Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 19 Entries. Monday, January 1 View Page We hope that everyone has a fun and successful 2024 growing season.   Thursday, February 22 View Page Seed selection is done and we hope to add another plaque to the wall again some day. In an effort to accommodate that dream, we are going with what should be, some awesome big and orange producers. Thanks to Glenn H and Ned S for the great seeds, I hope to do them proud.   Wednesday, March 20 View Page Happy first day of Spring everyone. For me, by far the best seed starting medium on the market is Premier Pro Mix HP with Mycorrhizae. We also use bales and bales of it in planter boxes, hanging baskets and general use in the garden. We will also use it this year along with super compost and fish compost in our vine burying mix.   Thursday, March 21 View Page Larger hoophouses will be used for starting the plants this year, certainly an upgrade from our home made hooptie houses that were quickly outgrown by the plants. This one is 10x7x7 and will be taken off when the plant outgrows it. Soil heating cables and overnight heater and fan to be installed next.   Thursday, March 21 View Page This hoop will likely get the 839 Sandercock and be grown downhill towards the centre boards. We will install the bigger 20x10x7 new hoophouse in the lower half of the pumpkin patch and it will start 2 plants back to back. Each plant has its own quadrant of 875 square feet and we will grow 3 competition plants plus 2 prizewinner plants will share one growing spot.   Friday, March 22 View Page 4 out of 4 seeds have broken the ground and are reaching for the lights.   Tuesday, March 26 View Page I’ll try and limit my posting with seedlings, the 1842 Hoornstra ripped off its second cot leaf so I’ve started another one. The other 3 seedlings look great.   Wednesday, March 27 View Page Vineman was asking about heat mat and soil temperature so I checked it out myself on our seedlings. At 6 inches down, the moist-ish potting mix is at 90 degrees. That’s a little warm for my comfort so I’m going to put something in between them to knock down the temperature slightly.   Wednesday, April 3 View Page 1995.5 Hoornstra was planted today in the greenhouse into prewarmed and amended planting spot. The seedlings have all been under lights for 12 days and are all ready to be planted. The larger greenhouse will be installed tomorrow along with soil heating cables and heater for overnight. Back to back plants will be in the second greenhouse and I’ll have a couple backup plants just in case they are needed.   Thursday, April 4 View Page We put the other hoophouse in place and will install the soil heating cables, heater and fan. The 2212 Chan, 1842 Hoornstra and 929 Sandercock are still doing great under lights but I have only room for 2 more plants. Dilemma.   Sunday, April 7 View Page In front on the left is 2212 Chan and next to it is the 1842 Hoornstra, they are going head to head for that spot. By itself in the back and going the other way is the 839 Sandercock. These plants didn’t get planted until today, so they were 16 days under lights. I’ve got the temperature controls figured out in the new hoophouses, nice and cozy warm in there 24/7.   Sunday, April 7 View Page Digging in some final amendments and fluffing up the soil before I add a few walking boards in the right spots. Nice to be planted early, I hope the Saanich Fair considers adding GPC status to that longstanding giant pumpkin contest in Victoria on Vancouver Island.   Thursday, April 11 View Page I needed to replace our old indoor/outdoor thermometers and found this little beauty on Amazon for $40 Canadian. It comes with 3 outdoor units and shows temperature and humidity numbers and is perfect for my needs, #1 is outdoor temp, #2 is greenhouse one, #3 is second greenhouse and bottom display is indoor unit. Comes with high and low temperature alarms, and also has minimum/maximum daily temperature records so you can dial in your heating and cooling.   Sunday, April 14 View Page It’s been 1 week in the ground. 839 Sandercock in the back got a few more bamboo stakes added after this photo as it starts laying down. 2212 Chan on the left in front is also on its way to running and the 1842 Hoornstra on the right is doing better also after a slow start. I’ll have to eliminate one of them soon. Fortunately for me, the other greenhouse has the 1995.5 Hoornstra which is leader of the pack, best plant to this date.   Sunday, April 14 View Page 1995.5 Hoornstra is also growing well and I’m happy the heater keeps inside above 50 degrees on the colder nights. The goal was never below 60 degrees overnight, but it’s been clear and cold here and has been a chilly 35-40 in the mornings with frost delays at the golf course.   Thursday, April 18 View Page 10am here with outside (#1) getting warmer, full sun today. Inside greenhouses (#2&3) nice and toasty warm, just opened the doors and you can see by the display that the temperatures are coming down. Neat toy, I like it.   Thursday, April 25 View Page 2212 Chan in the front and 839 Sandercock in the back with the Exhale CO2 bag hanging between them. I’ve ordered a CO2 monitor but I cheaped out and didn’t get the wireless model. I’ll post the numbers here for both hoophouses since they are different sizes. It will be a great experiment, since I can easily get CO2 numbers inside with and without the Exhale bags present. I love numbers, there will likely be a spreadsheet and colour bar graph of some kind for the results.   Sunday, April 28 View Page Here is our Australian Cattle Dog (aka Blue Heeler) on duty at the Arbutus Ridge Golf Club. She is making sure the fairways, greens and ponds are clear of the pesky flocks of Canadian geese. Many areas have problem geese (golf courses, parks, lakes, farmers crops) and Tova has been specially trained to only clear the Canadian Geese and not anything else.   Sunday, April 28 View Page 1995.5 Hoornstra needed the kickstand leaf (2nd true leaf) trimmed off so that the vine could lay down safely, and now I see that the first true leaf is looking old and will likely get the chop as soon as more leaves are on the scene. Some mild chlorosis from some chilly nights and cold surrounding soil outside the heated soil cable area. Things are warming up now, soil biology should be working but I still might add some Ureamate and Masterblend to a watering and a foliar feeding to give it a mild boost.