Weekly Garden Thread - June 19-25, 2021

June 19, 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!

[Mariner]

Quick update from the Big Valley...

I have already been eating San Marzano, Early Girl and Cherry tomatoes.

I have also harvested California Wonder, Jalapeno, Serrano, Cayenne and Big Jim peppers.

Have also taken cucumber and a minor amount of green beans.

I plan to can San Marzano tomatoes for the 4th of July. Bumper crop.

It’s almost time for a mid season fertilizer boost.

Using LOTS of water as the daytime temps are over 100 deg, hot enough to delay fruit set on new blossoms.

[Mariner]

“Wife claims hot and sunny is just what the peppers need.”

She is right.

And night temps above 60.

[Track9]

Aldis has cardboard tomatoes. I’m also looking forward to 3/4 inch thick asparagus.

[Blurb2350]

You say it's impossible to hijack this weekly thread, but I'd like to try . . . Has anyone here had any experience with "humanure" -- saving and composting human waste? I've watched a million Youtube videos and decided to give it a try. I live alone in a fairly rural area, so the only impediment is my own modesty. I've got the compost bin set up, obtained straw and pine shavings for cover (straw in the composting pile, pine shavings in the collection bucket), and built a sweet little toilet frame from 1" PVC and a $7 toilet seat. Now I just have to work up the courage to give it a whirl. Has anyone else tried this? Any tips or hints? The only drawback seems to be the amount of time needed to make the finished product: one year of collecting the . . . material in the compost pile, then another year of aging before it can be used in the garden.

[Mariner]

Rosemary: FULL sun.

Hot and dry.

Perennial.

I have a ton of culinary rosemary growing along the west side of my house...in zone 9b.

[MomwithHope]

Garden looks good! Mushrooms - hard to tell, some are old. Best way is to look at the underside, whether there are gills, attached gills, a frilly collar, etc. And also what state you are in. Many states have a mushroom guide with pictures. NEVER eat unless you are sure. My first guess based on your picture would be no. Maybe edible but probably not choice , meaning any good flavor.

[Mariner]

Gee, I thought all tomatoes were 4th of July tomatoes.

[MomwithHope]

LOL, on the Ithaca-Gro. You are blessed with manure, we miss it. PS - I keep wearing my ratty old tshirts. I you haven’t tried it the twist ties (green) that you find on a reel at the dollar store are wonderful. You get a reel with a cutter and a spare coil for a buck. Cut to any length. We use and reuse these and they work great.

[Cold Heart]

I got some free feed molasses to put on my mulch pile and for some rust removal. I read molasses is also beneficial mixed with water and fertilizer (Miracle Grow). So I went around the yard with a watering can and watered multiple plants.

When finished, I stood back to admire my cleverness and realized I had just spread deer attractant all around the yard.

[MomwithHope]

Wondering if anyone has grown those chinese long beans also called asparagus beans. We have grown them for years. It’s a vining plant and the beans are super long, like more than a foot, thin and stay tender long, and are basically a green bean with a slightly peppery taste. I used to stir fry them and add to a little pasta. No pasta now but on the latest Gordon Ramsey show he was in Guyana. They went to a food market and they were selling these beans. His guide says they are a staple in Guyana and every household eats them. For the cookoff portion, the Guyana chef stir fried these with some red pepper and onion and added coconut milk. Looked fantastic. I am definitely going to try it. Have watched many cooking shows over the years and have never seen these beans on tv . They are also good for saving seed have been collecting seed every year.

[SgtHooper]

As you may also know, there are great morning radio shows on Saturday and Sunday morning 640 AM. TY! ;-)

[greeneyes]

Thanks for the ping. Just got in from weeding and watering the garden. Only about half of the first Garlic bed survived. Yukon Gold potatoes still haven’t bloomed, but the russets I planted about 3 weeks later have.

The Yukon Gold has really great looking green tops—Normally they would have bloomed by now. Not sure what is going on.

Hubby went to the grocery store yesterday and I now have another 15 lbs of various meat specials to can.

Also picked up some canning jars - we still have no canning lids other than those on the jars. I’m taking the one on the jars off and putting in bags with the date. Then using the stockpile I bought a couple of years ago.

Hoping the garlic will be ready to harvest this week. I am running out of space in my beds, and I have some transplants that are begging to be in the Big Bed. Ha.

[Qiviut]

After an absolutely “splendiferous” week of sunshine, low humidity, light breezes and moderate/cool temps, we're back to “summer”. It should top out in the 90's & the humidity is back.

It's beach week for my brother & his family, so I'm on dog (two of 'em) & chicken (11) duty this week. The chickens, with the exception of one old hen, are all young & laying so I'll have about 10 eggs a day to deal with. I say “about” because a Rat snake was spotted in the hen house yesterday. My SIL couldn't catch it (a small one, compared to the 4 and 5-1/2 footers we took out of the hen house week before last). Exciting times …. not!

