Gardening: (2016– )

[heidih]

1 hour ago, gulfporter said:

No...never knew that was a thing.  We let ripen, eat a few days, make one banana dessert, then give the rest to gardener's family and neighbors.  

Poular in SE Asia like this  https://www.seriouseats.com/thai-style-spicy-chicken-banana-blossom-herb-salad-recipe  My Mexicangardener also often as of they can pick yucca fowers - I have a lot  https://myheartofmexico.wordpress.com/2015/10/13/how-to-cook-and-eat-beautiful-yucca-flowers/

[heidih]

Thus is a heart warming and positive article about heirloom colards and seed saving. I love greens!  Looking forward to everyone's upcoming vegetable gardens as we deal with strange climate issues.  https://www.npr.org/2022/04/24/1093167996/gardening-collard-greens-seed-savers-heirloom-collard-project-food-recipes

[kayb]

Well...the garden beds and brand new herb planters are done

Tomatoes.

More tomatoes.

 

Yellow squash, cucumbers and zucchini. 

The new cold frame, which will be put to use this fall.

Herb planter 1.

 

Herb planter 2.

 

Also petunias, some other flowering annual, and, still to be planted, eight hostas.

[KennethT]

6 minutes ago, kayb said:

 

Everything looks great!

 

What is the herb 4th from the left with the striking purple flowers?  Do you find it difficult growing rosemary and thyme along with other herbs?  I had trouble doing that because I found that they liked to dry out a bit between waterings.

 

Do you have any trouble with deer eating everything?  Growing up, my parents had a lot of hostas around - the deer loved them.  They got so invasive (and killed so many plants/shrubs by eating them to death) that he wound up putting an electric cattle fence around all the plant areas.  It worked well but it was a lot of maintenance.

[heidih]

Nice! @kayb  And all that got done despite your knee surgery and Covid type ills?  You are a force

[heidih]

@KennethT I can share that I grew beautiful roses, grapes and rosemary in the same beds In my case slow draining yucky soil over deep sandy soil (former "Celery Capital" so spaced out slow watering. @kayb looks like nice well draining beds. One adjusts. And the plants generally communoicate their preferences well

[Shelby]

Beautiful Kay!!!  You're way ahead of us.  It's been so cold.  We just planted a few tomatoes today--probably about 30.  Onions and potatoes...radishes and lettuce I planted a few weeks ago.  Not ready to do any more until around Mother's Day.

[kayb]

1 hour ago, KennethT said:

Everything looks great!

 

What is the herb 4th from the left with the striking purple flowers?  Do you find it difficult growing rosemary and thyme along with other herbs?  I had trouble doing that because I found that they liked to dry out a bit between waterings.

 

Do you have any trouble with deer eating everything?  Growing up, my parents had a lot of hostas around - the deer loved them.  They got so invasive (and killed so many plants/shrubs by eating them to death) that he wound up putting an electric cattle fence around all the plant areas.  It worked well but it was a lot of maintenance.

It’s lavender. Don’t use it much but it smells SO good!

 

The rosemary and thyMe seem to coexist pretty well with the rest of the folks. I let everything dry out until the basil starts to wilt, then soak everything.

 

Have never seen deer in this neighborhood. Neighbor has hostas that are bigger than me, so perhaps mine are safe.

57 minutes ago, heidih said:

Nice! @kayb  And all that got done despite your knee surgery and Covid type ills?  You are a force

I had excellent help from my son-in-law, who built the herb planters and cold frame, filled them with dirt, and tilled up my beds for me! He will be back if it ever stops raining, to plant the hostas. Those will require digging legitimate holes with a shovel, and I don’t think the knee is up to that!

[KennethT]

This has really gotten out of control....

 

[gfweb]

Early veg .garden. Lettuce has been under plastic till today and is growing great. Likewise chives and sage that proved winter hardy , at least this year. 

 

Tomatoes  and peppers went in today.  

 

I had started a bunch of tomatoes from seed and it looks like the wilt resistant varieties from Burpee brought wilt in with them. Shite. 

 

[haresfur]

10 hours ago, KennethT said:

This has really gotten out of control....

 

 

Bubbling up out of the dishwasher?

[haresfur]

Don't think I'll ever get used to gardening in an area with a Mediterranean climate that also gets frost. I just planted cauliflower and garlic as my winter crops. The garlic had small cloves but I soaked them in seaweed solution and we will see if anything develops. A friend has a very large garden and has planted broad beans for years so it seems he has a huge supply. He is revegetating a lot of the property so has been using broad beans as a green mulch for erosion control. Sounds better than eating them to me.

[Smithy]

27 minutes ago, haresfur said:

Don't think I'll ever get used to gardening in an area with a Mediterranean climate that also gets frost. I just planted cauliflower and garlic as my winter crops. The garlic had small cloves but I soaked them in seaweed solution and we will see if anything develops.

 

Central California (the Central Valley, that is) has just such a climate. The citrus ranchers use mitigation practices (wind machines, irrigation) but there are always a few dicey days or weeks during the winter when the crops are at risk.

 

What does the seaweed solution do for the garlic cloves?

