It was cool at first but it's getting out of hand. The worst spot is where my compost pile sat over winter (in a portion of my now garden). I have probably pulled over 300 tomatoes volunteers, no joking. At first they were coming up in patches that resembled clover in thickness. Every day it seems I find a new one or more growing. I threw a lot of tomatoes in the compost pile last year so that is where they are coming from. I have pulled about 30 today so far anywhere from 3 inches to about 3 feet tall. They are still coming up will it ever end. I am saving a few of them that is if the volunteer melons don't strangle them out first. I hope the melons are cantaloupes not pumpkin, I threw a bunch of pumpkins in the compost last year as well. I love eating the seeds so there are a ton of their remains in there.
And carrots I didn't know they would volunteer but it seems that I have them all over as well.
Back to weeding and extracting unneeded volunteers so I can put down some compost tomorrow.
- gixxerific
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- rainbowgardener
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I used to always have squash and tomatoes volunteer where ever I planted things with compost (not as many as you, but I could always count on a few). (Never did have a volunteer carrot and just one time a volunteer pepper.)
This year I have had none, I think because my compost pile has been running hotter since I started following the principles more exactly... Nothing else changed, just as many tomato and squash seeds went in the pile.
How hot does your compost get?
This year I have had none, I think because my compost pile has been running hotter since I started following the principles more exactly... Nothing else changed, just as many tomato and squash seeds went in the pile.
How hot does your compost get?
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- gixxerific
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My compost never got too hot last year RBG hence the mass "second coming"
I probably pulled another 20- 30 after my original post. I just keep finding them. the real sneaky ones have sprouted up around my other tomatoes they can hide pretty well.
Soil I hear ya on the strength of the volunteers the ones I have been saving of everything have been going hog wild.
I was planning on doing something else with the main volunteer bed but now I think I will let them go and see what I can get from it.
I probably pulled another 20- 30 after my original post. I just keep finding them. the real sneaky ones have sprouted up around my other tomatoes they can hide pretty well.
Soil I hear ya on the strength of the volunteers the ones I have been saving of everything have been going hog wild.
I was planning on doing something else with the main volunteer bed but now I think I will let them go and see what I can get from it.
- jal_ut
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My volunteer spinach is the first harvest. I also used lots of volunteer lettuce. I can't believe how much arugula and curly mustard came up volunteer. I ran the tiller over that. I always get enough volunteer dill that I don't even have to plant any. Chard too. Its fun. I usually save some seed from the things that go to seed in the garden, but sometimes think it would be wise to yank most of that stuff before it creates a weed patch next year.
Compost was the culprit for me as well. Last year, I harvested about 300 tomatoes the day after a frost and watched as just about every one rotted. Of course, they were composted.
Fast-forward to this year, and I volunteers! I'm going to let them grow since they are growing out of the mounds that were made for the gold-nugget squash (which never grew ). I'm interested as well to see what I get since the parent plants were all hybrids. Since they were both beef-steaks, it'll be funny to see if I don't get cherry toms .
Enjoy your volunteers
Fast-forward to this year, and I volunteers! I'm going to let them grow since they are growing out of the mounds that were made for the gold-nugget squash (which never grew ). I'm interested as well to see what I get since the parent plants were all hybrids. Since they were both beef-steaks, it'll be funny to see if I don't get cherry toms .
Enjoy your volunteers
- gixxerific
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Cherry toms I hope I get them, though more than likely that is what they will be. Just from the cherry's falling off the plant from last year by the handful.
It would just be my luck with the cherry's anyways. I must have mislabeled my starters this winter/spring. Quite a few of my most anticipated plants are cherry's now. I only wanted a few since they are so productive but I have about 12 cherry plants going. If there isn't a Black From Tula in there somewhere I'm gonna be a little upset. That is my most anticipated plant of the season.
This morning I pulled 3 more tom volunteers I missed yesterday. 2 were hiding right next to some peppers and 1 was inside the cage with another tomato. Sneaky little buggers they are.
It would just be my luck with the cherry's anyways. I must have mislabeled my starters this winter/spring. Quite a few of my most anticipated plants are cherry's now. I only wanted a few since they are so productive but I have about 12 cherry plants going. If there isn't a Black From Tula in there somewhere I'm gonna be a little upset. That is my most anticipated plant of the season.
This morning I pulled 3 more tom volunteers I missed yesterday. 2 were hiding right next to some peppers and 1 was inside the cage with another tomato. Sneaky little buggers they are.
