Weekly Gardening Thread
Weekly Gardening Thread
I hope all of you will stop by.
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Anyone picking collards yet?
10 inches of rain in October, an early frost, and what is left—mud pit and no chance to fall till. 51 quarts of the best salsa ever, canned tomatoes, frozen corn, and more apples now than we can even give away.
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In before 10? Woohoo!
Weather has been gorgeous but raining now.
No collards picked yet but they are growing beautifully.
I had a really stinky gardening season this year. I tore a major muscle in my leg right after I got some of my stuff in the ground this spring. Then we had a really wet spring with my strawberries underwater for the most part and me in a cast unable to reach them. After it dried out, everything sprouting baked to a crisp in an early June heatwave. I have had tomatoes and need to get out and start cleaning up after last week's frost.
I've been collecting milk jugs and 2L soda bottles to get ready for my Winter Sowing. I need to prep the containers (burn drainage holes and cut the tops). Maybe look for some end of season potting soil sales. I don't normally plant in my containers until January but I know some who start as early as Dec.
I’m needing some advice from a northern, or northern midwestern, gardener on Irises. Anybody out there?
But, I have carefully planned these boxes, and I need a lot of compost for next year. Right now, I have a lot of leaves and grass clippings which would be a good start. But, the snow is coming soon. What happens if it freezes? Will it thaw and continue decomposing in the spring?
Here is the start of my Square Foot Garden (veggies) that I am starting out fromt. There are 2 boxes -- one 4 x 8 feet, 3 timbers high, and one 2 x 8 feet, 4 timbers high. I need a compost pile, although it is a little late to start one.
The planting mix will be 1/3 Peat, 1/3 Compost, and 1/3 Vermiculite. Both boxes will be divided into 1 ft. squares and planted with various vegetables and edible flowers, herbs, etc. The crops will be rotated as they are havested, although I don't expect to get a full rotation with our short growing season. But it should yield enough to feed my husband and me and some to give away next summer.
These boxes are in an old pasture that I keep mowed. There will be a fence to keep the deer out, eventually. I'm going to rely on other means to fend off the deer (like I do in my rose garden) in the beginning because I really want to make this garden larger, and my husband is not co-operating right now. No sense in blocking my expansion plans with a fence too soon. LOL.
What do you all think? Has anyone here tried Square Foot Gardening?
I would post a picture of our pumpkins, of which we are very proud, but alas posting pictures is a mystery to me...
This is our first year as serious organic gardeners (my daughter and I) so we are extremely proud of all the veges we enjoyed, particularly our six pumpkins that son-in-law will carve.
Happy autumn to all. (I love this thread, BTW)
And a big thank you to neefer for the tomato seeds which arrived in the mail today! Can’t wait to get them started for spring.
Got the remainder of my shrubs planted Wed. eveining; two Birchleaf Spirea and two Emerald Arborvitae. I’m starting the ‘bones’ of what will be a ‘gorgeous, dahling’ Evergreen Garden on the east side of my property. I still need to find a spot for my Champagne Pink Currant, which I thought was a Red Lake but will blend in just as well when it’s all jelly. Or wine. ;)
I have a bushel of fall bulbs to plant; daffodils, crocus, big, fat red Dutch tulips...if it ever stops raining! We had 2 inches again today. It’s messy, cold and just plain icky out there. No fall tilling for me; it’ll all have to wait until spring at this rate. Grrrrrr!
I would like to report to the team that despite the cr@ppy economy and the pending ‘End of the World as We Know It,’ I had $60K in nursery and perennial and veggie plant and annual flower sales ABOVE last year! Wa-Hoo! I’m really getting the hang of the business end of gardening. That will bode well for me in the future whether I’m working for myself or for someone else. :)
As for the inside of the house: got new carpeting in our bedroom today. It’s very nice; short-loop chocolate brown with various colored flecks in it. Of course, it was a barter; Husband traded web page design and maintenenace for it. Gotta love that man...and I do! :) The kitchen flooring is next.
Wait a minute! It just dawned on me...our new carpeting looks just like DIRT, LOL! Guess I CAN have an indoor garden and an outdoor garden, too. :)
I am using a wide, flat bulb pan and filling it to the brim with 'Angelique' tulips.
When they start sprouting, I'm adding Cat Grass (rye) to the soil, so it will look like the tulips are coming up through grass. It's so pretty and should be right on time for Easter.
Pull them out in February or March, add water and a sunny window and you will be thanking me when you need a shot of spring or you're going to CHOKE somebody, LOL!
In the upcoming weeks you can get Amarylis bulbs and Paperwhites and Hyacinth for forcing for the holidays, too. A gardener always plans ahead!
I just recently started sqaure foot gardening. I really like how it is progressing, takes minimal space and it has been a great way to teach my kids how to garden.