Posted on 09/01/2026 5:40:17 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
The MONTHLY Victory Garden Thread is a 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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Um, yes, it has been “sluggish” a lot, recently. Could be some sort of attacks?
I’ve been having to be very careful about letting comments (posts) have a lot of extra time to process, and realize that them not popping up quickly it is NOT just me clicking my mouse with insufficient pressure!
Nasty, nasty. NWS has extended our heat spell and upped temperatures the next few days to highs of 98 the next 3 afternoons (including today), 97 on Sunday.
To make matters more fun, our well is out. I got the (double pipe, about 40 feet of it, mostly full of water) pulled up late yesterday, after troubleshooting the pump and above-ground piping. Seems ok. The venturi and foot valve are absolutely locked on to each other and the adapters to the PVC pipe. Nothing obviously wrong, and the PE piping seems ok too, so, WTH. The only good news is that even with the dry weather, water in the well appears to only be ~ 18-20 ft. below the surface, so, we have NOT run dry. Thank you, aquafer!
In an extreme circumstance I might be able to rig up something with a hand pump, to get by. Menards has the hand pumps. If no water by tomorrow, the garden is going to be in big trouble.
Those tomatoes are beautiful.
So far, after having rechecked the piping going down into the well, the one odd thing is buildup of mineral deposits on the clamp at the top of the ejector, but none on the drive pipe. Possibly it could be caused by a leak, but it looks like it was coming from the ejector or the adapter to it, or the connection to the pipe. As I tried cleaning off the screw that opens or tightens the clamp, the screw head broke off. So I guess I’ll cut the clamp with my Dremel tool. The clamp itself is still quite tight.
Also, I still can’t get the ejector off the foot valve. :-(
I’m, well, not exactly the opposite, but I like moderately acidic and sweet. 12 oz. “Sweet 100’s” would be perfect for me. :-)
Beautiful - now I’m craving a tomato sandwich!
I should have specified: There is no mineral buildup on the drive pipe clamp or on the suction pipe. All the (mostly reddish brown) buildup, almost 1/4” think in one spot, is on the clamp (esp. the screw head that broke off) and pipe where the suction pipe is clamped onto the adaptor leading out of the ejector. I cut the clamp band on that connection with my Dremel tool, and pried the clamp off - the band was very tight to the suction pipe / slightly sunk into it. Then the suction pipe itself was extremely tight on the adaptor: It took me several minutes of very strenuous effort to get it off the adaptor. I suppose that does not preclude a leak, but would a small leak THERE cause the pump to not be able to draw up water?.
I have just enough Bonnies’ Original tomato fruits left to make up a big ham, lettuce, tomato, and (a little) mayo sandwich - good on an afternoon I’m getting roasted out at the wellhouse. A southern exposure is good in the winter, but...
Yes. FR is sluggish. It’s the humidity, LOL!
I’m jealous .... we’ve eaten all the homegrown tomatoes so it’s a tomato desert around here. I refuse to buy store bought tomatoes. On our trip Mon/Tues, we were gifted a quart jar of homegrown canned tomatoes & some sweet pickles. The tomatoes will be great is soup or chili.
Substitute “P” for “F” to get to my screen name “initials”, and you’ve got that right a second time!
I wonder if the mods would temporarily let me change to “Broiled Boy”. :-(
The bottom end of the well piping assembly (foot end) is all back together. In a bit I’ll go back out, give the clamp screws a last 1/8 CW turn, and then feed the pipes back into the well. I’ll have wifey on the rope (goes around a big tree for leverage) so I don’t risk losing control of the pipe. It’s lighter now tho’ as more water is out of it after I pulled the venturi & foot valve off. After getting the pipes lifted out, getting the connections apart has been the hardest part. Yeesh.
I guess they heard us because it’s nice and snappy now
I got the gate & the part that attaches it to the wall off today. It’s a 40” gate, welded metal, obviously custom made for the space & HEAVY.
The old latch will not work on the opposite side (wall) since it was made to attach to a post. If I use a block of wood on the wall to mimic a post, it still won’t work unless I turn it upside down & then it falls open & won’t self-lock. Looking online, I found a latch that works the same way, but I can do a work-around to get it attached on the wall side.
Tomorrow looks like a trip to the Farm Bureau to see if they have that type of self-locking latch. If not, I’ll have to order one. Lowe’s would have it, but that’s an hour drive.
I need to get the gate back up. When you step out of the kitchen door, there’s about 3-4 feet before the basement steps start. It’s scary - mom won’t go out that way with the gate off. Once the new latch is in place, I can measure for where the handrail will go since the gate won’t be opening against that wall any more.
Stunning tomatoes! How to take care of your seeds until next season? Any special treatment?
Maple Glazed Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
Ing: 1 c flour 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice 1/2 tsp b/soda 1/2 tsp k/salt 1/2 c unsalted butter, softened 1/2 c packed lt br/sugar 1 lge egg 1/3 c canned pumpkin puree 2 Tbl real maple syrup 1 1/2 c rolled oats (not quick cook) Glaze 3/4 c conf 1 Tbl real maple syrup Pinch pumpkin pie spice 1 tsp (or more) water
Method--- Arrange racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Whisk flour, spice, b/soda, salt. In 2nd bowl, elec/mixer on med butter/br/sugar light and fluffy, about 2 min. Add egg, pumpkin, maple syrup; beat/combine on med, then gradually add flour mixture; eat til fully combined. Stir in oats. Cover/fridge til cold, about 30 min. Arrange 16 (1/4-cup) balls of dough 2" apart on parchmented baking sheets. Slightly flatten w/ palm. Bake firm, lightly browned, 350 deg 14-16 min. Cool completely.
Maple Glaze---whisk conf, maple syrup, spice. Add enough water til thick but pourable.
Drizzle over cooled cookies. Set about 15 min. Serve.
For more an 40 years I do what my dad did. Squeeze the seeds onto a paper towel. Write the variety on the towel. Leave out to dry. Use an old envelope (actually half an envelope) write the year and variety down. Cut away any paper towel that does not have seeds. And if it is a two ply towel peel off the back end. Tape the envelope shut and I store in plastic containers in the garage for the winter (west Michigan). When planting time comes I use peat pots and tear off a bit of seeds and plant paper and all.
For more an 40 years I do what my dad did. Squeeze the seeds onto a paper towel. Write the variety on the towel. Leave out to dry. Use an old envelope (actually half an envelope) write the year and variety down. Cut away any paper towel that does not have seeds. And if it is a two ply towel peel off the back end. Tape the envelope shut and I store in plastic containers in the garage for the winter (west Michigan). When planting time comes I use peat pots and tear off a bit of seeds and plant paper and all.
Genius method! Thanks!
I can testify! I’ve used ‘Mom’s’ way of saving seed and it works just fine. Good germination rates.
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