Posted on 05/25/2012 8:00:24 AM PDT by JustaDumbBlonde
Huge thanks to Red Devil_232 for posting the thread last week!!! It is absolutely crazy around the farm, with everybody going in different directions at the same time and trying to stay coordinated with one another.
The wheat harvest is well underway, and the yields have been above our wildest dreams. The field corn has tasseled and is pollinating nicely. Several hundred acres of cotton have been planted and it is now being fertilized, sprayed for weeds, sprayed for bugs, etc. Still have about 900 acres of cotton left to plant behind the wheat.
My sweet corn patches are looking good, but have not tassled yet. Night before last we had the first sweet corn of the year from a neighbor's patch. Yum!!!
To everyone that posted photos on last week's thread, NautiNurse comes to mind, they were gorgeous! Such talented gardeners in this group. I'm looking forward to coming in this evening and reading your comments and looking at your photos.
Take care all of my FRiends and fellow gardeners ...
The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you.
This thread is non-political, although you will find that most here are conservative folks. No matter what, you won’t be flamed and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked.
It is impossible to hijack the Weekly Gardening Thread ... there is no telling where it will go and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us!
Weekly Gardening Thread (Catalog Fever) Vol. 1 Jan 6, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Seeds) Vol. 2, January 13, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread Vol. 3, January 20, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (U.S. Hardiness Zones) Supplemental Vol. 1
Weekly Gardening Thread (Soil Types) Vol. 4, January 27, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Vacation) Vol. 5, February 03, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Vacation) Vol. 6, February 10, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Vacation?) Vol. 7, February 17, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Home Sweet Home) Vol. 8, February 24, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Soil Structure Part 1) Vol. 9, March 2, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Transplanting Tomatoes) Vol. 10, March 9, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Useful Links) Vol. 11, March 16, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread -- Vol. 12, March 23, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread -- Vol. 13, March 31, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Happy Easter!) Vol. 14, April 6, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread Vol. 15, April 13, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread Vol. 16, April 20, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread Vol. 17, April 27, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread Vol. 18, May 4, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread Vol. 19 (Getting Projects Done) May 11, 2012
Weekly Gardening Thread (Harvesting Wheat) Vol. 20, May 18, 2012
Detailed State Plant Hardiness Zone Maps
International Plant Hardiness Zone Maps
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First in???
Second?
I’m afraid that I’ll be taking a hiatus from gardening this year. I should have planted when we had our first warm weather, because it has stayed nice here ever since.
My knee is better, but my mom is not doing well in CA and I’m going out there to see what I can do. If I plant now, there will be nobody to care for the plants while I’m gone. By the time I get back, all the good plants will be gone from the garden centers, so I’ll just have to get along with what grows naturally.
Bump for later.
/johnny
and please folks, I don’t want to hear your corn is tasseling or your tomatoes are ripe!!! We just transplanted our corn plants that I have to start in the greenhouse in order to beat our cool weather and have a crop. Strawberries are starting to ripen and the Blueberry and Raspberry plants are looking good.
It shares a 20gal planter with flowers and herbs, and the plant is becoming so massive I have to water it twice a day.
Note: this pic is off the web, kid and tomato not mine:
I severely under-containered this plant. It should have been given its own 55gal whiskey barrel with a lot of nylon knee-highs tethering the base branches to the balusters of the deck.
It is an ancient heirloom, but if anybody is thinking about it you need to plan for a LOT of space for this guy.
Lots of blooms on the tomato plants, squash doing well, cantaloupe doing well, and I may have won the bug war on the tobacco plants.
/johnny
That or start with the Anna Russian pink oxheart heirloom. Much smaller fruit and I’m guessing a much smaller plant.
And oxhearts come in red, pink, yellow-red zebra stripe, no blue yet.
Another hot week in Central Texas. The corn is making and there’s jalapeno, banana and bell peppers. The tomatoes and green beans are coming back after the last storm. Next, year I’m not planting as many lettuces as I’m giving bags out to everyone. Noticed one evening that the squash was looking droopy and the next morning there were squash bugs everywhere. Pinched the ones I could catch. I only had some old Sevin dust so went with that. One step forward and two back.
