This works like an effin' dream.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rainwater collection system

Here is a link that might be useful: GoodGreen Farm

Some of the features of this system include:

*This is a closed system to prevent mosquito breeding. The downspout fits perfectly into the barrel top.

*This is on a raised platform, so no need for a pump. (Platform has inletted joints and lag bolts for stability. Also the back of the platform was ramsetted into the brick wall).

*This system has an overflow mechanism

*The only modification he needed to make to his original plan was to add a centre beam under the platform as the weight of 4 full barrels caused the platform to sag a bit.

He did an awesome job if I do say so myself :) I planted Sweet Autumn Clematis and the thornless Zephirine Drouhin rose climber in front.

Check out the link below for the step by step pictorial.

Here is a link that might be useful: Step by Step Rainbarrel Pics

It really is important to know if your plants had Late Blight and not one of the more common fungal and/or bacterial foliage diseases, b'c if you had those then there could be a problem next year b'c those pathogtens can be shed to the doil, over winter and can then cause splashback infection.

Most of the time when plants are infected with LB within a couple of weeks they are a stinking mass of black tissue/

Have you checked any disease diagnosis websites? It's hard to sometimes Dx an infection disease b'c pictures are static but disease is progreessive.

I'll link below to TAMU which is a good site with good pictures and you might want to take a look at not just Late Blight, but also the foliage diseases;

Early Blight
Septoria Leaf Spot
Bacterial Spot
Bacterial Speck

Carolyn

Here is a link that might be useful: TAMU Tomato Problem Solver

Potteryboy; Bennett, Scott
jbenz; Benz, John
Pinebeltman; Boykin, Henry
Bigstump; Boykin, Mrs.
bellaflora; Brooker, Gerda
Boxcar; Buntyn, Hugh
Dablaw; Burris, David
davi; Davison, Judy
Cindy; Dye, Cindy
pigeonbob; Faulkner, Bob
gran; Gaskins, Mary
Gibby; Gibson, Donna
Daylilyjoe; Gordeau, Joe
jgossard; Gossard, Jamie
Golfer; Grace, Larry
Mike144mann; Grossmann, Mike
NDL; Harry, Nicole
Earthstar; Hartsell, Ed
Goldcoast; Holley, Stan and Bonnie
Queenlily2; Jeffcoat, Jim and Peggy
Thankyou; LaPrise, Ellen
lovelandlp; Loveland, Pat
Westend; Maddox, Tommy
Spunky1; Manning, Fred
Bubbles; Meadows, Mary Jane
Daredevil; Michaels, Linda
Buck; Miller, Michael
Perennialist; Miner, Keith
Jimary; Netherton, Jim and Mary
Ashwoody; Norris, Richard
pjinpa; Owen, Paul
Fishman; Phelps, Herbie
hawkeye; Pickles, Lee
efland; Piotrowski, Greg
Tbear; Polston, J.T.
OldFool; Reilly, Phil
Cosmos; Reinke, Bill and Joyce
Annette's Magic; Rice, Annette
Ruby; Sherman, Dale and Cindy
Celestial; Stadler, J.D.
naturesedge; Story, Gayle
JRT; Townsend, James
Lilybee; Waldrop, Bill
Vino; White, Dan
Daybloomer; Wilkerson, Nan

-t.r.s.

That will probably be enough light to keep them surviving, but not enough to thrive. I'm no expert, but it seems the plants have to be along in growth enough to bloom. It's not the age of the plant, but the maturity of it if that makes sense. GRIN

We do use 6500k bulbs. We used simple cheap 4 ft. fixtures from Home Depot. They were $9 with an electronic ballast which makes the bulbs last longer. The bulbs were bought in contractor packs and close to $3 each.

The more light the better that's why I have as much light as possible. I've learned about lighting from as you posted on the pot growers websites and from having Saltwater aquariums.

In our setup we have four 4ft. - 2 tube fixtures for 24 inches of bench width. The article below states 1 fixture for 8 inches in a bright sunroom, but believe me the more light the happier they are.

From here:

http://www.garden.org/foodguide/browse/herb/unusual/1338

Growing Herbs Under Lights
by National Gardening Association Editors

Even with a bright sunroom, sun-loving herbs will need 12 to 16 hours a day of supplemental light. You have two choices: fluorescent or high-intensity discharge (HID).

