We’ll be settin out a few plants today, more Beefsteak tomatoes, and settin cucumbers out too. Although this time we’re goin in the ground with seeds.

I know the sun scalded our first cucumber plants and Beefsteaks, but we’d set them straight out of the greenhouse into the direct sun. This, we found out…is a no-no! At first I thought it was our compost was just “too hot,” and brought in topsoil to mix and possibly “cool the compost” down some.

We found at later, through good advice from “our friends” who watch our videos that, this was probably not the problem, but once again, we just were not hardening the plants up first. Still I’m glad I added the topsoil, as this will work out good for us, too.

Here’s a comment from our good friend Bobby. Bobby lives in Virginia and is one fine gardener. He’s a heck of a great guy, husband, Father, and good Christian man. Bobby has a couple greenhouses, and he takes care of 5 large gardens on his place as well.

Here’s his comments involving “hardening” your plants prior to settin them out in full sun, after having started them in the greenhouse.

“I found out about the hardening off deal last year, first hand. I didn’t lose any plants, but they sure did look rough for a while. Being inside under plastic is just so protective they aren’t strong enough to face the elements all at once. Lots to learn, but you’re doing good.”

This from another good friend, Bernard, who I believe lives in Virginia as well. Bernard is also a “master gardener,” not just by name, but by trade.

“The sunlight the plants get in a greenhouse is different from direct sunlight. They need to be shielded from the sun and exposed a little more each day for about a week.”
The main reason tomato leaves turn white is that the plants were not hardened off before being planted in full sunlight. They curl because there is no water left in the leaf. Plants will get sunburn if they are moved from a shaded place into direct sun. When I take my plants out of my greenhouse I have to cover them or they will be sunburned even though they have been exposed to the sun. I use a tarp over a frame and expose them at little more each day for about a week and then I remove the tarp. On cloudy days I do not cover them. When bad storms are in the area I cover them to prevent damage.

If the tomato plants only lose their leaves but the stems and roots are not damaged they may put out new growth and you will just lose time, do to a later harvest.

Here’s another from a good friend as well.

“Hey Dub did you harden them off before putting them in ground, sounds like that’s the problem.”

So you see, we learned a valuable lesson, even if I had lost about 50 plants. Since we’d never grew in a greenhouse before we just had no idea. It could have been much, much worse. Have you noticed that I’m using the word WE now, even though I made the goof.

You see, if they’d have taken off and done real well, then I’d have taken all the credit, but since I goofed, I decided I’d share the goof with ole Deb. Now…it’s WE! LOL!

I cringe to even think about…what if I’d have set out plants in the whole grow area?? All of a sudden you’re talking a WHOLE lot more we could have lost. I call it a beginner’s mistake. My wife calls it…ignorance, but I’ll have to compromise a little and say we’re both right! Dad-gummit!

So, we’ll now be planting 22 Beefsteaks, and 4 varieties of melons. Yep, I’ve hardened them all off for a week. I set them on a bench we made and they get full sun until about 2 in the afternoon. At this point the greenhouse itself shades them.

The melons we’ll set are 6 Georgia Rattlesnake, 5 Jubilee’s, 4 Sugar Baby’s, and 2 cantalope’s. We have 1 more Jubilee and 1 more Sugar Baby, but they’re not quite ready to set yet. They’ll be another week or so.

We’ll probably go ahead at this point and set a few more seeds of the melons and stagger them to get a couple crops hopefully.

Tomorrow as well, we’ll start settin out more plants on the bench to start the hardening process. We’ll be putting out three varieties of eggplant, the Listada De Gandia, Ukrainian Beauty, and the Florida Market. We’ll be settin out to harden 2 types of hot peppers, and 4 types of sweet peppers, too.

The tomatoes we’ll be hardening are the Homestead, Green Pineapple, and Rutgers to go along with the Beefsteaks which will already be in the ground. The Cherry tomatoes are the Mini-Orange, Black Cherry, Reisentraube, Isis Candy, and Fox Cherry.