The garden is doing great – veggies (cukes, jalapenos, tomatoes) all have produce on the vine – harvested the first cuke the other day. The BIG improvement construction wise took place yesterday. For several years now, I have wanted to 'hide' the area where I keep tools, pots, etc. The “mess” is visible from the house & also from the driveway. The idea was to use lattice and I bit the bullet & bought two sheets yesterday & got them installed. I had to drive in metal fence posts with a sledge hammer (actually went to the 'trouble' to use a level to keep them straight) & then cut the lattice to fit. I have wired it to the fence posts rather than use zip ties so I know it's not coming down any time soon. I am very pleased with the result & it certainly “cleans up” the last messy spot in the garden. I also found a heavy duty square tomato cage at a reasonable price to use as a 2nd trellis for morning glories in my tubs. I used twine to make the blocks smaller – super happy to have found this solution – finding/making a trellis for the 2nd tub has been driving me crazy.

The hummers are providing endless delight. The front feeder, hung in the shade on a maple tree branch, is right where it can be observed from the front porch. We had company Thursday & they loved watching the feeder. The one in the back is at the Hummingbird Garden, but that is in full sun. It was busy last year & will get busy again once the flowers are in bloom, but being in full sun means the nectar spoils in a hurry. I decided to make a “shade” for the feeder …. after looking online & deciding I did not want to spend $15 - $40 for a small 'shade'/weather guard, I tried to find a DIY project. I found one using a large bowl, but didn't like the way it was attached. So, I decided to make one like I make my ant moats – cup hooks, a wine cork, & super glue. Dollar Store had the perfect bowl in red – I bought 2 just in case I screwed up one. The shade turned out great & traffic has probably quadrupled at that feeder – the red attracts & they like dining in the shade on fresh nectar. Here's a picture of the feeder & DIY shade ….. it's really cute, but “pretty is as pretty does” so I'm mostly happy with the way it works – definitely 'throwing shade'. I love DIY – very satisfying to make things yourself AND save money – I made the shade for less than $3.00.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

[metmom]

The soil in CNY was naturally phenomenal!

I sure miss it.

This here is much more clay like and will need a lot of work to get to a reasonable level.

Different critters and weeds, too.

LOTS more sun.

[metmom]

Actually, some herbs could pass as landscape plants.

Thyme is one.

[metmom]

I have protected plants like beans, peas, and peppers with tomato cages wrapped with chicken wire.

They make easy to use and very portable fences to keep critters out.

To prevent burrowing, you could lay down some chicken wire and the plant in the middle of that and then put the chicken wire wrapped tomato cages on top of them.

[metmom]

My garlic is sending up scapes and my potatoes and onions for seed are on the verge of flowering.

[greeneyes]

My garlic sent up scapes awhile back, and I snipped them and put them in the freezer. I’ll throw them in with chicken bones, celery, onions, and carrots etc. when I make bone broth.

Russet potatoes already flowered, but not the yukon gold, and it’s way past time for them to have done that. I’m going to have to do some research.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I LOVE Rosemary, but Princess B is the Herb Gardener around here.

Cuttings are easy, though they take a while to root. Cut 4” pieces from a healthy Rosemary plant. Strip off an inch or so of the bottom leaves. Dip in rooting hormone (this REALLY helps!) and place in moist soil. (You can put a number of cuttings in one pot while they’re getting started.) I use a pencil to make a hole, then I make sure the soil is well packed around the stem cuttings.

They need a sunny spot (or under a grow light) to do their thing. Takes about 4-6 weeks to see roots, though. The vast majority of Rosemary is propagated from cuttings; seeds take for-ever to germinate and aren’t as reliable.

I make a yummy Rosemary Rice side dish:

2 cups water
1 cup Jasmin Rice
1 Tbsp. Butter
1 generous tsp. dried onion
1 Chicken bullion cube
As much chopped Rosemary as you like (about 1 Tbsp, chopped fine)

Put all in a 2 quart microwave safe dish and microwave, uncovered, 5 minutes - stir - 5 minutes - stir - 3 minutes fluff and cover to keep warm until it’s time to serve.

I’m going to make this, along with some grilled chicken thighs for supper, tonight. And now, I’m inspired to add some Rosemary to the chicken marinade! :)

Diana’s Marinade for Chicken Thighs on the Grill:

1/4 cup Brown sugar
1/4 cup Teriyaki Sauce
1/4 cup Balsamic or Red Wine Vinegar
2 Tbsp. Dijon Mustard
1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
2 tsp. Garlic powder
2 tsp. salt (optional; I leave out)
1 tsp. black pepper
1 Tbsp. finely chopped Rosemary

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, transfer to a ziplock bag, add 4# or so of the boneless, skinless thighs. Marinate overnight or at least 2 hours, then grill. Dispose of marinade.

But wait! There’s more! ;)

Twenty Ways to Use Rosemary - MollyGreen.com

Rosemary Salt
Rosemary Honey
Rosemary Simple Sugar (for cocktails)
Jelly or Jam
Skewers for the Grill
Rosemary Lemonade or Limeade
Rosemary Butter
Rosemary Pesto

Ideas/recipes continue at link, below:

https://mollygreen.com/blog/twenty-ways-to-use-rosemary/

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“We got a new controller for the watering system this year, which is WIFI capable and can be used with Alexa. We are figuring out the zones that have been plumbed.”

OMG! The HEIGHT of LUXURY!

Laughed out loud about your critters with ‘cardiac’ issues!!

My Nursery Manager at Jung’s was amazing at making me display racks, risers, ‘fake’ windows, whatever I needed for display decor from pallets. And man, did we EVER have the pallets!