The brightness of a light is measured in either lumens or foot candles. Lumens refers to the amount of light at the source, foot candles to the amount of light falling on a given area. As you move farther away from a light, the lumens stay the same, but the foot candles decrease. For perspective, a typical bright but overcast day is about 1,000 foot candles, and a bright summer day at noon is about 10,000 foot candles.

Fluorescent Lights
Home gardeners have used fluorescent lights for starting seeds and growing plants for many years. Because their light intensity is low, they are best for seedlings and low-growing herbs so that even the lowest leaves are no more than 8 inches from the tube. A standard 4-foot unit with two 40-watt tubes will light an area about 8 inches wide. A variety of special tubes for growing plants are available, but a combination of standard cool- and warm-white tubes is also effective. Verilux tubes approximate the color of natural light and cost about $10 each. Vita-Lite "power twist" tubes produce somewhat more light per watt, and the quality of light is balanced for optimum plant growth, but they cost about $18 each.

Fluorescent lights at 6 inches provide 700 foot candles, and at 12 inches the light drops to 450 foot candles. Fluorescent efficiency, 60 to 80 lumens per watt, though superior to that of standard incandescent, is far below that of HID lamps. Cost is $30 to $60 for the fixture and tubes, and about $2 to $4 per month for electricity

Best,
Bruce

Also, I updated my spreadsheet and Polar Bear Express is my 100th daylily.

This fall will be the fifth year for me starting seeds. I tend to start mine beginning Dec, so they've been refrigerated for quite a while.

I don't do it as carefully as you, I use Promix in cups under lights, nothing fancy. However, prior to the last two years, I had virtually no problem with seeds...it made me a a bit confident, I'm afraid.

The last two years, I have had seeds mold...seeds that I would take out of the refrigerator moldy... I'm picky about who I buy from now...also, I make more of my own seeds each year.

One of the things that I've noticed this year...(from my own seeds) is that time matters. Some of my seeds appear to be maturing prematurely (I suspect the rust may push this) as the scapes are dying. Usually, those seeds are either too dry and crunch right in my fingers or they are mushy and damp. You can tell the difference, the more seeds you handle.

I don't necessarily think the wrinkling matters as long as the seeds are viable. You will get a feel for the seeds. I toss out any that don't feel right...for any reason.

What I was getting at is that it looks to me like six weeks or more (at least here) is required for good seeds. Some have dates from late June...which is pushing two months...and those seeds are usually always fine. I'm sort of at peak harvest right now...and I'm Zone 7...

So, I don't know this...but I suspect some sellers may be harvesting their seeds too soon. After I pick my pods, I dry them in little cups for a few days and then bag them, list them on my spreadsheet and refrigerate them.

It isn't just the money, (I've never asked for money back for purchased seeds that molded or rotted)...but, there's a lot of time, trouble, and work in bringing a seedling to bloom. My time and my money are valuable and I don't want to waste either.

That said, it's always a bit of a gamble. Here are a few sellers that I've bought from for years and always get good seeds (Since I'm buying less, I don't have to worry about the competition...lol...but, it's the least I can do for good sellers, right): Jeffbard aka Jeffb, Boxcar, Spunky1, Sandlapper and Yardman. Of those, Yardman will sell later as he grows further north. I also bought from Dot here on gw (Ladylovingdove) last year (and this year!) and was happy with my seeds. And Shelly from GA, too. I don't think you'll go wrong with any of those sellers....if the seeds don't germinate well from them, well (laughing), then it probably is you (kidding)!

*Disclaimer....just because I didn't mention someone doesn't mean they are or aren't good....those were just the first ones that came to mind.

Good luck, Andrea....and don't give up. Just curious, are you planting these outside as it seems early to grow them indoors until next spring?

The plants are under lights until it's time to go outside. My lighting is on two shelves and consists of three 2 bulb T-12 florescent fixtures, and three small 3 foot-2 bulb fixtures. The T-12 bulbs are 6400K daylight bright. I don�t recall the ratings of the smaller ones, but they were on sale cheap. The lights are on for about 18 hours and off for 6. I can definitely see a significant plant growth rate difference between the two different florescent sizes. Seedlings "graduate" from the smaller lights to the larger setup. Temps are maintained at 72F-76F.

