The Victory Garden Thread - June, 2026

June 1, 2026 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Diana in Wisconsin]

The MONTHLY Victory Garden 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 Victory Garden 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.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Happy Dog! (Even more so with air conditioning!) Augie....kimchi... water batch canning? Moving to the back of the refrigerator?

I like regular sauekraut and kimchi, but Mrs. does not and neither does my digestive system!

We had a lot of rain but it looks like its over now.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Oak Island always annoyed me. Did they EVER find ANYTHING? I couldn’t watch until the end...

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

I cant say. I do not have cable! The only times I see it I am in or visiting the hospital for some reason. The last time I saw it they were digging in some other part of the island and a metal detector found a coin and some trash on the shore. I think they were prohibited from going down in the shaft because other people died going down. (A roll of tin foil says the prohibition was a Templar Plot!)

I am not certain why they stay there. Maybe they they prefer it to being in Michigan??

[Liz]

Pizza Burgers
Juicy beef, melty cheese, and spicy pepperoni, impossible to top.

Ing 1 lb grnd beef (80% lean) 1 tsp Italian seasoning 1⁄2 tsp ea gar/powder, salt 1⁄4 tsp pepper
4 toasted hamburger buns, 1⁄2 c pizza sauce 1 c shredded mozzarella 16-24 slices pepperoni

Method Mix well grnd beef, Italian seasoning, gar/powder, s/p. Make 4 patties; set aside to meld. Toast buns golden. Grill patties 4-5 min per side. Spread 1/2 warm sauce over bun bottoms; top w/ 1/2 mozzarella, 1/2 pepperoni. Broil 2-3 min to melt cheese. Place cooked burgers on bottom buns; top w/ rest sauce, cheese, pepperoni. Broil melty then top w/ bun. Serve piping hot immediately.

[Liz]

Iced Buttercream-Topped Chocolate Cake

Ing: Baked Chocolate Cake. Vanilla Buttercream: 1⁄2 c unsalted butter, 1⁄4 c shortening 3 c conf 2-3 tbl h/cream 1 tsp vanilla Pinch salt. Fudge Icing: 3⁄4 c h/cream 1 1⁄2 c granulated sugar 6 tbl unsalted butter 6 tbl cocoa powder Pinch salt 1 tsp vanilla

Vanilla Buttercream. Beat butter, shortening. Beat in conf, then mix in vanilla, salt, and just enough h/cream to create a thick, pipeable consistency. Transfer to piping bag w/ large round tip. Pipe long, even tubes across baked cake. Chill cake 30 min.

Fudge Icing. In saucepan on med heat, combine cream, sugar, butter, cocoa powder, salt. Stir until thick. Offheat stir in vanilla. Let cool slightly. Pour cooled icing over cake, letting it flow over buttercream. Tip pan gently to coat. Chill to set icing. Slice cake w/ hot knife for clean edges. Serve.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I’ll have to see if I can find a final episode of Oak Island.

Maybe they all fell down the mine shaft? LOL!

[MomwithHope]

78 here at 7:06am. Feels like the Caribbean jungle we traveled to. Great when you are young, when old not so much. I cut a rose and brought it in and that’s about it. I did water last night and we may get some rain tonight. So its cleaning inside today.
Part of my Aim Small Cook Small interest - I’ve been watching bento box youtubes. Just discovered them although there was a Korean mom who made some amazing ones about 5+ years ago. Just looked up her name Jessica Woo.

[Augie]

kimchi... water batch canning?

No heat required. Wilt and wash the cabbage, apply the seasoning paste, stuff in bucket, cover with plastic wrap, three days fermentation at room temp, then bottle and refrigerate. It will continue to ferment in the fridge, just at a much slower rate compared to room temp.

It's edible now, but it will be much better in a couple or three weeks.

I harvested my stonehead cabbages yesterday. Washed them good and stuck em in the fridge. Today I'll chop it all up, salt it down, and pack it in a bucket where it will ferment for the next six weeks. Then it will get the same treatment as the kimchi - pack in jars, vacuum seal, and into the fridge.

[Augie]

This hot weather has slowed Howard’s roll for sure.

As long as he gets a couple romps per day he’s quite content to spend the rest of it in the AC.

First thing he does after he comes in for a romp is a belly flop on the cool tile floor in my grouch cave.

He was SUCH a wildy when he arrived here. I continue to be amazed at what a good dog he’s turned out to be.

