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March 2014 - New varieties for 2014
March 2014 - New varieties for 2014
03/23/2014
From Park Seed: Mama Mia Giallo Hybrid Sweet Pepper This Italian Sweet Pepper is an All-America Selection!Mama Mia, that's a delicious pepper! Say hello…
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March 2014 - New varieties for 2014

03/23/2014

March 2014 - New varieties for 2014


From Park Seed: Mama Mia Giallo Hybrid Sweet Pepper 

This Italian Sweet Pepper is an All-America Selection!

Mama Mia, that's a delicious pepper! Say hello to the award-winning Italian Sweet Pepper with bright golden-yellow skin, heavy yields, a compact habit, great disease resistance, and early maturity. It's the pepper that has it all -- and we haven't even started talking about the flavor yet! Mama Mia Giallo sets more than 2 dozen long, tapered peppers on every compact plant. They reach 7 to 9 inches long and weigh in at about 2 to 4 ounces each. Great for fresh eating, grilling, or roasting, these Italian sweet peppers are big on flavor and texture -- juicy, rich, and meaty. 

 

From Park Seed: Fantastico Tomato

Expect up to 12 pounds of fruit on every compact plant!

Determinate.So quick, so generous, and so delicious! Fantastico is a determinate (meaning it sets its crop all at once), super-compact grape tomato just right for 18-inch hanging baskets, large containers, and the vegetable garden. Its fruit ripens in no time, harvests easily on big clusters hanging around the outside of the plant, tolerates late blight, and has a rich, tangy tomato bite.

 

This super-productive plant is a powerhouse, setting up to 350 fruits (about 12 pounds) of deep red, glossy, smooth ½-ounce grape tomatoes. The skin resists cracking, the bite is a good combination of sweet and tangy, and the yields are amazing. You just can't lose with this one!Best of all, Fantastico is great for small gardens and patios. You can put it in a container, where it will cascade over the sides, setting fruit every inch of the way. Or, if you prefer to train it up a trellis, it will reach at least 3 feet high and about 18 to 20 inches wide.

 

Fantastico finishes in no time, setting its big crop all at once, and stands up to late blight beautifully. It's versatile, a workhorse in garden or container. And it's attractive enough to grow as an edible ornamental. No wonder it received a 2014 All-America Selection award for excellence in home gardens!

 

From Burpee: Pumpkin, Porcelain Doll Hybrid (no picture)

The world's very first pink pumpkin! 110 days. Pink is the pumpkin! Sensational, one-of-a-kind beauty is the world’s very first pink pumpkin—and a pumpkin with a cause. Squarish, deep-ribbed 20-24 lb. pink marvel with sturdy handle makes for eye-catching seasonal decoration. Boasts deep-orange, sweet flesh—ready to star in pies, soups, and gourmet creations. Fully-vined, leafy plants show good tolerance to powdery mildew and downy mildew. Percentage of proceeds benefits the Pink Pumpkin Patch Foundation efforts in battling breast cancer. GROWING TIP: Wait until pumpkins are fully pink and stem is corky before harvesting.Product DetailsSun: Full Sun  Height: 24-30  inchesSpread: 6-8  feetThinning: 6 feet  Sowing Method: Direct Sow  Fruit Weight: 20-24  poundsDays to Maturity:110  days

 

 

From Burpee: Pepper, Sweet, Candy Apple HybridGlorious bell pepper with flavorful, sweet, mild flesh. Early-maturing, large 5" fruits are deep red and sugary sweet in just 71 days. A flavor-rich pepper that excels in salads, as snacks, and when roasted, baked or sautéed.Product DetailsSowing Method:Indoor Sow  Days to Maturity: 71  daysHeight: 28  inchesSpread: 28  inchesThinning: 28 inches 

 

From Burpee: Tomato, SuperSauce Hybrid (no picture)

The world's largest sauce tomato! It’s SuperSauce! The new tomato superhero. A whole lot bigger, a whole lot better, a roma with aroma. Weighing in at 2-lbs., a whopping 5.5” tall x 5” wide, SuperSauce produces gallons of luscious, seedless sauce from a single plant harvest—one tomato fills an entire sauce jar. Very few people in the gardening world consider a paste tomato for anything other than to make paste or sauce. SuperSauce is extraordinarily delicious and versatile as a salad tomato, as well as having a distinctive quality in that its large segments of fruit often make a shape that is perfect for a meaty and tasty hamburger slice, quite different from the horizontal slice commonly used from a large round tomato. Easy-to-grow, indeterminate, disease-free plants yield a summerlong supply of the exquisitely-flavored marinara, tomato gravy or meat sauce plus plenty for slicing and salads.Product DetailsFruit Weight: 22-32  ouncesDays to Maturity: 70  daysHeight: 45  inchesSowing Method: Indoor Sow  Spread: 38  inches

 

From Burpee: Born to be Mild Hybrid (no picture)

