Weekly Garden Thread - January 7-13, 2023 [Garden Trends for 2023 Edition]

January 7, 2023 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[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.

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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!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I talked to Beau and he agrees; we need chickens!

So, he’s working on plans for their coop, storage for my mower and upgrades to the dog kennels, all in the same area he stole from me a few years back.

Excited! :)

Eggs, that SHOULD be 99-cents were $4.99 a dozen at Kwik Trip this week! Ugh! Milk was $2.99, so I grabbed a gallon. Butter was $3.99, so forget that, but it is still cheaper than even Walmart. Sad to think I may need to go to Costco for The Basics. Grrrrr!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Out of those three, I would chose Latham. I grow ‘Heritage’ because that’s the variety I grew for market with my in-laws and I just transported some from my old farm to my new one.

I cut my canes all the way down to the ground in the spring. That way, I get one late harvest (September/October) and by then most of the Japanese Beetles are gone (who love Raspberries) as well as the Picnic Bugs (those little black beetles that also love raspberries) so I don’t have to mess with them.

That system works well for me. I pick every few days and freeze the berries on a cookie sheet then pop them into a ziplock bag and back into the freezer. That way, I can gather enough to make jam or whatever, when I’m ready. I am still in a canning frenzy when they’re ripening.

And, yes! The Sunshine is awesome! Loving it! I think it was a string of 12 days with no sun this time around.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Nope. I love Kale. :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I get Seeds-n-Such. They do have good prices.

Another I would recommend is Pinetree Garden Seeds. They have good varieties and sell smaller amounts of seed. Who needs 1,000 lettuce seeds? Oh, wait. I do, LOL!

https://www.superseeds.com/

The Burpee seeds I bought yesterday were already marked down, as Menard’s sells them cheaper than the price on the package, PLUS I got 15% off on top of that as they were having a sale and they were all FREE because I had that $20 gift card, plus a bunch of rebate checks from them.

Score! :)

Sorting my seeds is on the To-Do list this weekend. I’ll check catalogs then and see what I CAN’T live without, but the PLAN is to have a very CHEAP and uber-productive garden this upcoming season, using up seed already on hand. Weather dependent of course...and if the creek don’t rise, LOL!

Also - next week’s topic WILL be Seed Catalogs; I’ve had a few requests for that topic. :)

[SkyDancer]

So does my neighbor’s piggies :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“Welcome to the Machine”

Just so we’re clear; I’m NOT going willingly! ;)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Thanks, Pete!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I always shared Kale with my laying hens, back when I had them. Never did get green egg yolks though, LOL!

[SkyDancer]

Green eggs and ham; although I have see green eggs.

[Albion Wilde]

Post #2 reminds me of you!

[TheConservativeParty]

Thanks for the raspberry info!

Jungs has Heritage in the current catalog. I could get that one as a fall-bearing variety.

Latham is a summer-bearing. Maybe that one is not good because of the beetle trouble in summer.

The Japanese beetles are so annoying. 🙄

[V K Lee]

Beautiful garden blooms, stunning pics.

Cottage gardens are certainly a favorite. Look
forward to spring this year and the bleeding heart
calling to the colorful flying jewels that feed on
them. DH is counting the days until they arrive.:-)
As most of the country, it was a cold NY holiday.
Fortunately the freeze did not last as long as the one
experienced two (?) years ago. And HOORAH! we never lost
power or had rolling blackouts.Hope you enjoyed a terrific
Christmas. HAPPY New Year!

[V K Lee]

Diana, stunning pics of beautiful blooms. Thanks!
Longing for springtime! :-)

[TheConservativeParty]

I ordered a bunch of great stuff at Superseeds.com !

I like their prices, including not over-charging to mail seed packets.

I got a 15% new customer discount too!

Thank you for the link to their site.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

The JBs were so out of control last season that I had to use the Sevin hose-spray on my grapes. First time that ever happened. For my roses I use a liquid fertilizer and insecticide (3 applications) that works pretty well.

If it gets to the point where it’s pointless, the roses are coming out and various perennials and grasses are going in.

I plan on putting down a granular grub control on any grassy parts of my garden area this coming spring and fall. Might slow them down some.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Glad you found some good deals. A friend recommended them to me a few years ago; she’s used them forever.

[Ellendra]

Those of you on Facebook, the Kenosha Potato Project is giving away free True Potato Seeds to growers in the US: https://www.facebook.com/groups/KenoshaPotatoProject

[TheConservativeParty]

I bought 9 kinds of seeds! 🤓
ProCut Red Sunflower
2 kinds of Calendula
2 Pansy one is called Honey Bee ....looks really neat
Red flowering cabbage
Cactus type zinnia
Fireball marigold (my favorite)
Benary mix zinnia

Their cheap prices made getting a lot of seeds painless, and the $3.95 shipping is the cheapest around.

Happy Happy Happy
😁

[Pollard]

I've got one of these. It's a Stihl brand.

Someone gave it to me and I've never had it running but it feels like the engine's got good compression when I pull on the rope. Nothing seems froze up. I'm sure it will need a fuel filter and new fuel hose kit, spark plug and a new pull rope probably wouldn't hurt. Then I think it will work good for tilling in some fresh compost and probably a little cultivation too.

Hmmm. Never looked it up until just now. - There are not too many things a STIHL YARD BOSS® can’t handle. A great multitask yard care system, the lightweight and powerful MM 55 CE STIHL Home Scaper Series ™ YARDBOSS® offers the same ability as the MM 55 to quickly convert from a minicultivator to an aerator, sweeper, dethatcher and more

Convert to a sweeper? Mine's the older MM 55 they reference. I must go research now.

[Pollard]

USDA Approves First Vaccine for Honeybees

https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/4121883/posts

What could go wrong?