The Garden Thread - September, 2024

September 1, 2024 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Diana in Wisconsin]

The MONTHLY Gardening Thread is a 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 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/removed from our New & Improved Ping List.

NOTE: This is a once a MONTH Ping List, but we DO post to the thread all throughout the month. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest to Gardeners are welcomed any time!

[Liz]

Mexican Chicken Rice Soup (Caldo Cantina)
World class deliciousness. Use plenty of lime, onion and cilantro; can use veg stock.

Ing 6 cups chix stock, 1⁄4 cup long-grain rice s/p 1 cup diced fresh tomato 1⁄2 cup minced white onion, 1 cup diced cooked chicken, can use leftover or store-bought rotisserie 1⁄4 cup or more fresh lime juice 1⁄2 cup chopped cilantro (or more to taste) minced jalapeno (or other chiles, to taste)

Steps Bring stock to boil on med-high. Add rice, s/p; lower heat; bubble-cook, stirring, til rice is tender, 20 min. Meanwhile, combine vegs, chicken, lime juice, cilantro and chiles. Place in bowl. When soup is ready, ladle it into bowls. Taste; adjust seasoning if necessary.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

My chickens are AMERICAN chickens. Will they still work in this recipe? ;)

[Augie]

This is what I've been using. Much easier than trying to salvage electrolysis-damaged fittings.

hose fixit thingy on amazon

[Liz]

......lol.......guess so......lol

;

[Liz]

Coffee tortoni with almond praline
Beautiful coffee and almond dessert. So easy but looks like you slaved for hours over a hot stove.

Ing 2 tablespoons desiccated coconut, toasted 2 tablespoons blanched almonds, toasted 1 eggwhite 1 cup (220g) caster sugar 1 cup (250ml) thickened cream 1 teaspoon instant coffee, dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water 1 tablespoon amaretto liqueur (optional) 100g whole blanched almonds

Method 1.Processor coconut and almonds briefly to combine. 2.Beat egg white and 1/4 cup sugar with electric beaters to soft peaks. In a separate bowl, lightly whip cream with 1/4 cup sugar. Fold in egg white, then add coffee, amaretto (if using) and coconut mixture. Fold w/ metal spoon, then divide among eight ramekins or dariole moulds, patting down well. Freeze overnight.

For praline, spread almonds on a lined baking sheet. Stir remaining 1/2 cup (110g) sugar with 1/4 cup (60ml) water in a pan over low heat to dissolve sugar. Increase heat slightly and bubble, without stirring, for 3-4 minutes until mixture is a golden toffee. Carefully pour over nuts and cool completely. Break into shards and store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. 4.To serve, briefly dip moulds in warm water or rub with a warm towel, invert onto plates and top with broken shards of almond praline.

[Paul R.]

The problem there is the aluminum connector (unless your entire system is aluminum connectors). That’s why I’m going to Nylon or PEX wherever practical when the connector itself is unlikely to be stressed by tugs on the hose.

That said, I often DO use brass connector versions of the connectors at your link. They just get a bit pricier.

Either way, you are right - many corroded connectors are not worth salvaging or can’t be salvaged. In the cases I mentioned above, since the parts had not been “together” a long time, I figured that if they’d come apart with reasonable effort, there was a good chance actual damage was minimal / inconsequential.

WELL... (sort of a pun) ...I ended up batting .500. The steel to brass connection came apart after 2 days of PB Blaster (3 apps, IIRC) and a little light hammer tapping per Pollard: Not a problem as I just put the can of PB Blaster by the railing I hang the hose (connection) from, and give it a squirt if convenient. (Usually not, as I’m carrying something.) Outside of dragging the mess to where I can conveniently work on it (have to do that anyway), I probably don’t have 10 minutes in it.

The 3/4” hose with the nice big brass(?) plated Aluminum(?) connector to the 5/8” hose with the nice brass connector though... Moderate torque with the big wrenches this morning broke the plated connector and its internal corrosion was much worse than I expected — the reason it broke off, of course. So, hope for that one vanished, though if I can twist the remains of the end of it out of the brass connector, the brass connector shows no signs of corrosion itself. :-)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Oh, that looks good! And all the Major Food Groups, too. ;)

[Liz]

A healthy dessert. Go figure.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

There is a Blue river in MO and your Blue river in Kansas. Wikipedia has a springtime picture of the river near Manhattan looking to the south. . It was so nice I thought I would post it! (Note the American bison in the field in the foreground!)

Your well was probably a different depth than your neighbors and was cleaner or perhaps had been filtered through the limestone on the bluffs rather than taken from under the river?

(I wish you luck in separating your coupling!)