I have a screened-in porch which faces South-Southeast and the plants are staged there to get used to the outside.

At plant out, in a large wheelbarrow I put a bag (2 cu ft) of potting mix and then add about three heaping shovels of Black Kow composted manure, two handfuls of powdered dolomite lime, and a couple handfuls of generic slow release 10-10-10 fertilizer. Mix well. I don't fill the buckets to the top at first planting. I do about 2/3's full and plant the seedlings as deep as possible. Then as the plant gets larger, I will trim bottom leaf branches (as required) and topdress with additional mix and some fertilizer (I use Tomato-Tone). I do this a couple times during the growing season. As the plants get larger and needs more roots to deliver water and nutrients, the additional mix covering the stem will allow new roots to grow (the upper part that gets buried) AND the new soil and additional micro-nutrients seem to rejuvenate the plants.

Note that the whole process focused on producing the most robust and vigorous root system that the plant can grow. I agree with my friend, Ami. Healthy plants are better able to resist diseases and healthy root systems give healthy plants.

After decades of growing tomatoes both in-ground and in containers, I now prefer the containers. This is because I am better able to control more of the plant's environment.

Hope this helps someone out there.

Ted

I put on a pair of dollar store wool gloves overtop of a pair of dishwashing gloves and soaked the gloves in the neem mix, I coated the underside of every plant leaf with this solution by simply cupping the gloves together with the stem in the middle of my cupped gloved hands, and this gets each underside leaf wet with the solution as well as dislodging any eggs, starting from the bottom/base and moving up the plant in a cupping-like fashion.

I dip the gloves into more solution for each plant, coated the leaves and dripped the excess on the ground near the base of each lily and move on to the next plant.

My lilies were dessimated last year but this year, I've killed about 40 adults and with the wet-glove treatment, manage to elimating the underside of the leaves of eggs. I have maybe 6 leaves with slight damage from the initial adults that I've subsequently squashed and I repeat the neem oil glove trick every two weeks to keep the underside of the leaves 'egg free'.

I may slow down and only do this treatment monthly now as there hasn't been a slug or adult in sight since I started doing this in early May..I have approximately 60 lilies stalks out there so it takes about 1/2 hour to do this 'stem in wet gloved hand' trick. But if it means I'm reducing the overall population and keeping the eggs from developing into slugs - I'm happy and so are my lilies.

Here is my set-up... a 3 season porch with lots of single pane glass. left to it's own devices low 20's or teens in cold weather. I often try to winter over patio plants to save the $100-$200 dollar annual investment. Perfectly south facing window that gets an honest 6-7 hours of direct sun. First problem is heat and then the light issue. Some cheap Lowes window shrink plastic covers and 3" air gaps solved the basic insulation problems. A small 500w heater keeps the room at appropriate 60 night to 70 daytime temps. Here is an overall shot of my set-up with a 400w metal halide light in place.

As you can see there are quite a few plants gathered around my single light source. With most of them I'm not looking for an aggressive growing situation, just some minor bushing and an increase in overall vigor so that they're ready to really take off when they go back outside in the spring. You may be wondering about the big weird-looking screen suspended above the rear plants. Its made out of poultry net mounted in a 3 by 6 foot PVC pipe frame. This would yield an 18 square foot growing area, but due to the 11 inch deep curve in it you end up closer to 23 feet. I will explain the exact function and methodology of this screen and its use at a later date when I've actually started to use it. The main attraction here is these guys.

To the left we have a Burpee Big Boy hybrid, which is a large Beefsteak type tomato. The the right is Burpee's Big Momma hybrid, which is a large Roma type. Both plants are just finishing their 3rd week of life in the tubs, 4 weeks from seed. You may note the somwhat unusual looking containers in which they are planted, especially if you noticed the blue aquarium air hose snaking out of the left one. Let me explain:

