Posted on 02/29/2020 7:27:28 AM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
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.
If you have specific question about a plant/problem you are having, please remember to state the Growing Zone where you are located.
This thread is non-political respite. 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! Send a Private Message to Diana in Wisconsin if you'd like to be added to our New & Improved Ping List.
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 to Gardeners are welcomed any time!
They should add night-blooming tobacco to that list. The scent is incredible.
Con #6: You can’t use a tractor to till them with.
True, Dat! We bought a small tiller a few years ago. It’s really perfect for raised beds. I have also seen people leave one end of their raised beds open so they CAN till if needed. I brought a big tiller with me when I moved out here. It’s a HUGE monster that I can’t even move myself; had my teen boys do the tilling for me in the past. I named him, ‘Darth Vader,’ LOL! Beau uses it in the lower garden where he grows sweet corn and melons.
However - I have found that we haven’t needed to till the raised beds in over three years, now. Just by adding compost and keeping everything mulched with straw in the growing season and in the fall, it breaks down into pure LOVELINESS that I can just dig up with a spade as needed.
I try very hard NOT to mess with the soil in the raised beds. Too many worms and microbes in there that I don’t want to disturb. And the random Toad. :)
We’ve had several days of nice weather here in Central Missouri. No rain/snow, warm temps, some sunshine. Very nice.
Spent some time on garden cleanup yesterday. It’s still too muddy for power tools, so I had to use elbow grease instead. I think I’ll toss some lettuce seed in the cold frame later today.
One of my favorite things about spring is the fresh lettuce at the farmers markets and the return of the amazing flavors of fresh vegetables and herbs. When spring finally arrives we are all excited for radishes, peas, fresh strawberries, and greens. These spring salad recipes are the perfect way to really showcase spring produce and celebrate the return of warm weather and everything green!
We try to eat seasonally as much as possible. In the winter, this means focusing on a lot of broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, winter squash, beets, and tubers. These usually make their way into soup or stews in the Instant Pot, but it’s also possible to eat them in a roasted vegetable salad like this one.
As much as I love those veggies, when spring finally arrives it just naturally feels like time to make a change and lighten things up.
One strategy of course is just to pile all the fruits and veggies together in whatever way sounds tasty (topped off with one of these homemade salad dressings). If you’re looking for a more nuanced approach, here are some of the spring salads that are especially winning combinations:
Cross-Ping for Homesteading skills discussion:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3821084/posts?page=1
So much sympathy for this poor lady
Not such a green thumb after all! Stay-at-home mother spends two years watering and caring for her beloved succulent only to discover that the ‘beautiful’ plant is actually PLASTIC
I live on the North Coast and have not posted here on the Garden Thread. But I am hoping a few of you will indulge me in this discussion.
Since China is a major source of Garlic, I have taken one of the many heads of garlic I have and broken it down into cloves, started rooting them in water.
Can I pot them inside to grow?
Since the winter has been so mild, can I plant them now with a leaf muclch cover to harvest later?
You CAN grow them inside, but what they’ll do is produce a lot of ‘greens’ (which you can clip and use for flavor, much like a green onion) versus making you nice, juicy heads of garlic.
If you’re concerned about garlic from China, try these sources because I know for a FACT (having worked for both companies and having cleaned my share of Garlic for shipping in the past) that they are sourced in the USA and NOT from China! An amazing amount of Garlic for the home gardener comes from the East Coast and surprisingly, Wisconsin!
When you order, tell them the Planting Zone or Zip Code you are in, and they will ship them to you at the proper planting time.
For example, I am in Zone 4/5, so I plant my garlic in the Fall of the year, cover it with mulch, let it sit over winter, then let it grow all the next summer for harvest again in the Fall of the next year - then I later re-plant some that I have just harvested and dried for a few weeks.
Tubebender is our Garlic Guru and he is in Northern CA. Anything to add, Tubey? ;)
Oh thank you so much for responding!
Yes, to both inside and outside growing.
Good info! I am planting zone 6. Most curious about some reading I’ve done that I may be able to do an early ...spring planting for fall harvest as our winter has been so very mild. And still may be able to get a fall harvest?
Yes... Vote Early and Vote Often!!!
I plant my Garlic in mid to late October here on the shores of Humboldt Bay near Oregon and harvest it in early to mid Summer
I did something somewhat similar. A friend left me his air plant for the year he taught in Germany. I proudly returned it to him, saying I’d cared for it carefully through the year. He informed me it was dead as a door nail. Sigh.
When I worked at my Garden Center, my boss at the time was famous for her ability to kill houseplants.
Any time we found a half-dead plant either in the Atrium or out in the nursery yard, it would end up on her desk. ;)
(She had a good sense of humor!)
I shared a desk with an office mate who had a perfect green thumb, while I had the passion to have plants while afflicted with a black one. So plants stayed on my side till they were almost dead, then moved to his side to be saved. So people glancing in the office thought that I was the one with the green thumb and he was the ghastly gardener.
Until I got so guilty I repotted it. Never bloomed again. My new theory is that it was so desperately aware it was dying that it was trying to attract some insect to fertilize it and save its genes. Now it doesn't bother.
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