We’ll set at least 15, and no more than twenty plants each. I’m talkin tomatoes still. We’ll set out 6 eggplants each, and the peppers we’ll set out probably most of what we have.

We’ve got 3 types of squash, 5 types of lettuce, 2 types of spinach, 3 types of carrots, brussell sprouts, 3 types of beets, radishes, 3 types of black tomatoes, and celery in seed trays that are sprouted now. Those won’t be too awful long from being ready to go as well.

As we set each new vegetable out in the grow area, we’ll be running micro-jet for each row. I personally, like to set my row, then install the lines. This shows me exactly where to put the heads for each plant to put the water right where it’s needed. After that screw up of killin those first plants, I SURE DON’T want to tick Deb off at me again!! The “heat’s” finally easin off from that go round! LOL!

I gotta say this though, it HAS been work, and a whole lot of it. Getting the pad for the greenhouse, erecting it, digging out existing dirt and going back with good soil, building our beds, setting up where we wanted to plant what, building seed tables, racks, and now planting and installing a water system. PHEW!!

BUT, it has all been worth every minute! The benefits of what we’ll be producing from a freshness standpoint, a nutritional standpoint, and a cost saving standpoint are tremendous. The very best thing though is that Deb’s having a good time with this!

She’s bending and stooping, she’s out in the sun and fresh air, she’s learning how to set seeds, transplant them into larger pots, she’s learning the different vegetable varieties, and is loving every minute of it.

The biggest part of the work is just fixing to be over with once we get all our water system in. Then it’s to see that everything is getting what it needs, and watching everything grow off. It then becomes less of a work thing, and more of a managing thing.

This project, like most any project you start, was heavy work on the front end, but with more of a keeping everything maintained, and just keeping an eye on things from there on out. This will be bringing us both much pleasure in the years to come!

Thank you guys for droppin back in to visit with us today. We sure appreciate ya’ll doin so! Please take care, and God Bless! Deb says to keep a smile on your face, and one in your heart!

Dub and Deb

Let me start off this morning by letting you guys know that our good friend Bob passed away Friday morning about 5:00 am. It’s a hard loss, but we both know that Bob is in a much better place. What a great guy he was, and we’ll all miss him.

God Bless you Bob, we sure enjoyed your company buddy!

Also, Deb and I would like to thank you all for your prayers in Bob and Linda’s behalf, and please keep Linda in your prayers.

Okay, ya’ll know we’d put in a new grow area around our greenhouse. We planted cucumbers and Beefsteak tomatoes, and dern if I haven’t gone and killed our cucumbers, and I’m doin a pretty good job of killin the maters too!

I’m one of those people that when I get an idea, then I hit it “wide open.” It doesn’t matter what it is. I’m the same way with this little endeavor. “Wide open!” Wide open has worked very well for me most times through this life of mine, but there have been times that wide open bites me slap dab in my rear-end too. This just happens to be one of em! LOL!

We brought in all the new compost to grow in, but I hit a snag, and actually a couple of them. The first being our compost is still, “hot,” so the heat generated through our compost is keeping the soil temperatures a little too hot and this is burning the roots on these young plants. Lesson #1…slow down, Dub!

Secondly, we’ve never grown off plants in a greenhouse before. Shoot, I didn’t know you were supposed to “harden” them up some prior to stickin those little fellers out in the full sun??

Shoot, ever since I was just a young pup, I’ve either started my seeds out in the garden, or bought plant sets from the feed-store or wherever, and stuck them straight into the garden as well. FULL SUN, right off the bat! Suck it up, and get tough guys…I’m waitin on you guys to produce me some groceries, let’s get with it!

Well, this is not so when first bringin them out of the greenhouse…no, no! I’ve had some very good gardeners contact me and advise me of my mistakes. They’ve all been very positive on my behalf, and they caution me on this, help me to understand that, all in simple terms.

They’ve all been very supportive and very polite. They’ll say, “you’ll learn,” or “It’s just a bump in the road,” or, “you’ll laugh at this down the road aways.” WHAT they’re really saying to themselves is… “That dern Dub’s a nut!” LOL! I can’t say what Deb calls it!

