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Ordered a handful of new pepper seeds for this year, extremely excited about the sauce making to be done later on. Adding three different 7 Pod peppers, some Fatalii, Marouga Long, a new Scotch Bonnet strain, and some Naga Morich to the superhot peppers I grew last year. I swore this year I'd be more practical with what I grow but dammit I like my hot sauce. I guess this just means I need to dig up more of the back yard to grow the more reasonable stuff. mischief fucked around with this message at 06:03 on Jan 13, 2011 |
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Jan 13, 2011 05:58
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This seemed like the most appropriate place for my question. I'd like some opinions on an aesthetic choice. I'm working on building a very small herb garden beside the front walk. I placed a painted tire in front of a pillar to provide architectural interest and am satisfied with it, but my dad dislikes it and feels it is too redneck. I intend to plant three rosemary cuttings in front of it and keep them trimmed to about 12"-18" tall. In the tire itself will go my bell pepper seedling, which will be tall and leafy when grown, overshadowing it. Here are some pictures of the bed's current state, which is unfinished, including a view of the tire.  Click here for the full 1600x1200 image.  Click here for the full 1600x1200 image. And just because, here's a picture of my bok choi.   Click here for the full 1600x1200 image. So...front yard tire planter. OK or not-OK?
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Jan 21, 2011 03:43
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If planting poo poo in tires is wrong I don't ever want to be right. You rattle canned the damned thing, that automatically makes it classy.
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Jan 21, 2011 06:45
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Sweet, now I can show Dad photos of the thing every single time I take new pictures of it for the next twenty years.  Thanks!
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Jan 22, 2011 01:30
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Was at the California Rare Fruit Growers scion exchange yesterday and nabbed lots of interesting scions and a few rootstocks Planted plum, cherry and two apple rootstocks today that will later receive grafts. First time grafting so fingers are crossed We have an overall mild coastal climate so we tried to select varieties accordingly. Going with Fuji, Pettingill and Winter Banana for the apples, Mariposa and Beauty for the plum and Lapin and Stella for the cherry
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Jan 24, 2011 02:09
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That tire is an eyesore and you're probably going to poison yourself if you eat anything grown out of a god drat spray-painted tire.
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Jan 24, 2011 02:19
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Corla Plankun posted:That tire is an eyesore and you're probably going to poison yourself if you eat anything grown out of a god drat spray-painted tire. Regardless of its aesthetics, if he is only going to eat fruit from plants grown in that tire (like bell pepper), it would be safe; fruits do not contain any toxins the plant might
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Jan 24, 2011 06:35
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Corla Plankun posted:That tire is an eyesore and you're probably going to poison yourself if you eat anything grown out of a god drat spray-painted tire. A quick google search shows nothing more than speculation if used tires are dangerous as far as growing stuff in them. The compounds that would be most likely to leach are zinc and sulfer, and both are plant nutrients. There are heavy metals used in the wires, but as long as no metal is exposed, it seems like they would be perfectly safe. Even if it was exposed, some people think that the only way they would be released was if the tires were incinerated. Still, if it’s a concern you could grow flowers or other things that you have no intention of eating.
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Jan 24, 2011 14:52
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I know some places suggest using tires to grow potatoes.
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Jan 24, 2011 17:12
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I was doing some weeding in the veggie patch today and found a ton of these disgusting little guys: Does anyone know what these are, and if they're anything to worry about in a garden?
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Jan 24, 2011 21:09
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a handful of dust posted:I was doing some weeding in the veggie patch today and found a ton of these disgusting little guys: I wonder if that's a cutworm? If it is, they are up to no good.
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Jan 24, 2011 23:16
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Zeta Taskforce posted:I wonder if that's a cutworm? If it is, they are up to no good. It certainly looks like one to me. Kill them all! (And protect your plants with physical barriers).
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Jan 24, 2011 23:45
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Okay Im starting to get a little nervous.. my seedling so far are remaining, seedlings. As in Im not seeing New growth.. how long before I start to actually worry? I mean, theyre not dying, either. Do I need to thin them out some, or just keep waiting? Its been somewhere between a week and a month. This is basil, sage, and kale.
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Jan 25, 2011 07:05
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Moisture, light conditions, temperature, growing medium will all affect growth. If this is in a container, inadequate space for root growth could also stunt growth A week and a month is also a huge difference. After about one week from the cotyledon fully opening, you should expect to see true leaves developing.
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Jan 25, 2011 07:49
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Yeah its in one of those multi-seedling tray things.. some of the little podlings have 2-4 seeds in them.. maybe I should just pinch all but one?
