I'm a Believer!

peebee · May 30, 2015

After years of diminishing returns, I decided to try solarizing, then cover-cropping, some of my garden beds this year. The results are amazing. The pic shows the office garden; left side was just amended as usual with chicken manure and Kellogg's Amend, the right side was treated to the solarization and cover-cropping. My home garden is also showing a great difference in plant size, lushness, and health; covered with fruits.I will cover crop yearly from now on!

(on another note, what is the best size for uploading pics from my phone? It is too big if done directly but when I use the photo resizer, this is "large". I can customize, but what are the dims?) Thanks.

heirloomtomaguy · May 30, 2015

Wow what a difference. Looks great.

pauldavid · May 30, 2015

Big difference there Peebee!

Tracydr · May 30, 2015

What cover crop did you use?

AlittleSalt · May 30, 2015

When I use my wife's Galaxy tab for pics, I cut the size in half to post here. I wish I could remember the size by number - but half size.

Peebee, I was already thinking of cover cropping this winter, but now I know I'm going to.

luigiwu · May 30, 2015

peebee, can you talk more about the details of how you solar and what cover crop you did? Thanks!!

beeman · May 30, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by peebee

on another note, what is the best size for uploading pics from my phone? It is too big if done directly but when I use the photo resizer, this is "large". I can customize, but what are the dims? Thanks.

Pixel size can be varied but I use either 640X480 pxls or 5x7 inches, both sizes fit quite well.

peebee · May 31, 2015

Thanks Beeman, will try that.
For you others that asked what I did, I made sure the ground was deeply irrigated before I solarized. That took a couple of days of slow drip as we never get rain here in summer. This was either late spring/early summer by the way. Then I covered the area with clear or opaque thick plastic and weighted the ends down with random rocks or small bricks. You can buy this plastic online, there are different thicknesses but I happen to work in an office that has a warehouse where I got these huge thick bags for free. I even used those huge bags that shipping peanuts come in, just doubled those as they were thinner and had some holes. I kept the cover on all summer long till it was time to order the cover crop seeds.

I ordered from Peaceful Valley Farm Supply, got the Premium Soil Builder mix and also the innoculant, which I guess is important. I posted in the soil forum about the timing of when I should turn the cover crop into the soil. Various members told me I should've turned them in when they were smaller but that I could also cut them down and use them as mulch. I did sort of a combination of the 2 methods, cutting the crops down, turning as much as I could in, and keeping a lot as mulch. It makes good mulch, I was happy about that.

When I came back from my trip in early April, the plants in the cover-cropped beds had grown so much that they totally covered the labels I had near the stems, so now I am not sure what exactly I have planted

. Hopefully when the fruit ripens I will be able to tell, otherwise I will find the labels after the season is over. It's a happy problem

!

Redbaron · May 31, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by peebee

It's a happy problem

!

I guess.

Slg Garden · May 31, 2015

Wow, that's an impressive contrast. This leads to more questions in my mind. Is the be fit from solarizing the soil or the cover crop? Is there any difference between planting a cover crop and peas or beans that we harvest? Now I'm confused about whether to plant a cover crop or to put down shredded leaves over the winter.

Redbaron · May 31, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slg Garden

Wow, that's an impressive contrast. This leads to more questions in my mind. Is the benefit from solarizing the soil or the cover crop?

Solarising the soil doesn't add nitrogen or feed the soil food web.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slg Garden

Is there any difference between planting a cover crop and peas or beans that we harvest?

Every plant has unique characteristics. But you can plant edible cover crops too. Extra early winter snap peas are a great thing to add to a cover crop, and so delicious. There are plenty of cool season brassicas too depending on your local climate, some of them can overwinter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slg Garden

Now I'm confused about whether to plant a cover crop or to put down shredded leaves over the winter.

Both are good and have benefits. One of the keys to soil health is armor on the soil at all times. Mulches fulfill that quite well. However, another key to healthy soil is a living root in the soil as long as possible. Winter cover crops fulfill that quite well. I think either way is fantastic actually. Personally I mulch in the growing season around my plants, and grow covers in winter. That way I try to get the benefit of both.

Fiishergurl · May 31, 2015

That's amazing!!

Thanks so much for sharing the results. The picture showing the difference is incredible.

Ginny

AlittleSalt · May 31, 2015

Peebee. this thread is very interesting. It also has made two songs stick in my head.

