Weekly Garden Thread - June 10-16, 2023 [Garden Trends for 2023 Edition]

June 10, 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.

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!

[Paul R.]

Cool!!! I need to do some soil testing anyway!

[Paul R.]

Hi, Diana! Thanks!

Results may vary with species of insect, and definitely with light vs. dark (those gnats I was inhaling are very strongly attracted to my head worn flashlight — why can’t the makers of those get smart and make UV-filtered-out-versions? — but, the other night I was fairly impressed. Hope it works for you.

Disclaimer: I have nothing to do with the mfgr. or Menards, except as a customer.

[Paul R.]

We were supposed to get around 1-1/2” of rain over the weekend (6/10-11) and we ended up getting well under 1/4”. The recording site did much better, at 2/3”, because they got lucky with a heavier t-storm. That’ll blow up their would be “driest since May 1” record we were heading for, but @ my place, well, you see my posts about looking into fog (dew) harps!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Yep. No measurable rain here for 45 days. Yesterday was supposed to be THE DAY, but it pretty much just drizzled on us.

Another day of dragging the hoses around, trying to save my fruit trees - which are loaded, so it’ll be worth the effort. My grapes are loaded, too. They prefer a dry season, though.

Apples, pears, peaches & cherries.

[Augie]

It was another week of typical June weather here in Central Missouri, but with a twist... we actually got a measurable amount of rainfall over the weekend. An even inch Saturday night and another 2/10" yesterday. That's not a drought-breaker by any stretch of the imagination, but it will give me a break from watering trees for a few days.

The victory garden is basically in maintenance mode at this point. Pulling weeds, pruning, fertilizing, etc. I need to put some more weed cloth down in a couple spots, and I'm going to have to find the seven dust. The loopers have discovered my cabbages and DE isn't getting rid of them. The wind Saturday night layed my sweet corn down a bit but it will recover soon enough.

I rented a dump trailer Saturday morning and commenced to hauling stall waste from the neighbor lady's horse barn. Each load is roughly 8cu/yd and I was able to get eight loads home before the rain started. We were hoping to haul again yesterday, but after struggling a bit to get out with the test load we decided that we didn't really want to tear up my truck or the trailer or Sharon's arena fence or her barn so I went home and called it good at nine loads for the weekend. I've used all of the compost I had on hand and need to get my pile sized back up so I'll rent a trailer at least one more time this year, hopefully on a weekend that it doesn't rain. Another 20 loads would have me stocked up fairly well.

[Augie]

Keep in mind this key mantra when planting trees: right tree, right place, right way.

Or, as I like to put it, Don't plant a hundred dollar tree in a ten dollar hole.

And make DOGGONE SURE you don't plant one on top of a water line.

[Pollard]

Just checked and yes, I have baking soda. According to the National Cooperative Soil Survey, this area has a pH of about 5.2 and blueberries do grow wild here so it’s probably close to that. I should get plenty of bubbles. Won’t give me an accurate pH but will confirm acidic.

[Ellendra]

I should probably mention, I've never actually heard of a fog harp being made from fishing line. I just can't find any reason why it wouldn't work.

If you do a search on the phrase "diy dew collector" you can see lots of examples, although the majority focus on meshes, not harps. I'm guessing the harps are a new enough development that no one knows the optimum measurements yet, although I'm pretty sure tall is more important than wide. If you decide you want to try zippers to help with the spacing, you can get 10-yard rolls of zipper for around $10 online. I just like how the little teeth keep everything even.

My method for dealing with UV damage is to keep it in the shade. I figure I have to block the wind somehow anyway, I might as well block the sun too. It will probably take some tinkering to find the right enclosure.

One more tip: keep in mind that the strands will change length in response to temperature. If they're nice and taut on a hot day, they might break on a cold day. Make sure you allow for that.

Congratulations on the chickens! I'm looking forward to the day when I can expand my flock.

[spankalib]

Beautiful song!

Re, the lyrics "...planet earth turns slowly>"

Bucky Fuller said once if you line your feet up one in front of the other, and face east, you can feel the earth's rotation...

It's @ 1000 mph!

(I've tried it a few times, and it may be only my imagination, but...lol)

This is an excellent animation of the helical nature of the planets' paths:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jHsq36_NTU

...and since you posted pretty music, I'd like to gift you back!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNFiTQ1eAD4

(I'm almost sure I've heard that in a movie, but can't recall)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

*BUMP* :)

[Pollard]

One yard of compost did 3" thick. Just need to fill in some gaps. Baby leaf lettuce and greens, radishes and what not for salads. This is kind of a little test plot for when I get in the tunnel.

[Paul R.]

The above reminds me that I started looking for a simple “programmable” timed waterer (w/ std. hose connections) that will do this:

*Function indefinitely without reprogramming OR can be set for the same function for, say, up to 60 days, 90 days or even better, no “how many days” limit at all.

*Easily set “ON” time, up to 8 hours.

*Easily set “OFF” time, ends the ON time of up to 8 hours.

*So, in other words, the watering (actually light misting) will come on every day at a set time and go off 8 hours later, and that’s all the thing needs to do.

The idea is to experiment with misting cool weather veggies to keep them from bolting. I have a location where they’d get 6+ hours of morning sun, but shade after ~1 pm. Mist them from ~11 am to ~6 pm (plenty of time to dry B4 it gets dark.)