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Pollard; Looks like you are about done with the high tunnel. (Could almost function as a backup home!) I hope it all works well for you!

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Paul, I agree with Augie. Just buy some new fittings, cut the old ones off and replace them.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Augie, since you have the pond, an article on dragonflies. (I am on a hilltop and do not have a pond but they sometimes visit my garden.)

Earth Sky...Dragonflies.

[FamiliarFace]

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. I am going to give it a whirl with a few nuts that I’ve found on the ground from a walk in the city owned woods. We are allowed to pick up things like that if they’ve fallen. We’re even allowed to hunt for morels when that season happens. For personal use anyway.

[FamiliarFace]

Your post made me decided to keep the seeds that I’ve been discarding from the peppers. I still have a handful left. Suggestions as to how to store these seeds so that I can try to plant and grow something from them next year would be great. I have no idea if they will even grow because I bought these at the grocery store. They may have been modified to not grow, who knows, but it’s worth a try.

[FamiliarFace]

So I met with my friend. I was very calm and in a good place when I arrived. I gave her a quick hug and said “hey, good to see you again” as an opener. Needless to say it was a very short meeting. She made it clear that if I couldn’t give more of myself to our friendship, then it was off completely, and at some point I told her I had tried everything in my power to be a good friend for her, and it was never enough. So she asked for our food to be brought in boxes to go, and for the checks, and she left after paying for her meal. We were together for 13 minutes. She had gone in thinking that it should go only one way, and when it didn’t, she didn’t want to hear an opposing view. It’s her way or the highway, with nowhere in between.

Truthfully, I’m a little relieved. The more I made myself available to her, did what she wanted, the more she wanted me to do. It’s almost like she had an addiction. She freely describes herself as an all or nothing person, so the fact that I couldn’t give anymore of myself to her version of what being a friend means, well, she ended it. I was so tired of trying to please her.

When I told her that one time I couldn’t come was because I was mourning my cat, and didn’t want to be with a group of people, she said that was silly and unreasonable. It felt like she kicked me in the gut when she said that. My version of friendship gives people some latitude when they’re mourning.

So thank you for your thoughts and prayers. I indeed felt supported when the time came. I’m not surprised by her reaction. I halfway expected it.

Time to move on! Thanks, FRiends!

[FamiliarFace]

You are doing a beautiful job! I love this!!

[FamiliarFace]

Pinging you to my post 194. I’d like to try to grow shishito plants from the seeds that were discarded from the store-bought peppers. I’m not sure I will have luck, but if you have any suggestions for success, I’m all ears. Thx.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Yikes. Glad that’s over with. She sounds toxic, and nobody needs a ‘friend’ like that in their lives. I have never had a female friend say that I ‘wasn’t giving enough to the relationship.’ What is this? Junior High and I didn’t wait for you at your locker after class? LOL!

My BFFs of 45 years and I don’t even talk every day. Sometimes only once a month, depending upon what’s going on with any one of us. I guess we just don’t GIVE enough to our relationships for it to have lasted this long. *SMIRK* And seriously? L & T ARE Besties to the Nth degree and have been since the day they met. The four of us all KNOW that. I was added next to their Gang of Two, then we added C, because she’s just cool and sweet and fun to be with. And I have a BFF outside of our relationships, too. And my Forever BFF, My Cathy, went and died on me! No fair!

Meh. Life is always in transition and always will be.

That said, I will also say that some women can really be a PITA. ;) (But, usually it’s a sibling, LOL!)

I’m glad you felt RELIEF - that means you made the right decision. Still, it’s not a fun thing to have to go through. :(

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Beau called me out into the yard late one day last week. There were literally DOZENS of Dragonflies swirling around out there, feeding.

It was really something, because we rarely have them, even in the garden, but I had noticed a ‘hatch’ of some small flying bug earlier in the day, so they must’ve been feeding on that. Plus, it’s been really dry, so I’m sure they’re looking all over for food sources.

It was pretty cool, though. ;)

[MomwithHope]

Hugs about your earlier post. I dry my seeds out on a table for a few days then store them in envelopes well labeled and in the garage during the winter. Attached garage, zone 6. Michigan. If you are down south you may want to find a cooler place. I have tried sprouting them every which way, in peat pots, under lights, on a heat mat, and very little success. Finally I just dumped them in a prepared outside planter and up they all came. I start my lettuce that way in the spring right around Easter and put a sheet of plexiglass over the planter. So I am going to do that with all my peppers next year. The Costa Rican red peppers did well that way too. If your seeds are whitish, flat and round they should be good. If they dry up tiny and get dark edges then the peppers were not mature enough when picked. Best wishes for success.