Chance's Garden Everything Forum Blog

Chance Lunceford wrote:

Next up, watermelon.

Goals:

1) Direct seed
2) Diverse sizes, for personal and family use
3) Ample but not excessive seed
4) Improved drought/heat and pest/disease tolerance/resistance
5) Deliciousness
6) More stuff, but the above goals will take some work to achieve in my population and are my primary foci

As you can see, I've focused on diversity and icebox or smaller sizes. There are some larger sizes in there, and I'll save seed if they're successful, but my main focus is 20lbs or under.

Next up, tomatoes.

Goals:

1) Direct sow
2) Frost resistance for extended harvest
3) Naturalization in my project area and beyond
4) Disease resistance and drought tolerance
5) Deliciousness
6) Novelty and beauty

I've grown some of these before. Wild Boar tomatoes are magical in their stunning aesthetics, for example. However, I've got hundreds of varieties here pictured because of the mixes, swarms and grexes, in addition to the 30+ specific varieties here pictured.

I've included a large overview picture, and then some closer photos so you can read the varieties.

Second chip drop arrived today.

Not as big as I would have liked, but I'm still grateful and looking forward to putting the chips to use. I also immediately filed another drop request.

Buffalo Seed Company had a bunch of watermelon seeds that nobody else had, and I ordered all the offerings I didn't have.

Additionally, I'm bringing in a great variety of physalis varieties (and some jaltomata varieties) into the garden this year.

Looking for a variety of flavors, perennial offerings capable of overwintering in Z6, and self-sowing/naturalization in the future.

Just ordered about a dozen different varieties from Trade Winds Fruit.

I'll cover non-tomato/pepper nightshades in my seed collection in an upcoming continuation of the series.

Almond popped a radicle, so it's now potted.

Also just cut these blackberry tip-roots, because they're growing roots out the bottom.

And, a magnificent sunset.

Chance Lunceford wrote:These are the runner beans I've got to work with next year as I pursue a reliably perennial population to begin selecting from. I'll continue adding more when I find 'em.

Any suggestions?

I'm thinking about runner beans.

I have a dozen tubers from a pretty, productive, unnamed scarlet & creams flowered variety from my neighbour in damp year old leaf mould in the shed.

I want a lazy way of planting them out in the Spring.

We've got a fair chance of still having significant drought next year.  So I'm wondering about the pros & cons of trenching these tubers, and our saved seeds, with our home compost. Sunken beds seem to make sense in droughts.  Our main alternative approach would be mini-hugels of home-compost I think ..

My latest seed order.i included some 4 O'clocks because I had a yellow variety volunteer this year and I thought it was beautiful. Also, apparently 4 O'clocks demonstrate frequent transposon expression, the so-called jumping genes which can allow for different color expressions on the same plant (among other things), and that's a trait that fascinates me and is a delight to behold in the garden, so I'm gonna add them to my intentional plantings next year.

The tomato has super-tresses, a trait I'm always interested in exploring for the obvious reasone.

The peppers are part of my quest to develop some sweet pepper populations and push them towards the ability to produce a good crop without transplanting early starts. And also just to have some delicious sweet peppers.

I've added one more pea to a growing collection aimed at long season, heat tolerance, and healthy vigor.

Most of my seed projects are still at the spaghetti on the wall stage, but that's a fun stage to be in. Next year is going to be fascinating.

Ac Baker wrote:

So I'm wondering about the pros & cons of trenching these tubers, and our saved seeds, with our home compost. Sunken beds seem to make sense in droughts.  Our main alternative approach would be mini-hugels of home-compost I think ..

I use sunken growing spaces all over the place, given my high-desert environment. It makes a big difference. I like to incorporate wood like you would a hugel, even in sunken features. Just dig down deeper, add the wood and other organic matter, fill to desired level.

Also, I often burn the wood in the pit then smother it with soil, creating a char exoskeleton on the wood. In my experience, this improves water retention and speeds the breakdown into spongiform.

On a small scale, even if you're intending to lift the growing spaces above the level of the surrounding soil, I'd still recommend burying wood and then building up from there, rather than piling on top of the existing ground. Just helps create a retention space that'll more rapidly hold water and nutrients than the other approach.

But, as ever, you know your area better than I do, and you're the arbiter of earthworks. 😊

A store bought plum or pluot (had some mixed together) and cosmic crisp apple seeds (allegedly, 😎):

Chance Lunceford wrote:
I use sunken growing spaces all over the place, given my high-desert environment. It makes a big difference.

I like to incorporate wood like you would a hugel, even in sunken features. Just dig down deeper, add the wood and other organic matter, fill to desired level.

Sunken growing spaces are starting to make sense for us too.  This is especially the case if we're going to continue this year's pattern of going straight from the last frost into hot drought.

And, interesting thought about the wood!  As it happens, I have a small quantity of whole ramial branch wood just come available ..

On biochar: We're in a smokeless zone, so we're only permitted to burn diseased plant materials, and then only in November.

Ac Baker wrote:

On biochar: We're in a smokeless zone, so we're only permitted to burn diseased plant materials, and then only in November.

Oh. Oh no! It appears your newly acquired wood is diseased and needs to be partially burned, and then buried for good measure. Fortunately, it's currently November...😎

Latest seed order.

From Oak Summit Nursery. Really cool operation and, if you're in Canada, they offer an incredible assortment of plants, both cultivars and wild/breeding populations.

I'm not in Canada, so I was just glad they ship seeds to the US. There are some more seeds I may purchase from them at a later date.