The closest I’ve seen are something like these:

https://www.amazon.com/Kazeila-Watering-Programmable-Sprinkler-Irrigation/dp/B0BQ2F2RTW/ref=psdc_3238155011_t2_B0BFQPZN1J?th=1

That actually looks pretty good, but the time to get shipments out is kinda ridiculous (for 2023). And, there is no Q & A section, and it appears customer service is crap. AND, the watering (misting) time is only 4 hours — I’d like up to 8 in case of a heat wave. (Best I’ve seen so far is 6 hours - still looking. For examples:

https://www.menards.com/main/outdoors/watering-irrigation/sprinkler-timers/orbit-reg-1-station-electronic-sprinkler-timer/58952/p-1642874263386473-c-8662.htm

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Chapin-Single-Zone-Water-Timer-with-Digital-Display-41002/317007812?g_store=&source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D28I-028_010_WATERING-NA-MULTI-NA-SMART-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-SMART_SHP&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D28I-028_010_WATERING-NA-MULTI-NA-SMART-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-SMART_SHP-71700000090520821-58700007648834861-92700069166036077&gclid=CjwKCAjwhJukBhBPEiwAniIcNcb4m0N49UHbTemOPLhShtS5qq8LZtETPxDVMRER94T83VMd9aAqLxoC4cgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds#overlay

I’d have to watch out for mold and such, of course...

Even better yet would be thermostat control

[Paul R.]

DARK objects radiate heat better than light color objects, and we do want efficient radiational cooling (the driver of dew in the 1st place.) So, a dark color fishing line like “Cajun Red” or “Cajun Redcast” might work better than clear line.

Monofilament fishing line has a fair amount of “stretch” in it, so, I don’t think temperature changes would be a big problem for the line. However, mono line does expand and contract SOMEWHAT in reaction to both temperature and humidity, so, a sturdy frame may be in order — the cumulative pull of hundreds of filaments could be considerable.

Mono line also has better than average (for a plastic) resistance to UV light, but, yes, sunlight will eventually degrade it. Here again, “red” line should have some advantaqe. One thing though, about shade. Ever notice how areas of grass open to the sky accumulate dew in the evening much faster than an area under a tree? Or frost more easily? That’s radiational cooling at work.

[Paul R.]

I hasten to add: Collecting blown mist or fog is a somewhat different adventure than actually collecting dew. In the Midwest and MidSouth, away from water bodies, we might get blown mist once in a while, but, blown fog almost never.

[Paul R.]

Different question:

I tried starting some pak choy (bok choy) from seed, and it sprouted just great, but then after a couple days stopped growing, slowly then turned brown at the stem where it (the stem) meets the planting medium, and then died.

The planting medium is Burpees' Seed Starting mix. This stuff retains moisture incredibly well.** Maybe I in effect over-watered? The mix stayed awfully damp after initially watering in the seeds, which has worked great for tomatoes and (so far) Opo. I added no other fertilizer, etc.

**I don't know if Burpees' Seed Starting mix incorporates such, but there are hydrogels out there now that can be added to soil to pull moisture from the air not unlike the dew harvesters discussed above. I can't find the most pertinent link now (just taking a break), but will post it if I find it again later.

Or, could something else have gone wrong?

[Diana in Wisconsin]

That is called ‘Damping Off’ and it happens when the soil is too wet for the seedlings, or pots and soil are not sufficiently sanitized between uses.

Common mistake. We’ve all been there, done that! :)

This is kind of technical, but you’ll get the gist:

https://extension.umn.edu/solve-problem/how-prevent-seedling-damping

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[Pollard]

I use amazon.com for research, mostly looking at Q&A and reviews but also the seller’s page. In this case it’s Kazeila and here’s their sell page - https://www.amazon.com/stores/Kazeila/page/D41D660E-D1B2-47E3-A6D9-E6FE726D02DA

They mostly sell fake plants. Seems weird to buy a watering timer from someone who specializes in fake plants that don’t need water. Just my skeptical opinion.

Lowes.com and HomeDepot.com are a little better for finding products and then go to amazon and find it for the voluminous reviews and Q&As.

Six hours and water(mist) a little heavier and you’ll have a lot of choices.

If you’re misting to try and cool off plants that don’t like heat, look on youtube for “market gardening growing lettuce in summer”. They basically mist on and off several times a day while the sun is on them in conjunction with using shade cloth.

You don’t mention what components are putting out the water and that makes a difference.

For complete control, a garden automation system complete with moisture sensors in the soil is the ultimate.

Air temperature does have some effect on soil moisture but a lot of other things do too. I just bought $40 worth of compost to use as mulch.

I had a mulched garden last year too and when it was near 100 degrees, my neighbor with bare soil was watering every day while I was watering once or twice a week. Less moisture evaporating and the soil stays cooler.

We have heavy soil here which also makes a difference.

I try to add organic materials to feed the plants and soil and add tilth to the soil while my neighbor sprinkles white powders to fertilize. Also makes a difference as to how fast your garden will dry out.

Not much you can do about air temperature but you can decrease sun and soil temperature, plus increase soil moisture and moisture holding capability.

[Qiviut]

Picked my first Celebrity tomato this morning! This is very early for our area - most folks shoot for having their first ripe tomato around July 4th & in the past, my plants usually run about 1-2 weeks after that.

This plant was blooming when I bought it, so that’s why the early tomato 🍅 & there is another one that will probably get picked this weekend. I did pick it with a good blush, but slightly green - they are very low on the bush, almost on the ground, & something chewed a hole in a low green pepper - didn’t want my first tomato to get chewed/pecked on! Two dahlia buds are showing color - they’re sort of like a watched pot slow to boil .... watched dahlia buds are slow to bloom!

Did a big, deep watering this morning & hope it will last a week. We might get some “beneficial” rain this weekend. Day before yesterday, we had some showers; however, while the grass got wet, the dirt stayed dry. The bird baths are in heavy use - cleaned them out, so the birds have fresh water.

[Qiviut]

I very much enjoy Dr. Malone’s farm stories!

Life with Emus
and why it is hard to get work done around here.
https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/life-with-emus