[heidih]

6 minutes ago, Smithy said:

 

Central California (the Central Valley, that is) has just such a climate. The citrus ranchers use mitigation practices (wind machines, irrigation) but there are always a few dicey days or weeks during the winter when the crops are at risk.

 

What does the seaweed solution do for the garlic cloves?

Yes I think of people running out to heat when frost predicted in citrus orchards especialy during a vulnerable time like bloom>fruit formation. Lose a crop = lose a season of livelihood.

I also wondered about the seaweed soution, I use it as a nutrient additive or fish emulsion - it is not stinky. I am the looney out as rain starts pouring it on the beds. 

 

http://irrigationtoolbox.com/ReferenceDocuments/BasicWaterManagement/f21_orchard_frost_protection.pdf

 

https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1300924#:~:text=This orchard heater%2C also called,drops overnight during growing season.

[haresfur]

4 hours ago, Smithy said:

 

Central California (the Central Valley, that is) has just such a climate. The citrus ranchers use mitigation practices (wind machines, irrigation) but there are always a few dicey days or weeks during the winter when the crops are at risk.

 

What does the seaweed solution do for the garlic cloves?

 

Soaking the cloves is supposed to jump start their growth. And SeaSol is suggested when transplanting. Gardening Australia recommended soaking in the seaweed and who am I to question them? Reckon it can't hurt.

[Shelby]

Finished getting everything in the ground today. 

 

100 seeds of Nirvana corn

Long rows of beans

Radishes

Lettuce (need to plant more of that in a week or so)

Okra

55 tomato plants (raised by Ronnie)

Squash/zucchini (raised by Ronnie)

Melons (raised by Ronnie)

Yukon Gold potatoes

Russet potatoes

300 onion sets --white, red and yellow

Cucumbers (raised by Ronnie)

Shishito peppers

Jalapeno peppers

 

Here is the main garden.  Didn't take pics of the other two but I will.  Not a ton showing yet, but I weeded everything so I took pictures while it was still pretty lol.

 

 

 

 

 

Been eating asparagus almost every day.  Not sick of it yet.

[heidih]

Wow  @Shelby that is a lot of work you've done. "by Ronnie" you mean he was the seed starter? Impressive

[rotuts]

@Shelby 

 

very impressive.

 

do you grow winter rye

 

then till it in come early spring ?

Edited May 12, 2022 by rotuts (log)

[Shelby]

7 minutes ago, heidih said:

Wow  @Shelby that is a lot of work you've done. "by Ronnie" you mean he was the seed starter? Impressive

Yeah, I'm proud of him!  He's been non-stop in his little greenhouse since like the end of January.

[lindag]

23 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Finished getting everything in the ground today. 

 

100 seeds of Nirvana corn

Long rows of beans

Radishes

Lettuce (need to plant more of that in a week or so)

Okra

55 tomato plants (raised by Ronnie)

Squash/zucchini (raised by Ronnie)

Melons (raised by Ronnie)

Yukon Gold potatoes

Russet potatoes

300 onion sets --white, red and yellow

Cucumbers (raised by Ronnie)

Shishito peppers

Jalapeno peppers

 

Here is the main garden.  Didn't take pics of the other two but I will.  Not a ton showing yet, but I weeded everything so I took pictures while it was still pretty lol.

 

 

 

 

 

Been eating asparagus almost every day.  Not sick of it yet.

That' some SERIOUS gardening!!!

[Shelby]

26 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@Shelby 

 

very impressive.

 

do you grow winter rye

 

then till it in come early spring ?

No but we probably should.  A lot of farmers around here do that.

[Shelby]

15 minutes ago, lindag said:

That' some SERIOUS gardening!!!

I'm seriously sore right now.

[dcarch]

42 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Finished getting everything in the ground today. 

 

100 seeds of Nirvana corn

Long rows of beans

Radishes

Lettuce (need to plant more of that in a week or so)

Okra

55 tomato plants (raised by Ronnie)

Squash/zucchini (raised by Ronnie)

Melons (raised by Ronnie)

Yukon Gold potatoes

Russet potatoes

300 onion sets --white, red and yellow

Cucumbers (raised by Ronnie)

Shishito peppers

Jalapeno peppers

 

Here is the main garden.  Didn't take pics of the other two but I will.  Not a ton showing yet, but I weeded everything so I took pictures while it was still pretty lol.

 

 

 

 

 

Been eating asparagus almost every day.  Not sick of it yet.

 

Best way to deal with supply chain and inflation problems.

 

dcarch

[Shelby]

2 minutes ago, dcarch said:

 

Best way to deal with supply chain and inflation problems.

 

dcarch

The only thing we had to buy this year (grown plant-wise)  was the pepper plants--8 shishito and 6 jalapeños.  $70!!!!   I told Ronnie we need to figure out why we never can grow peppers in the greenhouse.  

Edited May 12, 2022 by Shelby (log)

[chromedome]

Something of a digression, but this little venture into the most extreme form of Extreme Gardening caught my eye:

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/05/plants-can-grow-in-lunar-soil-but-very-poorly/