Posted on 09/05/2014 12:05:45 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.
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Agreed see my post at 100.
I know I’ve been kind of quiet here, I’ve been working as much overtime as I can get and every weekend I’m out on the land. I can read FR from work but I can’t log in and comment from there.
I have a temporary fence around my garden right now. It’s already saggy in places, but hopefully it’ll hold until I can get the permanant fence up. That project is going to take some time.
My flint corn has lots of nicce fat ears growing on it, and my squash is just carpeting the place! I keep finding Red Kuri squash ripening on the sunflower stalks. My Cucuzzi gourd is doing nicely, I like how it’s soft and fuzzy. I sometimes get splinters from the bristles on my squashes, but the cucuzzi is like velvet.
I have melons forming on my watermelon, winter melon, and asian melon vines, but none ripe yet. Oh well, they’re already doing better than the Golden Midget melons ever did.
I had planted okra to see how it would do as a hedge. The tallest plant is only knee-high, so it failed in that department. But it’s more productive than I was expecting, so I might plant more next year anyway.
My comfrey plant is the size of a table now! I’m saving the seeds whenever I can catch them, but between poor pollination and the fact that the seeds fall off as soon as they’re ripe, I’m not getting many. I might try planting more of them to get the pollination it needs. Most comfrey is a sterile hybrid and is propigated by root cuttings. Mine is a pure breed, and bears viable seeds.
In the backyard garden, one of my tomato plants is bearing fruit, but only one. Some are thinking about it, but there are still a few that seem to be stuck. Two of them still look just a few weeks old! They’re alive, but not growing at all. I’ve never even heard of anything like that, it’s like they’re in statis!
My cucumbers came down with powdery mildew. I’ve started spraying them with a diluted bleach solution that was recommended here. And then I’ve been spraying everything else. but a little less heavily, just in case it spreads.
I fould out what ate all my chickpea seeds: a mouse. I found that out after it struck again without disturbing the netting. I now have mothballs and other deterrents around the chickpeas, and I’ve wrapped the plants all the way around with more netting. They’re still flowering, so there’s still a chance. Snuggles the kitty is helping out when she can, she’s caught 2 mice and a shrew so far. But she’s only allowed to hunt when she’s on her leash and has a person with her, too many dogs and cars around to let her loose.
So sleepy, meds are kicking in . . . .
Oh wow!
Not understanding why you admonish me not to quit gardening now... is cold wet snow in the fall supposed to help?
Or just your encouraging me not to give up?
Good tip! I was wondering what I was going to do with me left over peppers!
The correct answer is : YES (to both)!!
You will learn more from your failures than you will learn from your successes...because it costs you money , time , expierience, etc.,..
BEAT MOTHER NATURE ..with knowledge !!
Watch the weather charts - the very first gamblers in the world were the farmers !!
When in doubt , cover with plastic sheeting, unless it is an extended freeze !.. and then pray harder for warmer weather !
Force yourselfr to grow , experiment , and learn each year !
Each year ... try another crop , if only for the expierience, and you may be surprised .
Learn for fun , survival , economy , or just for the expierience.
Look at Marcella and how she has grown this year ... !!
Thanks for the update. Glad to hear of some successes. My computer has been acting up. so I may have to take it to someone for a fix.
It needs updating anyway, since I’m still on Windows XP.
If so, I may have to go silent for a while too.
For the Pepper spray , she could claim it for "Show and TELL" in school
and then tell them that it is "Organic" (true )
or just list it as :"Eye Wash" (true)
no show and tell at this school. She is under a microscope anyway, being an independent thinker who doesn’t like to be told what to do, so I won’t be encouraging anything that might lead her into trouble.
So far, the school year has been pretty good, don’t want to jinx it.
That reminds me, I haven’t seen that link this week. Hate to hear about snow in the fall, but it sometimes happens.
I’ll be setting up the winter garden where I can cover it and stick a 100 watt bulb in it when it’s needed.
Bamboo will give you a visual screen
Rugosa Roses will give you an impeneteable visual and translocate screen.
Don't screw with the hurtful/ bloodletting thornes - I know form expierience during hunting season.
Good !! Play with your garden, ..and grow with your expierience, ...and learn
Wrap sensative trees with a 75 watt lightbulb, leaves(insulation) and comfitter
This Winter is supposed to be as cold, blustery , and snowey as last winter.
See Joe Bastardi's latest forecast at :
< http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3201203/posts >
and grab your woolies, hug your bride , or (ugh! ) hug your dog ! !
I think I’ll hug my hubby instead.LOL
Not only that ,.. he will think of something else than to just lick your face.
GOd Bless !
If he gets out of hand , you could always pepper spray him !!
You are a bit of a troublemaker????
/johnny
Wow! You’re a good researcher! Thanks.
Trish, they’re beautiful! (Just catchin’ up.)
Hey, TEXOKIE, I've likely screwed up more than anyone on this thread. I knew nothing beginning in about March, 2013, managed to pretty much kill all food plants - every tomato plant died because I didn't plant them correctly. Bugs/critters in the ground killed plants planted in the ground so I dumped growing in the ground and went to container growing. Then, I had to learn about container growing. Also had to learn how to get seeds to sprout.
No, we can't stop planting even with cold weather here. Eden Brothers, a seed company, sent this email to me yesterday: “Real Gardeners Plant in the Fall: Huge Savings Today on 12 Fall Favorites!” These 12 favorites are various flowers, but here is their link to veggie seed:
http://www.edenbrothers.com/store/vegetable_seeds.html
So, rats :o( to be a “real gardener" we have to plant in the fall. I'm going to plant a few Cherry Punch tomato seed and try to keep them alive and producing inside the house, putting them outside for sun when it's not too cold outside.
I always read your posts and you do great gardening. Do you preserve by dehydrating food? Now that I'm in north Texas, I'm going to get a dehydrator and learn to preserve food that way.
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