Posted on 08/23/2013 1:53:26 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. No matter what, you won’t be flamed and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked.
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Their actions speak louder than words.
I'm sure she touches them too.
I just read their eggs can be 8 or 9 inches down in the soil. How the heck do they get that far down?
Is that right? In my St Augustine, they're like the Langoliers in that Steven King movie..I put out deadline, but I can't get rid of them..those are horrible little white tiny white ones about the size of an okara seed.
The ones in the flowers were mostly regular snail looking brown ones, one regular snail, but white with stripes, and a two shaped like a banana/sea shell.. longish, instead of regular old snail shaped. I hate them.
/johnny
/johnny
Which plant or plants told you that? :o)
Rainwater contains dissolved nitrogen -- the bestest fertilizer (for everything but legumes).
I ran a pecan orchard in Alabama. We had installed a drip irrigation system to keep the trees watered. We even "fertigated" thru the system, mixing a ration of liquid nitrogen (ammonium nitrate)into the water.
But, after every rainfall, there was a palpable, visible difference in the health of the trees -- noticeable the moment I drove in the gate. They were visibly greener and fuller than they had been the previous day.
The good Lord's trees do love their rainwater...
Mix seeds with a cup of water. Add 1 tablespoon Oxyclean. Let soak an hour. Rinse. Soak in plain water 5 minutes, rinse again. Let dry.
At least, those were the instructions. What the instructions didn’t say was that it foams slowly enough to fool you into doing something else, and then you come back and there’s what looks like a pink sponge crawling out of the jar! Also, the seeds and bits of pulp get pushed to the top of the foam, so some don’t get the full treatment. Next time I’ll use a big bowl, and will walk by and stir it a few times. Rubber gloves would also be a good idea, especially if you have as many small cuts on your hands as I did. I’ll also be more careful to stir them as they dry, because the first thing they did was glue themselves together.
The Oxyclean dissolves the gel around the seed, and also kills off any nasties that might infect your plants.
And here I just pat mine on the head!
All the plants are in containers with Miracle Grow Potting Soil MIX which gives them the fertilizer they need for six months. All are in containers large enough for good root systems to form. Plus, the larger containers are made to water from the bottom and they have attached trellis. The other containers are fabric containers so excess water drains from the sides and bottom so they don't get water logged.
I plan to charge admission, probably a hefty five cents, at some point so visitors can view the grow lamp and tiny plants coming up and the lush plants on the deck growing in containers. I'm sure you will want to bring your cameras. Free iced tea for all. Thanks for your attention,
The Marcella Food Plant Farm :o) :o) :o)
Thanks, I will copy those instructions. I don’t have Oxyclean.
Sounds well worth the nickel...
I can see a very noticeable difference in our plants of all kinds after a rain. We also run an extensive drip irrigation system to our veggie patch and flower beds and containers for their primary water supply. The drip system was originally planned to be backup, but here in E.Texas it is necessary for survival.
A bargain at twice the price. I’ve never seen an urban prepper food farm before.
This morning, I took a lot of dirt out of a large wood planter on the ground in the dirt part of the garden, using a shovel to do that and added new potting soil mix, and had to stop due to the pain of bending over so much. I'll get the onion sets in there before the day is over. I have to buy more potting soil mix soon to have enough for the plants from the seeds.
sockmonkey, Mr. Stevia does not look good, the leaves are drier looking and that's not good. I know the potting soil doesn't need more water, so I hope he perks up. For the rain water experts, Mr. Stevia was here and got rain water since we have had rain since he got here.
More seeds sprouting under the grow lamp - Zinnias, Brussels Sprouts, Cucumber.
Give Mr Stevia a haircut..cut off about the top half of him, or at least a third..I know I damaged some of his rootball so they could squish him into that 6x6" box.
Also, stevia isn't a heavy drinker, so make sure he's not overwatered..I think cutting off a bunch of the top growth will give him the boost he needs.
“I think cutting off a bunch of the top growth will give him the boost he needs.”
Okay, will do that today.
Yeah, I’d do it just above the leaf node..I think that’s what it’s called..so that no little leafless sticks are showing.
Then take the leaves, that you whacked, and dry them, and try out one of your stevia recipes.
Such good news Marcella. It seems that I am having difficulty getting to all my pings between the time I logged of for my trip and tonight when I finally got a chance to reply.
Everyone, I am sorry if I didn’t get a response out to you. Between the trip and the truncated pages, I just don’t think I got them all.
You are doing fine. Rome wasn’t built in a day and your garden will take awhile too. Just don’t overdue it in the heat, and be careful with your back.
Well for those of us who can’t make it in person, please post some pictures. Thank you very much in advance.LOL
When it is obvious something will not work, quit doing it. That's my history with ground dirt, doesn't work for me.
Then, part of making something work is researching to prove it's possible, then believing it can be done and do it. I've researched container gardening until I know it can be done, so I will do it.
And, one has to get seed to sprout, and outside didn't work in my location with hungry squirrels in trees just a few yards from my fence and all those birds living in those trees. Plus, the only house around here with anything for them to eat, was and is, my garden. Hence, I moved the operation into my house and I've got numerous seeds sprouting.
I figure I can do most anything, I just have to figure out a way to do it. It's just another problem to solve and I'm good at solving problems. However, I'm still working on figuring out what makes Johnny the way he is, you know, “lovable”. :o)
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