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Jan 25, 2011 09:03
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Turkeybone posted:Okay Im starting to get a little nervous.. my seedling so far are remaining, seedlings. As in Im not seeing New growth.. how long before I start to actually worry? I mean, theyre not dying, either. Do I need to thin them out some, or just keep waiting? Its been somewhere between a week and a month. This is basil, sage, and kale. We are still in January. When do you intend to plant this stuff? Are my correct in my assumption that you are in the mid-atlantic?
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Jan 25, 2011 14:40
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Oh yes I know Im way early.. the bulk of stuff isn't going to be planted for weeks but I am getting antsy. I think I have sufficient light and heat in my room for kale and a couple herbs.. even now today Ive noticed some secondary leaf growth on the sage.
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Jan 26, 2011 00:23
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Turkeybone posted:Oh yes I know Im way early.. the bulk of stuff isn't going to be planted for weeks but I am getting antsy. I think I have sufficient light and heat in my room for kale and a couple herbs.. even now today Ive noticed some secondary leaf growth on the sage. One common mistake that people make is starting things too early. I started my tomatoes too early last year. They started out beautiful but then I ran out of room to spread them out enough and they ended up competing with each other and all simultaneously got tall and leggy. They were harder to harden off and they kept blowing over when I put them outside. They weren’t any earlier for all the trouble. Realistically, the earliest you could probably plant anything would be early April when you consider how wet things can be that time of year, probably mid April more likely. I don’t know about the herbs, but if you were to replant the kale in the beginning of March, and give those seedlings love and big enough cells, they would outperform the ones you have. If you direct seeded them, those seedlings would probably catch up within a month and overtake them too. You might be better off using them in a salad now, since the alternative is to keep them going for another 10 weeks and then have to transplant old, rootbound, stunted plants then.
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Jan 26, 2011 16:50
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Dates depend entirely on region. Out here in Northern California we've had a surprise abrupt ending to winter, 65-70F days now. Fruit trees are beginning to flower
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Jan 27, 2011 00:35
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I've been messing with this program today, and its a lot of fun. Its free to use for 30 days. http://www.motherearthnews.com/garden-planner/vegetable-garden-planner.aspx I might purchase it because its really handy.
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Jan 29, 2011 19:40
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Ordering some new seed types. Used an unseasonably warm day today to do a little work on my lovely little greenhouse. I can't loving wait for spring. I've decided to scrap my current trellis and jute twine setup after more weight and UV based failures holding up my tomatoes this year. I'm going to invest in a roll of concrete reinforcing cloth to make some more permanent structures. The wait is going to kill me. The next two months are predicted to stay really cold here in NC.
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Jan 30, 2011 03:34
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It has been unusually pleasant here as well, did a bunch of clearing out and moving around. I think I may redesign the look a little sense we fixed up the giant tree in our yard I have tons more space in the sun.
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Jan 30, 2011 04:03
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Somebody's offering to give me a decent sized greenhouse for free, the only problems are that I've got to dismantle it to get it out of there and re-erect it when I get it home, and it's got no panels in so I'll need to buy some. What kind of footing do I need for it? I'm in the UK if that gives you an idea of the weather, can I just put it on gravel or what? I assume I can't just put it directly on the earth and put some paving slabs down the middle as a path? Has anyone done this, is it even worth the time and money? I really want a greenhouse...
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Jan 30, 2011 13:11
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mischief posted:The wait is going to kill me. The next two months are predicted to stay really cold here in NC. NC Goons!  I've been using this weekend to do yardwork too. I just wish I could really get started.
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Jan 30, 2011 15:21
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Nettle Soup posted:Has anyone done this, is it even worth the time and money? I really want a greenhouse... There are so many different styles of greenhouse that it's pretty impossible to give you any real advice without more details. That said, I would kill for a proper greenhouse. It's almost assuredly worth the time and effort.
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Jan 30, 2011 16:17
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Nettle Soup posted:Somebody's offering to give me a decent sized greenhouse for free, the only problems are that I've got to dismantle it to get it out of there and re-erect it when I get it home, and it's got no panels in so I'll need to buy some. Footing depends on the weight of the structure and your soils weight bearing load. How the base of the greenhouse is constructed also plays into the equation It is a greenhouse though, I wouldn't worry too much about it; if it sinks a bit, oh well. If there's anything like a wood sill plate though Id make sure to get it well away from ground moisture and termites dwoloz fucked around with this message at 01:27 on Jan 31, 2011 |
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Jan 31, 2011 01:25
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From the twenty seconds I saw of it, it looks to be an aluminium frame, three panels long by two or possibly four panels across. It may or may not have a door. The soil is generic soil(?) until you get a certain amount down, I guess a foot or so, and then it's clay, but the garden is very uneven. The chicken house I've had there hasn't sunk much though and the shed is doing ok. A bit more on topic, I grew some absolutely amazing tomatoes last year in one of those little tiny plastic-covered things, before they all died of some form of blight, best tomatoes I've ever tasted by far. Everything was going great until I got overconfident and planted some random "heirloom tomato" seeds I'd got into the ground. I guess they weren't as blight resistant as whatever I'd been growing in the pots and it appeared and spread. This year I will do better!