Inside the tubs is a unique growing medium consisting of coconut moss, vermiculite, pearlite and compost resting on a 4 inch bed of lava rock. The rock is completely submerged in a water bath. The depth of the bath is maintained by a side overflow drain which sits at exactly 4 inches from the bottom of the tub. This allows me to water them with a can the traditional way but maintains the water level and makes sure the medium above never gets "soupy". At the bottom of the bath rests a 12 inch aquarium bubbler wand that constantly injects the bath and the medium above it with air. This oxygenates the entire medium, encouraging the growth of beneficial aerobic bacteria and killing off pesky anaerobic bacteria; technically making it a hydroponic system. However, unlike most hydroponic rigs it is mostly compromised of organic matirial and is thusly capable of supporting a full-fledged Mycorrhizae fungal colony which lives in a symbiotic relationship with the tomato roots. The fungus chelates all of the minerals for the plants, prevents dehydration, balances the PH and acts as a secondary immune system to fight off unwanted intruders. All of this makes for furiously aggressive growth from the tomatoes, it is an optimum environment for nutrient uptake, water retention and oxygenation. I feel that it has advantages over both traditional soil growing and hydroponic setups; the best of both worlds. It is much lower maintenance than most common hydroponic setups as most of the nutrients are loaded into the medium up front. I use organic nutes almost exclusively: Blood meal, coffee grounds, wood ash, garden sulfur, fast-acting lime and an organic mix called Bio-tone starter plus (contains feather meal, grab meal, guano, greensand and bone meal). The medium contains two special additives: Soil Moist granules to help it retain moisture (very important due to the light spongy nature of the medium) and Hydro Organics' Mycorrhizae Super Pack (a form of dry fungus spores). Over the course of their lives the tomatoes will receive fish emulsion for a nitrogen boost, corn-cob ash for potassium (very important) and bloom burst (my only salt fertilizer, just one teaspoon per season) for phosphorous. Other than the dry mycorrhizae spores (which aren't completely necessary because the Bio-Tone mix comes pre-loaded with a small variety of beneficial spores) all of these materials are readily available to anyone from a variety of local sources. I have gotten everything from Lowes, Ace Hardware and my local pet store.

Aside from my fancy bubbler tubs and the screen I use one other special technique not often seen in indoor tomato gardening: Supercropping.

This is a shot of Big Momma's stem, which is far bigger around than the #2 pencil I forgot to include in the shot for scale. It is positively monstrous for a 4 inch tall plant, bigger than stems I have seen on 12 inch plants from my local nursery. This is achieved through the technique I referred to as supercropping. Its a simple practice though it intimidates many growers who are frightened of the potential harm it could do. It takes a little practice but let me make this clear before I even explain it. Supercropping will not kill your plants. It won't, really, honest, I promise. All you do is once the sprouts have become established in their final grow medium, around the one week mark usually, take the stem section between your thumb and forefinger and squeeze gently while making a slight alternating twisting motion. There will be a tiny crushing sound and you will feel the phloem (the veins that carry things downstream towards the roots) give way and be crushed slightly. The plant will droop and look very sad and you will feel horrible, which makes it all the more difficult to continue doing this all up and down the main stem section. However, if you didn't wuss out, when you come back the next day the plant will have righted itself and the stem will have grown noticeably thicker. You must continue this practice as the plant grows new stem sections. If you are diligent this is the result:

You will note that the distances between each leaf (the internodal gaps) are very short, always less than an inch and in some places as little as a quarter of an inch. This is somewhat attributed to the metal halide lamp I'm using, but the extreeme degree to which it occurs is all down to the supercropping. You can see in the main stem section right above the two suckers where it tapers down significantly. This is a spot that I had not crushed yet so as to illustrate the difference in diameter between pinched and non-pinched stem sections. You will also note that where I hadn't crushed it is far and away the largest internodal gap on the plant. Diligent supercropping results in more vigorous plants that do a better job of holding themselves up and most importantly don't get to an out-of-control height in the limited space of indoor growing.

The lamp currently in place is a 400 watt Metal Halide high bay acquired from a local business currently in the process of replacing all of their HID lamps with more efficient T5 florescents. In a few weeks it will be swapped with a pair of 400 watt high pressure sodium lamps. I will write more on the lighting in the coming weeks as it becomes more pertinent. And now, some additional pictures:

Fat Momma

Big Boy

Wide shot

This is Big Boy and in the background is a tomato plant that is identical to him in almost every way. It came from the same bag of seeds and was sprouted on the same day. They have been given the same nutrients, bathed under the same quality of light, treated with the same Mycorrhizae spores and even have roughly the same growing medium. The only difference between this one and Big Boy is that Big boy lives in one of my bubbler tubs and the other lives in a traditional pot, yet the difference between the two of them is huge.

