Posted on 01/11/2013 11:16:21 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.
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!
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Some red and yellow alpine strawberries, bee balm, and something called naranjilla which will ultimately be a houseplant. Then the hot peppers a few days after that, then the brassicas.
Here’s the rest:
#2: Is Recession Preparing a New Breed of Survivalist? [Survival Today - an On going Thread #2]
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2181392/posts
#3:Weekly Roundup - Living On Nothing Edition [Survival Today - an On going Thread #3]
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2299939/posts
I confess I am not a very good composter. We have a patch of land behind the woodpile that is basically a cirlce of chicken wire. Everything just gets pitched in and occasionally stirred. It doesn’t stink (amazingly) and it never seems to get full.
I also have one that looks like a trash can that we put kitchen scraps, leaves, and shredded paper in. It does not lend itself to easy mixing. It also has never been stinky, and in the summer it shrinks quickly.
I suppose the worms do their thing since both composters are directly on the ground. I was quite interested in using some old tires that we had to plant potatoes.
You start out with your soil/compost in a tire and add tires and compost/straw as the potatoes grow. Hubby said the tires weren’t used enough.
That was 3 years ago, and they still haven’t been used anymore. They were studded tires I took off a car and I no longer have to get out in winter since I retired.
Maybe this Spring Cleaning season will be the one where he decides I can use them.LOL.
I like this one. It sounds like me. No worry and no fuss. It will all rot sooner or later. LOL.
Thanks for your continued support on the garden thread. It just wouldn’t be the same if you didn’t send us a message or two.
Those alpine strawberries sound interesting. We will have 3 of those 6 foot circle terraced strawberry beds this year to replace the patch we have had for 3 years.
I am hoping to grow something other than Ozark Beauty, even if it’s just in pots on the patio.
Thanks for the links. I want to start reading them maybe just a few per week.
Baker Creek has them in their Garden Berries section. Start them in winter and you have strawberries by fall. Alpines are the best, 1/4 the size of regular ones but twice the flavor.
Re-potted the apricot seedlings into 10” pots over the this past week. Some had succumbed prior; and a couple didn’t survive this round, so down to 11 healthy looking specimens.
Soaking overnight in the cast iron Dutch oven is a mix of home-grown dried lima, navy, Great Northern, and white greasy cut-short beans. Ham bones and scraps are ready & waiting in the fridge. A can each of black beans & red kidney beans; bacon, onion, tomatoes, molasses, and some other odds & ends will round out the mix.
They’ll cook all day tomorrow on the kitchen wood range; with temps down to 0 & a forecast high of 12, there’s no way it won’t have a fire in it!
That sounds great. We used to have a wood stove (not a range). After we finished the basement, we had no place to put the wood stove. I miss it though when the weather gets cold.
There's also a wood stove in the utility room that keeps it & the down stairs bedroom warm, and sends heat up the stairs to the upper bedroom, as well.
The utility room is directly underneath the kitchen; and the kitchen floor is its only ceiling, it also keeps the kitchen floor toasty: happiness is a warm puppy floor!
oooh yeh. We used to have a great wood stove in the basement and no insulation between the floors. We would fire it up full blast on the the coldest days and stay very warm and the furnace rarely kicked in.
Sometimes Hubby would get both fireplaces and the woodstove cranking, and you’d feel like you needed to get out the summer clothes. LOL.
I really miss it sometimes. Now that it’s just the 2 of us, we just turn down the heat, put on sweaters and thermal underwear and hangout downstairs where the temp stays pretty constant anyway, and the really nice TV resides in the family room.LOL.
My broccoli is heading nicely. Mustard greens and kale still coming along. The chard was a complete disaster and I don’t know why.
If anyone has a method of getting oak leaves to decay more rapidly I’d love to hear it. I’ve got tons of them and they just don’t break down fast enough for mulch.
Temperatures are warm enough to make pansies bloom and fresh shoots coming up from daffodils and hyacinths. There have been a couple of nights with below freezing temperatures so I keep plastic covering material handy.
Hubby just leaves oak leaves on the ground and runs the lawnmower over them. We never rake them up except to get them off the patios and from around the play yard fence, so I have no advice there.
Do you have any favorite recipes for Kale? My oldest daughter joined a coop and she got a big bunch of kale this month. She was asking me what to do with it. I told her I really don’t know, but it is supposed to be good for you.
We had incredible 60 degree weather yesterday. Predicted to have snow over the weekend. We have a rainy, cloudy day today. I don’t know if we have made up for the drought yet, but I am feeling better about the well. Had a real concern it would go dry after last summer.
Thanks for the links!
You’re supposed to use flavored cream cheese w/this, but I used the plain stuff and added onion and garlic w/some paprika and other stuff.
Kale with Cream Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
Kale
• 1 bunch kale, chopped (1 bunch)
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar (5ml)
• 3 tablespoons butter (45ml)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cream Sauce
• 8 ounces flavoured cream cheese (250g)
• 1/3 cup milk (75ml)
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest (5ml)
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice (5ml)
Directions
Kale
1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add kale and cook for 2 minutes, sprinkle with sugar and continue to cook until tender crisp, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Serve kale with sauce.
Cream Sauce
1. In two microwave proof bowls, add cream cheese and milk to each. Microwave, on High covered, for 30 seconds. Remove from microwave and whisk until smooth. Return to microwave for 15 seconds. Remove and whisk in lemon juice and zest until combined.
Tip: Use flavoured cream cheeses such as roasted red pepper and herb and garlic.
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