Posted on 05/10/2013 2:41:33 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 ... there is no telling where it will go and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us!
How deep do you guys plant your peppers? I normally plant at the root ball, but I’m wondering if there are any advantages to planting up to the cotyledons. Just curious! The garlic, after what I’m calling the Great Amish Roofing Incident, is growing very well. The onions are getting taller every day, the cabbage and broccoli were put in late but seem to be just fine. I’m using grass clippings instead of dirt for potatoes I’m I’m now thinking the result will be rot. Oh well, I’m glad I experimented and now know better! 25 heirloom tomatoes and 60 hot peppers (pepperoncini, hot banana, cayenne, and jalapeño) will have to wait a week because of a minor cold snap this weekend. Happy gardening!
I was hoping to get to work on my fence this weekend, but that’s not going to happen. I’ve had a tummyache since Monday, but I figured it was just something I ate. Then Wednesday night it got so bad I could hardly breathe, and I ended up in the ER. They ran tests and couldn’t find anything, so they just gave me painkillers and sent me home. I saw my doctor yesterday, and she ordered even more tests, but so far they haven’t turned up anything. I have to load up on ibuprofen just to be able to breathe and move, sleep is miserable no matter what. The ER gave me some stronger stuff but it makes me throw up and doesn’t kill the pain, and that is a very unpleasant combination!!
Add to that, both th ER doc and my doctor said to stick to clear liquids only, so I’m having to stay near a bathroom.
That was my week.
We use beer in tuna cans for those slugs that come around the strawberries.
I have too many strawberries for that now. That’s what I did when I just had the one small bed. My mom does that around her Hostas. If I bought enough beer for all my beds now I’d get invitations to 12 step programs...
We’ve had real good luck with Liquid Fence. Keeps the squirrels, rabbits and squirrels away. I spray the Liquid Fence on the perimeter, not on the actual tomatoes.
— Jane Reinheimer
Not a lot new going on in the garden. We have about 15 tomatos on our plants, from about dime size to nearly tennis ball size. Brandywine is doing the best, we also have Early Girl, Cherokee Purple, Better Boy, Big Boy and something else,that I can not remember. Peppers are blooming and green onions are doing well.
Since I did not start seeds this year, we had to buy plants for the garden, so we do not have as many planted this year. We did go to a nursery that carried a different brand than the Bonnie Plants that are sold by most stores around here.
It seems strange to see so much empty space in our little garden. We normally have the garden full with seedlings leftover to give away.
sorry — it’s squirrels, rabbit and deer away.
The *&$^%&* dug up a bunch of tomato and spinach plants last week, so I went to the local Dollar Store and bought several 1 bushel laundry baskets. I set them upside down over the plants after putting them back in the dirt. The tomatoes have recovered nicely, the spinach looks iffy. So far, the laundry baskets are doing the job though.
the ducks found a way under the fencing in the hoophouse and seem to like parking under the cauliflower leaves during the day. I was surprised to see a head pop out from under a plant a day ago.
“We’ve had real good luck with Liquid Fence. Keeps the squirrels, rabbits and squirrels away. I spray the Liquid Fence on the perimeter, not on the actual tomatoes.”
Thanks so much for this information. I have a wall on all three sides of the garden and the squirrels are coming over the walls. Two of the walls are high brick and the flat top is wide. The back fence is wood and at the top of it, is a flat area all the way on that fence. If I put this Liquid Fence on those flat areas, do you think that would keep them out or does this have to be on the ground at the edges of the garden?
Got my Maters planted in my raised bed today! My wife came home the other night and her former Area supervisor in Mississippi called her and asked her to put in a request for a transfer back to the Meridian, Ms area. He has one opening in two of his stores. So if we go back we will be living in our house and not paying rent so the tomatoes I planted will not survive, if we move back! Gees I hate moving again!
“...bought several 1 bushel laundry baskets. I set them upside down over the plants after putting them back in the dirt”
What a good idea. I’m assuming these laudry baskets have multiple holes on the sides, like bars, but what about the top? How do you let the sun it if the tops are solid?
