I've been using a balanced organic granular, some bone meal, and some miracle grow bloom booster with some fish emulsion added. I used regular miracle grow early in the season and got a lot of vegetative growth, but not as much production as I would have liked. I switched to bloom booster and they seem to be putting out more flowers again.

I use Heritage Gravity S 20-20-20. Good price for 25lb bag. They were doing free shipping. Not sure if they still are.

https://heritageppg.com/collections/water-soluble-plant-nutrition/products/gravity-s-20-20-20

When do yall start your fall garden, direct sow.
Brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower

Thought i had posted a couple of days ago, but I do not see it, so here it goes again.

We are closing in on retirement and the spousal unit want a garden in place for spring...and would be even happier if she could plant onions and carrots for this winter.

I have not gardened in 25 years, and its been 40 since I started one from scratch. There's some South Texas gardening knowledge in the dusty recesses of my mind, but that area has a lot of cobwebs and is not well lit. We are in North Texas, near denature, so wetter than S. Tx, but the winters will be colder.

We have a 25' x 45' area on the side of the house we are starting with. The soil is horrible! Six inches of silty sand on top of clay. The area currently has bermudagrass sod.

Question #1: Do I Roundup the sod, then till it under after its dead or do I need to remove it (maybe to transplant into some bare areas in the back? Seems like I need all the organic matter and soil and can get.

Question #2: How much amendment do I need? I'm thinking a bobtail dump truck 8-10 yards) of topsoil and another truck load of mulch, That should add about 6" to the entire garden and end up 10 - 12" soil over the clay. I figure after a couple of tillings, I'll send a sample in and see what I needed up with and what else I need to do.


What am I missing here?

Just go with a raised garden. Easier and easier on your back

6" of Silty on top clay isn't that bad. You don't need to go too drastic. I'd blanket the area with Sethoxydim(Over the top II) Approved for gardening. Probably take a couple apps and a never ending battle with bermuda in beds. Till in compost and expanded shale. You can take amendments as far as you want, most probably aren't necessary. I do raised beds and top off my beds with just compost every spring. Nothing wrong with inground gardening at all. Just get out there and get after it and have fun. Onions are easy. I have no doubt you will be able to grow her great carrots and onions next year. I'd start bed prep now with the Seth spray and work in amendments worked in a couple weeks.

Looking up Sethoxydim now. I'm assuming I need to water and green up the Bermuda before I kill it.

Yeah I would hit it with some cheap fert to get it to green up and then kill it. Fair warning. Setho smells horrible

Or you can get a 50lb bag of ammonium sulfate and just fertilize with that to get it to green up. You'll need that to fert your onions with anyway

Peppers and tomatoes have reversed their output now that it really hot. My "put in late because I couldn't find them" jalapenos are making good and my tomatoes have all but stopped. I think it's the kind of 'maters I planted but I have also noticed there are not nearly enough pollinating bugs this year. I need to plant more roses ... all the ones I had when I bought the house in 2005 are now gone after the freeze of 2021. My cannas all disappeared as the iris took them over ... and iris are long gone before I need them for attracting bees, etc.


Worse than the fish-based organic fert my wife uses on house plants that I have used in weak spots in the yard?

Keep you peppers watered and fertilized. They will make a banger fall crop. My pepper is always better in the fall. Mine are blooming well and tomatoes are putting off new growth. Hope the tomatoes produce for fall. Neither of those need pollinators. They are wind pollinated. And yes. I think Setho smells worse than fish fert. But it's close.

Good to know.

I have two cherry tomato plants that are small still despite being healthy. They are next to each other and both have three dozen flowers minimum... and have since I put them in months ago. Neither has set ANY fruit.

Another plant that was supposed to be an Early Girl but makes fruit more like a Roma is setting fruit again. One grew massive amounts of limbs, etc. but has stopped flowering. I've topped it a few times and it keeps running away.

Jalapenos are doing well but my Fresno peppers are thin skinned and tough. Taste good though.

I grow jalapenos to pickle.

If you are going to start seeds now what are you guys starting for the fall that may never come?
I just started some Baby Choy, White Chard and Broccoli Rabe and some spinach, more than likely these will wind up as micro greens but what can you do..
Hoping to see some starters at the garden centers at some point, maybe around mid-September?

Payne. Don’t think I’ve given you an update in a while. Tank unexpectedly died earlier this year. Fine one day and dead the next. No idea why. Maggie is doing great. The other big is one I was going to babysit for a few months and it’s been two year now lol. I added 3 babies earlier this year. I keep the bigs and the babies in separate enclosures for now. Got them together for a family pic for you.

Pulled up my failed Fresno peppers and a few tomato plants that were done with their life cycle. Jalapenos still making and the dumb cherry tomatoes that did nothing all summer are starting to go.

I had great pepper harvests this year, pulled the plants today and took the last ones for the season.

I plan on doing a few more varieties next year. I made some really good hot sauce from a mix of chilies. Turned out amazing and what I’ll do with these as well. (Except for the bell peppers)

Peppers: Anaheim, Jalapeño, Tabasco peppers
Smoked the peppers until soft a little charred
Water
White vinegar
2 heaping tablespoons smoked paprika
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon onion powder
5 cloves garlic