Photo below - and it's tasseling, too! Yeehaw! We should easily have fresh corn for the 4th of July gathering, if not a week before....Now i'm wondering what'll be planted in the swc's when these are finished...hmmm.....I'll really have to put some thought into it, because there will still be at least 110 days left in the gardening season before first frost hits in the fall. That makes anything possible, and will likely end up as a late planting of melons or tomatoes.....
Photo below - Here's my second batch of corn that is growing in the main garden bed, and is looking much better after previously looking just awful. Some abundant sunshine and a side dressing of nitrate of soda sure helped things, and will become mature sometime in August....
Lastly, I wanted to show you the largest compost system that was recently consolidated into only 1/3 the space that was previously occupied. I just threw together a makeshift enclosure in the center part, then piled all of the (almost) completely decomposed material into it. A week later, the internal temperature of the new pile measured at 148, and should finish on it's own with no turning needed. The other 3 bins to the left of the photo will be done the same way, then an entirely new batch will be started. Thanks to the heat of summer and an abundance of fresh grass clippings, we should have about 120 cubic feet of finished compost by the time cold weather arrives. Heehee, looks like EG won't have to compost at all next year!
In other news, I gave an hour and a half long powerpoint presentation last night to 40 citizens at the Lauderdale County Extension Office on raised bed gardening, and it was really fun! Phillip Oliver over at Dirt Therapy was in attendance, and it was great to finally meet him. Also in attendance was Jerry and Lori over at soulcatchingphotography, and it was very good to see them there too! It was a packed house, and I was glad to be a part of it.
Take care, and happy gardening!
EG
11 comments:
EG, that corn is most impressive!! You must be so excited! I have never grown corn, but I am tempted to try it in SWCs next year.
Looks like you will be reaping the rewards of your compost setup soon. 12 cu ft?!? So worth all the hard work and effort you put into building your system. Plus down the road it will be much easier to compost.
Corn! I so rarely grow corn here because it needs too much space. Your spot though is pretty small.
I wish I had that volume of compost, but I just can't see me ever making quite that much. I sure could use it for the new garden though.
Your corn looks amazing! I can't wait to try growing corn in swc next year!
Good composting .....makes happy plants :)
rachel - thanks! The regional extension agent was stunned at the photo I showed him of it last night. :-) Yep, 120 cuft of finished compost before freezing weather arrives. hehe...
Daphne - in this swc setup, it doesn't require much space at all. I recommend you try it at least once. You're right...this is gonna be ALOT of compost..hehe
robin - thank you! Oh, ya gotta try it!
Great class last night and it was so nice to meet you!
Yes, that corn is indeed impressive! I wonder how long it will be before you get your first corn harvest.
Phillip - I'm glad you enjoyed it! That was a blast for me to do, and i'm sure there will be more to come.
Thomas - thank you. Silks should begin to form in the next week - so it's probably gonna be around June 26th....
Very nice corn!! Those SWCs seem to be great. I have corn growing finally, but my beans are growing faster than the corn is lol
Wow your corn is massive. Never tried growing corn before, bet it is good cooked right off the plant.
Your corn fascinates me.....what is in the totes, why use lids, and how much do you water.....
I wasn't going to plant any this year, but I'm rethinking it!
Great garden!
mamalou - these are self watering containers that are filled with my own soil mixture of 6 parts peat moss, 3 parts perlite, and 1 part vermiculite.The lids help reduce moisture loss through evaporation.
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