[Pollard]

New firewood method. I've been using stationary racks made from 4' foot square pallets which made a 4' foot cube. They're all rotten at the bottom so I needed to replace them. Decided to cut them in half and make them portable with the little tractor with the forks. Still 4' wide by 4' tall but only 2' deep now. That way I can keep them in a spot where they'll get sun/wind for the warm months and bring them up to the house as needed for the cold months.

Mostly been cleaning up the place. Got more to go but have made a huge dent in it.

More dog ticks this year than lone star so I've been able to enjoy steak and ribs.

Just started eating cherry maters a couple of weeks ago. The yellow Sun Sugar are sweet. The generic Red Cherry from Ferry-Morse, plants from Lowe's, not seeds, are big and have a deep flavor.

Actual Summer is finally here. The good old fashioned going into July timing.

[Paul R.]

I guess you did, but not bad according to your last post.

Here’s the report for our region of the recent heavy rains.

https://www.weather.gov/pah/June2026Flooding

I’m certainly glad we did not get 10-12” of rain at our place!

One of the storms knocked down a few branches into the ditch to the east of our place, a few days ago, and I had to go clear the ditch during a break in the storms, as water was going over the road. The spot is at the end of a medium-long curve people regularly take way too fast anyway, and with a couple rough pavement spots & filled (sort of) pot holes: It’s a great recipe for hydroplaning or hitting a water filled rough spot or hole, and going out of control. The curve bends IN to our property and as I’ve posted in the paste, people sometimes go into that ditch anyway. I try to do what I can, as I don’t want to be the first person to find somebody plastered unrecognizably against an oak or hickory tree...

We are back to “abnormally dry” according to NWS, but in fact are in a little island some of the swaths of t’storms missed, so I think we are actually D1, but better off than we were a week ago.

[Paul R.]

It was the biggest fish any of them have ever caught - and this group of (old!) guys have been fishing their entire adult lives in these same handful of Canadian lakes. So, he’s pretty happy. :)

Great! :-)

[Paul R.]

The “steam cooker” is “on” here too. Beau gets to go North? I’m jealous.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

I have done Kimchi, but its in quart canning jars with a self burping lid. I am the only one who eats ferments so I do not make much of it!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I always packed lunches for my kids for school. And for me and the then-husband for work. If the boys (or the then-husband) wanted to PAY for lunch, they had to use their own money, which they did from time to time...when they were ‘flush.’ ;)

Granted, this was WAY before kids were fed three meals (plus snacks!) a day at school via taxpayer expense.

That all said, I DO like the Bento boxes. Portion control and it makes total economic sense.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Through the years we’re really only had ONE problem Walker Dog, and then we got Osage fixed and he has been a lamb ever since. He is the absolute BEST ‘cold track’ dog of our current bunch. He’s found bear tracks that were over 8 hours old and lead the rest of the pack to a bear.

He’s 9 now and was one of the first batch of (7!) puppies I raised. He is a brother to ‘Grand Champion of All Things Doggy’ - Emma Jolene and Taylor Marianne who had the last batch of puppies we bred (not Mama to Grover and Midnight) ourselves.

It’s gonna be a sad day when the last three from that litter are no longer with us. Such good dogs, all the way around. Not sure that we’ll ever re-create that magic again, but we’ll keep trying. :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

So fitting that you posted about Pizza Burgers today. My Godmother passed away this morning - she was 90 years old.

She made the BEST Pizza Burgers back in the day. She was a great cook and always fed us well. RIP Nancy.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“Beau gets to go North? I’m jealous.”

July, August & September are Bear Training Camp. You can chase around the bears with your dogs and train the younger ones on what to do by following the older dogs, but there is no shooting, only treeing the bears. He will have different groups of hunters and dogs through our cabin all summer. And then the same rotation starts all over again come October. Hunters and dogs alike need to get into shape for the season. ;)

The hunting season starts in October, but they alternate starting dates between the Hound Hunters and the Bait Sitters. (WIMPS!) I think the Hound Hunters get the late start this season, so that means he will be up there until early November. He has some things going on here that he needs to come home for, so he’ll be back and forth all summer...my ‘Vacation’ is never all in one big chunk. ;)

But, I’m plenty busy here tending to my farm chores as well as his and the garden is always bursting, so there’s plenty of canning to do and I host any number of ‘Girlfriend Sleep Overs’ for my City Friends who think I live like a cave woman and want in on the excitement, as well as two other family gatherings this summer. Family from GA and CA will be here at our farm a few weeks apart.

Never a dull moment! :)

[Liz]

Nice to know a winning recipe has fond memories of a loved one.

[MomwithHope]

Sorry for your loss but happy for her. A long life well lived.