Posted on 01/18/2013 11:50:46 AM PST 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.
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Traditional advice is to start seeds about 6 weeks prior to last frost date. Sometimes, when I get too impatient, I just start some in pots that I can bring in and out depending on the weather.
I usually grow some tomatoes and peppers in 3-5 gallon pots on the patio anyway, so it helps to get a few things going a little early. I have such a sunny spot in front of the patio door, that I don’t really need grow lights come Spring.
Hubby has some wild asparagus that he watches grow, but I don’t know a lot about it. I know that they need good drainage, and if the ph is below 6 it’s bad news. They also need phosphorus, and 10-20-10 fertilizer is what is advised prior to planting the crowns the 1st year.
Each crown will produce approximately 1/2 lb spears. Male hybrids outproduce female plants, since females expend energy producing seeds in addition to spears. Space wide between plants to help prevent fungal diseases. Watch out for beetles.
Do not cut down fern growth after last harvest till Spring.
That’s about all I have in the info I printed for Hubby.
Where did you find the seeds?
I'll just stick with side-dressing and cultivating, and let them do their thing.
/johnny
That’s what I do too. Let the plants do their thing. It’s easiest. I’m not into expending tons of effort. Some things just naturally grow better here than others, so I don’t wrestle with mother nature.LOL
It’s like springtime is western PA. Sunshine and 50 degrees or higher, jacket weather. Buds are out on the dogwoods. May get zapped in a few days as temps plummet again. Skies are clear at night, no clouds so the constellations like Orion are visible on the horizon when darkness falls. Orion will be gone in March so enjoy him while we can.
I gave up on tomatoes because of the deer, and the marigolds I planted did nothing to discourage them.
I do love these breaks from winter. However, I don’t like them to last too long, or they nip the buds on the peach trees and other stuff.
Thanks for the list and links! Here are a few more for older grain varieties:
http://ancientcerealgrains.org/index.html
A site devoted to cereal grain preservation and dissemination. Concentration is mainly old varieties no longer commercially viable. Pre-Green Revolution grain and flavor. Possibly of use to those looking for solutions to gluten intolerance.
http://www.prseeds.ca/catalogue/grain.php?C=Grain
This site is the product of what looks to be a guy with a vision. He offers a great deal of older grain crop seed but a lot of other stuff, too. You’ll have to download his order form and send a check by snail mail. Old fashioned; I like that.
http://www.growseed.org/einkorn.html
Einkorn seed and seed preparations. Apparently, this guy grows out this strain and because of it’s origin and/or properties, he’s making flour, pasta, malted grain and everything else at about $35/lb. His seed is also for sale at the same price. If you want Einkorn, this is probably the place.
Despite our erratic weather, pansies blooming full tilt. Starting to harvest arugula and swiss chard.
I didn’t post on Friday, but I had two big broccoli heads that I thought I was going to have to throw away. Luckily, I got a seed catalog in the mail that day. The broccoli is yellow in color.
That catalog had cheddar broccoli as one of their choices. I cut both this afternoon and are eager to try them and see what the flavor is like.
Right after I posted this yesterday, I realized it was a mistake and meant to say cheddar cauliflower instead of broccoli. Our router decided to do its thing and I had to reboot it this morning. We had one head for supper last night and it was as good as any cauliflower.
I thought I would let all my Gardening and FReeper Friends know that one of my best Friends, Cashmere - Irish Setter 12 years old, passed away yesterday. She had stopped eating and after not eating for three days we took her to the vet. Blood tests determined she had acute Kennedy failure. He told us he could keep her alive for a few days at most. So my wife and I made a very, very difficult decision and we let her go to a Better Place. A sad, sad day but I know her Brother Aladdin, who we lost last year, met her at the gates. I will miss her companionship dearly.
From a nutrition angle, different approach obviously, wheat is easy to sprout and can be used in about anything- breads, soups, meatloaf, salads-—nice in the winter when gardens are not growing for an extra boost to things.
My question- I have something sitting in my garage that is I suppose 3 feet by 2 feet- close to I suppose four feet tall- need to go look at it since I am not at that building much ever... but it has several different screens available- depending on the one you want. If I recall they are not flat- but sort of rounded. Is that a fanning mill?
I don’t remember where I got it but I remember wishing I had given it to an elderly relative when he was selling all his home grain (small acreage/homestead) equipment.
My grain is pretty much clean before I get it.
Down through the years I have had good luck with putting a thin layer of milled sphagnum moss on the top soil of the potting container to prevent damping off. I just take a bit, rub it between my fingers to crumble more or less, and let it fall wherever it falls on the potting soil and forget it.
My mom grew up where her grandfather had homesteaded in 1879- north central Nebraska. They had no plants to buy but they always had a large garden. I remember many years later (now we are talking south central Nebraska) when she planted tomato seed straight into the garden- She had ripe tomatoes ONE week later than from transplanted tomatoes. Only one week. I am going to do that this year. They certainly come up volunteer. I get as many tomatoes that way as I do from the plants I set out. they are not hybrid — I prefer heirloom most anything—
Out of curiosity- why should I not cut down the asparagus fern growth til the next season? Does that apply where we have cold (can be sub-zero here at times in winter) ?
I think i’ll try that. Can’t hurt. I lost a whole tray of cherry tomato seedlings last year. That hurt my feelings! And my pocketbook.
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