Posted on 04/17/2015 1:08:22 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. It is impossible to hijack the Weekly Gardening Thread. Planting, Harvest to Table(recipes)preserving, good living - 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.
We usually buy these squash.
They are too big to grow in our garden.
Exactly true ! I have grown peas (legumes , just like peanuts, and soy) , and got an organic supplement called "nitrogen-fixing bacteria" with looks like 'black fairy dust'.
You soak the seeds in water for a few minutes, put in plastic sandwich bag while moist , add the 'nitrogen-fixing' , and then plant.
No supplemental nitrogen needed during the season as the 'nitrogen-fixing bacteria' forms nodules in the plant root hairs, and feeds the plant throughout the season.
We had "snow peas" right up to killing frost .
Harvest was minimal as the kids would go up into the garden and eat them right off the plant , which in turn , would make the plants flower more, and more snow peas .
I battle stink bugs (squash bugs) every year and I grow about 500 squash and zucchini plants. With stink bugs the problem is by the time they infest your plants they are bearing which rules out most pesticides.
I have found the most effective controls to be sprinkling sevin dust around the base of the plant before it gets large. Once the plant begins bearing if you take your hose and thoroughly wet the plant on a sunny day, the stink bugs will climb to the highest leaves to dry off. I use wire plies to end their suffering but I will leave that to your imagination.
Once the plants stop bearing I hit them heavy with 50%malathion and within a few days I pull them and burn them.
Check around to see if anyone has a hybridized variety to be a bush squash .
Bush squash will grow upward , rather than wander .
So I’ll get a pitiful crop from my snow peas since I didn’t add the fairy dust?
None of my new crops are working out this year!
No ! You should do all right.
The "nitrogen-fixing bacteria" was a supplement that I added since I was feeding a family of 5 people.
The 'black fairy dust' just meant that I didn't have to add any additional nitrogen during the season , and the season seemed to last longer as a result .
My youngest , now 30 yrs old ,still remembers looting the garden snow peas ...
That’s good to hear. They’ll be the first crop to harvest and I’m looking forward to them.
Think I’ll try the fairy dust next time. Probably cheaper and easier than fertilizing.
I grow spaghetti squash every year. My wife loves it. I get a spaghetti squash from the store in January and save the seeds. I planted them 2 weeks ago (Georgia) and will get a lot this summer/fall.
For a few weeks (in May/June) I get lots of flowers that turn into 1-2 inch squashes then die. That concerned me the first year. But they are males. Only the female flowers turn to squash. (at least that’s what I read on the internet:) The male are close to the vine and the female a couple inches off. My females are always a couple weeks after the males.
The male bossoms are the first to appear . They are numerous but do nothing until the female blossoms (fruiting) show up.
Johnny , do you have a good recipie for battered squash blossoms ?
I hate to see the blossoms go to waste , and I know that all blossoms can be delicious when battered . Do you have one ?
or , should I submit to the recipie forum ? Is the blossom as good and nutritious from cukes , or other curcubits ?
The type I use is Guard-N seed inoculant. It is manufactured by IN TX Microbials, LLC at http://www.intxmicrobials.com or http://intxllc.com/
I don't make anything off of them (I wish). I just use them, and am happy with them. When my garden is completely covered with those beneficial microbes and I don't have to kill everything, I'll quit buying it, as it will be resident in the soil. The type I use is only for Nitrogen. There are beneficial for other stuff, like good nematodes, too.
I'd be happy to answer any questions since I use them and like them.
/johnny
However... the flowers I stuff with whatever sausage I want, recently it has been Italian sausage. Generally, I bake them because I have problems swallowing the breading. And now I know why. But if I was breading them, I would dip them in a simple tempura recipe prior to deep frying them.
My tempura batter is almost always on-the-go, so a package tempura would be ok, or I use about 50/50 flour and corn starch mixed with ice cold good beer like a pilsner. An ale or bock is too heavy. Salt and pepper the breading to taste, and then salt and pepper them after they are cooked, and out of the oil.. very hot.
Dang. This is making me hungry..
/johnny
I only use recipes for things like my hand-crafted ice cream.
/johnny
How about asparagus tender stalks under a broiler while bathed in chicken broth, until just before browning , then turned over for another 2 1/2 minutes,
and the last minute under the broiler add a thin slice of smoked gouda so it lays melted over the stalks
and served while warm .
Somehow , I have gotten the impression that you aren't traditional.
You musta been a challenge to your parents ,..
and to the Drill Instructors,
and to the other cooks !
I may try that, though.. I wonder what I can use to sub for Gouda.. Maybe a smoked Emmentaler that melts easily and I may be able to eat.
/johnny
I like the phrase "challange"... I might have been. I have heard some refer to "that eccentric boy..." LOL!
/johnny
Or a nice Havarti ?
Unusure what your palate can handle , or the easiest way for you...
but it would add to your calorie intake.
That makes two of us. Some stuff goes away for a week or two, and then comes back. Some technique goes away for a while and then comes back.
It really is a full time job to keep the calories above 2400, and eventually 3000.
Sounds like a lot, but I do a lot, and barely gain weight.
I need a full time chef, and at this point, I'm very grateful for both of the cooking schools I graduated from.
/johnny
I think hubby said last year that he was going to try something like that in the patch where he tried the zukes last year. It was a brand new semi raised bed, and I’m not sure who brought the top soil in or where it came from.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.