My Plan to fill the new raised-raised beds...looking for comments - Page 8

Annie · March 1, 2013

Have you ever tried using wheat hay or rice straw for mulch. I use rice straw and it works beautifully, then you can just turn it under instead of having to remove bark. Annie

z_willus_d · March 1, 2013

Hi Annie, I know that some of the best fertilizers are based on molasses, so I bet they're right. It provides a good source of K. I was going to use rice straw for my mulching last year, but I couldn't locate a place to buy it for a decent price. I ended up going for the more manageable redwood chips, which breakdown slower. I'm not sure they're any better or worse for mulching a tomato garden though.

Annie · March 2, 2013

Too bad you arn't near a rice field, a friend of my grandson brings us big round bales FREE, ain't that nice, not much else free except rabbit poop. I am going to put a little of the molasses in my beds and see what happens. Can you get wheat mulch free. We can also buy large amounts of mulch, ground up leaves and bark that is also great. I don't really like the chips because they don't break down as well. See about mulch. Annie

z_willus_d · March 3, 2013

Annie, I had written up a decent response, but it was sent to the null void by this website and my lousy laptop hotkeys. In short, I'd prefer to use a more biodegradable mulch (assuming no weeds or pesticides), but I live with what I have access to here. I like that the wood bark doesn't require repurchasing every season. It's kind of a pain to deal with at the start of each season, but no more so than reacquiring another load of mulch I suppose.

Good luck with the season. (I'm a bit down at the moment, as my one-and-a-half year old son just ripped in half the 3rd healthy (healthiest in fact) tomato graft I've managed to muster in over fifty lost causes. Just waltzed over to the closet where I had them setting under lights and struck it down with the hand of Zeus. It was a beautiful looking Van Wert, and what gets me is it snapped in half not on the graft union (no that was too strong and well made), but rather lower down on the would-be vigorous Maxifort rootstock stem. Oh well, the sacrifices we must make with our "babies" for our children.
-naysen

Crandrew · March 3, 2013

Naysen- sorry to hear about baby Hercules and his workout routine

not the same but I've been battling a raccoon and he has so far outsmarted me.

Deborah · March 3, 2013

Naysen, take heart-this could be one of those things you laugh about in 10 years. OK, 50 years...

z_willus_d · March 4, 2013

It's hard to be made a such a sweetheart. He was just trying to copy me. He had a small bottle of Burpee Fish/Seaweed fert in hand as the implement of destruction. He's seen me watering from a small water-bottle, and I guess that fert bottle was close enough. Sadly, he lacks the fine motor skills for such an operation.

I think I'm already laughing a bit.

Crandrew · March 4, 2013

Haha Bam Bam?

lakelady · April 3, 2013

Naysen, I hope your plants are doing well this season! Your little son reminds me of when mine were that small. They walked like Godzilla and crushed anything in their path lol

At least he did it with gusto!

z_willus_d · April 4, 2013

Hi Antoniette,

Yes, he runs around with the impulses of a destructive Godzilla but with the motor skills of Frankenstein. Even if he wanted to "be soft with the "plant-plants," he'd find it a hard procedure. He's slowly getting better though. Trying to teach him how to pick a flower (if he must) w/out destroying the pedals before he gets to his mother for delivery.

Anyway, I hope you have a fine season as well.
-naysen

Crandrew · April 6, 2013

You have to have some pics of the plants by now.

When you get a chance I would love to see the progress.

z_willus_d · April 6, 2013

Andrew, yes, I need to post here. If you're curious about where I was at around a week back, you can checkout this thread:
http://www.tomatoville.com/showpost....&postcount=320

Best,
Naysen

Crandrew · April 6, 2013

Oh

it looks fantastic! What a wonderful start to the season. Good luck

Tracydr · April 6, 2013

Be careful with rice hulls, though. They seemed to do bad things to my garden. I think they raise the pH, a bunch. So much nothing would grow where I dumped them.

z_willus_d · April 7, 2013

Tracy, I'm not using rice hulls in my garden.

