Replies

Still waiting on a couple more catalogs before making my final decisions, but my pre-cull list of seeds to order is already taking up 5 pages! That’s normal for me, my eyes are bigger than my pocketbook. I’ll trim that down to fit my budget later this month.

I’m trying to order with an eye toward complete self-sufficiency, so there are a lot more grains on my list than normal. Spelt, rye, hull-less oats, that sort of thing. I probably won’t get them planted this year, but I want them handy just in case I can’t order them next year.

I’m also trying to keep a close watch on what might cross-pollinate. I figure if I’m careful I can grow 7 kinds of legumes without them crossing, and 4 kinds of squash. Some catalogs don’t give the latin names, though, that makes it harder to tell what might cross and what won’t.

A question for market gardeners: if you could grow one thing to sell as your cash crop, what would it be? There’s a store here that specializes in locally-grown foods, and they’ve already said they’re willing to buy anything I bring in, so I’m trying to figure out what will bring the best price with the least extra work, but won’t be so over-abundant that everybody’s selling it. A tricky balance, I know :)

****A question for market gardeners: if you could grow one thing to sell as your cash crop, what would it be?****

It used to be garlic that would bring the money, but now people buy the bland stuff already chopped up in jars.

Can you grow a leafy green crop early, then switch to something like basil or other herbs?

I've successfully grown many different cukes, beans, peas and squash without them cross-pollinating IF you keep them far enough apart. Even with my beekeeping, I still didn't get any crosses this year. For instance, I'll plant my tomato rows in between different kinds of beans, and my corn between different squashes. Don't know if I'm doing it right or just lucky, but it is working so far. I miserably messed up with yellow squash and zucchini one year, and everything was mottled yellow and green. Still tasted good, but strange to look at. Some of them were just a bright lime green instead of being bi-colored.

As for a crop to take to market, that meets your criteria of bringing a good price with the least effort, I'd recommend okra, cucumbers and/or sweet corn. I've not yet reached the point of growing too many of any of those. Okra sells very well in my neck of the woods, and it is by far the easiest and least expensive to grow. Takes little work except to pick once or twice a day. Small, tender pods bring a good price too. I got $3/pound last year.

Sweet corn is easy, as the picking does not require stooping. It will grow in a wide variety of soil types, but will require nitrogen fertilizer. Not as picky about phosphorus and potash, but you will almost certainly have to add nitrogen. Remember that corn is actually a grass, so anything that will keep grass happy will generally grow corn. Water is important, but you can get by with less water if it comes at critical times in development.

If grown on a trellis, cukes are about as easy as it gets. No stooping, not a big bug problem child, but you will need water. Not enough water makes cukes bitter and you can't sell them or won't get a repeat customer if you do. I try to plant 3 or 4 pickling varieties, 3 or 4 slicing varieties, and at least 1 burpless. There are varieties of pickling and slicing that will overlap as far as use goes, and those are really great.

I forgot to add to the info on corn, that it is more perishable than the others, and to make the most of it, you need some sort of refridgeration. Some people rent a semi trailer with a reefer for a month or so. I'm going for a walk-in cooler as soon as I can get built.

Also forgot to mention that you want to stagger your plantings so that all of your market crop doesn't all come in at once.

Anything that grows back is a great money maker.

Back when I was doing market gardening my best seller was salad mix. It was basically red and green lettuce, spinach, chard, and kale, and stuff like orach, corn salad, or anything mild I had on hand. Sold it for $5 per gallon bag, you could probably sell it for $6-7 now easy. I could pick 10+ gallons per hour and if the weather didn’t get too hot I could pick on it for 3 weeks as it grew back.

Herbs are another one. I could pick $50 worth of basil in no time. Other herbs did good too. Ethnic herbs for Mexican or Asian markets were reliable.

Another one is fall stuff like gourds, ornamental corn, etc, or things used in dried arrangements or homemade potpurri mixes. Or anything that was earlier than anyone else had, like tomatoes or peppers or green beans, or grown in a hothouse. Hot peppers sometimes draw a faithful niche crowd, especially the Mexicans and Asians.