WEEKLY GARDEN THREAD VOLUME 39 SEPTEMBER 27, 2013

Free Republic | Sept 27, 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.

[Tilted Irish Kilt]

cherry :" I pulled yellow flowers off my tomatoe plants like crazy early in the season....reason was the plants were still very small,
and there was no way any decent maters would come from them....."

Do you know what a tomato 'sucker' is ? Same concept !!.
Suckers are vegetative growth that really dont assist in fruit production , but draw energy away from fruiting .
Most times 'sucker' can be removed to increase fruit harvest both in terms of numbers , and earlier fruit maturity .

[MissMagnolia]

The persimmon trees on dad's farm were wild and I think they would be Diospyros virginiana (common persimmon, Eastern persimmon). Here's a link:

Diospyros virginiana

From another source ... "An entirely different species, Diospyros kaki, the Japanese persimmon, originated in China, leaped to Nippon thousands of years ago, then, in the early 1800s, came to California, likely with Asian immigrants. Two varieties fill store shelves, both resembling medium-sized orange tomatoes. ‘Hachiya’ (which dominates the market) is pointed at the bottom and tastes somewhat astringent. ‘Fuyu’ has a flat bottom and a sweeter taste. Neither has the rich flavor of the smaller native American fruit."

America's Puckery Persimmon

Your info got me to looking up persimmons and I think I'm learning something here .... thanks! :-)

[Ellendra]

That’s so true. However, they’ll probably do ok with some of the easier stuff. Like bush beans and mint.LOL

Assuming they can spare a few years to expand their seed supply. Some of those seed packets will only have 18 bean seeds in them. Hard to feed a family on that, even if you do know what you're doing!

[Ellendra]

I can recall my years as a teenager when us kids would get together and plow/disc three or four garden plots with the neighbors tractor, then come back and plant seeds. Corn, tomato, squash, beans......we never worried about it afterwards because it was almost guaranteed to produce a crop.
I wonder why it seems to be so much of a hassle today.

Some of it might be the seeds. While I was studying plant breeding I learned some things about the seeds industry that didn't exactly inspire confidence. A lot of vegetables are being selected to grow in very specific conditions, or they're being chosen for characteristics other than how well they handle things like drought, heat, pests, and competition.

Some varieties still have that reliance, but they can be hard to find.

[Tilted Irish Kilt]

rightly_dividing :"The extension office is a great help, since they are experts on local growing and conveniently located.
All you have to do is just walk in or call to get help. "

that can't be said often enough !! All you have to do is ask !!
If they cant help you , they will refer you to someone who will help you !

[tubebender]

Ah Ha... We grow the Japanese varieties here on the west coast...

[Ellendra]

“reliance” = resilience.

[MissMagnolia]

I'm not a great gardener and certainly not a "farmer", but I'd like to be one ... I love farm chores, animals, raising what you eat ... the whole nine yards. Both sets of grandparents were farmers ... one grandfather had a dairy, the other beef cows & acres of tomatoes, so maybe my love of all things 'farm' are genetic.

Anyway, I came across a book lately and the reviews on it are just the best .... I'm getting it for two guys I know: one who is trying to eke out a profit on his family farm and another who worked on an organic farm this summer and quickly figured out how much work it is .... but still would like to do something in farming. Here's a link, check it out:

Gaining Ground: A Story of Farmers' Markets, Local Food, and Saving the Family Farm

[TEXOKIE]

LOL! I commiserate with you on the memory issues.

You know what they say...

If you forget where your keys are, it’s ok...if you forget what they’re for, you have a problem!

[TEXOKIE]

I believe that is very true, bgill, that having a handful of seeds may not help the people who most need them. I earnestly pray that we are never at that point. But am grateful that since I’ve pitched in to trying to learn about it, it has actually developed into something fun and fascinating!

[TEXOKIE]

This being only my first year to really try for veggies, I am not able to report of my own experience about how different plants thrive during different years, but I understand that that is often the case.

I havent’ had a very good crop of peppers either this year, except like yours, mine have picked up in past few weeks and gotten productive.

[greeneyes]

The only time we have trouble with critters at night, is when the grapes, persimmons, and corn is ripe. Then the coons and the possums come out and get their snacks of low hanging fruit and corn.

[greeneyes]

They taste like nothing else. Very good but hard to describe. I am collecting a few seeds to try out the “coffee” aspect.

[greeneyes]

I don’t guess you have a creek on your property?

[greeneyes]

Maybe you could put the pots with onions on top of the old garden area, and let them walk over the side and all over the old garden patch?

[greeneyes]

Well, this is true. Altough we get a lot of mileage out of our seeds-most packets have more than we have space for. But we are only growing for the two of us at this point.

And I am using the sq foot garden method as much as possible, so getting quite a lot out of a small area. But yeh, you gotta wonder whether they are even getting enough seed to plant for their needs.

[greeneyes]

Thanks for the info and link.

[greeneyes]

LOL. By that definitions I am doing ok I guess.LOL

Will be leaving this afternoon to go to Branson for the week, so I won’t be able to do much on the computer for a while. Will try to get on the computer to start the Friday thread though.

[EQAndyBuzz]

I used untreated wood. Didn’t paint it or stain it.

Think it might be the heat. Had beautiful plants, just no fruit. I used Mel’s mix so I didn’t understand about phosphorous, other fertilizer. Wasn’t needed according to the book.

Now that it is cooler, going to try again this weekend. What would be good for the fall?

[rightly_dividing]

You are 100% correct on all points. We have a great ext service here, and are conveniently located.