Well, thats about it, I've covered most of the general things that I feel sets my grow apart from others and/or may interest you guys. Feel free to ask any questions about specifics, comment, criticize or congratulate at your digression. I'd be happy to answer any questions about construction or the acquiring of materials to anyone who would be interested in employing some of these techniques themselves, or to anyone interested in why exactly I think this way is better. Happy growing and I hope you all have a great holiday!

Parmigian Sun-Dried Tomato Bread (Bread Machine)
1 1/4 cups water
2 tablespoons oil that tomatoes are in
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons powdered milk
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups white bread flour
6 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil (1/2 tsp fresh)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 Tblsp Parmigiana cheese

Add Water, Salt, Flour, Lemon Juice, Powdered Milk, Oil, yeast. Add remaining ingredients last 3 minutes of final knead cycle. If you are making rolls (which is what I usually do, I take the dough out at end of 2nd knead cycle. Roll into 2" balls and place in Pam sprayed muffin tins. Bake 30 minutes at 350. I just keep checking them.
These freeze beautifully and it is so handy to pull a few out of a vacuum sealed bag or ziplock. This is a dense bread.

I grow 15 mainstay varieties that I have kept as I culled others that did not meet my criteria.
I also try at least 5 new varieties of paste types each year and am lucky if one makes it into my �gherd�h. I am looking for specific things:

� Meaty with a low moisture content
� Few seeds
� A rich and tangy flavor
� Size-Small tomatoes are just more work for me.
� Not fussy-Take heat and cold and wind. No primadonnas!
� Bloom well and set lots and lots of fruit
� Indeterminate
� Dry to a nice pliable consistency

These are my Top Five
Chinese Giant
Carol Chyko
Cuoro D Toro
Opalka
San Marzano Redorta

I wanted to add that were I to be stranded on a desert Island with only one tomato it would be Russo Sicilian Togeta. This is my allstar that sets fruit first, ripens the earliest, bears heavy crops in any weather and is producing right up until hard frost. It is not a true paste but rather a stuffing tomato. None-the-less, the flavor of these dried is as good as it gets. It is also wonderful for just eating or slicing and the fruit is extra large.

For those wanting to know my Secret Recipe for drying, here you go:

Wash, stem and slice each tomato into 1/4" thick slices. Place in a very large bowl or clean bucket and cover with cheap red wine. I use Merlot but if you prefer something else, knock yourself out. I have a friend that swears by cheap Chianti! Soak tomato slices 24 hours in the wine. Drain well. Lay tomatoes just touching on dehydrator shelves or on screen in your sun-drying apparatus. Sprinkle each slice with a mixture containing equal parts of dried basil-oregano-parsley and then sprinkle each slice with Kosher Salt. You may choose to forego the salt if you wish but tomatoes will take longer to dry. Dry tomatoes until they are firm and leatherlike with no moisture pockets, but NOT brittle. (If you get them too dry, soak them in lemon juice for a few minutes.) To store, place in vacuum bags or ziplock bags and freeze.

IMPORTANT!!! If you will be storing sun-dried tomatoes in Olive oil you !!!MUST!!! dip each slice in vinegar before adding to oil.

To pack in oil:
Dip each tomato into a small dish of white wine vinegar. Shake off theexcess vinegar and pack them in olive oil adding 1/4 cup red wine. For tomatoes in oil I am selling, I put the tomatoes into the oil two weeks ahead of time and store in the refrigerator. Make sure they are completely immersed in the oil. When the jar is full, cap it tightly. I use my vacuum sealer to seal the canning lids on. Store at *cool* room temperature for at least a month before using. They may be stored in the refrigerator, but the oil will solidify at
refrigerator temperatures (it quickly reliquifies at room temperature however). As tomatoes are removed from the jar, add more olive oil as necessary to keep the remaining tomatoes covered. I have stored oil-packed tomatoes in m root cellar for over a year. . I have tried a number of methods to pack the tomatoes in oil, but the vinegar treatment is the difference between a good dried tomato and a great one. It is also important from a food safety standpoint, as it acidifies the oil and discourages growth of bacteria and mold. Soaking in the wine also acidifies them.

