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A quality brand fertilizer will take care of any problems with the ph thingy, and Lime............but, usually, there are folks at the County level who can test the soil for you. Some Colleges/Universities will also do this. Every veggies has different needs, with regards to sun, water, soil, fertilizer and such.........do a little research on line to see which veggies grow best together, and then you can pretty much care for all of them in the same way.
What has always worked best for me has been"
Better Boy 'maters
Pigmy Okra
Yellow Crooked Neck Squash
Blue Lake Green Beans
Jalapenos
Cayenne Peppers
I have had success year after year with this mixture, and treated them all with the same fertilizer and lime mixtures. The variances would be with watering. The Peppers require less water than 'maters and such.
What has always worked best for me has been"
Better Boy 'maters
Pigmy Okra
Yellow Crooked Neck Squash
Blue Lake Green Beans
Jalapenos
Cayenne Peppers
I have had success year after year with this mixture, and treated them all with the same fertilizer and lime mixtures. The variances would be with watering. The Peppers require less water than 'maters and such.
Y
Banana peppers.
Some of this stuff is slow or not going at all, but it's mostly all from really old seeds, so I didn't expect much. I'll give it another week, and if I don't have germination of the empties, I'll get new seeds and start new pods. Left to right, the germinated ones are: Broccoli, Cherry Tomato, Brussels Sprouts, Onion, Beefsteak Tomato, Romanesco Broccoli.
These are chives from last year. I dug them up so I can use the spot for growing spinach. These chives are going wild.
Zucchini I transplanted this morning. These are doing wonderfully.
These are mushrooms.
Phil is right! Grow tomatoes and peppers indoors until you can sort out the weak and leggy ones, and keep the strong ones to at least 4 inches.
Now for the bad news. Tomato plants need about 2 FEET EACH on every side to properly grow. I am not sure how long that bed is, or how wide each row is from the others, but I have tried squishing them a foot and a foot and a half, and they don't do well in that little space.
Also 40 at night is cold for these kinds of plants, hence, growing them indoors for a month or three. Depending upon where you are.
As for Alaskan peas - are these regular peas or snow peas? Peas pretty much ALWAYS need some kind of staking - like a fence or netting. If you don't have them standing tall, they will rot and get dirty on the ground. Again, between rows, probably a minimum of 1 1/2 feet. But 2 feet is better. And never plant two rows of peas together, as you will not be able to harvest on the inside of the fences. Oh yes, they die easily if it gets hot. But you have planted them early enough that won't be a problem.
Also, tomatoes and peppers will need a stake or cage of some sort to support the plants when they get big. Last year, my tomatoes were almost 6 feets tall, and I had a terrible time getting at them to harvest the tomatoes, and they took over a corner of my garden. Which brings me to pruning. You MUST cut the little side shoots that come out from the main branches, sapping energy from the plant, and not producing hardly any tomatoes till it is too late. I'm very diligent in the spring, and usually by August they are out of control. What can I say?
As for liming tomatoes? Never! I gardened in an area of BC with ferns for undergrowth and firs and their acidic needles covering the area. I had the PH tested, and it was 4.5. Extremely low. I had fantastic tomatoes. Every year!
Another suggestion is to incorporate organic mattter into the soil. Your soil either looks clay-like or sandy. Both need a lot of humus. Sand has almost no nutrients, and organic matter, particularly compost would add a lot. Humus loosens up clay, giving it more drainage, and allowing the roots not to get choked out.
Which brings me to another reason to put in tomato plants, not seeds. You should dig a deep hole (2 feet) under each plant before planting. Put in some manure, compost, or other organic matter, including wood ash. Then the tomato roots will dig deep, giving them more water and nutrients rather than spreading out and taking over the garden bed.
I think it is great you are planting a garden, and each season as gardeners, we learn something new. I would recommend you put in a quick growing plant like lettuce or onions, and then when they are spent, you can put in a late crop of peas, or vice versa. In Edmonton, I could not do this, the season was so short and I was in Zone 2b. But in southern BC, Zone 6, and I am learning to garden all over again, and doing two crops of lots of veggies, although not tomatoes or peppers.
I've been gardening my whole life, from a long, long line of gardeners and farmers. There is no greater joy than growing your own veggies and eating them. Unless it is growing flowers and putting them into arrangements throughout the home.
And to think I had respected you for being literate! Oh dear! My bad!
Watched the finals of the Canadian University Men's Cup for Hockey yesterday. My son went out there, for the 10th reunion of his team's win, which started the domination by his university in this sport.
Every player now comes directly out of the CHL - Major Junior Hockey. Add, 4 or 5 years experience, and you have some awesome hockey! As good as AHL, at least, and some plays at NHL level. It's a great deal for the players, they take their 5 year CHL hockey scholarship, the school tops it up with money to cover room and board, and they end up with a university degree. My son got a business degree, and is now a Chartered Accountant in one of Canada's big financial institutions, and working towards being partner.
Anyway, the BC news is saying we are 3 to 4 weeks behind this spring. As in, the golf courses keep opening and having to close because they get more snow. Worst winter in 30-40 years. I would love to check the actual stats, because it might be longer.
@Ariel - you need to clip off the tomatoes that are weak, in those peat pots and leave one strong one. And, if you can't get them into the ground soon, you need to pot them up to bigger containers. And rip off the bottom of the peat pot when you do plant it, as despite claims that the roots will go through, they tend to get badly bunched up inside the peat pot (been there, done that!).
As for those peas, get some kind of netting - plastic or cloth, or even stick in sticks that go at least 4-6 feet high, depending upon the variety you have picked. (Sorry, not familar with Alaskan peas! I use Oregon peas for snow peas, they are by far the best! I use Lincoln peas for regular, peas in the pod!)
Happy Gardening!