That was also the evening I noticed the neighbor had cut the stems of my grape vines on my fence that separates us. This is their vacation house so they don’t live here. Yes, he can legally do what he wants with whatever’s on his side of my fence but he could have asked. I saw him down at the bottom with loppers but I ignored him so now I’m going to have to go down there and see what he was doing. This winder, I had cleaned the fences of everything but the grapes so they’d be abundant for jelly making. Now, no grape jelly for the neighbor. No nothing from the garden for the neighbor. So, now I have to clean the dead grape vines off the fence. I’m not a happy camper. Last year, they wanted to put a vine with thorns on it (they have little grandkids and dogs) and I told them not on my fence but they were more than welcome to ask the neighbors on their other side about it. So guess this is pay back. Never mind that we have run people off several times from their place because it’s obviously a vacation home and never mind that we’re here to notify them when there’s a weather situation. Last straw and no jelly for them - ever, grrrr.
We have okry sprouts coming up in the new okry garden area!
We also have first fruits of 2012. A wierd looking squash and a sweet banana pepper, along with one grape tomato that ripened overnight.
Tomatos are growing larger every day. It's getting tempting to pick them for fried green tomatos!
Yeah, my neighbors ****, too. On one side I have a master gardener from Viet Nam who lops my Crepes and Ligustrum from over the fence so her morning sun is uninterrupted. She really knows her stuff. I leave for work at 5:30am and on the trail up to my truck I breathe in the night-blooming Jasmine she trains on her side of the fence.... other-worldly.
Then my other neighbors weed-whacked three grapes and two rose plantings, but they need to die for somehow importing the Yellow Thistle to my lot, which is Satan’s flower. It went crazy and is everywhere. Never seen this plant in my life but now I have to clip each plant and bag it to avoid seed distribution.
So, it’s not just you. Chin up, girl.
We should be neighbors. I bet we could agree on what to grow on our fences.
I need a rose expert. My Joseph’s Coat rose has reverted to being a wild rose red. Does anyone know what would make that happen?
My heartfelt solutions for dealing with your neighbor would get me thrown off Free Republic forever....
But, I’ll bet if you did give them a sample of your grape jelly it would be your best revenge and solution! They would know what they were missing!
Would that be “sweet” revenge? LOL.
This is one of the landings on the back deck.
Here you see both landings with tomatoes dangling over. They get the benefits of breeze, no bugs except flying ones to pollinate them - including dragonflies! - and 8 hours of Western sun. All of these varieties being Indeterminate, they will grow to the ground and spread out if I can water them enough.
Only hazard is the mosquitoes I'm growing at ground level with all the water dripping thru the deck.
OK, here’s a challenge for the group. More of a deckscaping question than gardening.
Large deck, large planter - probably 15 gallons or more.
Looking for a nice vertically growing evergreen shrub. Am in Atlanta, so something hardy enough to make it through a winter here in a planter on a deck.
I already have a sky pencil holly in another planter.
Any ideas?
I noticed about tow months ago a tree on my neighbor’s property was some sort of fruit tree. It is obvious now that it is a peach tree. There is one branch that hangs over the fence onto our property and it is heavily populated with fruit. I will have to prop up that branch so it does not break off. Mmmmmm peaches later this summer sounds good to me. My tomatoes are doing fine and enjoying the warm weather we are having. I think they will defiantly benefit later in the summer from the afternoon shade they are receiving.
In other news - FReeper knews_hound has turned over his Homebrewing ping list to me and I plan on doing a monthly thread using the list starting in June. It will be focused on Homebrewing Beers, Wines and from time to time pings to articles posted on FR about Beer, Wine and other Spirits.
Sounds and looks good! It will be wonderful with the corn milk from fresh corn on the cob.
Geographical origin: Northern America.
Adult dimensions: Height up to 1,5 m, width up to 0,60 m.
Foliage: Evergreen.
Type of soil: Prefers light soil.
Climate: Hardy to -20°C.
Characteristics and uses: The Lawson Cypress ‘Ellwood’s Gold’ is a dwarf conifer with a golden- green foliage and yellow young shoots. Its compact conical shape teamed with its slow growing habit makes it a much appreciated specimen for rockeries. It can also be planted on its own in the small gardens or in borders. Exposure: Light shade to full sun.
It's harder than I thought to catch a bumblebee (in focus) on a Lamb's Ear bloom!
We have two big magnolias that are beginning to bloom - just love them.
One of our male bluebirds on his favorite perch & yes, we have a squirrel problem at the birdfeeders!
Pomegranate Bloom - the bush is loaded with blooms this year.
Looks like a good suggestion.
Until this year I have used Sevin dust and Malathon spray for everything.
Spraying and dusting late in the evening nearly dark every weekend.
I tried this year something else Pyrethrin & Neem Oil. Both are Supposed to better for the environment.
However the Mexican bean Beetle and Squash Vine borers are making want to reach for the Sevin/Malathon Combo once again.