This is pretty simple to understand if you’ll stop and think it out. An example of this is our greenhouse has a white poly roof. Why? Well, it’s to knock down some of this hot Florida sun. I believe it is a 50% knockdown factor.

Well, DUH Dub…might make sense to harden those little fellers up some before you go to digging holes and droppin plants in, wouldn’t a think? Well, after killin off about 50 new sets, that hardening up some is certainly startin to make a little sense to me! How’d a thunk??

Deb says I’m…a MASS MURDERER! LOL! Deb says a lot of things though, most of which I try to let go in one ear, and right back out the other!

So, lesson # 2 today is, slow down Dub!

“Hardening” the plants, for those that don’t already know, is simply setting them out in the sun a few hours a day to let them adjust to their new environment…or hardening them up some.

Now I don’t mind them hardening up some if that’s what needs to happen, shoot, I’m all for it. I DO know though, them muthas better start hardening up pretty dern quick, cause we got a BUNCH of those little fellers comin on!

So if they don’t harden up fast, then they’re going to have another problem…they’ll be root-bound next, and that’ll be a whole nother post!! LOL!

So, I just figured out there is even a lesson #3 in today’s post…SLOW DOWN DUB, SLOW DOWN some man!! LOL!

I will say this though…I must be of man of good character. Why? Cause it doesn’t matter if I screw up, using today as an example of this, why shoot, I’m laughin about it! What a fine quality this “character thing” must be!

Trouble is, I’m beginning to wonder if it truly is “character,” or the beginning of insanity, cause I do have a tendency to screw up every once in a while! I know one thing for sure…I won’t be askin Deb’s opinion of which SHE thinks it is! I already know the answer to that one! LOL!

So, I’ll be addin a little soil to our compost, hardening up our plants prior to settin em out in the full sun, and I just might give that slowin down some a fair shake…if I can find it in me to do it!
On that note, we’ll share our latest video with you guys, discussing some of all the above!

Well, it is obvious…I did it again!

Since I’ve been poking fun at myself this morning, let’s finish up with a couple jokes…

These come to us today from our good friend Diane. She’s tiltled them, “Holy Humor.”

During these serious and troubled times, people of all faiths should remember these four great religious truths:

1. Muslims do not recognize Jews as God’s Chosen People.

2. Jews do not recognize Jesus as the Messiah.

3. Protestants do not recognize the Pope as the leader of the Christian world.

4. Baptists do not recognize each other at the liquor store.

DID NOAH FISH?

A Sunday school teacher asked, “Johnny, do you think Noah did a lot of fishing when he was on the Ark?”

“No,” replied Johnny. “How could he, with just two worms.”

BEING THANKFUL

A Rabbi said to a precocious six-year-old boy, “So your mother says your prayers for you each night? That’s very commendable. What does she say?” The little boy replied, “Thank God he’s in bed!”

SAY A PRAYER

Little Johnny and his family were having Sunday dinner at his Grandmother’s house. Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served. When Little Johnny received his plate, he started eating right away. “Johnny! Please wait until we say our prayer,” said his mother.

“I don’t need to,” the boy replied. “Of course, you do “his mother insisted. “We always say a prayer before eating at our house.” “That’s at our house.” Johnny explained. “But this is Grandma’s house and she knows how to cook.

You guys have a great day, and God Bless! Deb says to keep a smile on your face, and one in your heart!

Dub and Deb

First off, Deb had another blood test this past Wed. Ya wanna guess the results?? PERFECT, once again! I sure have me a wonderful gal, huh? That little woman has stayed positive throughout this whole ordeal and I’ll say it once again, she is so inspiring to be around, and in the toughness department, I’m running a far distant second place! God is smiling on her! We’re ecstatic over this latest news! April 1st will be our one year anniversary of finding out Deb has this mess.

