Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 16 Entries. Thursday, January 16 View Page Finished spreading 50 lbs of Mustard Meal Pellets and 100 pounds of ground Mustard Meal. This is my second (and final) mustard meal application in the offseason. I watered it in until a crust developed to seal in the gas. This is a great alternative to planting mustard for disease management. I have very little sunlight in the patch in the winter so growing mustard has had limited success. I have noticed that the meal works very well for weed suppression. One caution: I managed to get some of the ground meal between my shoe and my foot. Once it got some moisture there, I found out that it burns like hell. Don't get this stuff on your skin. It's hot enough to make your skin blister!!   Tuesday, January 21 View Page For those of you curious about the mustard meal, it is both a biological fungicide as well as a fertilizer. I’ve added quite a bit of it for a small patch, and will have to reconcile the nutrients in the spring. I like the fact that it’s got some sulfur in it because it seems like I am always chasing that element.   Friday, February 7 View Page Got this in the mail today. Very cool to share this award with so many great growers! Thanks Cindy for getting this to us.   Saturday, February 8 View Page Been about three weeks since the mustard meal was applied. We have had a couple light rains and the following days I’ve noticed this white mold on the surface. It looks almost like a layer of perlite. The factory rep says this is a good sign that the mustard is working.   Sunday, March 9 View Page I am expanding my patch this year such that it is lol. I’ve removed the cage. I built for growing tomatoes. Seems like the critters still managed to find a way in whether it was under or over. This area will give me room to run out a couple of long vines past the fruit. You can see I’ve started excavating out the old soil. Not only is it full of clay, it is also full of Verticillium wilt. There’s not much you can do about Verticillium wilt. It lasts for 10 to 15 years in the soil. There are no chemical products that really will control it. I will spray the bottom and sides of this trench with a high concentration of Hydrogen peroxide before putting in new dirt.   Monday, March 10 View Page This L-shaped area is going to be my new 150 square-foot patch. I’ve grown in this area before but only in about 60 ft.². Last year I managed to get a 441 pounder out of less than half of this spot. Like the other spot, I’ve grown tomatoes here for a long time and it’s full of grubs, verticillium wilt and just needs a fresh start. I will excavate it out also.   Tuesday, March 11 View Page My nematode test came back from Western lab. I was glad to only see two different types of nematodes on the list. Based on what I’ve read the pin nematodes are a potential risk as they feed on root tips. Does anyone have any guidance on this?   Tuesday, March 25 View Page The excavation is complete. My wife and I dug out over 4 tons of dirt and hauled it to the landfill. Nasty clay. This area is only 70 ft.² but it will allow me to extend the main patch and specifically grow out vines near the fruit.   Tuesday, March 25 View Page This is the other side and will ultimately be about 130 ft.². That’s double what I grew in last year here. I’ve got the ramp in place to wheelbarrow the new soil down into the hole. This area is a little wider so I will be able to let some side vines grow out.   Tuesday, March 25 View Page It’s here. And it’s wonderful. A rich sandy loam. A sample is already in the mail to get tested.   Tuesday, March 25 View Page For the next phase, I took my broad Fork and broke up the bottom of the trench. I sprayed it down with a hydrogen peroxide solution mixed at a 50:1 ratio. It will be a few days before I get the soil test back, but in the meantime, I layered in a good amount of perlite, a little bit of alfalfa meal, and a little bit of kelp meal. I also sprinkled in a little gypsum in the bottom of the hole. I don’t need a soil test to tell me I will need all of these things in some quantity.   Wednesday, March 26 View Page My wife and I have been filling in the new patch for the past couple days. I’d say we have moved about 7 of 10 yard so far. This soil was sourced from a grading contractor in Chino,California Before land got so valuable, Chino was the dairy capital of the country. As a result there is a la good amount of decades old manure in it.   Saturday, March 29 View Page Holy smokes!   Monday, March 31 View Page We sure can overcomplicate things in our seed starting efforts. These baby squash plants were germinated from seeds with no soaking and no sanding and nothing in the mix. Even the seats starting mix is basic. It’s just Jiffy Mix from Home Depot. These are just test pilots to practice germination techniques or they would’ve been transplanted by now. But they are nice and healthy seedlings so that’s a good thing.   Tuesday, April 1 View Page Seed starting day! Hello 2025!!   Tuesday, April 1 View Page In the dirt after a short soak.