****** WARNING ********

Do *NOT* add fresh garlic cloves or fresh herbs of any kind to oil-packed dried tomatoes, UNLESS you store them in the refrigerator and plan on using them withing 7 days. Garlic is a low-acid food which, when placed in oil, creates a low-acid anaerobic environment just
perfect growth medium for botulinum bacteria if the mixture is not refrigerated. Be safe and add your garlic to the dried tomatoes as part of the recipe for them *after* they come out of the oil.

Man oh man. If those guys start growing, I wish you well!
This is only my second year growing sugar baby watermelons so I'm no expert. However, I will share my experience so far.
1. Those little hot hats from CdnTire accelerate growth of the small plants by about 100% at the start of the season. Literally twice as big. Shove them under and don't remove until the whole thing is full (plant will look cramped).
2. Sun and heat are essential. Last year my plants had a slow start (cool summer) and didn't grow fast. The vine just died once it got cool and the dozen small fruit that were left just shrivelled up. This year I have numerous small fruit and one about 3" across. About 3 weeks earlier than last year. I use black mulch under them.
3. I've got 2 plants and they have sprouted about 7, five foot long vines each (and still growing). I have them trained on two 7' tall trellises that are half overgrown already. I don't know what to suggest to you when they do start growing. The melons are heavy and need a really sturdy trellis if you want to grow vertically (mine is rebar).
4. Harvest: I waited for the sugar baby to turn dark green, but I was way off on the peak time to harvest. I have no wisdom for you. I picked way too early. The best fruit we had was the last one which we picked about 1 month after it had turned dark green.

Here's a pic of last year's watermelons. This year looks just about the same.

Like I said, I'm no expert, but hopefully I've passed along some info you can use either this season or the next.

Items from Walmart type garden center, 40 lb. bags of Composted Peat Humus, 40 lb. bags of Composted Cow Manure, Epson Salt and Bonemeal and Espoma Tomato-tone� 4-7-10 fertilizer or equivalent .

In raised beds, after tilling, I dig good sized holes about 2 feet across, scattering the soil around the hole. Then to each hole I add � bag of the peat humus, 1/4 bag of the manure, then I scatter about the hole a handful each of Epson salts, Bonemeal and Espoma. Then I use a spade fork to mix the formula VERY well some inches beyond the depth and width of the original hole. If plants are indeterminate they should be planted at least 4 feet apart.

I then, using my hands, I make a hole in the center of this mixture and plant the seedlings. If seedlings are tall I strip off the leaves except for the top few inches, and lay it at an angle or on its side in the hole and cover up to the leaves. Then I form a 4 inch deep water holding basin [a crater] about 1 1/2 feet across and around the plant, then mulch the plants and bed with straw or grass clippings, then water. Last I spread a handful of granular fertilizer such as Espoma Tomato-tone� 4-7-10 on top of the mulch around the plants so it will leach into soil over time and feed the outer roots for they grow wide and deep. I use concrete wire cages 18-20 inches across and anchor them with rebar driven deep next to the cage. When I have to water, if I don�t get rain in 7-10 days, I stick an open ended hose at the base of the plants and give them a couple gallons.

Never over water. The plant�s leaves will tell you they�re thirsty by drooping a bit. As the plants grow, to help prevent leaf disease, trim any branches that droop and touch the mulch.

During late summer if I think they need it I'll give each plant a couple gallons of fish emulsion or what ever liquid type I have. And if you have leaf problems, get started early using Daconil as soon as you plant, even saturate the mulch around the base as well as top and bottom of leaves.

I can't say this is the best way to do it, but it works for me.

Earl

For the breading I mix bread crumbs (italian style and panko) with flour (about 50/50) with more pepper (fresh cracked & lemon pepper), creole seasoning, garlic & onion powders, and cayenne.

Pull a slice from the buttermilk, let it drip off the excess, dredge in the crumb/flour mix and put in hot canola oil. Leave the rest of the tomatoes in the buttermilk while you are cooking the first batch.

yummy