Who still has a vegetable garden?

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#574816 30-Jan-2012 08:40

codyc1515:
Jaxson:where we are in Palmerston North we need to pay to establish a garden, as in bring in some real soil into raised beds etc to go on top of the clay/mud that we have at our new place. The local Fielding garden centre is doing a roaring trade selling excellent soil trucked down from Taupo!

Clearly not from Feilding, as you spelt it wrong ;)

I have lived in Feilding many times actually, but it was late and I've now corrected the post, just for you.

timmmay

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#574824 30-Jan-2012 08:49

I just put in a 2x4m garden out the back of my shed, I just need to get a bit more decent soil to grow things in. I'm too late for this summer, but i'll get out my gardening book and work out what I can grow in a couple of weeks, or next summer.

One plan is to build a clear lid over part of it and make it into a quasi-greenhouse, so I can grow strawberries. Lots and lots of strawberries :)

speedy23

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#574825 30-Jan-2012 09:01

Seeding potatoes?? Explain.... Not something I have come across. If you mean the little tomato like fruit some spuds set, I'm not aware they will grow - and I believe they are poisonous to eat....

MikeB4

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#574829 30-Jan-2012 09:18

Yes

We grow Pumpkin, Lettuce (various varieties), Sugar Snaps, Zucchini,Cabbage, Silver-beet, Beetroot, Tomatoes
(outside and in the Glass house), Egg Plant, Various Herbs, Cucumber, Corn.

we also have Apple, Plum, Nectarine, Lemon, Mandarin, Tree Tomatoe, Trees.

nickb800

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#574837 30-Jan-2012 09:35

I just started gardening at our flat a few months ago, am growing spuds, spinach, silverbeet, lettuce, pumpkins, sweet corn, dwarf beans, strawberries, and in a mini greenhouse (clear plastic sheet, just a bit thicker than shopping bags, over a timber frame) i have kumara and tomatoes. Im a student, and have noticed a lot more students taking up vege gardening lately.

speedy23: Seeding potatoes?? Explain.... Not something I have come across. If you mean the little tomato like fruit some spuds set, I'm not aware they will grow - and I believe they are poisonous to eat....

Potato fruit is toxic, but does contain useable seeds

jonherries

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#574838 30-Jan-2012 09:46

I have systemically attempted to plant a large variety of perrenial (permanent) fruit trees bushes and plants. We now have rhubarb, rasberries, strawberries, blueberries, pears, apples, lemons, mandarins and feijoas.

They all seem to like living in Wellington and are happy enough with a bit of neglect.

We also do some random veges depending on what takes my fancy. Generally try to grow the most expensive vegetables eg. capsicum, beans, peas, rocket etc.

Jon

geek4me

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#574851 30-Jan-2012 10:24

Great to see so many green fingered Geeks out there. Am enjoying reading the replies.

Curiously no one has said they just buy what they need from the supermarket.

A blend of indoor computer work and outside garden work - sounds like the perfect balanced lifestyle.

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#574855 30-Jan-2012 10:33

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#574856 30-Jan-2012 10:35

geek4me: Great to see so many green fingered Geeks out there. Am enjoying reading the replies.

Actually it's my wife's and daughter's garden. So while correctly answered "who still has a vegetable garden" it's not the result of my work (well, I helped build it and water it though).

Jaxson

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#574860 30-Jan-2012 10:42

The financial side of it doesn't always add up, (as in when produce is in season it's fairly cheap anyway, and vice versa, it's not growing in your garden when it's very expensive in the stores).

However, come picking time the convenience and taste is pretty cool. There is also a knowledge of exactly how old your produce is and where it has come from and what sprays etc have been used on it. Plus as hinted above, there's a psychological component to it all too. (And fitness if you have to dig it!)

SepticSceptic

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#574862 30-Jan-2012 10:46

Have a vege garden too - the usual crops - 2 lots of corn (one ripening now - next in 4 weeks), 4 varieties of beans - dwarf butter, scarlet runners, purplos, and some spotted ones whose name I don't recall; mescalin lettuce mix; 4 or 5 different varieties of tomatoes - mostly heritage; capsicums; spuds; yams; maori potatoes; broc; savoy cabbage; red cabbage; radish; lettuce; pumpkin; celery; and probably one or two others.