Thread title, "I'm a believer" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfuBREMXxts

And you wrote, "as we never get rain here in summer." I glanced over at your av/pic and sure enough, "Southern California" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pyC7WnvLT4

Slg Garden · May 31, 2015

Redbaron, thanks for sharing your knowledge. I like the image of armor on the soil. We can grow cool season crops here. Last winter I overwintered collards, broccoli, carrots, chard and kale. I'll make sure to try additional things this winter.

peebee · June 1, 2015

Sig Garden, Red Baron replied correctly about the leaves vs cover cropping, both have different benefits. I have also left leaves on some of my beds over the winter, they add bulk to the soil and improve it immensely. Cover crops are known as "green manure" as they add nitrogen mostly.

I solarized just in case I had pathogens or anything bad in my soil after so many years of using it year-round in my climate, plus I have always just wanted to try it. Spider mites invaded for the first time too so I wanted to kill any last signs of them in the soil. Wanted to cover crop with a clean slate, as it were.

Sadly, I discovered some mites on a couple of plants today, in an untreated bed, in my home garden

. So far, not a sign of them on any tomatoes in the treated one. But you never know, it might be a matter of time. I'm just hoping the toms ripen asap so I can eat some before they take over.

Alittlesalt, hee hee I was thinking of those songs too as I wrote this

.

May 30, 2015	#2
heirloomtomaguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: glendora ca Posts: 2,560	Wow what a difference. Looks great. __________________ “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."

May 30, 2015	#6
luigiwu Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: ny Posts: 1,219	peebee, can you talk more about the details of how you solar and what cover crop you did? Thanks!! __________________ Subirrigated Container gardening (RGGS) in NY, Zone 7!

May 31, 2015	#8
peebee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Southern CA Posts: 1,714	Thanks Beeman, will try that. For you others that asked what I did, I made sure the ground was deeply irrigated before I solarized. That took a couple of days of slow drip as we never get rain here in summer. This was either late spring/early summer by the way. Then I covered the area with clear or opaque thick plastic and weighted the ends down with random rocks or small bricks. You can buy this plastic online, there are different thicknesses but I happen to work in an office that has a warehouse where I got these huge thick bags for free. I even used those huge bags that shipping peanuts come in, just doubled those as they were thinner and had some holes. I kept the cover on all summer long till it was time to order the cover crop seeds. I ordered from Peaceful Valley Farm Supply, got the Premium Soil Builder mix and also the innoculant, which I guess is important. I posted in the soil forum about the timing of when I should turn the cover crop into the soil. Various members told me I should've turned them in when they were smaller but that I could also cut them down and use them as mulch. I did sort of a combination of the 2 methods, cutting the crops down, turning as much as I could in, and keeping a lot as mulch. It makes good mulch, I was happy about that. When I came back from my trip in early April, the plants in the cover-cropped beds had grown so much that they totally covered the labels I had near the stems, so now I am not sure what exactly I have planted. Hopefully when the fruit ripens I will be able to tell, otherwise I will find the labels after the season is over. It's a happy problem !

May 30, 2015	#3
pauldavid Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NE Louisiana, Zone 8A Posts: 1,179	Big difference there Peebee!

May 30, 2015	#4
Tracydr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2011 Location: Laurinburg, North Carolina, zone 7 Posts: 3,207	What cover crop did you use?

May 30, 2015	#5
AlittleSalt BANNED FOR LIFE Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 13,333	When I use my wife's Galaxy tab for pics, I cut the size in half to post here. I wish I could remember the size by number - but half size. Peebee, I was already thinking of cover cropping this winter, but now I know I'm going to.

May 31, 2015	#10
Slg Garden Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Seattle area Posts: 76	Wow, that's an impressive contrast. This leads to more questions in my mind. Is the be fit from solarizing the soil or the cover crop? Is there any difference between planting a cover crop and peas or beans that we harvest? Now I'm confused about whether to plant a cover crop or to put down shredded leaves over the winter.

May 31, 2015	#12
Fiishergurl Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Oak Hill, Florida Posts: 1,781	That's amazing!! Thanks so much for sharing the results. The picture showing the difference is incredible. Ginny

June 1, 2015	#15
peebee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Southern CA Posts: 1,714	Sig Garden, Red Baron replied correctly about the leaves vs cover cropping, both have different benefits. I have also left leaves on some of my beds over the winter, they add bulk to the soil and improve it immensely. Cover crops are known as "green manure" as they add nitrogen mostly. I solarized just in case I had pathogens or anything bad in my soil after so many years of using it year-round in my climate, plus I have always just wanted to try it. Spider mites invaded for the first time too so I wanted to kill any last signs of them in the soil. Wanted to cover crop with a clean slate, as it were. Sadly, I discovered some mites on a couple of plants today, in an untreated bed, in my home garden . So far, not a sign of them on any tomatoes in the treated one. But you never know, it might be a matter of time. I'm just hoping the toms ripen asap so I can eat some before they take over. Alittlesalt, hee hee I was thinking of those songs too as I wrote this .