Jalapeno flavor without the heat! Luscious, green, low-heat hot pepper reminds us what how utterly delectable a pepper can be when your mouth isn’t on fire. ‘Name’ provides full spectrum of flavorful nuances that, with hotter varieties, go up in flames. Jalapeño’s flavor is earthy, rich and full-bodied: a welcome addition to a stir-fry, or enjoyed roasted. Product DetailsSun: Full Sun  Sowing Method:Indoor Sow  Days to Maturity: 60-65  daysHeight: 20-25  inchesSpread: 20-25  inches

 

From Burpee: Pepper, Sweet, Tweety Hybrid (no picture)

1-2" yellow peppers are great for stuffing or snacking! A tasty, golden-yellow mate of our beloved Cherry Stuffer. Prolific plants offer up a bounty of stuffable, grillable, flavorful, bright-yellow fruits. Fruits early to mature.Product DetailsSowing Method: Indoor Sow  Days to Maturity: 70-75  daysHeight: 24-32  inchesSpread: 24-32  inchesThinning: 24 inches  

 

From Park Seed: Mascotte French Filet Bean Seeds

This French Filet Bean is great for patio pots and windowboxes!

The first bean to win an All-America Selection in more than 25 years, Mascotte is exceptional in every way. This French Filet Bean is a dwarf, bush-habit variety just right for containers as well as the garden. It offers stringless, slender, crunchy beans packed with flavor and nutritiion. 

 

Mascotte is a haricot vert with vigorous, dense, but very shallow roots. This means that unlike most other beans, it can grow quite happily in tall flowerpots, garden tubs, and windowboxes. Of course, it's also content in the garden. In any sunny, well-drained spot, expect it to reach about 16 to 18 inches high and 8 to 10 inches wide. This charmer also beguiles with unusually large, abundant white flowers in springtime. All beans bloom, but Mascotte is particularly striking with large flowers on compact stems. Just one more ornamental touch to win your heart!

 

Best of all, the beans are stringless and set right on top of the leaves, for easy picking! The 5- to 6-inch pods are super-slender at just ¼-inch diameter, yet packed with rich flavor and crunchy texture. They arise profusely over a long season. Eat 'em straight from the plant, raw in salads, or cooked in any of your favorite dishes! This award-winner is also resistant to many diseases that plague other varieties. Bean common mosaic virus, anthracnose, and halo blight are no issue for Mascotte! So even if you're a first-time bean grower, you can be successful with very little effort!

July 2013
Controlling Pests
08/04/2013
This year we covered our squash plants under a white cloth until July to prevent the squash vine borer months…
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Latest Garden Work
10/07/2012
Removed the group of peas that were spent and next to the trellis in the middle bed and fed all…
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Controlling Pests

08/04/2013

Latest Garden Work

10/07/2012

Controlling Pests

This year we covered our squash plants under a white cloth until July to prevent the squash vine borer months from laying their eggs. Last year our entire crop was taken out by this little pest.
The cloth probably prevented some of the months to lay eggs, but I was suspicious and I cut some of the squash vines open, just to check. Sure enough, there were some. But this year we caught it early, so I think the plants will survive. About every other day I check the plants, cut open the vines where I suspect bugs. The plants have been producing fruit and they seem to survive the "sugery" fine. 
Last year the worms had been in the vines until the plant started dying. There were also so many last year that the plant could not recover. 

Signs of the borer worms inside the plant:
  • usually they enter at the knuckle where a leaf grows off the vine
  • often there is a little yellow dot/hole where the bug entered
  • if the bug is already a little larger, sometimes there is yellow poop at around the hole where the bug entered

What I do:

  • I cut open the vine where I suspect a bug. Lengthwise.
  • I spread open the vine and check for the bugs.
  • I cut through the bug to kill it, but leave it in the vine, because in order to pull the bugs out I have to hurt the vine more which I want to avoid.

Cabbage worms:

We only have 2 cabbage plants this year. They were developing great with no signs of cabbage worms. Unitl this morning. I pulled about 10 worms off them and there are several holes eaten into the young cabbage heads. I will have to continue checking for worms now and I hope the plants will recover.







↘.

September
Family Visit
10/07/2012
Over the past week we had lots of visitors at Arcadia Farm. Mike's mom and grandma from Wisconsin and then…
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Pictures of our molting chickens.
09/10/2012
  ↘.…
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Chickens are molting.
01/01/2012
We finally figured out what's going on with our chickens! For the past several weeks they haven't been laying as…
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We gave him away.
09/03/2012
One of the young chickens we got a few weeks ago turned out to be a rooster. Last week we…
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Family Visit

10/07/2012

Pictures of our molting chickens.

09/10/2012

Chickens are molting.

01/01/2012

We gave him away.

09/03/2012

Family Visit

Over the past week we had lots of visitors at Arcadia Farm. Mike's mom and grandma from Wisconsin and then my mom, dad and brother came to visit from Germany.

We had a great time, even though the beginning of the week was very rainy. We got the shopping and museum trips out of the way, so towards the end of the week with the nice weather it was time for boating and gardening.

My family got to meet the chickens, look at the veggies and hang out in the yard. My mom helped gardening: clean out the tomatoes and beans. My brother helped with house work and bringing in the chickens after letting them free range. And my dad was sitting watching the chickens for hours. Really fun!

Beth made a fabulous lunch for everyone on Saturday, so we enjoyed a great meal outside in the yard.

