Newbie with four 4x4s

Mamachibi Wed Jul 27, 2011 10:56 am

https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AqrerkREazgTdE1FWGxQYy1hTTlmRHF1Rml6bnM3bVE&hl=en_US

I could use some input on my plans. The basic idea is that I need 8 heads of lettuce a week, as close to year-round as possible to feed my pets. I started with that and then added other plants between lettuce plantings. I know this is a VERY optimistic plan, sort of an "in a perfect world" plan where everything blooms exactly on time, rains come and sun shines on cue and fruit is ready to be picked on the hour. Real life ain't like that!

Note: 5/7-10/30 1 Amish Paste Tomato (3/16) means that in this square, 1 Amish Paste Tomato plant will dwell from 5/7-10/30 of 2012 (2011 dates are marked) after having been started indoors on 3/16.

So, who has way too much time on their hands and is fearless enough to tackle my plans? affraid

Mamachibi Wed Jul 27, 2011 10:57 am

Oh, I guess it would be good to add that I'm in zone 6b, frost dates 4/30 and 10/30 (ish). The ground never freezes here, and until the last two years, snow cover and freezing days were minimal.

boffer Wed Jul 27, 2011 11:03 am

11/26-12/31 4 Ice Bred Lettuce (11/5)

Does this mean you plant seeds on 11/5 and transplant on 11/26?

Denese Wed Jul 27, 2011 1:17 pm

WOW!! You are SO organized! Newbie with four 4x4s 73140

In a perfect world it looks GREAT! Newbie with four 4x4s 311672

Here's hoping everything stays perfect! Newbie with four 4x4s 418730

Mamachibi Wed Jul 27, 2011 2:09 pm

Thanks, Denese, hubby calls it "obsessed", not "organized". Amazing what proper Wink

word choice can do!

Boffer, yup, that's what that means.

boffer Wed Jul 27, 2011 2:33 pm

I don't have a lot of experience here, but I don't think you're going to have much of any growth in the plants going into the ground in Oct and later. What growth there is will be very slow. You could use supplemental heat and light to attempt some growth, but then your lettuce starts getting pretty expensive.

Covering your boxes can help extend your summer/fall growing seasons by a few weeks, but they don't provide an environment where you can actually grow stuff in the winter time. You can try putting on double layers of plastic and insulating with straw and try growing some very cold tolerant greens that I had never heard of outside of 'winter gardening'. Some of us think the work greatly out weighs the meager benefits, and enjoy taking a few months off.

Mamachibi Wed Jul 27, 2011 7:47 pm

I was thinking perhaps doing a cold frame with bales of straw and a windowpane. We have VERY mild winters here normally, three years ago we had one half-inch snow and it never got below 20° even at night. The last two years have been "exceptional" winters with deep snow and ice storms. But I did forget to add extra growth time for those slower weeks.

I'm not much concerned about the electricity for a heater and lights, since I have those going almost year round for starts anyway. Hm. Maybe I should just grow indoors entirely in December through February. I'll have to consider that.

Thank you so much, Boffer!

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