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Jan 31, 2011 02:00
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I'm looking for some advice on how to fix my yard a bit more this year. For reference, I live in Durham, NC. Last year, I got about 11 cubic yards of fill dirt dumped in my driveway and used it to fix a flooding problem in my backyard. This year I want to try to fix some erosion issues. This is one side of my yard  I just can't get any grass to grow. Its shady in the summer, and we have dogs/chickens that just mess it all up. I've tried shade type grass and it always dies off no matter how well I take care of it. Its a bit of a problem because when it rains, its eroding the soil away as it washes down hill. Is there something special I should do to get grass to stay there permanently or should I try another ground cover? As long as it doesn't mind being trampled, I'm open for it. Someone in another thread said part of their lawn is pretty much just mint. I'm really considering this. This is the other part of the yard I really want to fix this year. Its along the back end of the yard. I drew in red lines where our property border is   Its sort of hard to see exactly, but its a decent sized area. Every year it gets overgrown with weeds (poison ivy started to creep in last year) and every spring I go to clean the area a bit, there's always trash buried somewhere in the piles of debris (you can see some of it in the pictures I haven't gotten to cleaning out yet) The major thing though is that the weeds that are growing don't hold the soil very well and the banks are starting to collapse in. I usually have to go in every spring and dig out a bunch of sediment/debris so it doesn't clog it up. I want to cultivate the area, but I'm not sure what would be best. I would really like to use useful plants that could attract bird/butterfly/bee populations if I could. I was thinking about doing it in 3 layers with a low level plant along the banks, taller plants in the middle and some bushes along the back, and mulch the poo poo out of it. The big problem is the area is pretty shady. I'm not sure what plants would do the job well.
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Jan 31, 2011 14:35
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Maybe try mint family and Buddleia(butterfly)bushes? I know Buddleia does alright in shade, and it tolerated the red clay pretty well in Georgia. It will definitely draw in the butterflies and bees, too.
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Jan 31, 2011 19:43
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I'm putting up a fence in another part of the yard next to my vegetable garden and that one is going to be lined with butterfly bushes. Does mint do well with erosion prevention? I'd love to be able to plant a bunch of mint for a low level crop and just let it go. I'm actually looking at possibly using some hawthorne and witch hazel for my taller shrubs, but I'm not sure where I can buy them around here.
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Jan 31, 2011 20:16
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Mint tends to do better in sun than in shade, and while it certainly spreads very well it also can get quite tall. I also hate to be the bearer of bad news, but most bees and butterflies don't often hang out in shady areas, they prefer open fields. However, you can certainly attract birds no problem. You actually have a number of options for shady groundcover from what I can see. Vinca minor (Dwarf Periwinkle) and Ajuga reptans (Common Bugleweed) are two that I've experience with. Both are evergreen, and will flower blue in the spring. Vinca is a low-growing vine reaching a height of about 6 inches. Ajuga spreads by runners, and tends to be shorter than Vinca. If you're looking for something taller, Pachysandra terminalis and Liriope muscari are both good choices reaching up to a foot in height each. Liriope especially is quite popular, as the foliage very closely resembles a coarse grass. It will also send up a stalk of lilac-colored flowers in early summer, which eventually turn to berries that birds enjoy. As for that area by the water, you have a perfect spot to plant Amelanchier canadensis (Saskatoon Serviceberry), in fact it makes me a little jealous. My yard is just too sunny and dry for it. Amelanchier is a beautiful little tree/large shrub, which flowers white in the spring. The flowers are followed by the serviceberries, which drive birds nuts (and are also edible by people). Ilex (Holly) is another good understory shrub, with the double bonus of being both evergreen and a winter food source for birds (mockingbirds in particular). Callicarpa americana (American Beautyberry) is another excellent shrub for moist shade, with gorgeous berries (hence the name). Birds will eat the berries, but tend to wait until their other food sources run out because the berries are astringent. Cornus stolonifera (Red Twig Dogwood) is another great wet/shady shrub; like the dogwood tree it will flower white in the spring, but tends to grow as a spreading shrub instead of having a central trunk. It will also make berries good for birds. As an added bonus the stems of this shrub tend to be bright red, giving it some serious winter impact once the leaves have fallen.