Thanks for visiting!







↘.
August
Some plants survived surgery
08/11/2012
Most of the squash and cucumber plants died after the surgery I did when I found the squash vine borer.…
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Chickens were sick:(
01/01/2012
We noticed it first on the Marran, she was walking very slowly, not eating. The feathers on her behind were…
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Some plants survived surgery

08/11/2012

Chickens were sick:(

01/01/2012

Some plants survived surgery

Most of the squash and cucumber plants died after the surgery I did when I found the squash vine borer. But some survived. Here are some pics.


poor cucumber, didn't survive
  ↘.
July
Squash Vine Borer Continued
07/29/2012
Today we inspected the other squash plants carefully and all of them showed signs of the bugs. So we took…
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Squash Vine Borer
07/28/2012
Our zucchini plants were growing really well with tons of blossoms. We've harvested several zucchinis: yellow, green and pattipan. And…
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Gone for 10 days
07/22/2012
I was on vacation for 10 days and coming back after that long it's amazing how much the garden has…
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New Chicks
01/01/2012
This weekend we picked up 6 new members for our flock. 4 Maran chickens (chocolate brown eggs) and 2 Ameraucanas.…
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Squash Vine Borer Continued

07/29/2012

Squash Vine Borer

07/28/2012

Gone for 10 days

07/22/2012

New Chicks

01/01/2012

Squash Vine Borer Continued

Today we inspected the other squash plants carefully and all of them showed signs of the bugs. So we took a knife and sliced the vines open. Nasty, white, fat maggots inside. Yuck. So one by one, we sliced the vines open, removed the maggots and then taped the vines back up.

We'll see if the plants will recover. I did damage to the plants by slicing them open, but without removing the maggots they would have died for sure within the next 2 weeks. So we'll have to wait and see how they do.
3 squash plants have already died from borer. There are about 5 or so left and I hope they make it! 

The chickens were happy though, they loved the maggots.

 ↘.
June 
Update on Cabbage Worms
06/23/2012
I've been checking daily for more cabbage worrms. I find one here or there but there are certainly less. I…
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Worm Problem on Cabbages
06/18/2012
We have noticed that our cabbagaes and some other plants have lots of little pieces nibbled off their leaves. So…
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Our First Double Yolk Egg!
06/01/2012
Yesterday I picked up a huge green egg from the coop. And this morning I had a double sunny-side-up. ↘.…
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Baby Bunny
06/08/2012
We have the cutest baby bunny in our back yard. It lives under the huge hasta bush we have. Almost…
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What do we feed the chickens?
06/06/2012
Organic layer pellet is mainly what the girls eat but honestly any scraps from the garden go in the pen…
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But you need a rooster!
06/06/2012
You have no idea how many people honestly believe that you need a rooster in order for hens to lay…
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The automatic chicken door
06/06/2012
Yes, we love our chickens but we don't always love opening and closing that coop door especially when it is…
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The drip irrigation system and the timer - lazy watering at it's best!
06/06/2012
The new drop irrigation system went in this year as well as the auto timer that turns it on and…
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Raised Beds
06/06/2012
We have 6 raised beds in the garden.  Each measures 4'x10' so we have close to 240 square feet of…
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Update on Cabbage Worms

06/23/2012

Worm Problem on Cabbages

06/18/2012

Our First Double Yolk Egg!

06/01/2012

Baby Bunny

06/08/2012

What do we feed the chickens?

06/06/2012

But you need a rooster!

06/06/2012

The automatic chicken door

06/06/2012

The drip irrigation system and the timer - lazy watering at it's best!

06/06/2012

Raised Beds

06/06/2012

Update on Cabbage Worms

I've been checking daily for more cabbage worrms. I find one here or there but there are certainly less. I hope picking them off whenever I see them will help and our cabbage plants and cauliflower will recover. ↘.
May
Multi-colored eggs are the best!
06/06/2012
Different  breeds of chickens lay different colored eggs.  Many of the breeds lay white or brown eggs but some lay…
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Square Foot Gardening Upate May
05/17/2012
Because as neighbors we share responsibility for the gardening, having the squares is an easy way to know what space…
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Multi-colored eggs are the best!

06/06/2012

Square Foot Gardening Upate May

05/17/2012

Multi-colored eggs are the best!

Different  breeds of chickens lay different colored eggs.  Many of the breeds lay white or brown eggs but some lay really interesting colored eggs that are fun to show people and give away as a special treat.  Multi-colored eggs taste the same as white or brown eggs but they are much more fun to eat!
April
Square Foot Gardening 
01/01/2012
Trying our hands at square foot gardening this year and converting 3 of the beds to this intensive planting method.…
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Square Foot Gardening 

01/01/2012

Square Foot Gardening 

Trying our hands at square foot gardening this year and converting 3 of the beds to this intensive planting method. We’ll see how much of a difference it really makes. As suggested in the book, we used course grade vermiculite, peat moss, and 4 different kinds of compost including cow, chicken, mushroom, and lobster. The radishes do come up in nice little rows which adds a sense of structure to it all.  Picture taken March 27, 2012 ↘.