Gardening: (2016– )

[Shelby]

11 minutes ago, dcarch said:

Other than for aesthetic reasons, I have not found most weeds to be that detrimental to  garden productivity.

 

This year's weeds are next years tomatoes. More compost, weeds improve soil.

 

dcarch

I like your way of thinking....

 

 

[kayb]

5 hours ago, dcarch said:

Other than for aesthetic reasons, I have not found most weeds to be that detrimental to  garden productivity.

 

This year's weeds are next years tomatoes. More compost, weeds improve soil.

 

dcarch

 

It's kinda like pink pork. I can hear my father tsk-tsk-ing at me from beyond the pale.

 

I'm contemplating trying the black plastic method next year. I know people have had success with it, and it helps the soil warm up earlier so you can plant a little earlier, a significant thing of late as spring has gotten later and later.

 

[dcarch]

49 minutes ago, kayb said:

------

I'm contemplating trying the black plastic method next year. I know people have had success with it,-----------

 

 

Or this:

 

dcarch

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I got my tomatoes in.  Only vegetables this year.

 

Edit:  this could be ambiguous.  Tomatoes (Atlas, Mountain Magic, Ramapo) are my only vegetables this year.

 

Edited May 19, 2018 by JoNorvelleWalker
linguistics (log)

[Shelby]

I am going to bore you all with this mornings garden pictures:

 

Beans

 

cukes

 

onions

 

Potatoes ( I love the flowers )

 

 

'Maters

eggplant

volunteer corn

okra

peppers

corn i planted 

 

watermelons poking through

zucchini

[kayb]

Looks good, Shelby!

 

[rotuts]

do I miss my Garden

 

and the three plots of Tomatoes

 

8 / trhance

 

started in January 

 

in doors , with a seed amy ?

 

and all the othedr

 

and yes

 

those  24 tomatoes , in their reinforcing circular container 

 

( concrete reinforcing wire , in  a bit spool , etc )

 

wer not the Best

 

but locally ?

 

 

I can't send you pics

 

as that was the Kodak Days

 

Ill give a Kudos to anyone that has an outside 

 

garded

 

I did and I loved it

 

we will see

[heidih]

@Shelby  Quite a plot you tend!  Your soil looks kinda sandy? At least the weeds are easily pullable?  How do you water all that?

[Shelby]

1 minute ago, heidih said:

@Shelby  Quite a plot you tend!  Your soil looks kinda sandy? At least the weeds are easily pullable?  How do you water all that?

 

 

Our soil does have some sand in it. 

 

Right now the weeds are pretty easy to pull.  If I let them overtake, it's a lot harder.  Hogweed gets really tough later in the summer.

 

Ronnie has sprinklers set up all around the perimeter.  In a couple weeks we will lay soaker hose down on the tomatoes.

[Okanagancook]

The garden is starting to take off.  Recently had some nice warm sunny weather and now we have rain for a couple of days before more sun and warmth.

The vineyard.  Needs shoot thinning and some weed control around the bases.  We have 200 plants.

My garden patch which is on the south side of the house.  My small 8 x 10 ft greenhouse and my glorious stand of garlic.  A couple of zucchini plants behind the compost bins.

My herb garden is tucked away against the west side of the house.  That enormous plant is lovage.  I harvested most of the sorrel yesterday and still pondering what the heck to do with it.

 

The garlic and onion patch with the rest of the potatoes at the end.

I do square foot gardening and I have TEN squares.....way too many for just the two of us so I feed the neighbours.  The wire frames are for my peas to climb up.

This is my shade box where I plant my greens.  Already harvested a square of arugula which is one foot by one foot...the boxes are 4 feet x 4 feet.  I have regular spinach and New Zealand spinach which gives my leaves all year long.  Also some mixed greens and bok choy.

This box has mainly beets which get bugs in the leaves every year.  The local plant guys said put out some sticky paper to catch them before they burrow into the leaves.  We'll see.  So far I caught a little finch...had a little square stuck on it's back.  Managed to get if off and then I put up the netting to keep the birds out.   There are four empty squares...not sure what to put in there.

A really good year for mint.  Some green onions, parsley from last year, Vietnamese cilantro, more parsley and cucumbers which will grow up the lattice.  It's a busy square.

These are my peppers and carrots.

Fava beans....hopefully we can keep the mildew off them this year.  Radish and more carrots.

Peas and tomatoes.  Not growing as many tomato plants this year...only about 12...still have tons of tomatoes in the freezer from last year.

The potato patch.  We'll see how they do here.  It's quite hot being against the house so we'll have to water them twice a day.

And finally the strawberry patch.  The wire is to keep the quails off.

 

That's it.

