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Weekly Garden Thread - September 3-9, 2022 [Now You Sedum, Now You Don't Edition]
September 3, 2022 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

Posted on 09/03/2022 5:58:30 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!


TOPICS: Arts/Photography; Food; Gardening; Hobbies
KEYWORDS: food; garden; gardening; hobbies
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To: Diana in Wisconsin; All

Something that popped up just this morning:

Echinacea Tincture – How To Make It & Use It
https://melissaknorris.com/echinacea-tincture/

I might have to try this .... maybe next year, don’t have enough this year.


41 posted on 09/04/2022 7:29:52 AM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

Have you ever grown comfrey? Per the articles it’s invasive, but the flowers look pretty. Evidently, it’s a “nutritional powerhouse” for deer. Hmmm ... deer food plot with comfrey?

There’s a homesteading page I follow & they just made comfrey salve - something I’d like to try. I’ll have to find a spot & grow some. So now I’m up to elderberry syrup, echinachea tincture & comfrey salve. Add to that ‘fire cider’. I’m going to end up being a regular ‘medicine woman’!

How to Grow Comfrey – So Easy!
https://thehomesteadinghippy.com/how-to-grow-comfrey/

How to Make Comfrey Salve (and Why You Should!)
https://practicalselfreliance.com/comfrey-salve/

How to Make Comfrey Salve For Bumps and Bruises
https://thehomesteadinghippy.com/how-to-make-comfrey-salve/

Homemade Traditional Fire Cider Recipe & Benefits
https://melissaknorris.com/podcast/traditional-fire-cider-recipe-benefits-guide/


42 posted on 09/04/2022 3:16:30 PM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: Qiviut; Ellendra

Never have cultivated Comfrey. I’ll bet Ellendra has! ;)


43 posted on 09/05/2022 6:21:52 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

I received a warning about comfrey. There are toxicity issues with it for people and animals if ingested. Banned in this country as a dietary supplement. Salves “seem” to be ok - it’s used a lot for that, but some say ‘no’ even to that because the toxin can absorb through the skin. I need to do some more research before I go there.

What I’m really getting ‘put off’ by is the invasiveness of the plant & evidently, they’re large plants as well. I’m still having nightmares from out-of-control catnip I had some years back. The cats were happy (they really loved crushed leaves in a sock with a knot in it to keep them from eating the stuff), but it took over a large portion of a garden area.


44 posted on 09/05/2022 6:30:23 AM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: Qiviut
"I’m going to end up being a regular ‘medicine woman’!"

Lucky you! ;)

45 posted on 09/05/2022 7:20:31 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: All

46 posted on 09/05/2022 7:25:37 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: All
Garden Goals:


47 posted on 09/05/2022 8:01:34 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: Qiviut

I planted Chocolate Mint in a raised bed back in the day. BIG Rookie Mistake!

Before I sold that house, I nuked it. ;)


48 posted on 09/05/2022 8:03:24 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

I actually loved that show!


49 posted on 09/05/2022 8:52:21 AM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

I had mint as well that spread, but I could use that in my tea .... not so the catnip! LOL! My cats would actually swack out on the stuff .... as soon as they saw me coming in the door with it, they were meowing. Anyway, the mint was easier to get rid of than the catnip, which was horrible.


50 posted on 09/05/2022 9:45:20 AM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: Qiviut
Have you ever grown comfrey? Per the articles it’s invasive, but the flowers look pretty. Evidently, it’s a “nutritional powerhouse” for deer. Hmmm ... deer food plot with comfrey?

There's different strains/varieties and the invasive one is actually hard to find. Lawrence D Hill of the UK developed Bocking #1-21 but all that's available these days is #4, & #14. #4 can be invasive but not #14.

My goats seem to like it. I had to put fence around the plants.

51 posted on 09/05/2022 5:05:00 PM PDT by Pollard (Worm Free PureBlood)
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To: Pollard

Sheep seem to like it, as do deer. I would imagine goats would certainly like it! :-)


52 posted on 09/05/2022 5:39:25 PM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

A quiet place to sit and read a book....Alice in Wonderland perhaps!


