Weekly Garden Thread - April 22-28, 2023 [The History of the Tulip Edition]

April 22, 2023 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Pollard]

I just bought a set of 18 square 4” pots from ebay that are made to fit the 1020 trays because the maters are about ready for potting up. I was dreading disturbing them when I first thought of it but then remembered they’re in Jiffy Pots, also made to fit 1020s. Just now peeked at the bottom and there are a few roots poking through the pots.

[Pollard]

Nothing done on the fence or high tunnel. I did get a new welding helmet which I need to work on the tunnel frame. Been rainy and or windy and when it’s not, we’ve been raking/burning leaves and Spring cleaning, yard and house. Dry, not windy and me not working on a given Spring day is a rare combo.

Double work because I didn’t do anything last Spring because I was fresh off the divorce and I didn’t want to deal with it. More than double work really since the ex was the one who moved into a small mobile home(instant reset and downsizing), I ended up with stuff we collected as a family for 20+ years.

I’m also getting new stuff I was doing without like that welding helmet. Bought and am still buying some tool boxes because my tools have been here and there in totes, cardboard boxes etc. Got a few dozen books from homeschooling to stick on ebay etc. No trash service out here so the dump run pile is getting big.

Got into chiggers and ticks last time I worked outside. Gotta get a new pump sprayer and make up some strong Permethrin to spray where I need to dig fence post holes which are basically in the woods. Gotta rake and burn those spots first and that really had to wait for dry and NO WIND.

Rake and burn and change clothes ASAP today and weld tomorrow is the plan. I change in the shop and leave those clothes outside until laundry day. Also wear old work boots and those stay out of the house.

[Augie]

It was a mostly nice week here in Central Missouri, but the overnight temps Fri/Sat/Sun were cold enough to wipe the blossoms off of Mrs. Augie's magnolia tree and kill most of the greenery on my potato plants. I'm hoping the apple blossoms were far enough along to stand it. They dropped most of their petals the 2nd cold night, but it's too soon to tell if the ovarian bits were wrecked.

I spread the last of my stall waste heap on the garden and used GrandPap's old Ford to till it in. After work yesterday I transplanted some baby kales from the nice hoop house out into the cold cruel world. I still have ten or so tomato plants that need to be re-potted. Think I'll knock that out and then put some sweet corn seed into the dirt after work today. I've got two rhubarb plants that need to be set out, but they need a bit more hardening off before I do that.

Morel season has come to an end for me. Folks are still finding them, but I found enough and I need to get on with other projects.

A couple days ago I noticed something had been chewing on the new growth cattails on the pond bank, then yesterday afternoon I noticed an odd ripple on the pond. Went inside, grabbed Mr. Ruger, snuck up on the pond, and then air-conditioned the vermin muskrat who was thinking he could just move in without paying first and last month's rent and the damage deposit. He may have a straggler cousin looking to squat so I'll have to keep my eyes open.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I eat a lot of the items you mentioned as being full of Lutein and take a daily supplement.

Aging eye problems are a ‘thing’ in my family, so I’m trying to stay ahead of the glaucoma, mac-degen, cataracts, etc.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

We’re still waiting on Morels up here. It just will NOT warm up! When it does, we should be swimming in them, as we’ve had plenty of moisture this spring so far.

My favorite part of Morel Hunting is that we usually come across a new-born fawn all hunkered down in the underbrush. :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[Augie]

Hailstorm here a few weeks back punched a bunch of holes in my greenhouse. I thought I was being smart using the corrugated poly panels, but that turned out not to be the case. I was warned by another poster here, I’ve forgotten who, that the stuff was brittle and wouldn’t hold up. It looked nice while it lasted but I won’t use that type of panel again.

