Posted on 09/14/2012 11:18:57 AM PDT by greeneyes
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!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Controlling bermuda grass is fairly simple, though neither cheap nor 100% effective.
1) hire a backhoe & dump truck
2) set up a 25 foot perimeter around the area to be controlled
3) remove all the soil inside the perimeter to a dpeth of 10’, and truck it to the nearest toxic waste site
4) install 6” concrete walls from the bottom of the hole to 3’ above the soil line, with anchor bolts to fasten the dome in step 6
5) clean and sterilize the truck thoroughly, and use it to fill the hole with sterile garden soil over a 16” layer of clean, washed sharp 1”-minus gravel (for drainage)
6) install a greenhouse dome over the site to keep out future contamination of bermuda seeds or roots
7) keep a flamethrower handy, to use at the first sign of a new infestation starting.
I know this is only a temporary solution, but should be good for 2-3 years of bermuda-free gardening. Good luck!
My grapes were a month early, I picked and strained the juice and fed the pulp to the hungry thirsty birds. I did not know when I returned it to the garden to 'mulch' my broccoli that it would draw the birds. One trip out to the garden and the ground was literally covered with all kinds of birds. I figure I got a bit of fresh fertilizer from them that got baked as fast as they dropped it. So we both were rewarded. I have wild grape vines that were initially looking really well early this year that I like to mix with my tame grapes to make jelly, but they did not survive the heat and drought.
I had so little pulp left from the plums maybe 2 cups that I put it in the compost.
I will keep your recommendation in mind for next year. It has been so hot I have yet to make my strawberry jam and jelly. The juice and mashed berries are waiting for me in the freezer.
I’ve started making a list of foodstuffs for a kitchen scrap garden. Like don’t throw away those old onions and potatoes, but plant them. We probably know much of this but there were a couple I didn’t know about. Yes, yes, hybrid and storage and all that other stuff has to be considered but there’s nothing to lose. It’s too much to type out all the details but here’s a list of the veggies that you can replant into your garden:
Grape seeds, coffee beans, citrus seeds, sweet potato, white potato, avocado, onions, garlic, carrots, ginger, beets, rutabaga, turnip, pineapple, lettuce, sprouts, lemon grass, celery and cabbage, peppers.
Thanks I wanted to take advantage of the end of season sales.
Thank you.
Finally a serious solution...but I doubt it works
So what yall are telling me is to give up on my garden and take up something else?
I sat up here yesterday in Keller watching the large patches of yellow and dark green on the radar heading my way, then poof. As soon as it got to me it disappeared and the sun came out. Finally got some drizzle and cooler temps today.
Hope it will be enough to revive my gardens. If not I am ready to yank everything out and start getting ready for the winter garden.
Yeah, temporary at best. ;)
Will kudzu crowd-out bermuda?
You’re solution to Bermuda is simple brilliant!!
Seriously, all I know to do is till and keep on tilling. It’ll get better eventually.
Oh my. “Your” not “You’re.” My grammatically correct cousin is going to get me now!!
THATS the answer KUDZU...
THANKS
Just getting hit with late-blight on the tomatoes this year. We normally would have a frost soon so it isn’t that big a deal. Luckily we harvested potatoes before it hit.
The tomatoes, red or green, get little brown spots and just rot ina day or so. Some look like they were hit with a butane flame, brownish spot with blisters around the edges.
So far the peppers don’t have it. Our first tomatoes came along in late July so we have lots of spaghetti sauce in the freezer.
Our own problem is akin: field bindweed. Till it; pull it as soon as you see sprouts; spray it in the off-season, then do it again next year. Just stay on top of it as it reappears; you'll never truly 'get rid of it', but it will become much more manageable with time.
If it is really a major problem, then use containers or raised beds.
It's not as bad as it could be...
Got good control of powdery mildew this year, so had quite a few acorn squash and lemon cucumbers. (love those things!!)
Unfortunately, lost many tomatoes to Late blight. It totally took me by surprise, it was almost overnight it started killing plants, and the worse thing is, it infects the fruit as well, you can’t even pick them green and let them ripen, they’re already infected. Late blight is what caused the Irish potato famine.
Surprisingly, it didn’t affect my potatoes at all, and I got about 30 pounds of various types, reds, russets, fingerlings.
My New Zealand spinach is still going very strong. Good in salads.
Peas are done. The stragglers on the vines are hardening for next years seeds, same with the blue lake pole beans, I’m gonna end up with probably a pound of dried beans for seed next year.
I am always most successful if I use seeds from plants that have done well here in the past.
We have a noxious pest called Quake Grass or Joint Grass very similar to Bermuda Grass and after five years of digging and re-digging we went with the Round-up and in two years it was gone!!!
On another topic, we have had swarms of humming birds at the feeders. Has anyone else had lots of hummers?
Yeh, I am pretty much done too. However, I will still do the winter garden. Turns out winter garden planted in 2011 was the most productive for 2012. LOL.
We are in upstate NY - no hummingbirds this year. BUT - we have had tons and tons of weird varieties of mushrooms and toadstools. Growing in the weirdest places too.
I’ve never seen anything like it here.
Thanks for the link.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.