I found that for Pyrethrin that knock down does not necessarily mean death of the insect.
Until this year I have used Sevin dust and Malathon spray for everything.
Spraying and dusting late in the evening nearly dark every weekend.
I tried this year something else Pyrethrin & Neem Oil. Both are Supposed to better for the environment.
However the Mexican bean Beetle and Squash Vine borers are making want to reach for the Sevin/Malathon Combo once again.
I found that for Pyrethrin that knock down does not necessarily mean death of the insect.
High five!
I prop up branches like that all the time. A friend had a branch break off last week that was loaded with unripe mangoes that only had a few more weeks to go. Don't prune that branch. I would train it to go into my yard propped up.
Anyone growing muscadine grapes and have a photo they like from this year or last?
I defiantly will not be pruning that branch. I do need to prop it up to prevent it from braking and so I can mow under it.
You tryin ta take all the fun out of moving from Iowa to the south? One of the pleasures is being able to say nanner, nanner, nanner. I suppose I won’t say the corn is tassling but can I say I’m pickin corn tomorrow for tomorrow nights dinner? Hehehehe
You could do like I do all the time but this year it works out even better as we will be moving also in June or July. I plant my entire garden in pots buried in the sand which is all we have here. When I want to move plants I simply pull the pot out of the ground and move it to a different hole. We have been renting this place so never felt like improving the soil but when we get to our own place I’ll start putting in compost to improve the soil.
Oh please put me on that ping list.
I have added you to the Homebrewing ping list. I hope we can get a lot of interest started here on FR.
Ooh! Ohh! (raises hand) Will you add me to that list?
Cheers!
You are added.
Hey JADB I hope you don’t mind my pimping another Thread.
This website defiantly needs like and DISLIKE buttons. On the other hand Benderville has only 11 Air Conditioners for the few transplants dumb enough to move here from Mt Everest. We got blown out of the garden today due to a brisk cold north wind and a drizzle.
My Kohlrabi is doing fine thank you...
The cukes, zukes, and watermelons seem to have stopped at 2 leaves per plant. I’m hoping that just means they’re focusing on roots right now, and will take off once they feel well established.
My tomatoes aren’t doing so well. The seedlings I planted just sort of vanished, so I replanted frm seed. Still waitng on those. I thought the cuttings I planted were all dead, but when I went to replant I found that one had only died back to the mulch, and below the mulch it was still clinging to life. No leaves on it, though, so I don’t have very high hopes for that one.
My strawberries are gearing up. Yesterday i picked a big bowl full, and then today I filled an 8-cup measuring cup with them. Soon they’ll be ripening so fast I’ll need help keeping them picked!
I hope to move a lot of the strawberry plants out to my land this year. Dad is talking about tearing that garden bed apart and replacing all the dirt because he thinks doing that will get rid of the weeds. He does things like that. I’d joke about him being the sort of person who would use dynomite to get rid of a mouse, but according to some of the stories from his younger days, he’s done that already.
Wow! I’ve never seen a pomegranate bloom before and I honestly never thought about it. Those flowers are just beautiful - like a cross between a rose and a peony. Thanks for sharing!
Interesting idea. Thanks. I don’t have enough pots for all of them, but I could do it for some.
Landscapers have pots and pots and pots. Have them save them for you rather than throw them away. I have gotten hundreds like that. I cut the bottoms out so the roots can go out if needed. If you have to transplant them you only disturb the bottom few roots. Just size the pots to the type of plant. My tomatoes are in 4 gal pots, beans in one gallon etc.
I suppose I should say I’m sorry but I grew up in those harsh winters and now that I’m retired and in the South it is truly sweet to be able to have a garden most all year. I convince myself that I earned it you see. Sugar peas do especially well in the fall and winter though I do need to protect them during the occasional cold spell. got down to near 20 two days last winter.
Been picking tomatoes all week, and my wife loves them. We are eating salads, sandwiches and burgers with fresh ‘mater slices. There is nothing better.
I did transplant pink banana squash into the garden a few days ago, but planted through black plastic. It was wide enough that I could cover the seedlings for the night. At least the onions, potatoes, spinach, carrots, peas, broccoli & Brussels sprouts loved the cool turn, as did the newly transplanted English violets.
Today, we bought 4 - 6" pots, with 3 plants each, of cilantro. I could really care less about the cilantro leaves, but I want the seeds: whole coriander seeds for brining & rubs for our pastrami. The first experimental attempt came out great.
Do those grow down there? They sell them here in eastern Canada and I have yet to see one survive more than a few years.
Amen, Brother! AMEN!
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