 

 

 

Edited May 18, 2018 by Okanagancook (log)

[KennethT]

@Okanagancook What variety of grapes are you growing? What do you use for a training method?

[Okanagancook]

We have two short rows of Cab Franc; the rest is split between Merlot and Pino Gris.

We use single cordon pruning.

And yes, we make our own wine using the two reds together and then the white

[Smithy]

@Okanagancook, I like the flavor of lovage but have trouble working out what to do with it, except use it occasionally as seasoning in a soup or stew. What do you do with yours?

[heidih]

@Smithy  We grew lovage briefly for sale at our Botanic Garden. We gave it the nickname "Bloody Mary plant" as the thick hollow stems add a celery flavor to the drink when used as the sipping straw.  I used it in salads and as a finishing herb in dishes that benefit from that celery flavor.

[HungryChris]

Here is my modest garden estate.

This lettuce was actually planted in the late fall, in the cold frame. It came up, but remained quarter sized throughout the winter. It was intended as a fall crop, but turned into a spring one. My "breakfast zucchinis" are in the background. Some of the pickling cukes are in the ground, but tiny and some are still under the lights.

There is the first wave of sugar snaps. I am hoping for blossoms soon.

Here is the garlic I planted last fall

Most of the tomatoes are in the ground. I still have some fourth of Julys under the lights along with shishito, sweet cubanelle fryers and red hot cherry peppers.

This one is meant for @Shelby, who, last year, shamed me into doing the unthinkable, this year, and "sucker budding" the peonies.

HC

[Okanagancook]

1 hour ago, Smithy said:

@Okanagancook, I like the flavor of lovage but have trouble working out what to do with it, except use it occasionally as seasoning in a soup or stew. What do you do with yours?

I have used it in salads.  Deb Madison has a number of recipes using it in sauces and soups.  She often pairs it with sorrel.  I will probably make a soup with it, the sorrel and potatoes/small pasta pieces.  The plant is so big.  I think I will have to cut it back a bit.

[Shelby]

28 minutes ago, HungryChris said:

Here is my modest garden estate.

This lettuce was actually planted in the late fall, in the cold frame. It came up, but remained quarter sized throughout the winter. It was intended as a fall crop, but turned into a spring one. My "breakfast zucchinis" are in the background. Some of the pickling cukes are in the ground, but tiny and some are still under the lights.

There is the first wave of sugar snaps. I am hoping for blossoms soon.

Here is the garlic I planted last fall

Most of the tomatoes are in the ground. I still have some fourth of Julys under the lights along with shishito, sweet cubanelle fryers and red hot cherry peppers.

This one is meant for @Shelby, who, last year, shamed me into doing the unthinkable, this year, and "sucker budding" the peonies.

HC

O M G I am SO SO proud of you!!!!  I swear on my life, the blossoms will be amazing.  Keep doing it every year and they get even more amazing.

 

Edited to say my mom will be proud of you too  

Edited May 18, 2018 by Shelby (log)

[lindag]

What is sucker budding and how/when do I do it?

i just had some brand new peonies planted.

[Shelby]

6 minutes ago, lindag said:

What is sucker budding and how/when do I do it?

i just had some brand new peonies planted.

My mom used to work on a peony farm.   

 

Sucker budding is done in order to make sure you get the main bud to bloom the biggest and best that it can--the "suckers" are off-shoots of smaller buds that form on the same stem and they "suck" nutrients from the main bud.  You want to make sure you identify the main bud that forms and then pick off the smaller off-shoot buds.

[Okanagancook]

Wish I knew this when I had peonies 

[HungryChris]

4 hours ago, Shelby said:

Edited to say my mom will be proud of you too  

 

Frankly, Shelby, It was your mom's influence that made me do it.

HC

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Today was largely devoted to ornamental plantings but I relocated the herb containers outside for the summer.  The formerly potted rosemary I dropped in the dining room.

 

[Shelby]

52 minutes ago, HungryChris said:

Frankly, Shelby, It was your mom's influence that made me do it.

HC

I knew it  

[dcarch]

A suggestion for you guys with a large garden:

 

I don't have a huge garden, just big enough to be a pain to go from one end to the other, especially if I have to carry a lot of tools and garden supplies.

 

So I got myself an electric mobility scooter and modified it for gardening use. So fast, even going up hill. 

 

Completely silent, and instant start. A good time saver, no sweat.

 

dcarch

 

Edited May 22, 2018 by dcarch (log)

[Okanagancook]

The Sea Island Peas which I got from Anson Mills have come up! :-)))  Planted them about 10 days ago.  They were no where to be seen this morning but with some sun they popped up after lunch.

I planted another lot.  It would be great if I could get a nice crop.