I haven't read the book, which sounds interesting. But through trial and error, I have chosen similar wide spacings, and have been very happy with the results. Two factors sent me down that path initially. Disease was often a problem for me in closely-spaced rows, especially with beans. Then when I began to save heirloom seed, I often had a limited supply initially, and wanted to get the maximum yield out of whatever plants survived. I observed enormous increases in plant vigor with the wider spacing, and have used the method almost exclusively ever since. 24" spacing for pole beans seems excessive; while they will usually fill in the trellis (depending upon the degree of branching), I found a default spacing of 12" to be optimal. Not all varieties will require the same spacing; some pole beans do well with 6" spacing, while a few very rampant varieties require 15-18". Yardlong beans do their best for me at 15-18". Pole limas need even more, I use 24" spacing for them... and when I grew the large-seeded pole limas (in warmer climes than I have now) I spaced them up to 36" apart. HOWEVER... this year one of my small-seeded pole limas died, leaving a 4-foot gap between plants. By the time of harvest, the gap was no longer visible, even upon close examination. And a rare bean last year, with only one seed germinating (!!!) covered a 4' X 6' trellis by itself, and produced over 8 ounces of dry seed. Pole beans will take almost as much space as you give them, and a pampered plant can give astronomical yields. For tomatoes, I use 24-30" spacing each way for determinates, and 36-48" for indeterminates. Eggplant does well for me at 30-36". 24" seems to be optimal for okra where I live now, but in a long-season area (San Diego) I used 36" - and could barely walk between the plants. I have arrived at default spacings for most vegetables which are generally much greater than seed packet instructions. This will vary with the variety; I observe the initial performance, and make adjustments as appropriate the next time it is grown. As a rule of thumb, the widest spacing that I can use, while still covering the ground or trellis without gaps, seems to be optimal for plant health. Castorp, my own observations are in agreement with what you stated in your last post. I experimented heavily with various spacings for one of my favorite crops, yardlong beans. At the closer spacings (4-6"), they did not climb as high, and the majority of the yield was close to the ground. At the spacing I use now, the vines are rampant & heavily-branched, and bear continuously. With pole snap beans, the results were similar. At closer spacings, I would get one very heavy picking, followed by a long period of inactivity. This was even more pronounced in bush beans. At wider spacings, the yield was more continuous, and the pod quality was better. I do not believe that there is one "perfect" spacing. Differences in climate and fertility will cause variations in optimal spacing; there are even differences between my backyard garden, and the same plant grown in my main plot 6 miles away. Then too, the space between plants is an influence on their behavior, and can be used as a tool to the gardener's advantage. If you live in a short-season area (or want multiple rotations within the growing season), want heavy one-time crops for canning, or have limited space, then closer spacing might be appropriate. If you want a more prolonged harvest, are trying for "whopper" produce, live in a long-season area, or have problems with foliar diseases, then wider spacings may be preferable.

I've grown Sunleaper and Kewalo, neither did well. But that's probably because they were grown in the garden. Nematodes stressed them out earlier than many other varieties, then whiteflies, mealybugs, stinkbugs et al took advantage. My one success story came from a Burbank, in a pot, that produced wonderfully all winter and spring, in full sun. Late April it had some mishap with sand cranes breaking branches. I moved it to a spot that got great morning sun til 10 or 11 and shade the rest of the day. It grew back lushly and set lots of fruit til late August when whiteflies got the upper hand. Perhaps the success was the placement in AM sun, or was it the variety? Possibly because it was always free of RKN? Don't know. It might work with other smaller varieties like Roma, that can be kept in pots and moved to the right location as the season changes. Another that kept on going through the summer and actually started back in full force as the weather cooled was Red Robin, tiny plants with larger and sweeter than average cherries. Very easy to move! I believe high humidity plays more of a role in fruit set than high heat. Pollen gets to heavy and wet to flow freely to do its job in our summers. Maybe continuous hand pollinating would help. I brush the flowers all the time. Q-tips might help more during summer. Then again, you could grow some Everglades or Matt's or even Sungold through the summer. These guys don't know when to quit! Wish you best of luck! Keep us informed. Treefrog

Absolutely. For the first time, I have a lot of different hot peppers this year and purchased a dehydrator to dry them. Once they were dry (super chili's, thai hot, african mound, jalapeno, serano, cayennes, etc..), I couldn't figure out what to do with them ( I am no where near as advanced as others on the board )...so I purchased a coffee grinder and pulverized them. Once I had little pots of powder, I started mixing the different powders and putting in bottles. I added salt, cumin, garlic powder and onion powder to some pots. Finally, I poured a boiling mixture of vinegar and water (2 parts vinegar / 1 water) into the bottles, shook 'em up and put them in the fridge. So far, the different bottles taste amazing. Looking forward to really kicking it up with some Bhut's once they rippen. Disclosure: I don't know what else I can do with all these peppers...I am scared of leaving the powder in powder form simply because I am not convinced my dehydrating efforts are as effective as I need them to be.

I have grown potatoes in hay and it is great -- very easy to get the potatoes early when small and late when fully grown.