with my removable greenhouse to achieve a few months of extra growing time in my zone.

I envy Vancouver's long day light hours and mild weather. A lot of good growing can be done in your zone.

dcarch

Here is a link that might be useful: Removable greenhouse

I like your support system, dcarch. If our tomatoes grew taller than our 6' fence poles, that's what we'd do. For us a fence of hogwire and a roll of velcro plant tie stuff works...I hack all the blossoms and top growth off in mid-August. Even with cover we might only gain a week or two. Or a month...ya never know...

DH wants to know what your removable panels are. We have a lean-to greenhouse/front porch attached to our house. He's always looking for new and better materials.

Katiec, I meant to comment on your cold frame. Very nice construction. Did you build it?

The panel I am using is TwinWall 4 mm insulated acrylic UV protected panel. It has been 8 years now, still good as new.

The green house can be put together in 15 minutes and removed in 15 minutes, takes very little room to store away.

dcarch

Let's see if I can get thumbnails to work - I'm still not very used to Photobucket, but I think it is still okay.

You'll have to view the larger images of the pictures in order to read the labels I put on the plants, but I got most of them identified. I have a bunch of tomato seedlings growing, and also quite a few basil seedlings, but the chili seeds I plant never seem to grow. Dill and cilantro grow for me from seed in cooler seasons, like the winter. I have some old chili plants that are still producing but they are not shown here. If I get a good chili producing plant, I can put it in a larger pot. I'm growing a lot more chilies than anything else because that's what I use. I like tomatoes, but Kevin doesn't, and so I do not use them often. He likes them if they are vine-ripened, however, but the chilies are easier to grow, once they get started.

I need to repot the epazote, mint, and Italian oregano, as they are all rootbound. So is the thyme, but it does not seem to mind as much. I have rosemary in the flower bed, as well as some more oregano, but they are not photogenic.

Lars

I'm still waiting for Eileen's pictures! I like the picture of the lovage, and I will buy some if I find any, since I love celery.

I will be out of town the first full week of August, and I do not know what will happen to my potted planted while I am gone. I might move some of them to an area of the yard where they will get some water from the sprinklers. Otherwise, I will have to ask someone to come and water for me a couple of times. Jimmy says that he works not far from my house and couple possibly check in on things for me when we are out of town, but I haven't spoken with him lately - he's been difficult to reach this summer, and he and Maartje might be in Europe in August.

Lars

Here's our garlic harvest.

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We planted 10 heirloom tomatoes but they all pretty much look alike so here's a sample.

Not edible but our only profitable cash crop. I sold my 'Homigo' hydrangeas for $2.17/stem to be picked in mid-September. They're turning now & will end up blue, red/pinkish, & green by the time they're harvested.

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We have potatoes also but they are soooo not photogenic. Also the usual herb suspects.

/tricia

My garden was started last fall so this is it's first full year of production. It just got attacked by a ground hog who likes brassicas. So I did the whole liquid fence, hot pepper and dried blood. I'm not sure if my brussel sprouts, cabbage and broccoli will recover but the weeds are happy.

Here is a link that might be useful: My vegetable garden

My garden was started last fall so this is it's first full year of production. It just got attacked by a ground hog who likes brassicas. So I did the whole liquid fence, hot pepper and dried blood. I'm not sure if my brussel sprouts, cabbage and broccoli will recover but the weeds are happy.

Here is a link that might be useful: My vegetable garden

How does that happen? Sorry.

Now I'm thinking your name must be "Ag Miss"! I love your amaranths greens and all the other pictures you have. It looks like your garden is so remote that you could have a problem from bears. Is it fully secured now? It's nice that you have so much land that you can plant.

Tricia, I guess potatoes are not very photogenic, but I've never tried to grow them in California. I loved pulling them up as a child in Texas because it was always such a surprise to find the potatoes under the plants.

I'm finding a few insect pests now, such as Katydids, which are pretty easy to catch and destroy, but I missed one on my avocado tree today. The tree is losing a lot of leaves, and I think it does not like my soil. I was afraid that it might not make it because I have very dense hard soil, and avocados prefer soil that drains very easily. I had no trouble growing an avocado tree in Venice, except that white flies attacked it mercilessly.

Lars

Prepare to be underwhelmed. I still have seed packets and empty pots that never got planted but mostly for some herbs and lettuces so I think I will go ahead and plant them over the weekend. We have a long growing season.

The row of pots are poolside. Dharma is in the background.

One ripening cherry tomato.

And the rest of the vine. I only have 4 producing tomato plants. Three of them are cherry tomatoes. I had one Early Girl but the dog wrestled it into submission. It may come back and give me a few tomatoes. I saw some blooms.

Grape tomatoes.

Herbs. Lemon balm, two kinds of thyme, Greek oregano.

More herbs. Rosemary, tarragon, mint, pineapple mint, basil, purple sage.

It's not a very ambitious garden but it's been fun. I have harvested exactly 4 tomatoes. I think I'm going to have to hit the farm stand if I want to can any salsa this summer. :)

I found a visitor on my infertile zucchini plant. Many pretty flowers, not one zucchini. But I hear they don't like to be potted.

Eileen

Beautiful plants everyone! I am envious. My "designated" vegetable garden has nematodes so I've planted tomatoes, squash and peppers among the perennials. They're being devoured as we speak by hordes of leaf footed bugs and June bugs. The squash was damaged in a wind storm and hasn't recovered. It won't be long until I visit the farmer's market!

The saving grace are my fig trees. They've loved the additional rain in our area this year. We've picked about 15 pounds so far. I will remove the nets tomorrow and let the birds have the remainder.

For container growing or for small areas, You may want to consider this wonderful variety, Lime Green Salad.
Very compact, durable, highly productive and delicious GWR (green When Ripe) decorative plants.

dcarch
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