Row by Row Episode 125: Container Gardening is the NEWEST TREND
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Container Gardening vs. Fruit Tree Watering Kits
While we have an excellent drip irrigation kit available for the in-ground vegetable garden. We found there was a need for a container gardening kit that can help individuals with easily watering rows of containers or even just a few pots on your porch. This easy to set up container kit comes with everything you need to start watering your plants effectively on the homestead. If you are limited on your space or do not have great soil on your homestead then container gardening is ideal for you to grow your own food. The only problem with container gardening is the containers can dry out quickly so it's very important to keep them irrigated in order for the plants to survive and not stress. A lot of the actual components work the same as our drip irrigation kit, but they require a little bit different set up for container gardening.
The fruit tree watering kit is similar to the container watering kit but comes with different quantities of some items. The fruit tree kit allows you to easily water the fruit trees on your homestead by simply just turning on a spigot. The kit is ideal for watering multiple figs, apples, plums, pears, blueberries, and more trees. The kit includes enough fittings to water 20 trees on your homestead. We also have the items in the kit available individually on our website if you need to water a little more than 20 trees or just need extra.
Show and Tell Segment
On the show and tell segment this week, Greg and Travis have some Scarlet Emperor Runner Beans fresh from the vegetable garden. These runner beans are an heirloom, open-pollinated variety with excellent beauty and taste. This variety typically produces large 8 to 12" pods that have a slightly fuzzy texture. Another fresh harvest from the garden is the Tehama Lettuce which is a spring crisp variety that has exceptional heat-tolerance. This lettuce performs best when transplanted which allows for consistent plant spacing and prevents seedlings from competing with weeds in the early stages of the plant.
Greg also shows off a Sungold Dwarf Sunflower that has grown a big and beautiful head on it. This dwarf sunflower variety gets around 3 to 4 feet tall in the garden and has a soft texture similar to the Teddy Bear variety. Lastly, the guys give a sad update about the popular Brickyard tomato. Unfortunately, the Brickyard Tomato variety has been discontinued by the breeder which means we will no longer be able to carry these tomato seeds. The replacement to the Brickyard Tomato is the SummerPick Tomato which actually produces more than the Brickyard.
As we get closer to 2021, Travis shares some new tomato varieties that are coming to the website. The first variety is the SunSugar Tomato which is supposed to taste like candy and is similar to the SunGold Tomato. The next variety is a popular indeterminate known as Big Beef which makes really big tomatoes and excellent disease resistance. The Flordia 91 is another great tomato variety that is known to be one of the best to set fruits in the heat which in return allows you to grow this one a little longer during the summer. The last variety the guys share this week is the Southern Ripe Tomato which is determinate that also has really good disease resistance qualities.
Viewer Questions
For the Q & A segment this week, the guys answer some viewer questions that were asked on last week's show. The first question is how to take care of heavy clay soil in the garden. Travis mentions that dealing with awful soil is tough but with cover cropping and adding heavy compost he was able to get his soil manageable for growing vegetables. It does take some time but if you stay consistent with adding compost and cover cropping your soil will get better. The second question is referring to seed potatoes and whether you should save potatoes or just buy new seed every year. From doing a little research, Travis mentions that from talking to the seed potato growers they say it is not best to save seed potatoes simply because the production can decline and the size can get smaller year after year. The last question is if you plant English Peas around 2 inches apart with 98% germination should you thin them out or just let them go. Both the guys say with 98% germination you definitely should let them go and make sure they have something to climb on.