Virginia Gardeners

[roper2008]

I just started peppers and eggplant yesterday. I will probably start my tomatoes this
coming Sunday.

[rdback]

Originally Posted by shelleybean

.... Our last frost is usually the last week or two of March...

Ha! Over here in the Northern Shenandoah Valley our last frost date is mid-MAY!

[shelleybean]

Yes, we are right here next to the water so it's milder. I often don't get my first frost until close to Christmas, but this last fall I think it was mid-November. Spring and Fall are so unpredictable here.

[TomNJ]

Here in Floyd at 2,600 feet elevation our first frost can come as late as late May, but I always plan on planting in mid-May if the 10 day forecast shows no frost threats. Some old timers wait until June 1st, but I'll take my chances as I usually take a long vacation right after the crops are in and the garden is in "grow mode".

TomNJ/VA

[shelleybean]

I swear it is colder now than it was in February!! But anyway, here we go with our gardening season!

Beets are up and thinned. Onions never came up the way I'd hoped but this is the first time I've bought pelleted seed. That might have something to do with it. I replanted with regular old seed today. Just spring onions. No biggie. Peas are coming up. Lettuce and kale look good. Today is my last day of hardening off tomatoes and peppers. I'm just keeping an eye on the 10 day forecast to see when I can plant out.

What's going on in your garden?

[garyjr]

In the ground I have lettuce, kale, bok choy, cabbage, and potatoes. Also this week got my onion order from Dixondale. I ordered the intermediate day sampler. I usually grow short day onions so it will be interesting to see how those do. Tomatoes are hardening off and will go in the ground next week. Bell, Jalapeno and Habanero peppers to be planted out around May 1.

[roper2008]

Mine has nothing but a little bit of garlic. I do have a little bit of Pak Choi in a
container. I can only harden off my seedlings on my days off. Today would have
been good, but I was having my fence replaced. Hopefully tomorrow since I'm
off.

[PhilaGardener]

PA isn't that far behind you - good to hear what's up and growing in VA!

[jtjmartin]

The kale that overwintered is HUGE now. My neighbor believes that kale can heal just about anything so she is over a lot.

I started Candy Onion seeds in January and those plants are doing great lining my tomato beds. I found Red Candy Apple Onion plants when I had a case in Harrisonburg - they are still recovering from the freezes they had out there but looking better.

I have cabbage, kale and lettuce planted in white plastic mulch doing well. And . . .

18 tomatoes out in Walls O Water including my first home-grafted tomato.

If any Virginian gardeners want some extra tomato plants please let me know. I travel quite a bit for work and am by Mechanicsville and VB quite a bit. I'd be happy to meet somewhere local for the exchange!

Jeff

[shelleybean]

Okay, I planted everything. Every bed is full.

Tomatoes
Peppers
Cucumbers
Squash
Beets
Lettuce
Kale
Sugar Snap Peas
Butter Beans (might be a bit early but cucumber seed is germinating so I thought I'd go ahead)
Green Onions
Green Beans
Herbs

All my flower pots on the porches are done. I just need to do the annuals in the flower beds. I need to go get some lantana and then I'm all set for a while.

[jtjmartin]

Shelley:

Congrats! VB is about two weeks ahead of us. I have a third of my tomatoes out in walls of water - more in this weekend if weather permits!

My lettuce, kale, cabbage, onions and sugar snap peas are growing like crazy.

Jeff

[shelleybean]

Woo hoo! I'm finally getting some of my summer veggies. The spring stuff is about done. I have some beets in the fridge and still have green onions in the ground that I just pull as needed. I've picked a lot of pole beans already. Cooked some and froze some. Squash and cucumbers are doing well, despite the bugs. My first cherry tomato is about ready to pick--a Sugar Lump. I have a lot of pimentos on the plants. I'm just waiting for them to turn red. My sweet potato slips arrived in great condition and are just beginning to spread out a bit. All the herbs are plenty big enough to start using. Wish I'd grown some corn but I saw a raccoon by the garden last night, so maybe it's better that I didn't?

It's been a wet spring here. I have some foliage issues on the lower leaves of the tomatoes. A lot of this spring has been quite chilly. I think the heat is here to stay now though.

I'll say this. I am seeing A LOT of bugs this year. I've never had aphids like this on my tomatoes. They're really bad. Japanese beetles on the pole beans but not doing too much damage so far. Squash bugs and cucumber beetles are here, too. Saw a family of assassin bugs in my tomatoes waiting to squash bug eggs to hatch. I just let them take care of it.

I hope to have a productive summer and get some pickles made. Hopefully have enough tomatoes to do some canning and drying.

How's it going for you?

[linzelu100]

Hello! Anybody growing? I've got peppers, tomatoes, eggplants and onions started after a long hiatus. Lindsey

[TomNJ]

I've got 570 garlic plants in the ground, and some basil seed started indoors. I'll be starting peppers and oregano next week, but a bit early here for eggplant and tomatoes. I start eggplant and cauliflower indoors in mid March, onion plants outside on April 1st, and tomatoes indoors around April 10th. Frost sensitive seedlings go out around May 20th provided the 10 day forecast does not call for any frost risk.

Tom

[shelleybean]

I've got parsley, peppers and basil seeds going. I'll start tomatoes in about a week. A couple of weeks after that, I'll start zinnias.

Last weekend I saw a few daffodils and now the trees and shrubs are blooming too--redbuds, tulip trees, forsythia, and I see small leaves on some trees. After the January we had, we deserve to get spring a little early!!