Posted on 08/21/2021 6:12:14 AM PDT 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 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!
Augie; The new engine looks good. Good luck with the throttle though! It doesn’t look like you can shrink the crankshaft pulley down very much!
Friday, just west of KC.MO we had thunderstorms that resulted in 1.25” of rain. I does not sound like they got to you.
A week ago Saturday I went to a local farmers market and talked to someone who drives here from Jeff City and sells produce (probably mostly purchased) honey, preserves and canned soups and vegetables that she makes,things. I had given her a couple of fig trees grown from cuttings and had a chance to talk about how they were doing. (From 12” to 36”)
I love butternut squash, my wife, not so much.
We have pepper, tomatoes, leeks, and okra. I can freeze the leeks and pepper. Not canning any tomatoes since I do not have enough tomatoes to justify the effort. (I do have enough to give some away though!)
Glad to hear that you have managed to rescue a few tomatoes after the flooding!
I planted some pole beans, but the rabbits figured out how to get in my gardening area and the tops were all eaten. I replanted, and am going to put up some chicken wire around the planting area, but by the time they are mature enough to produce beans (late October) the pollinators will probably be gone so probably no beans. I will plant some lettuce in the same area which will not need pollination.
I might be posting this a little too soon, but I WILL post it again in the Fall when we start bringing plants in to overwinter for those in colder climates.
This is probably the BEST summary/set of instructions on keeping Rosemary healthy and happy indoors for the winter that I have EVER read! I hope it helps me this season because I have FIVE gorgeously healthy Rosemary plants right now and I sure would like to get at least ONE of them through the winter months for a change! :)
The Secret to Keeping Rosemary Alive Indoors
https://www.tenthacrefarm.com/growing-rosemary-indoors/
Wow!
Keeping the bunny rabbits out is a constant battle. I used chicken wire over the panel fence when I put my garden in. The weed whacker and mower deck have opened some bunny-size holes in it over the years. Hardware cloth probably would have held up a bit better. Most summers a momma bunny will find her way in and raise a litter in there, but for the most part, I don’t have a lot of trouble with them.
We have three inside-outside cats, and one barn cat that are all savage hunters, and my nine month old Aussie pup is turning into quite a hunter too. She’s killed and eaten three half-grown cottontails in the last ten days. Two weeks ago she snuck up on a squirrel and then ran him down before he could get to a tree.
I live in NW Florida, where the soil is sandy, salty, devoid of minerals and nutrients and won’t hold moisture more than two days.
To get veggies or grass to grow is a constant feeding and watering.
Yet weeds prosper here without doing anything at all. They will grow in bare sandy spots that have no organic material, not one ounce of fertilizer and no water.
If science ever can figure out why this is and can make veggies do the same we will be in heaven................
Good deal on your hunting “pets”! I saw the picture of your Aussie in your machine shed.
My daughters Cat is a house cat, neutered and totally useless for vermin protection. when I can get him out he watches chipmunks and squirrels without moving He does occasionally chase birds. Inside he sniffs bugs. Useless.
I have chicken wire on the inside of the picket fence in the garden section of my back yard. I think they sneak in on the street side fence side under the fence. The ones I find in the garden are the small ones rather than big ones. I put up some more around the perimeter of this particular raised bed. Except for the peppers I do not think they will bother anything else (tomatoes okra, squash.) When the compost heap was outside the fence I would just about always find a rabbit litter when I was turning it.
Thinking about a garden and you are not on an urban rooftop? Part of the planning involves fencing or a wall around your garden. And if you are prepping and plan to move to the country and intend to garden, make certain to stock up on things like hog panels or 6 foot rolls of fencing and 3 or 4 foot chicken wire fencing or you will not have a garden for long!
For anyone needing info on Fencing See Pollards prepping links:
Info on garden gate and links to installing fences
And this:
Remember the 1" chicken wire around the base of your fence to keep the rabbits out! Bury it down in the soil, rabbits dig!
Drove in 3 6-ft T-posts to hold up my giant sunflowers about a hour ago. Ropes & a 3 ft metal small post (not a T-post, more like something for a low electric fence) were not doing the job & they were leaning badly & pulling up roots again.
I did have to get up on a step ladder, but driving the posts was not a problem. Three things I REALLY like:
Thanks again for the suggestion, waterhill! 😀
LOL! Good girl! We have a few around here. Super-DUPER handy. Welcome to the club, LOL!
There have been some amazing strides in growing food where once you couldn’t. And also - Hydroponics! I had a customer who would buy seed from me, and she once brought me this amazingly HUGE head of leaf lettuce that she had grown hydroponically. Talapia fish below, lettuces above. It was simply amazing. And, right in line with a healthy Asian diet!
But, you’re right - we either need to find a use for ALL weeds, or we need to find a way for veggies to LIKE the barren wastelands where weeds thrive.
Other than that, the best you can do is build raised beds or start collecting a lot of sturdy, well-draining 5-gallon pots. :)
Looks just like the one I have!
👍
My Tee-Post driver did not have handles until I had some welded on. Now I’m to old and crippled up to use it properly ...
My arms are a bit sore this morning ..... :-)
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.