53 posted on 09/05/2022 8:33:34 PM PDT by Pete from Shawnee Mission ( )
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To: All

54 posted on 09/06/2022 7:07:05 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
It was another week of 'feels like October' here in Central Missouri. We got a couple small rain showers, but not enough to get the creeks flowing again.

I put the long weekend to good use. I side-dressed the sweet corn and tilled that in. The plants are close to knee-high already so that will be the last time I can fit the tiller between the rows. Made it around the pond dam and the kitchen garden with the weed whacker, mowed the yard, and did a few minor chores in the barn, but mostly I had the cannery fired up.

I picked ~3/4 bushel of pole beans, and had about that many more already popped in the fridge. Wound up with 21qts. The butternut squash in this pic weighed 5.5lbs.

20220904_122029

I know, I said I was done canning tomatoes. Until I wasn't. A friend gave us a sack of eggplant, and Mrs. Augie still had some summer squash that hadn't been shredded and there were fresh bell peppers ready to pick, so I just had to make a batch of ratatouille. Now I'm done canning tomatoes. I've lost count of how many jars I've processed this summer, but I'm well on the north side of 200 at this point.

20220905_181402

55 posted on 09/06/2022 8:03:46 AM PDT by Augie
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To: Qiviut

I have a pretty good comfrey patch going. Mine is true comfrey, which means it can spread by seed. I’m not sure which critter is responsible, but there’s comfrey popping up here and there all over the place now. Which is NOT a complaint! I love the stuff. Thinking about digging up some roots and planting them around the borders of my field.

The more common varieties of comfrey are sterile hybrids, and can only be propagated by cuttings. But, any little piece that breaks off has the potential to become a new plant, so think carefully before you till!

Most comfrey recipes involve oils or salves, but if you were to take a fresh leaf and run it through the blender with some water, you’d get a thick green gel. That gel is absolutely amazing on sunburns, but it loses effectiveness when heated, and preserving it with alcohol or other preservatives means diluting it enough you wonder if it’s worth it. Freezing works best. As for how to filter the gel, you can dilute it some with water until runny enough to strain. I personally prefer it thick, so I use a centrifuge to separate out the solids.

The best sunburn treatment I’ve ever tried is a mix of comfrey and aloe gels, either fresh-squeezed or frozen and thawed.

One of those links you posted warned about comfrey causing irritation if used on an open wound. I’ve never seen that happen, but one danger with comfrey is that it spurs the production of new skin so much, that any foreign material might get trapped inside! This is also why it works wonders on a burn. It doesn’t just soothe the pain, it actually causes the damaged skin to be replaced faster.


56 posted on 09/06/2022 2:18:58 PM PDT by Ellendra (A single lie on our side does more damage than a thousand lies on their side.)
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To: Augie

Great progress! I’ve been canning all day. And will be for another week to come.

I’ll do a tally when I’m done. It won’t top yours, but it’s still a good feeling to have all that food stashed. :)


57 posted on 09/06/2022 2:37:24 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: Qiviut

There is a lot of debate over whether the studies showing toxicity were accurate. The toxin is so mild and at such a low concentration, you’d pretty much have to eat comfrey-leaf salads every day for several years before showing any ill effects. But, if you really aren’t comfortable with it, you can use oysterleaf instead. It contains the same healing compound, allantoin, but at a much lower concentration, and without the toxic alkaloids.

Personally, I think you’d absorb more toxins standing in a paved parking lot for 5 minutes. But as I said, it’s a matter of some debate.


58 posted on 09/06/2022 2:45:42 PM PDT by Ellendra (A single lie on our side does more damage than a thousand lies on their side.)
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To: Ellendra

Thank you! Once again, you’re a fount of just the info I need :-)


59 posted on 09/06/2022 2:54:52 PM PDT by Qiviut (The unvaccinated, the chosen of the invisible ark .... (author unknown))
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To: All

60 posted on 09/07/2022 6:58:14 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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