Today I went and dug up my garden plot, which is only about 4′ square.  It’s not very big, but since I’m out of shape and not very good at growing things, it’s probably a good size.  This year, I’ve decided to grow a Boiled Dinner garden.  All but one of the vegetables are standard ingredients in Corned Beef and Cabbage- i.e.: Cabbage, Potatoes, and Carrots. I’m also growing some beets because I had a free row to play with.

You can see a basic map of my garden to the right.  The carrots and beets are between the first and second line of soaker hose.  I planted those from seed today.

The cabbage plants (I bought starters) will go in between the second and third line of soaker hose.

Behind all of that, I’m going to plant the potatoes.  I’m using cut seed potatoes, which are drying in the sun right now.

The carrots are a Burpee “Touchon” variety, which they consider an heirloom type.  They are supposed to have a 65-day growing season, so we’ll see how that works out.  I’m a little worried about frost tonight, but since it’s the end of April, we’ll probably be safe after this.  I have to remember to thin them to 3″ spacing in a couple of weeks.

The beets are a “cylindrical” type from New Dimension Seeds, but I don’t have a specific cultivar name.  They’re supposed to make roots about 6″ long, which is cool.  The growing season should be 60 days, so right about the same as the carrots.  I’ll need to thin them to 3″ spacing as well.

I decided to skip the “Golden Bantam” variety of sweet corn this year even though it was actually developed in Greenfield.  I need to get my watering skills more developed before I try that.

I’m not sure what kind of cabbage I got, but they are certified organic starts from Atlas Farm down the road from me.  They should be ready in 55 to 100 days.  I’ll have to thin them to 18″ spacing eventually, so I’ll probably only get three or four heads.

I forgot what kind of potatoes I got.  I bought four seed potatoes at the Farmers’ Coop on High Street, but I didn’t write down the type.  They might have been “Red Pontiac” or “Kennebec”, but I can’t remember.  Like the cabbage, I’ll have to thin them, so I doubt that I’ll get more than two or three plants worth of potatoes.

In other words, I’ll get two or three “Boiled Dinners” out of my garden if I do everything right.  Let’s see how I do.