WEEKLY GARDEN THREAD VOLUME 17 APRIL 26, 2013

Free Republic | April 26, 2013 | greeneyes

[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!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Free Vulcan]

It's finally warming up here, finally got a little of the salad crops in, almost a month late. Hopefully the next next month will be decent enough to get caught up.

For those in the market, I decided that maybe a wheel hoe was a good SHTF backup if fuel gets scarce and running engines might draw unwanted attention. After looking at about about a 1/2 dozen types I found one from Valley Oak tools that I though was durable and affordable enough to use.

Here's the website: Valley Oak Tool

A wheel hoe with scuffle hoe, cultivator, and furrower attachments set me back about $450. Not bad considering how well it was built. Comes in real nice when it's too wet to run a tractor over it.

Some pics:

Dug some jerusalem artichokes a few weeks back, they are always the first thing out of the garden along with the parsnips in the spring. Used them and some of the winter radishes I still had left over plus some chickweed and dandelion I picked in the field for some batches of fermented vegetables:

[tubebender]

A 6 foot fence keeps the little California Black Tail Deer out of our garden but I had to resort to this extreme to protect our strawberries from Raccoons, Possums and Skunks. Nylon netting did not deter them...

[Just mythoughts]

Thanks for the ping and wealth of information.

This side of the state is waterlogged as well. It rained here most of the day. I did manage to get in a couple hours of weeding in the strawberry beds, but was forced back inside when the drizzle of water became a downpour.

While the garden is too soggy to do anything but pull weeds, I can at least pull out the weeds. I went to majority of raised beds exactly because of how wet most springs have been. Last year of course was the exception. Right now I am waiting for warmer temperatures so I can plant in these raised beds. I think my snow pea seeds would be rotting were it not for them being planted in a raised bed, it has been that wet this spring. I am a bit concerned that the wetness might cause the potatoes to rot as there is no sign of them yet.

It was only a couple of years back that I discovered ‘Purslane’ was not just a weed. I did not plant them so they must be ‘native’ to this area. I planted dill one time over twenty years ago and have not had to replant since. Sometimes it comes up where it is not wanted but I always have an abundance of dill.

What did you use to make your seed tape?

[tubebender]

That is a good looking wheel hoe. Are the attachments quick connect or do you need a wrench?

[Free Vulcan]

I love it. It's all by pins with the u-arm that swings and locks over the other end. Here's a pick with the pin in the attachment:

The handles are adjusted with a pinch lever that swings on a 180 degree pivot for easy moving from a shorter to taller person.

[djf]

My neighbor turned over an area of about 12 feet by 15 feet with his loader. It was full of blackberry bushes, western dock, and old branches...

I’ve been running it through a filter/sifter and tossing the rocks and roots, and building a minor rock retaining wall of sorts.

This is pure, virgin forest floor with tons of organics and worms. Never been gardened in. Gets about 7 hours of direct sunlight a day.

I’m thinkin tomatoes and I’m excited!

[MamaDearest]

Found a snake skin there once, back before it became the garden/computer area.

Euuu, I almost stepped on a rather large snake (type unknown) while picking berries in the woods a couple of years back. It was under a log in a marshy area. Good thing berry picking was finished for that day.

[MamaDearest]

I bought a couple of dozen strawberry plants and planted them in an area north of our garage (raised bed). The next morning the plants were pretty much all gone. It was expensive deer food. Have you tried blueberries? We didn’t get many the first couple of years, but the last couple of years they are quite productive. We have five acres, gardens front and rear and a small greenhouse.

[MamaDearest]

Pretty cool fencing. Kudos for that (I admire it). We have a gopher problem in parts of the yard. We have several hawks around here and I hope they are gorging themselves at night when these little nasty creatures come out to dig up my yard.

[djf]

Purslane is edible and is in fact very good for you!
Has lots of the Omega 3 fatty acids.

Dill grows around here, I harvested some wild seeds a few years back, but never planted them. One good thing about it is ladybugs LOVE the stuff! So if you have aphids or a spider mite problem and want to attract ladybugs, take care of the dill and it should attract tons of them.

[greeneyes]

Very nice! Thanks.

[greeneyes]

Yeh, we have had that too sometimes.

[greeneyes]

Nice looking gizmo. I just have rakes, shovels, and hoes along with a few hand tools. I had a little gizmo that I got at walmart which was good for aeration, but Hubby liked it so much he used it all the time and broke it.

[greeneyes]

I used some paper towels to make strips and little dabs of Elmers glue that I have had for about 8 years. If I had not had Elmers, I would have just mixed up some cornstarch and water.

I used a water soluble marker and a ruler to make dots at the proper intervals. Then I put the dots of glue next to the dot and then used tweezers to put on the seed.

Then just folded the paper towel strip over and laid the ruler on top while I worked on the next one. I kinda let the glue get tacky in a container before I put it on the towel.

Yes, I like the raised beds that I have. They are almost idiot proof when it comes to overwatering which is one of my worst habits. Too much attention if you know what I mean.
They are also easier to weed. Plus it’s pretty easy to plant just a sq ft or so at a time, and then do whatever else has to be done.

[tubebender]

I have tried to trap Moles for years with mediocre results until I saw this trap being used by a pro on my neighbors yard. It's called a Cinch trap and comes in 3 sizes with the larger one for Gophers. I bought a 6 pack on eBay or Amazon and cleared out the yard...

[greeneyes]

Sounds good to me.

[greeneyes]

Yeh, I am not a snake lover. Even though I know that we have snakes that are good deed types, just can’t feel the love.

Hubby used to have a boa constrictor and of course my kids liked to take it out and hold it. Fortunately it had a home in the science room at school, so I didn’t have to put up with it at home.

[tubebender]

Here is a youtube link to setting the cinch trap + there are several others in a search...

setting the trap

[greeneyes]

We did buy some land north of town, but then the economy went south, so we decided not to build another house, and just stick with what we have. We haven’t decided what we’ll do with it yet. It’s free and clear, and probably a better investment than anything else at this point, so we’ll just hold it for a while. Might start a Christmas tree farm, or plant a vineyard.LOL

There’s about 5 or 6 acres behind our house here that’s for sale, and there’s several more plots in and around the neighborhood, so we might actually be able to aquire some more land within walking distance.

[greeneyes]

Oh yes, we have been planting blueberries every year for 3 years we get some on sale. We took out the flower bed along the top back patio and planted a bunch of them there.

Put the iris and daylilies out in the front yard.

Our biggest problem with strawberries was the squirrels. We put netting over them and then stuck shiny windmill toys in the ground to help scare away critters. We get loads of strawberries. Blueberries haven’t done nearly as well for us as the strawberries.