WEEKLY GARDEN THREAD VOLUME 38 SEPTEMBER 20, 2013

Free Republic | September 13, 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!

NOTE: This is a once a week ping list. We do post to the thread during the week. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest are welcomed, so feel free to post them at any time.

[Marcella]

“Rosemary, thyme, oregano are perennial or not?”
“Yes, and they are darn hard to start from seed, in my experience. It may be worthwhile to find some potted and transplant them.”

That’s what I will do. I’ll make a list of the perennials and try to buy those plants growing.

[tillacum]

I have a chive plant that’s about 10 years old, it just sits in partial shade gets watered from time to time, flowers, in fact is full of flowers right now, so they too will go into
salads. If I have flowers in October for the BBQ, they will be mixed into the potato salad and coleslaw. I do not allow my basil to flower, I don’t care for the leaves if they do
flower, the leaves taste a bit bitter, at least to me.

[Marcella]

I think Johnny is talking about Egyptian Walking Onions. The onion in the ground grows green “leaves” (looks like a green onion top), and at the end of the leaves, onion pods develop. After a period of time, the long green leaves which still look like green onion tops, fall over and the onion pods hit the ground and the pods take root and grows another onion. That is how they “walk”.

If he isn't talking about Egyptian Walking Onions, then ignore what I just wrote.

[mlizzy]

Uh, oh... spent the last thirty minutes looking at pictures and descriptions of keyhole gardens... I never heard of such a thing. Now, I want to do that too... -lol- Do you have one? Does your friend like the keyhole garden as much as her wigglers do? Fascinating!

[tillacum]

The squash bugs invaded my raised garden last spring and I just couldn’t get rid of the buggers. This spring I’m going to use my old standbys, syrup pots.
I’ve had a cherry tomato plant in one of my styrofoam posts and darn, something ate it from the inside, I couldn’t see
what is was, so it will go into the garbage. All of my veggies and herbs are grown in one of 3 raised gardens or syrup pots, styrofoam coolers I find or I no longer use.
Right now I’m getting ready to plant a couple of jalapeno seeds in a small styrofoam pot. They are supposed to be large peppers. I’ll transplant them into a syrup pot when they get a little bigger and keep them there, as I’ve heard they are perenials, as are the regular sweet peppers. I’ll try it ans see what happens.
johnny, “my” New Mexico peppers are looking good, they’re still outside in a 12”x 24” flower pot, when the “cold” weather comes, I’m moving them into the living room under the skylight.

[JRandomFreeper]

These are the pods for walking onions that they use to reproduce. I've never had the walking onions before, so it's all new to me.

/johnny

[tillacum]

That may be what I call perennial onions. I got some from
Applegate Ranch and they are doing beautifully. They don’t even go into shock from digging, shipping and planting.

[Ellendra]

At one point I had a design for a less cumbersome neck brace. I should get back to work on that again. Maybe in my “spare time”, if I ever find out what that is.

[rightly_dividing]

Thank you for your concerns and prayers. I am not particularly accident prone, the neck deal was just an aggravation of severe arthritis in the neck from turning my head to far to one side straining to see something, just painful, taking a few months to get past. The crash was an accident though. The timing is what hurt more than anything, I lost the summer when I was going to do some big honey doo projects outdoors for my wife.

[Marcella]

When I woke up this morning, I didn't instantly feel pain in my neck and that was good. I've used the soft cushion around it today and it has not started that bad hurting. It should be even better tomorrow, I hope.

Went out and surveyed “the back 40”, which I haven't been able to do since last Wednesday due to bad neck, and the walking onions are growing fast. Three are really up good, one about 7 inches and the other two about three-four inches and others tiny, I think there are 7-8 I can identify.

Still no blooms on the big tomatoes, but I found a baby tomato on the cherry tomato plant I bought at Lowes last week or week before. I never saw a blossom on it, just saw that tomato today.

I just don't know about this “T” Italian squash - it's taller than I am now and I'm 5'5”, and it's above the planter's rods for it to hold on to. It looks like a monster from outer space - the leaves are huge. And, no sign of a bloom anywhere.

I've got all these plants alive and growing and to show for it, there is ONE TINY TOMATO on a cherry tomato plant I didn't grow. Is there something wrong with this picture?

[JRandomFreeper]

Do you know about Mr. Murphy and his law?

/johnny

[Marcella]

“Do you know about Mr. Murphy and his law?”

“If something can go wrong, it will.”

So, what went wrong? Why doesn’t some plant bloom? Surely some could do that since I was nice enough to get them living. They have nice planters and soil with food in it and I protect them every night from squirrel marauders.

Perhaps I should have a stern talk with them tomorrow to point out they have certain responsibilities and they aren’t doing jack about carrying them out.

[greeneyes]

Be patient a while longer maybe. It takes a while to get to the bloom stage. Look at the packet and see what the days to maturity are. Then look at how long they have been planted. Each veggie is different.

The soil was already bagged, so it should have the nutrients needed.

[greeneyes]

Yeh, I always harvest the basil before it blooms.

[greeneyes]

Glad to have sparked some ideas. To me compost should be kinda simple-it is nature’s way afterall.

[greeneyes]

I wish them well.

[JRandomFreeper]

Plants blooming is all about reproduction. And that requires just the right conditions. For some species, it includes dinner, a movie, roses, and diamond rings. For veggies? It varies. Maybe they don't like people watching. ;)

Seriously... nature is going to do what it is going to do. All we can do is help it along. Maybe the night-time temps are wrong. Maybe the day-length isn't right. Maybe the wine at dinner was a red wine served with chicken? Who knows these things?

You will notice that I'm very boring with my garden. I may add one or two things a year to the mix. Romas will be my tomato. I'm happy others have luck with all the varied types. My peppers are jalapeno and (as of this year) NM chili. I rely a lot on what I harvest, so I find something that works for me, here, and figure out when and how, and that's it. I'm not going to the grocery store if I run out of onions. I just can't afford to.

/johnny

[Sarajevo]

And had you not returned, it might have been 13.5 inches right on top of the Lake, and just over the lake.

I doubt that would have helped......

This area is normally under 35-40 ft of water. There isn't even any mud, and the brush is quickly growing. We have Mexican Sycamore, Juniper, Mesquite, Acacia, Datura, and many other plants sprouting up in the old channel, and it's a big habitat for wildlife (including fahr aintz!).

I'm standing in the riverbed at the north end of Medina Lake in the Medina River bed. The big issue is that those cracks you see in the ground are over 13.5" deep. It'll take a major tropical downpour to change this. Unfortunately, that downpour will have to happen in your neck of the woods and the watershed to the north of us. It'll cause a lot of property damage. In the last couple of years, people have been building further and further into the flood zone here.

[Marcella]

“You will notice that I'm very boring with my garden. I may add one or two things a year to the mix. Romas will be my tomato. I'm happy others have luck with all the varied types. My peppers are jalapeno and (as of this year) NM chili.”

I understand you grow what works in your spot. You have had time to know what works best - I haven't. I'm in the shake-out time when I don't know what is going to grow exactly right for this space.

As you know, I have high brick walls around this garden and that changes the nature of the atmosphere in this space. Heat is emitted from the brick when the sun goes down. Nighttime out there is of a higher temperature than another space of equal size without brick walls.

So part of the problem is, which plants will grow best in this space, and I don't know the answer to that.

[Marcella]

“...styrofoam coolers I find or I no longer use.”

Talk to me about Styrofoam coolers - those things are cheap at dollar stores aren’t they? How well do they work for growing plants in them? Stick holes in the bottom?