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Jan 31, 2011 22:27
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Those are really good shrub ideas. I'll probably take a list of names with me to the farmer's market /nursery when the time comes and see what I can get. I might even grab a couple extra and put some in other shady/damp parts of the yard. I do have 2 large gardenia bushes in my backyard, but they're in the most awkward place. I wish I could move them, but I'm scared I'll kill them. Despite the fact they're in the shade, they're 5' high and bloom awesomely.  I do like periwinkle! My only thing is, will it thrive even with dogs trampling them? Alterian fucked around with this message at 23:19 on Jan 31, 2011 |
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Jan 31, 2011 23:14
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Alterian posted:This is one side of my yard I was thinking you might be a good canditate for a moss lawn. http://www.mossacres.com/ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/garden/01moss.html
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Jan 31, 2011 23:23
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Id say look into natives. I found this list for you http://www.ncwildflower.org/natives/recommend.htm With my chickens at least, if you give them access to anything green it will be gone in a few days; they're great at decimating grass and weeds
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Feb 1, 2011 02:32
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My house is surrounded by tall forest, and not much light makes it in through the windows. By the time the sun rises above the treeline it's above the house. What are the other options for starting from seed? I'm in Zone 6, East TN, it's already starting to get pretty warm, temps are 45-50 over the next few days, but still getting below freezing at night, but not for much longer. Just going to be doing the basic herbs mostly, chives (last years was left outside, it may come back, the chives growing in the yard do great despite the winters), sage, basil, etc.
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Feb 1, 2011 12:19
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This is somewhat tangential to the current discussion, but https://www.eattheweeds.com is a good resource to poke around in. You can find out exactly which of the plants you're yanking out of your garden can pay you back for your effort with a good snack.
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Feb 2, 2011 06:17
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So I just found out that my county landfill offers free compost. How safe would it be to eat fruits and vegetables grown from this compost? Is there any concern about pesticides or chemicals that could be in it? I assume they just throw any plant matter in, including, say, brush cut from the side of a highway. Also, obligatory garden plan for this coming year. Pretend there's a 6 foot deer fence around the plan because deer totally destroyed it last year when I just had it in some turned ground without a fence. http://i.imgur.com/J8Ixz.jpg
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Feb 2, 2011 15:58
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Here's the tentative plans for our garden this year Click here for the full 1673x517 image. We're putting up a fence across the entire width of the backyard to keep our animals out so we're turning the rest of the area into gardens. The right half of the gardens are already in place along with the greens garden all the way on the left. Any type of flower or herb hasn't been quite figured out. I want to do some more research into what flowers go good as bug screens/pollinator attractors for various vegetables. The parts with cabbage and broccoli are going to have tomatoes and peppers planted amongst them as the weather gets warmer/things get harvested.
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Feb 2, 2011 17:22
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A flying piece of posted:So I just found out that my county landfill offers free compost. How safe would it be to eat fruits and vegetables grown from this compost? Is there any concern about pesticides or chemicals that could be in it? I assume they just throw any plant matter in, including, say, brush cut from the side of a highway. Landfill compost does usually have anything and everything in it. My county does the same, but I'm always leery of it for the chance that there could be poison ivy seeds or something equally horrendous in it. Also, I just want to mention that I don't think you're giving enough room for your tomatoes, assuming each block is a square foot. Unless you're growing cherry or grape tomatoes, you need more room. I plant my full-size tomatoes in a 2' square and they're usually overflowing their bounds by the end of the season.
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Feb 2, 2011 17:53
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| # ? May 29, 2024 17:52 |
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A flying piece of posted:So I just found out that my county landfill offers free compost. How safe would it be to eat fruits and vegetables grown from this compost? Is there any concern about pesticides or chemicals that could be in it? I assume they just throw any plant matter in, including, say, brush cut from the side of a highway. I've picked up and used plenty of compost from my city. Ask them if they do any tests on it. Ours is tested to meet organic certification; I feel pretty safe about it No doubt, all manner of poo poo (literallly sometimes) gets thrown in there but the power of decomposition is powerful stuff, especially on such large scale operations Marchegiana posted:Also, I just want to mention that I don't think you're giving enough room for your tomatoes, assuming each block is a square foot. Unless you're growing cherry or grape tomatoes, you need more room. I plant my full-size tomatoes in a 2' square and they're usually overflowing their bounds by the end of the season. dwoloz fucked around with this message at 18:23 on Feb 2, 2011 |
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Feb 2, 2011 18:21
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