I haven’t yet decided whether to use hoop house film or barn metal on the roof when I replace it. Considering the angle of the sun during the winter I wouldn’t be losing much light if I put metal on the roof, and it will certainly be less work during warm weather putting up/taking down shade cloth. Hoop house film for sure will be used on the sides.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Marigold flower and Kelp protein shakes! (If its good in chicken feed its good in protein shakes! :)1

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Someone once told me that Glass was better than polycarbonate, but I do not know! I have wondered if it would be worth it to suspend a 1" chicken wire cocoon roof frame out 10 inches from the roof to catch or slow down anything 1" or larger? That is me imagining since I don't have a greenhouse or high tunnel. (I do have a little potting cover that has some of those translucent wavey panels but I have not had any major hail that I have been told my an insurance adjuster WILL destroy them.)

Diana managed a garden center and she might have some thoughts on the issue of greenhouse materials. I am sure that this is something she had to deal with. (Including Pollard on this post since he is constructing a high tunnel.)

Right now I have Beet and Turnip seedlings coming up in the garden and I am using garden fabric low tunnels right now to avoid a heavy rain washing away the new plants. That has happened in the past with about a 90% plant loss. I will remove them once they are big enough to handle a heavy rain! (I will also use the low tunnels for a while once I put my other transplants in the garden. )

(Have a great day over there in Central MO!)

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Thanks! Great picture of your garden, the old Ford Tractor, the garlic! Great view of the and Mid-Missouri spring scenery in the back ground! (My neighbor has a dying elm tree that overhangs my property. I need to check for morels underneath near the roots after the next rain!)

Father was an Old Ford guy.

Taken in Tomah WI in 1948, Dad on a Ford Tractor.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Our ‘hoop house’ at Jung’s was made of a thick semi-clear plastic and we had two layers on it.

I worked there for 10 years and we replaced it twice - once because it hadn’t been done in the DECADE prior and was a mess; the second was due to a bad wind storm and it pretty much shredded all our hard work from the first time around. Bent some pretty sturdy steel poles, too. We were all surprised it was still standing!

My greenhouse here is made with the poly panels. If we need replacements, we’ll go back to FarmTek in Iowa, just across the Mississippi from us. That place is ‘Candyland’ for me, so I am not allowed to go there unsupervised, LOL! :)

Overstock sale on Greenhouses, right now! *SQUEAL* (Just for ideas, of course!)

It’s really impressive. They have all of the big barns they build set up and running for cattle and dairy and chickens. They’re big into hydroponics, too.

And, you can see the ‘Field of Dreams’ house and movie set, not too far from there, too. It was a fun Day Trip for us, a few years ago.

https://www.farmtek.com/home

[Augie]

I bought a huge roll of 6mil viz-queen for my hoop house. So far it’s stood up to some serious wind storms and at least two rounds of hail without tearing up. I’ve got enough of it to re-cover the hoop house three times. I don’t mind using a bit of it to do the greenhouse.

10-4 on FarmTek. They make some very cool stuff. I should probably be looking there before I reinvent the wheel on some of my hare-brained ideas. lol

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Put your daughter in the barn.

Put an animal before her and watch as magic takes shape. Watch as she learns every aspect of that animal. Watch as she learns to care about herself. See character built. See self respect blossom.

Put your daughter in the barn.

Stand quietly by as she watches life begin and end. Feel her Spirit find its confident path. Let the barn teach the lessons of life as only the barn can do. From good sportsmanship to a humble champion put your daughter in the barn. Let the stalls bear witness to her tears over that first crush. Let the shavings and straw with a pitchfork in hand bear the brunt of her anger.

Put your daughter in the barn.

And when time comes calling and adulthood looms...what an amazing daughter you will see. All for the love of a beautiful barn.

Put your daughter in the barn.

~ By Mackenzie Grove

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“I should probably be looking there before I reinvent the wheel on some of my hare-brained ideas.”

But, that’s half the FUN! :)

[tob2]

Cut my first rose of the season today. There are many more buds getting ready to open. So nice to see roses again.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I am just pruning my roses. Taking off branches that aren’t showing signs of leafing out. I think I lost one over the winter, but it’s easily replaced.

[Diana in Wisconsin]