Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 35 Entries. Saturday, February 20 View Page I used too much malted barley (freshly ground) as top dress. It becomes concrete....but on the bright side, saw tons of baby worms. The eggs survived months sitting around in my homemade soil. The soil was mixed in December. The barley has enzymes which help soil microbes, which feeds worms, who help nutrient cycling...so says Ted hussey.   Saturday, February 20 View Page Mixed soil Nutrients recipe. Watered and sat for another month before planting giant onions. Thanks Kevin at giantveg! 7.5 gallons is 1 cubic foot Measured Wet except coco coir 1 cf worm castings 1 cf Malibu 2 cf rice hulls 2 cf coco coir 1/2 cup alfalfa meal 1/2 cup fish bone meal 1/2 cup organic Neem meal 1/2 cup organic Kelp meal 1/2 cup Crab meal or Crustacean meal 4 cups of Mineral Mix aka rock dust 1. 2 Parts BuildASoil Basalt - Trace Minerals and High Paramagnetic Energy 2. 1 Part Gypsum - Locally Mined in Colorado - Calcium and Sulfur 3. 2 Tablespoons Sul-Po-Mag per CF also known as langbeinite - Has Sulfur, Potassium and Mag 4. Premium Montomorillonite 1/2 cup per cf....oops   Wednesday, June 9 View Page Squash vine borer have arrive to savage mn. I use the Holland yellow traps and 2 of those monsters arrived today. Growing a field kin and many other smaller giants this year.   Saturday, June 19 View Page Haven't taken any pics yet. But here is a picture of what I have been doing...custom canvas. Growing this year.... 1 Carrot (from giantveg) (started 2 in january) 2 green peppers (from giant veg) 1 field pumpkin (133.40 Wursten 2016) 8 tomato plants (from my 4.13) 12 onions (giantveg) 2 cucumbers (Ely mn growers 20 pounder)   Friday, July 23 View Page Field pumpkin....about a dozen on the plant. I won't cull because....just want to do something different this year.   Sunday, July 25 View Page Obligatory kid photo shoot   Sunday, July 25 View Page The kid photos are getting old   Sunday, July 25 View Page Geez we get it...your kid is cute. Let's see the garden!   Sunday, July 25 View Page Kins on the port side   Sunday, July 25 View Page If I see that kid again I'll go to a respectable diary like that guy who talks to himself in third person. Whats up with that?   Sunday, July 25 View Page Oh yeah there it is. Oh baby.   Sunday, July 25 View Page Yes! More of that!   Sunday, July 25 View Page Keep it coming now. No kids. Just pure giant vegetable hedonism.   Sunday, July 25 View Page And an onion just for fun 16"   Sunday, July 25 View Page And the medium giant in the garden a green pepper   Sunday, July 25 View Page Onion. Gotta love technology   Thursday, July 29 View Page First cucumber at 25" and shy of 10 lbs...a squirrel started munching it. We need rain bad.   Friday, July 30 View Page Pepper.....meh   Friday, July 30 View Page Not bad but not great   Saturday, July 31 View Page I made a homemade soil mix for the seedlings back in January. I made a second this week to top dress on the pumpkin to push it home. It's expensive but I think it reduces the amount of daily admentments. This fall I'd like to make a huge batch but that might break the bank. I found my recipe at kis organics and buildasoil. Kis organics has a ln amazing podcast for growers.   Friday, August 6 View Page Field pumpkins, the three sisters...starting to turn orange   Saturday, August 14 View Page On vacation--mn to yellowstone and back--and my security cam keeping an eye on the spectators. People taking a peek at the giant onions and field pumpkins in the NE corner. Seriously, growing giants brings out the child in everyone.   Sunday, August 22 View Page Carrot hanging in there. Had to scrape some and apply Sulfur on a crack since it finally rained. Started in February and seems to be deep. My last carrot was 6 inches deep and 8" wide. Lol....there's a name for that.   Sunday, August 22 View Page 2nd biggest I've grown....scale will tell....23x20x19   Sunday, August 22 View Page Field pumpkins....10 kins on the plant in an 18x18 raised bed. Average seems to be 40 lbs...low 20lbs and high 100 lbs.   Monday, August 23 View Page Grew 1.25 in since yesterday. Clearly turning red doesn't mean it's done. I picked it because the sides were cracking, not just the top. I will water more consistently next year...biggest lesson in a drought. Haha   Tuesday, August 24 View Page Small for giants but huge for eaters.   Friday, August 27 View Page MN St fair!   Friday, August 27 View Page Onion, carrot, and tomato 1st....cucumber and bell pepper 2nd. Doesn't say much when you're one of two entries or the only entry haha   Saturday, August 28 View Page 71.8...the biggest, not around anymore, exploded on me as I was weighing it. I about barfed. Oh god the smell. I was struggling so est is 100.   Saturday, August 28 View Page Next round of matters off my 4.4. Coincidentally, my state fair entry was 4.4. It lost 4 Oz in 2 days! Picked at 4.8.   Friday, September 10 View Page State fair winning tomato got thrown away...oh well. But my carrot got a few seconds on the Jason show! Probably have to thank farmer brown for dragging a camera crew around with that giant exhibition tomato. Weighed all the field pumpkins....got over 500 lbs for caring and pie.   Friday, September 10 View Page There it is, 4.44 officially but not gpc official lol.   Sunday, October 10 View Page 166 ott and about 85 lbs holding it on scale without a proper weight belt...haha. could not get the scale to settle on a number with my wobble Anyways....fun painting the wursten or horde. I can't remember.   Monday, October 11 View Page The line up minus the 85lber, minus the broken one my neighbor jumped on.