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Feb 5, 2012 7:56 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Phillip
brayton tn. (Zone 6b)
Canning and food preservation Region: United States of America Garden Ideas: Level 1
Starting.g with reclaming pine/ hardwood forest. We put the goats in to clear the scrub, then cut down the trees. Now I'm tilling and scraping the filled soil into 4ft X 16ft raised beds. Adding chicken bedding and goat bedding topped with wood ashes and leaf humus from the uncleared sections.

We will plant spring peas. ( any ideas as to when?). Innoculated with nitrogen fixing bacteria. Try to get 2 pickings. Cut the plants off at ground level. Feed them to the goats. Was thinking if following with three sisters in at least 2 of the beds. Black bush beans in 1 any suggestions for companion plants for the bush beans? Onions and garlic in one and my san marzano test plot in 2 more.
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Feb 10, 2012 11:10 PM CST
Name: Sandy B.
Ford River Twp, Michigan UP (Zone 4b)
(Zone 4b-maybe 5a)
Charter ATP Member Bee Lover Butterflies Birds I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Seed Starter Vegetable Grower Greenhouse Region: United States of America Region: Michigan Enjoys or suffers cold winters
Spring peas should be planted early, "as soon as the soil can be worked;" in other words, no need to wait until all chance of frost is past, they like cool temps. Three sisters, as in corn, squash and beans? My feeling is that this is intended for field corn, not sweet corn - in my experience it becomes quite a mess with trying to get to the corn to pick it! Garlic is usually fall planted, so you should take that into consideration. Not sure what the "black bush beans" are, but are you talking dry black beans? In a limited space you will get a lot more "bang for your buck" by growing snap beans, a 10-15 foot row might give you a pound or so of dry beans, but can produce one heck of a lot of string beans; and you might want to grow pole beans as they will produce longer and give you a lot more for a given area than bush beans, as well as being a lot easier to pick. Best of luck to you, starting from scratch in an area like you describe can be difficult, and will probably take a few years to really get productive; but you will certainly feel you have accomplished something in the end!
“Think occasionally of the suffering of which you spare yourself the sight." ~ Albert Schweitzer
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Feb 11, 2012 6:34 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Phillip
brayton tn. (Zone 6b)
Canning and food preservation Region: United States of America Garden Ideas: Level 1
It seems that finding a corn that is tasty at the milk stage and can handle pole beans is a concern. I'm thinking about "truckers delite"
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Feb 12, 2012 12:01 AM CST
Name: Horseshoe Griffin
Efland, NC (Zone 7a)
And in the end...a happy beginning!
I helped beta test the Garden Planting Calendar Charter ATP Member Garden Sages Hosted a Not-A-Raffle-Raffle I sent a postcard to Randy! I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database!
For our friend, Shoe. Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Enjoys or suffers cold winters Birds Permaculture Container Gardener
I wonder if Country Gentleman would be more to your liking. It's a longer maturing variety than Truckers Delight/Truckers Favorite so perhaps that will give you much stronger stalks to grow the beans up.

Other than that you'll have to go with a field corn and harvest at the proper stage (milk stage) for your "sweet corn". Field corns usually excell at thick stalks, excessive roots systems (for anchoring) and height.

As for "spring peas", you should get more than two pickings, especially if sown broadcast style, which I highly recommend for your new ground.

You may also want to check your soil pH before adding your wood ash. It's easy to bring your soil pH up to neutral but if you overdose with ash it will be a much longer and more tedious process to bring it back from alkaline to neutral.

Shoe
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