Weekly Garden Thread - February 20-26, 2021

Fenruary 20, 2021 | Diana in Wisconsin/Greeneyes

[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 a 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!

[daniel1212]

I have also planted upwards of 100 trees and shrubs so far in my lifetime, too! 21 Rose bushes added last season, alone! :)

With about 40,000 or more souls in less than 2 sq. miles here then we have a little difference! But thank God for there are more souls to minister to.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Diana, we had a foot of snow, for 4 days, completely covering my garden mache, red Russian kale, and beets.

They all survived 100% intact with zero frost damage.

My collards and Italian kale looked sad but as soon as it got above freezing they rallied.

I think because it never got “icy/slushy then frozen, those tender greens did ok.

My greenhouse update.....55% humidity with the dehumidifier going, heater battled the snow and cold keeping the greenhouse above 55 at night and mid 60s daytime.

Cherokee purples have popped (some,l cosmos and blue Larkspur.

I read that the hot peppers plants prefer a humidity level about 60-65% but I don’t want to risk a spike in humidity levels and get a darn fungus issue again this year.

I am out of town for 2 weeks and have left the greenhouse in the care of my bride who knows zero about gardening so prayers are being accepted.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Damn

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

I see that GIF of the fox slipping thru the fence and, with admiration, I say “Yoy greasy bastard”

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Everybody over some “Hot CO2 on CO2 action.”

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

I eat Italian Kale and/or Rainbow Chard every day. Love to eat it raw just munching down from the top like eating acarrot

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

My experience with the 2nd Moderna shot was...

0630 get the shot.
1000 take fever reducer (flight next day)
1500 take fever reducer again, no symptoms
1900 take fever reducer, no symproms
2300 get slight fever & chills, body aches
Day 2
0400 take fever reducer, body temp 99.9
0600 flight canceled due to weather
0900 lay down on couch fall asleep
1700 wake up, no fever no body aches.

Catch flight next day.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Exactly! Fix-its need an appropriate build up and foreplay....liek many other very important things in life.

[Augie]

It's been a week of very bitter weather here in Central Missouri. Haven't seen this kind of cold for several years. I can't imagine how it must be down south where this kind of cold is so very rare. Those folks have my sympathies.

Sunday night it got down around -10°, and that made Monday a really bad day. Horse drinker froze. It took a couple hours to get that thawed out. Farm truck started right up, then it started smoking something awful, looked like a tanker fire in my driveway. That finally cleared up so I took off for town. Made it about a mile and quit. Restarted, made it halfway back home and it quit again. Called the tow service and had it hauled to a buddy's shop. He put it inside overnight and thawed it out. Crankcase oil had all been replaced by diesel fuel. Guess an injector nozzle stuck open to cause that. He changed the oil and it started right up and ran fine.

I had a goal of making it to 300k miles with that truck, but leaving me walking in zero degree weather ended that plan at 245k. Traded it in on a new one yesterday.

Red Menace v.1 and Red Menace v.2 side by side.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

‘Red Menace!’ Love it! Congrats!

I sorely need a new truck, but I LOVE my Ford Escape so much, that even though she’s rusting around the edges, I can’t bear to part with ‘Black Beauty’ quite yet!

A good vehicle is hard to find!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

That's the spirit, Ladies!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

1-3" of snow for us this afternoon through Monday morning (SW WI) BUT check out those temps coming our way! Heat Wave! Ya-Hoooo!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Great news! I love all of the Cruciferous veggies. Keep ‘em coming! :)

[Ellendra]

Everything is sloppy - we’ve got standing water puddles in places where I’ve never seen puddles before - slow melt doesn’t result in runoff like rain.

If you can identify and reach the ice dams holding those puddles, see if you can cut a channel through them. Up to you what method you use, my favorite is to drizzle boiling hot water where I want the channel to be. Once the meltwater has a way to escape, the remaining ice and snow will melt a lot faster. And you'll be less likely to slip on a frozen puddle in the morning!

[Ellendra]

One option would be to inoculate the hay on purpose. You’d still have mushrooms growing on them, but you’d know it was a safe type of mushroom. “King Stropharia” is a good mushroom for that. It not only loves growing in hay and straw, it also forms symbiotic relationships with some vegetable species, making the plants healthier and stronger.

[Qiviut]

Actually, there are no ice ‘dams’. The water is just slowly melting and standing pretty much everywhere enough for really sloppy conditions. Any slightly ‘low’ place in the yard/fields is particularly susceptible, but there’s nothing to be done to let it go somewhere else.

The nights are in the 20’s so the ground is freezing overall & water is not seeping in very much. We have rain again tomorrow, then about 3 days with some ‘warmer’ weather - Wednesday should be a high of 64, which will give us all spring fever. The somewhat warmer days (upper 40’s, 50’s) should thaw the ground a bit & the water will have a place to seep in. Starting next Saturday, it looks like 4 days of rain, but at least it’s not winter mix - highs in the 50’s, lows in the 40’s.

Thanks for the advice - if I do run across any ice ‘dams’ in the future (winter is not ‘over’ yet ... sigh), I’ll have a good idea what to do!

[ApplegateRanch]

Take solace in the fact that, if it were not for feminine nagging, we big, hairy men would still be happily sitting in a smoky, stinky cave, tossing bones over our shoulders.

[MomwithHope]

Happy belated anniversary Mr. Mrs. Lady Bender. You have been in my prayers. Hubby and I have slowed down a bit this winter. It happens every winter and we spend a couple of months in the spring getting our stamina back. Wishing you both well and good move on the yard service. We have had the neighbor boy cutting our grass for a few years now. God bless!

[greeneyes]

I refuse to nag.

[Qiviut]

Hello!