Secondly, let me apologize to you guys as it’s been a few days since a post…sorry. We’ve been concentrating on finishing this up, the grow space, and by the time the guys leave Deb and I have to work the greenhouse some. Watering mainly, but trying to do a little seedling transplants too.

Been getting in around 6:30 or 7:00, and I’ve been going to bed by 8:30 or 9. Deb calls me…a “titty-baby!” Dern her time! LOL!

Today and tomorrow we’ll be transplanting exclusively. Hopefully we’ll have most everything from our first grow either in the beds or into 4” pots to continue to grow off.

Well, we did complete the grow space around the greenhouse yesterday. Deb gave her thumbs up which to all the rest of us was a sign…we made out okay. The term, “If Mama’s happy, everybody’s happy,” is very true.

We ended up with a 27’x68’ on the eastside, a 16’x68’ on the westside, and an 8’x18’ on the southside. This gives us considerably more gardening space, and it’s all right next to the greenhouse. We hope in the next couple weeks to have the water system in, and the power run to boot. That puts the finish on everything as far as any type of construction.

We put our compost in mostly at about 12 inches in depth, but there are areas it goes down to around 18 and even 24 in spots. I got carried away on the cut out depth, but in the same breath, we had plenty and I didn’t spend much time at all in really getting it precise, obviously. LOL!

We were pushed for time and we just wanted to “git er done!” Now that’s exactly what it is, done…AND Deb’s happy!

I stated earlier we’ll be potting seedlings this weekend, and there’s even some we’ll be putting into our beds. I believe us to be 2-3 weeks off from planting tomato and pepper plants in earnest. Our “volunteer tomatoes” from our compost pile that we set in the greenhouse are doing just great. Got a tomato or two beginning to ripen…yes sir!

We’re really enjoying this and can’t wait to get everything in its place and growin off! This was done once more simply to keep us in plenty of juicing materials year round. The cost of buying them from the marketplace is really beginning to be a burden. Man, food prices keep going up, don’t they?

This will let us continue to do what we’ve been doing, but at a fraction of the cost, and I mean that quite literally! 25-30 tomato seeds for $2.50?? How can you possibly go wrong with no more cost factor than that?

Say you end up with a buck apiece in them…which you won’t nearly spend, but even at that, how many tomatoes will just one plant supply you with? Think about it. This isn’t even touching on the health and nutrition benefits, or the taste benefits of picking them right outside your door and eatin them muthas.

You also have to consider the benefits as well from just being outside working in your garden from a health standpoint, and the pleasure derived from watchin them first break the soil as seedlings. Then on to planting them in the garden, then watching the growth and production of the fresh vegetables they’ll be giving you in return for your love and caring for them. It is a rewarding experience.

We have a few pictures for you guys today of the progress we’ve made. You wanna take a peek? C’mon then, we’ll check it out!

The first is of the grow space on the westside of the G.H. It is the 27’x68’.

The next is of the eastside. It is 16’x68.

This is a shot from across the yard, and shows the area in front of the greenhouse too. Those are strawberries in the containers in front of the G.H.

Here’s our volunteer tomatoes, followed by a shot of some Japanese cucumbers under their cages. Then you can see some peas growing too. These peas we’ll use strictly for our juicing.

Here’s a couple shots of our tomatoes we’d already potted into 4” pots. The first is a rack of Beefsteak, and Mini-Orange which you can’t see.

The second shot is another rack and a half across the greenhouse. It has Green Pineapple, Homestead, Fox Cherry, and Isis Candy.

Each rack is 24 inches wide and 10 feet in length. They’re mounted above our planting benches. Each rack when full can hold 110 4” pots.

We’ll finish up with a shot of our Japanese cucumbers, these are fixing to be planted in our new grow area outside the G.H., and last is of a shot of our watermelons, and two cantelope. The watermelon are Georgia Rattlesnake, Jubilee, and Sugar Baby.

Well guys, that about does it for today! We sure appreciate you stopping back in, and you all have a great weekend, okay? God Bless you and Deb says to keep a smile on your face, and one in your heart!

Dub and Deb