I pickle/preserve a fair bit - especially the tomatoes and cabbages. Beans can be frozen/vacuum sealed; excess I usually trade with family/friends.

Also have chooks for eggs and meat.

Currently feeding myself and two teenagers ....

It does take a bit of time and effort to set it all up, including importing extra dirt, setting up compost bins, sorting out crop rotation, sprays, bird netting/chicken fencing, but at the end of the day it does save considerably on the food shop bill. About the only thing I buy from the veggie shop is fruit, everything else I tend to cook around what I can extract from the garden.

And to augment the protein, I also fish / gather shellfish locally, though the cost per fish effort is still somewhat on the red side of the ledger :-(

RedJungle

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#574863 30-Jan-2012 10:49

I know plenty of keen gardeners - in fact, if anything I'd say it appears to be on the rise amongst my circle of friends.

Ourselves we've put in two big raised beds, plus a few smaller gardens around the property. This year so far we've grown Zucchini, Cucumber, Tomatoes, Chilli's, Capsicum's, various Lettuces, Eggplants, several kinds of beans, Broccoli's, Corn, Beetroot, Artichoke's, Silver-beet, Spinach, Garlic, Rhubarb, Strawberries, a bunch of difference herbs, plus some others I've probably forgotten.

Recently we've set up a worm farm in a HungryBin. And as Nate say's had a great time looking around the JustAddWorms gardens last weekend which is a brilliant set up. Good place to get some worms and other neat garden stuff too like Tui feeders.

I highly recommend it, it's really satisfying to grow your own produce.

Nety

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#574870 30-Jan-2012 11:11

We started one last season which we then left fallow for a bit and but have now replanted. Currently just one 2 X 3m raised patch but a couple more are planned.

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keewee01

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#575236 31-Jan-2012 11:51

I have a vege garden. Not much time put into it over the last few years, but this spring g& summer have put a lot more time into it. Been eating new potatoes from it since Xmas and got many more months of them to come.

A few pot grown tomatoes harvests, with the main (in the ground) crop still to rippen. First two plantings of lettuce have long since bolted, but new planting should be ready in a few weeks, as should the second planting of spinach. Silverbeet is growing huge (tries a different type this year); Once have finished current bag of supermarket carrots will start harvesting ones from the garden. Just started picking courgettes this week. Can't wait for the corn to plump up. :)

The last 2 years I have put in a dozen or so fruit trees. Have had a few cherry's (next year should be a good crop with 3 varieties), quite a few lovely sweet apricots (picked last ones yesterday from the 2 varieties), pears (1) and apples (3 varieties) still to come. For some reason the plum tree has been barren since planting.

Plus loads of berryfruits (strawberries, raspberries, blackberry, gooseberries, blueberries) and blackcurrents.

Now, if only I can prevent the lemon tree getting frosted and dying this winter...

Kaos36

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#575255 31-Jan-2012 12:10

Last place I rented was an old 4 bedroom Villa in town here, rent was cheap only $135 per week usually are in towns, vanish floors, huge kauri kitchen and wooden decking going right round the house 2door garage and a huge lawn to cut every week. Damn that lawn use to take me something like 2hrs to finish. Beautiful home lived in it for 6yrs landlord lived in Australia. One problem it leaked badly in the kitchen and bathroom when it rained why the rent was cheap and I wasn't going to moan cause it was such a good score for this solo dad at the time, I would just get out the pots whenever it rained lol. I had a vege garden out the back I dug up asked her first if I could she said go for it. Punkin & water Mellon patch, potato patch, tomato, beetroot, silver beet the works. Would give a lot of it away to neighbors. Best house ive lived in.

Then in 2007 she decided to sell it. Sold for only a 120k now I live about 5 houses down from that house and always bum out whenever I walk past it. lol. New owners have fixed the roof and added another 2 door garage in the front and a spar pool area.

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