Post by Deleted on Oct 22, 2012 16:55:34 GMT -5
A member of these forums graciously sent me two purple sweet potatoes -- well more than enough to grow many vines and sprout them in water, over the winter.
I had an agreement to use a plot at a nearby farm, let myself into the garden area, water them everyday, without asking. Then, I had to get permission. Then, it was difficult to keep them watered enough. Gophers seem to move into ground, which is not tread upon, ate most of my neglected sweet potatoes. So, I gave them a new home, around early summer.
I trimmed an old honeysuckle hedge, away from a compacted driveway of white gravel. This gave me a rich garden bed of only 18" wide, but 100' long, inside of railroad ties. The white gravel reflected light and heat onto the foliage, crawling into the scorching hot roadway, up into the honeysuckles, and into the shady yard. Recycled drip irrigation kept everything just moist enough to survive in 100F+ degree temps. Very lush through late summer. Looked tropical for a desert.
Just two of these vines gave me a harvest of several lbs, but there are several more to dig up. My best method, so far, was to squirt them with the pressure nozzle on the gardenhose. Don't know what I would do without it. I have to lift up the railroad ties to get them, and it is still difficult, to get my 6'+, 300lb+ body so close to that chain link fence. I suppose, ideally, you would shovel at a distance from the roots. This small holding leaves me no room for this. I can stomp on that shovel hard enough to go through a pair of size 13 paratrooper boots. Luckily the metal of the shovel is very springy.
compacted gravel.
Some of my sweet potatoes are mildly broken at the ends. I hope they will still keep for long enough to develop a sweet flavor.
Lots of green tape did hold up my kumato vines, until the first (mini) monsoon made the vines heavy with water. They seem to direct all their energy, either to fruit or to foliage. Fruit seems to grow underneath, rots, when it is not well off the ground.
I felt bad to see the farmer pruning his tomatoes, as easily 2/3 of the plants were removed, but his quickly rebounded and kept producing tomatoes. My uncaged ramblers are now complemented for their bushy leaves.
Lessons learned.
I had an agreement to use a plot at a nearby farm, let myself into the garden area, water them everyday, without asking. Then, I had to get permission. Then, it was difficult to keep them watered enough. Gophers seem to move into ground, which is not tread upon, ate most of my neglected sweet potatoes. So, I gave them a new home, around early summer.
I trimmed an old honeysuckle hedge, away from a compacted driveway of white gravel. This gave me a rich garden bed of only 18" wide, but 100' long, inside of railroad ties. The white gravel reflected light and heat onto the foliage, crawling into the scorching hot roadway, up into the honeysuckles, and into the shady yard. Recycled drip irrigation kept everything just moist enough to survive in 100F+ degree temps. Very lush through late summer. Looked tropical for a desert.
Just two of these vines gave me a harvest of several lbs, but there are several more to dig up. My best method, so far, was to squirt them with the pressure nozzle on the gardenhose. Don't know what I would do without it. I have to lift up the railroad ties to get them, and it is still difficult, to get my 6'+, 300lb+ body so close to that chain link fence. I suppose, ideally, you would shovel at a distance from the roots. This small holding leaves me no room for this. I can stomp on that shovel hard enough to go through a pair of size 13 paratrooper boots. Luckily the metal of the shovel is very springy.
compacted gravel. Some of my sweet potatoes are mildly broken at the ends. I hope they will still keep for long enough to develop a sweet flavor.
Lots of green tape did hold up my kumato vines, until the first (mini) monsoon made the vines heavy with water. They seem to direct all their energy, either to fruit or to foliage. Fruit seems to grow underneath, rots, when it is not well off the ground.
I felt bad to see the farmer pruning his tomatoes, as easily 2/3 of the plants were removed, but his quickly rebounded and kept producing tomatoes. My uncaged ramblers are now complemented for their bushy leaves.
Lessons learned.