- gixxerific
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- applestar
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Because I mix my own seed soil mix and container soil mix, I often get volunteers in my starts. With tomatoes, I sow the seeds in a specific pattern in a community pot, so any tomato that sprouts outside of the pattern is deemed a volunteer. Most of the time, seeds of same variety sown in the same container will germinate within days of each other so that's another indication.
This spring, I managed to mix up a bad soil mix AND sow the Wild Boar tomato seeds in it. I can't say for sure whether it was my mix or that these seeds seem to be slower to germinate than average. One of the "BAD" in the mix was that when I tried to water, the soil turned hydrophobic, all the water beaded on the surface, then soaked all at once into the soil. This made some of the seeds float up and drain into the gap between the soil and the container.
When the tomatoes came up from along the container edge, and there was no recognizable pattern in the sprouts, I knew I was in trouble. I ended up saving most of the sprouts and separating them. Now that they're starting to fruit, 4 of them have turned out to be Principe Borghesi, and 2 of them are looking like they might be the Wild Boar tomatoes. Trouble is that the label for the community pot ALSO became invisible BEFORE I had the chance to separate the plants, so I'm still waiting to see WHICH Wild Boar tomatoes.
This spring, I managed to mix up a bad soil mix AND sow the Wild Boar tomato seeds in it. I can't say for sure whether it was my mix or that these seeds seem to be slower to germinate than average. One of the "BAD" in the mix was that when I tried to water, the soil turned hydrophobic, all the water beaded on the surface, then soaked all at once into the soil. This made some of the seeds float up and drain into the gap between the soil and the container.
When the tomatoes came up from along the container edge, and there was no recognizable pattern in the sprouts, I knew I was in trouble. I ended up saving most of the sprouts and separating them. Now that they're starting to fruit, 4 of them have turned out to be Principe Borghesi, and 2 of them are looking like they might be the Wild Boar tomatoes. Trouble is that the label for the community pot ALSO became invisible BEFORE I had the chance to separate the plants, so I'm still waiting to see WHICH Wild Boar tomatoes.
- gixxerific
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Sorry I can't help but laugh Apple.
At least I'm not the only one with tomatoes in the ground that I don't know what they are. Like I said I mixed up the names on at least a few. But it seems that a bunch of my tom's are not what I panned them to be. So time will tell. As long as I get some fresh tomatoes I will be good.
Just ripped out yet another 3+ foot volunteer.
At least I'm not the only one with tomatoes in the ground that I don't know what they are. Like I said I mixed up the names on at least a few. But it seems that a bunch of my tom's are not what I panned them to be. So time will tell. As long as I get some fresh tomatoes I will be good.
Just ripped out yet another 3+ foot volunteer.
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Calling all volunteer experts! Is there any way to tell what squash or cucumber I am growing in a row by volunteer? I have gardened for awhile but as there are only the first few leaves, all I can see is that it is a squash, pumpkin or cuke. Leaves look a little large to be cucumber. I grew cucumbers, pumpkins, buttercup squash and zuccini last year. Any hints anyone??
- Gary350
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If I have a bad tomatoe I let it fall to the ground then I step on it so it becomes compost right where it lands. I never have any volunteer plants from my compost I think it is because it is a large compost 5 ft across 3 ft deep and it makes a lot of heat that kills the seeds. I saw a TV show once where the guy was cooking his compost in a large tub on the BBQ grill to kill seeds. I have 1 volunteer tomato in the front yard that has to be from a bird so I am letting it grow just to see what it turns out to be. I have 1 volunteer melon and 1 volunteer squash in the garden. I have a pretty good idea what the volunteers are because I threw down some squash and melon there last year.
- jal_ut
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It is most likely not a cucumber. No telling what it will be. It will be a cross, and the fruit will not be like any of the squash you had last year. I treat volunteer swuash as weeds preferring to buy seed and have the type of squash I wanted, not some goofy hybrid. Grow it if you wish, and see what you come up with.Leaves look a little large to be cucumber. I grew cucumbers, pumpkins, buttercup squash and zuccini last year. Any hints anyone??
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I appreciate you taking the time to reply.
Maybe I'll just let one grow for fun.
This must have been what happened. In the middle of our Three Sisters garden full of buttercup squash and tiny lightnings, came this HUGE thing we ended up hauling to the front porch for display. We named it "squampkin" and cooked it down later on for a boatload of puree - made good pumpkin bread in the end
Maybe I'll just let one grow for fun.
This must have been what happened. In the middle of our Three Sisters garden full of buttercup squash and tiny lightnings, came this HUGE thing we ended up hauling to the front porch for display. We named it "squampkin" and cooked it down later on for a boatload of puree - made good pumpkin bread in the end