April 3, 2013	#114
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Naysen, I hope your plants are doing well this season! Your little son reminds me of when mine were that small. They walked like Godzilla and crushed anything in their path lol At least he did it with gusto! __________________ Antoniette

March 1, 2013	#106
Annie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Katy, Texas 77493 Posts: 67	Have you ever tried using wheat hay or rice straw for mulch. I use rice straw and it works beautifully, then you can just turn it under instead of having to remove bark. Annie

March 1, 2013	#107
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	Hi Annie, I know that some of the best fertilizers are based on molasses, so I bet they're right. It provides a good source of K. I was going to use rice straw for my mulching last year, but I couldn't locate a place to buy it for a decent price. I ended up going for the more manageable redwood chips, which breakdown slower. I'm not sure they're any better or worse for mulching a tomato garden though.

March 2, 2013	#108
Annie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Katy, Texas 77493 Posts: 67	Too bad you arn't near a rice field, a friend of my grandson brings us big round bales FREE, ain't that nice, not much else free except rabbit poop. I am going to put a little of the molasses in my beds and see what happens. Can you get wheat mulch free. We can also buy large amounts of mulch, ground up leaves and bark that is also great. I don't really like the chips because they don't break down as well. See about mulch. Annie

March 3, 2013	#109
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	Annie, I had written up a decent response, but it was sent to the null void by this website and my lousy laptop hotkeys. In short, I'd prefer to use a more biodegradable mulch (assuming no weeds or pesticides), but I live with what I have access to here. I like that the wood bark doesn't require repurchasing every season. It's kind of a pain to deal with at the start of each season, but no more so than reacquiring another load of mulch I suppose. Good luck with the season. (I'm a bit down at the moment, as my one-and-a-half year old son just ripped in half the 3rd healthy (healthiest in fact) tomato graft I've managed to muster in over fifty lost causes. Just waltzed over to the closet where I had them setting under lights and struck it down with the hand of Zeus. It was a beautiful looking Van Wert, and what gets me is it snapped in half not on the graft union (no that was too strong and well made), but rather lower down on the would-be vigorous Maxifort rootstock stem. Oh well, the sacrifices we must make with our "babies" for our children. -naysen

March 3, 2013	#110
Crandrew Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: asdf Posts: 1,202	Naysen- sorry to hear about baby Hercules and his workout routine not the same but I've been battling a raccoon and he has so far outsmarted me.

March 3, 2013	#111
Deborah Riding The Crazy Train Again Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: San Marcos, California Posts: 2,562	Naysen, take heart-this could be one of those things you laugh about in 10 years. OK, 50 years...

March 4, 2013	#112
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	It's hard to be made a such a sweetheart. He was just trying to copy me. He had a small bottle of Burpee Fish/Seaweed fert in hand as the implement of destruction. He's seen me watering from a small water-bottle, and I guess that fert bottle was close enough. Sadly, he lacks the fine motor skills for such an operation. I think I'm already laughing a bit.

March 4, 2013	#113
Crandrew Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: asdf Posts: 1,202	Haha Bam Bam?

April 4, 2013	#115
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	Hi Antoniette, Yes, he runs around with the impulses of a destructive Godzilla but with the motor skills of Frankenstein. Even if he wanted to "be soft with the "plant-plants," he'd find it a hard procedure. He's slowly getting better though. Trying to teach him how to pick a flower (if he must) w/out destroying the pedals before he gets to his mother for delivery. Anyway, I hope you have a fine season as well. -naysen

April 6, 2013	#116
Crandrew Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: asdf Posts: 1,202	You have to have some pics of the plants by now. When you get a chance I would love to see the progress.

April 6, 2013	#117
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	Andrew, yes, I need to post here. If you're curious about where I was at around a week back, you can checkout this thread: http://www.tomatoville.com/showpost....&postcount=320 Best, Naysen

April 6, 2013	#118
Crandrew Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: asdf Posts: 1,202	Oh it looks fantastic! What a wonderful start to the season. Good luck

April 6, 2013	#119
Tracydr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2011 Location: Laurinburg, North Carolina, zone 7 Posts: 3,207	Be careful with rice hulls, though. They seemed to do bad things to my garden. I think they raise the pH, a bunch. So much nothing would grow where I dumped them.

April 7, 2013	#120
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	Tracy, I'm not using rice hulls in my garden.