I put a tsp of DE in my coffee every day and a tsp on Lynn-DAH-the-Dog’s food. My nails used to chip and crack, but they don’t anymore, and Lynn-DAH has stopped shedding.
Of course, I use “food grade” DE.
probably wouldn’t want to eat “Sluggo Plus” though! LOL.
/johnny
Ouch! I’m in good shape, compared to you. I just had my leg cut off and an insert added! LOL.
OMG! My husband just brought me home a present from my bank. Somebody folded a dollar into the shape of a ring (with a “setting”) and attached a “Happy Mother’s Day note to it. I feel so rich.
LOL. Love your posts too. The row covers have worked for me with the squirrels. Some people claim that you can put dog hair or even human hair around the plants to discourage these critters.
With respect to your lettuce or spinach. So far the mushroom compost is beating the tar out of top soil and mel’s mix, so I would advise to get some and at least combine it with whatever type of soil you decide to use. Also the black seeded simpson lettuce did well for me in the heat of summer in a pot where it got shade from a tree during the hottest part of the day/afternoon.
I use Milk cartons cut into strips to write on with permanent markers for labels. I addition, I also have a gardening plot drawn on graph paper. I write down what is planted in each spot, in case the marker gets lost or too faded to read.
Somewhere on a gardening thread, I recently typed in one of the complete diets from biointensive method booklet I bought from bountiful gardens. They actually list the foods and the nutritional values, and daily requirements. I think that was a couple of weeks ago when I was talking about Amaranth.
If you were going to grow your own food, and had no meat available, Grains and beans would be your main source of protein: Red Wheat, White Wheat, Rice, oats, etc. Amaranth is higher in protein and you can eat a few of the leaves while waiting for the grain to mature. It is also low gluten.
Many of the grains do not have the omega 3 fatty acids. Flax seed has a substance that the body can use to convert to omega threes. Walnuts also have the omega threes covered. You could stock pile some krill oil I guess, but I tend to look beyond the stockpiling to long term homesteading, because that’s kinda the life I want.
In addition to nutrients, you also want things that have high caloric value such as potatoes. Tree collards can substitute for dairy calcium requirements.
Gardens Alive ranks Veggies 1-5 with 5 being the most nutrient dense foods:
Tomatoes - 5
Edamame - 4
Green Beans - 5
Cucumbers - 5
Cabbage - 5
Broccoli or Cauliflower - 5
Peppers - 5
lettuce or greens - 5
Peas - 4
Corn - 3
Potatoes - 3
Asparagus - 5
Garlic - 3
Squash - 4
beets - 3
Carrots - 4
Now, if I am going to exist on mostly beans, then I have got to have some onions, taters, and a slice of cornbread to be happy. A slice of tomato is icing on the cake if ya know what I mean. So even though Potatoes and Corn are only 3’s, they are high on my list, besides they provide the calories for fuel to get out and do all this gardening stuff.
I’ll dig out my books and post some more on this later.
Have they checked your gallbladder? Those are the symptoms both my husband and I had. For him, it went on for years. Surgery in Dec. cured it instantly and forever. The doctor thought he might have been sufering from a bad GB for 20 years.
For me, it was just one attack, but surgery cured it.
I look forward to hearing about the mushrooms. I too want to do this, so I’ll learn from what you are doing before I try it.
Shitake and portobella are the ones I am most interested in.
/johnny
I just keep them at the same level as they are in the peat pot. Rule of thumb on seeds is plant it no more than 2 - 3 times the diameter, IIRC.
After about 4 weeks, I transplant them and make the hole deep enough to put the whole pot in and keep the top level with the top soil.
I put it on my outdoor dogs bed. She has way fewer fleas and noticeably less ‘scratchy’ now. I put it around her food bowls on the porch too to keep ants and other stuff out. We sprinkle it in the nesting boxes in the chicken coop.
I hadn’t thought to eat it. I’ll have to give that some thought though.
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