Weekly Garden Thread - September 17-23, 2022 ['You Are The Apple of My Pie' Edition]

September 17, 2022 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

"There's rosemary! That's for remembrance!" Ophelia to Laertes in Hamlet.

Rosemary for Memory and Alzheimer's - Journal of Plant Medicines

The research found rosemary aromatherapy significantly boosted memory and cognition. The researchers stated that the rosemary aromatherapy: "…produced a significant enhancement of performance for overall quality of memory and secondary memory factors, but also produced an impairment of speed of memory compared to controls."

(They note that Rosemary and Bacopa work better together to improve memory.)

Therapeutic effects of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) and its active constituents on nervous system disorders

The present review demonstrates that the main ethnopharmacological uses (anti-spasm, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-anxiety and memory-boosting) of rosemary have been validated by neuropharmacological investigations. By reviewing the previous literature, it is concluded that the most important components of rosemary which are medicinally and pharmacologically active are rosmarinic acid, carnosic acid, and the essential oil. These compounds can provide promising natural medicines in the treatment of the nervous system pathological conditions including anxiety, depression, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, and withdrawal syndrome."

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Discussion of Hill Hardy Rosemary

She talks about Hill Hardy with hardy being 13 degrees F. For most northern tier gardeners this is a warm balmy mid-winter day. (But I think most of us know this!)

Qiviut; Any good Apple / Rosemary tart recipes?

Diana; Any special suggestions to preparing rosemary for winter (in ground and potted)?

[Qiviut]

Qiviut; Any good Apple / Rosemary tart recipes?

++++++++++++++++++++++

I’ve never made any, but if you google/bing/duck duck “rosemary apple tart recipe”, you’ll get some recipes.

This one looked pretty good to me (”rustic” was what caught my eye):

Rustic Rosemary-Apple Tart
https://www.splendidtable.org/story/2001/09/03/rustic-rosemary-apple-tart

[numberonepal]

Tomatoes have a hard time setting fruit at temperatures above 90 degrees F.

Correctamundo! Here in zone 10 everything stopped about 3 weeks in to June except the Everglades. But even they had a tough time setting fruit. They made it until I started new seeds in mid August, but no fruit made it inside the house. Chomp!

The only thing that I planted that made it through the summer was watermelon. They didn't produce all that well however. These were personal melons, not big ole Crimson Sweets. The vines preferred to grow over concrete and rocks rather than mulch for some reason. Both were very hot.

[numberonepal]

Fall Corn in Florida?

Can corn grow in the Zone 10 sand? We're about to find out. Stay tuned.

Seeds went in the highly enriched sand Sept 13. We have Silver Queen, Peaches and Cream, and some seeds that just said "Corn" from a survival seed kit. The bed is 4' x 10' is with 3 3/4 rows. I have 57 seed pairs planted 7" apart. The picture below is week one from 9/13 to 9/20. There are still a couple of seed pairs in a shady spot that haven't popped out yet, but those are also the seeds labeled "Corn". I will cull seedlings soon. I'll keep you updated on Fall Corn in Florida.

Bonus: that Mexican Cabbage Palm trunk is a great trellis for maters.

[numberonepal]

My tomato plants

Are they indeterminate or determinate tomatoes?

[numberonepal]

Hibiscus are gorgeous.

[numberonepal]

Y’all should see some of the vidyas about pollinating watermelons. They’re down right pornographic. They should have brown chicken brown cow music playing in the back ground.

[Qiviut]

I ALWAYS make my poppers with bacon! Made it to Aldi’s today ... jalapeno popper batch #2 will be tomorrow!

My hog cut sheet is filled out ... YES I want pork belly (do NOT grind up!), yes I want neck bones (soul food - got a recipe) & for extras, I want the liver (most nutritious part of a pig) & fat (leaf & regular - to render into lard). My paternal grandmother cooked everything with lard - best fried chicken ever & her pie crusts were good, too. There’s a video from a homesteader on how to render fat into lard. I think early October is going to be “adventures with pork”!

Somehow, I’m also knee deep in Tooth Fairy Pillows (7) after today ... LOL!

[AFB-XYZ]

Hell, I don’t know, LOL. My Sis is the gardener of the family. All I know is, she gave me a packet of seeds for Beefsteaks, so I stuck ‘em in the dirt, agonized when the heat killed them, then am ready to celebrate because they’re coming back from the dead.

I did score some heirlooms (Abe Lincoln) for very cheap at the local Ace Hardware store last month because it was the end of the growing season. Looking forward to seeing what happens with those. If basil seeds from 2018 can still produce plants, so can tomato seeds only a year old. Heh.

[AFB-XYZ]

My innocence is lost forever . . . :-)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I'm in the Home Stretch! Yay!

[numberonepal]

That is so damn true. One of these days my food forest will save me money (maybe).

[numberonepal]

Beefsteaks are vining tomatoes usually and therefore indeterminate. Bushy tomatoes like Roma are determinate. Lincoln’s are also indeterminate.

[numberonepal]

Gardening is still cheaper than a gym membership and healthier in the long run. You want cross-fit, try gardening. Chubby gardeners live the longest and least stressful lives.

I do circuit training.

1. Rake
2. Hoe
3. Shovel
4. Ax/Pick Axe - peak heart rate
5. Shovel
7. Hoe
6. Rake

Repeat as desired.

[AFB-XYZ]

LOL, thanks for the info & clarification! I honestly never had no idea.

Been battling blister beetles (AND grasshoppers) that were destroying the original foliage. Learned to “guide” the beetles into a jug of soapy water by gently tapping the stem they’re on. Thought I’d gotten ‘em all after 50-60 “casualties”, but then saw one day before yesterday, which quickly met its Maker.

That’s why I was so pleased about the “reincarnated” foliage & blossoms. Now if only I could dispatch the grasshoppers without having to use Malathion and/or Triazide all over the place . . . any ideas or thoughts, whether from you or from any of the other FReepers on this thread, would be gratefully received!

[numberonepal]

Neem oil mixed with a little Dawn and water to spray on the plants will keep the critters off.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Thanks, Looks Great! Bookmarked!

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Isn’t that about right! I really do not want to think about the costs!

(The cost per item grown will drop considerably after general societal collapse!)

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

N1P; Figs might be a good fit into your planed permaculture garden. Some varieties you can pass off as landscaping. You also have a long ripening season.

If interested:

https://www.figdatabase.com/

https://www.figdatabase.com/fig-news/profile/rigo (He is in miami)

and:

https://www.ourfigs.com/ (Wills figs is the sponsor. The nursery is located somewhere in FL.)

[MomwithHope]

We have been to Holy Hill, beautiful area.