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Posted on 03/19/2022 7:58:55 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
Open bottom - Perfect.
I’ve got a middle slice of a plastic 55 drum about 10-11 inches tall, no top/bottom, a carrot variety that gets up to 7 inches, got peat moss, got old compost, got some old cheap potting soil that I’ll have to sift the chunks of wood out of and can get some sand.
Taters do pretty good in my soil and I don’t do much hilling of them. On the occasions I did, it seems like the stems did grow roots and hence potatoes but those were small like new potatoes. Same family as tomato which grow roots from stem and branches but I think in the case of potatoes, the original roots get such a head start compared to anything that grows from stem or branches, that’s where bigger tubers will be. The plants die off before the new, stem potatoes can get big.
55 gallon drum section?
That would be great.
That would allow enough room for you to do succession planting. I have four buckets set up now. Two I planted already and the other two, I will sow in a few more weeks.
I am growing Nantes and Chantenay and will see which one does best. Last year I did not label them so have no idea which one I like the best.
My autist son loves carrots so he’ll be the official caretaker of the carrot plants. Good introduction to gardening and patience. I could take or leave them. Just discovered recently that he likes yams aka sweet potatoes which isn’t surprising since he likes carrots. I’m not messing with those this year.
I’ve got asparagus growing in the top of the barrel, the bottom is for the goat’s water and have that middle leftover. Barrels had food type stuff in them originally. I’ve got Muscade carrot seeds that I got from rareseeds last year.
M.M.! Tag team, me and my neighbor. Double bubble in wrappers, not the round ones. The gum disappeared and so did the chipmunks. There were fewer squirrels. I had to go through 3 bags.
I think that get badly constipated which makes them slow in the open and a good target for raptors. (Doesn’t kill the raptors like Warfarin.) The ones that the raptors don’t get go off to die in their burrows.
I don’t think this would work in a heavily wooded area. (My yard is mostly Lawn and garden, a few trees in the front and the neighbors yard where owls and hawks can perch. )
We have 20+ acres and about 1 1/2 of that is not wooded. It’s the area just around the house with the garden and it’s grass.
We have a few squirrels, lots of mice, turkeys, and deer.
And we have hawks and several owls. There are even bald eagles living nearby but I doubt they are close enough to make a difference on our property.
I will definitely give that a try.
Both of these are you tubes from "Deep South Homestead.
Growing Sweet potatoes. (A long grow survival crop.)
1)Growing the slips that you will plant. No messing around with pans or buckets of water! Bury them in soil in your cold frame. Use long skinnys not fat thick ones. They will send up the slips. See:
2)Planting them. Takes a forked stick and pushes them down in the prepared bed.
I was going to ask if there was any way to hold something through winter to plant for the following Spring as opposed to having to buy slips? Prepper/frugal mentality.
Curiosity got me so I did a web search. https://growingnorth.ca/2016/01/overwintering-sweet-potato-vines-for-next-season/
Turn cuttings(slips) into house plants to over winter.
Here is something on Covington Sweet potato I think from a Canadian homesteader.
https://northernhomestead.com/growing-sweet-potatoes-in-cold-climate/
"An improved early variety that will mature in short seasons with proper care. Bright orange flesh with beautiful, deep rose coloured skin. Sweet and smooth textured flesh. A favourite for mashing or roasting. Healthy, locally grown, and spray-free sweet potato slips. We proudly offer, a variety proven to be productive on the prairies. Sweet potato slips will be delivered by Canada Post when weather is suitable in mid to late-May! Sweet Potatoes grow in groups of up to a dozen underneath the vine much like a potato...."
More info;
Covington Sweet Potato
Very uniform roots Produces high yields Long storage time
"From North Carolina State, it's rapidly replacing Beauregard in commercial plantings. Not because of flavor, both are sweet with great flavor. And it isn't because of yield, they are both very good yielders. In truth, there are three key differences: 1) Storage time is much longer than Beauregard (which can begin to deteriorate beginning in January). 2) Covington roots are very uniform in shape and not prone to produce misshapen or long, narrow roots. (Georgia Jet is especially prone to misshapen roots and football-sized lunkers that are hard to bake or process.) 3) Covington is resistant to Russet crack and Southern root-knot nematode, either of which can make growing sweet potatoes very discouraging! Great for boiling, roasting, or mashing. 100–115 DAYS." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Longer storing; Bet the goats would love em!
They sell slips at Jungs, Gurnees, Johnnies Select seeds and some others.
found this:
https://sowtrueseed.com/products/covington-sweet-potato-organic 6 slips for $9!
Yeah, I didn’t realize they store somewhat similar to Irish potatoes though they do seem to be picky about temperature. Growing as houseplants through winter seemed pretty cool. Like I said, won’t be messing with them this year but I’ll check things out and add to my notes.
Your property sounds a lot like mine but bigger. I’ve got 14 acres and all but an acre or two is forest, hilly and very rocky. Some spots you look down and see more rocks than soil. Keeps the goats’ hooves trimmed so I don’t have to. I’m very conscious of top soil loss at this point. I’m just thankful that my one acre or two once I clear more, has 1-2 foot of good topsoil.
BTW - I’ve got a keep sake from my parents that they saved from their honeymoon of camping in NH. It’s a brochure for the White Mountains from 1940 or so. Also have pics of them sitting on a rock cliff with a view.
I’m in the Ozarks which are mini mountains.
There are lots of good views here.
So many, as matter of fact, that NH has what is referred to as a view tax. It can increase property value so much, that there’s actually a tax for it.
Otherwise, NH is fairly tax free.
Good morning Diana, met mom sent me to your weekly thread, could you add me to yout ping list or notify list. I’m looking forward to reading the weekly post.
Thankyou.
Praying you heal quickly !!!!!
Thank you! A week post surgery today & making progress every day! :-)
I added you to our Ping List. Jump right in!
Next ping will be Saturday morning - after coffee. ;)
Thankyou !!!!!
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