Posted on 08/04/2017 7:35:17 PM 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. Planting, Harvest to Table(recipes)preserving, good living - there is no telling where it will go and... that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us!
NOTE: This is a once a week ping list. We do post to the thread during the week. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest are welcomed, so feel free to post them at any time.
TOPICS: Gardening; Click to Add Topic
Thought I'd better get the thread posted and come back later - when the maters are at a stopping point. Also need to use a chicken carcess to make some bone broth to use in chowder recipe next week.
I also have beets waiting for me to process - there's always too much to do at once, and I don't move as fast as I used too. LOL
Have ordered some corn seeds from Bountiful Gardens that is supposed to mature in 55 days. So I'm going to try to hurry and get it going, if the seeds come in time.
I am going to plant some Cherry tomatoes pretty soon in pots for indoors this winter - I want them to get a good start.
Lemon tree has recovered from the winter doldrums. It has lots of new leaves and golf ball size fruits. The pepper plants that we dug up and stuck in a pot are recovering too. Those will be brought into the house for wintertime fresh food too.
Hope everyone is doing well. Prayers up for all. Have a great weekend - God Bless.
Pinging the list.
It’s August yet feels like fall is coming. Highs in the 70’s and cool nights. I love it! But I wonder if my my tomatoes, peppers, and butternut squash will get a chance to mature. This is exactly the opposite of last year, with highs in the 90’s and summer temperatures continuing into October.
My garden is doing the best ever here in the difficult Colorado Rockies. Our average time between frosts is only 90 days. I had lots of starts indoors in containers for over a month to get a better growth period. I also used 1/4 inch fence to keep the chipmunks away from plants they seem to like. I also over planted to allow for some chipmunk thieving. So far so good. I have gotten one tomato so far. Some years I have gotten frozen before the first tomato.
What do you do with your beets?
I just canned 8 quarts of pickled beets. Yeah one too many to fit in the canner, so I just stuck it in the frig. I love pickled beets! I’m going to plant a fall crop too. The wee little red seedlings are coming up in pots as we type.
“Chipmunk thieving” - cute! Hubby planted corn for the deer in their own garden. Crazy but it worked - they ate theirs and left ours alone!
Thanks to greeneyes for faithfully hosting this excellent WGT.
Last year in N Tx I had zero tomatoes. This year with just two plants getting decent production although its tapered off. Hasn’t been as hot as usual here and some more rain in this the driest month of the year on average. Favors from above. Using my swiss chard for blending up green smoothies mixed with protein powder. Does the 60 year old body some good.
Worst season ever for this kinda lackadaisical gardener. Even the dozen Romaine lettuce went straight to bolt.
Cool nights kept the tomatoes from flowering until the draught came to rot the bottoms off. Only have one cantaloupe out of three plants. Woe is me.
Gonna put in a little more effort next year. I realize now it’s worth it.
Sprayed the Jap beetles this year and the Hazelnuts are loaded though.
18 Different tomato plants this year, most heirloom. Majority of plants have lots of green tomatoes and only a couple have yet to show anything; Aunt Ginny and German Johnson. I’ve never tried those before but hopefully they will show in the next few weeks. Arkansas traveler plant really provides despite the short growing season here east of the Cascades. Hoping for an incredible September tomato season and a late frost
Hi greeneyes and everyone!
I went out and watered. Two of my four sunflowers have had their heads destroyed. The first of the heads to open has been terribly eaten on. The other is a bit smaller than that one. I was bending the taller of the two over, and it was so weakened by the ants and whoever that it broke, so now left with one.
Was amazed to see the anemic okra plants produce another two pods, one of which was ready to pick.
Another surprise - which I noticed several days ago - is that the turmeric root has sprouted and sent up a couple of shoots! I had tried to sprout it in water with rooting powder. Read up on it, and it seems it likes dry, so went ahead and put it in the dirt. I thought it was dead, but here it is!
The strawberry plant is happy and put out a runner.
The herbs, including the oregano, thyme, stevia and parsley are thriving. The mint and bee balm have been munched a bit by someone but are growing and otherwise healthy.
I bought some echinacea plants several days ago to use as props in a club program. I plan to start another echinacea patch somewhere.
Oh I forgot!!
Darlin found this link for me about organic methods of getting rid of ants! Thought it was so good and I might not be the only one plagued with this!
http://doubledanger.com/living-green/10-tips-for-organic-ant-control
The really hot dog days of summer have slacked off here - not for sure it will last. Usually mid August is the worst.
Just made a creation to use up some frozen broccoli. Took some flour added salt and pepper and some wine to make a thick batter as the broccoli was a bit wet.
Fried it in coconut/olive oil. Salted a bit more. Not bad for a change - I’m not a big fan of broccoli unless it’s in a cheesy casserole - and carby casseroles are out for now.
Timer just went off so got to go. Be back in a while.
I just planted potatoes. It is in the middle of the rainy season here. I’m hoping to harvest in early October. I don’t know how potatoes will do in a tropical climate.
I’ve also got some big nice taro (Elephant Ears)along the back of the yard.
Sounds yummy. How about dipping it in ranch?
I love how we can totally ruin the nutritional aspect of a vegetable, lol.
But broccoli is one I can have with a little butter and lemon juice too. Yummy.
Garden is growing well. My first tomato was awesome and there are a couple more that are just about ripe. Had the most interesting time watching caterpillars munch through the parsley. There were more than I’ve ever seen at one time. They will become the giant yellow swallowtail butterfly. Starting to see a few butterflies darting about. I wonder how many caterpillars have made it to the butterfly stage?Hope all is well with everybody.
I admire your fortitude. Glad you are having success this year. We have a longer period, but when you take out the drought months of July and August, it’s not so good.
Taters can go in April 1, but the cool wet spring isn’t conducive to tomatoes and corn type stuff, so next year we are going to find all the short 60 DMT things we can find.
I like pickled beets too, but not every day or even every week. I make half pickled and half not pickled. I have found that I can just drain a can and put it in the leftover pickling juice and letting it sit overnight works just as well-saves a little bit of time and money.
I also steam them and let them cool. Then slice them with a potato chip mandolin and fry them then salt them and eat while still hot - this may be my most favorite way to eat them of all.
I have yet to find a green drink that I can choke down. Thanks for the appreciative statement.
I have yet to find a green drink that I can choke down. Thanks for the appreciative statement.
You are lucky with the hazelnuts. None of ours survived - we tried 2 years in a row, and just had to give up. Same with English walnuts, Almonds, and Pecans.
We have wild black walnuts and butternuts, though.
I am right now growing celery from a root that I bought at the store. It has stalks about 2 inches high. I think I read that you can do the same with Romaine, so I may try that next.
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.