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Here you go! https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/cherry/grow-a-cherry-tree-pit.htm Bear in mind that cherries don't flourish in clay soil, need a specific climate (look up "chill hours" in your area; sweet cherries need at least 700), and grow to 30-40 feet tall. There's a reason they call them "cherry-pickers". There aren't many people who have both the height and width space for a standard cherry tree. Depending on how big your plot is, I'd recommend buying a cherry tree on a dwarfing graft. A dwarf cherry grows to 10 feet, which gives you some idea.
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Sep 13, 2021 00:19
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AmbassadorofSodomy posted:Not sure where to put this. I admit I didn't look very hard for a tree thread. It really varies. If you can buy seeds for a particular plant off the shelf, chances are that it’s something you could gather yourself and store on the shelf for at least a year. The term of art for things like cherry seeds that need to be chilled for some weeks before they will germinate “cold stratification”. I’m cold stratifying some Arbutus unedo seeds in my refrigerator right now.  These seeds want to sprout after their first winter in the ground, but they can take one year of storage. quote:Immediately after collection, the fruits were immersed in water and the seeds manu- ally separated from the fruit flesh. Any floating seeds (10%) were discarded. Seeds were left to dry on tissue paper for 24 h at room temperature and then were placed in unsealed plastic petri dishes between filter paper. The petri dishes were placed in Styrofoam boxes (for darkness) and stored in a constant condition chamber at 25 °C and 30% relative humidity. After two years of these conditions, germination rate was zero. Different plants have different strategies. Many tropical plant seeds will die if they’re not kept at tropical heat and humidity and planted within a matter of days. Some plants are adapted to colonize an area after fire, and in artificial cultivation are soaked in “smoke water” that contains the chemical necessary to trigger germination. Some seeds are primed by a trip through an animal’s digestive tract and there are techniques to simulate that, too.
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Sep 13, 2021 00:45
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Your post on stratification reminded me it's time to order from Le Jardin du Gourmet. Admire the Web 1.0 site! The seeds and roots I've gotten from them have excellent quality, and I've wanted to try their French shallots for years. I highly recommend their Get Acquainted offer, 6oz of shallots a bulb of garlic, 4 sample packets of herb seeds for $9. A thing I specifically love about Le Jardin is that they sell "sample" packets so you don't wind up staring gloomily at more petunia seeds than anybody would ever want. The reason stratification brought Le Jardin to mind is that the herb cicely must, for best results, be planted almost as soon as you harvest the seeds. This year's batch was harvested August 2nd, so time is ticking.
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Sep 13, 2021 01:37
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AmbassadorofSodomy posted:Not sure where to put this. I admit I didn't look very hard for a tree thread. Chances are good the tree you harvested these cherries off of is not a cherry tree grown from seed, so you won't get that same tree from your seeds. Most fruit trees are grafted onto different rootstock to keep them of a particular size, prevent diseases, and/or make them grow in a certain climate or soil type. Starting tress from seed, especially fruit trees, seems inadvisable.
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Sep 13, 2021 02:41
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Surprisingly (to me, anyway) cherries, peaches, and nectarines come (e:mostly) true from seed. Apples and roses? Boy, no.
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Sep 13, 2021 02:54
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Starting trees from seed is rarely the most practical option, but if you want to try it, go for it. Just keep your expectations reasonable. It can take many years to get fruit, and if you want fruit that tastes good, you should learn how to graft.
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Sep 13, 2021 03:06
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Arsenic Lupin posted:Surprisingly (to me, anyway) cherries, peaches, and nectarines come (e:mostly) true from seed. That sounds like a very local thing to me. Because none of those things are typically from seed in my growing zone (5b). I get this is pretty far north for peaches and nectarines (and that's part of my point) but cherry tress from seed are not really very manageable/marketable. Sure, there are plenty of cherry trees around here from seed.......but those are older ornamentals in yards that are.....well, cherry tree sized. That's not practical if you actually want to harvest cherries, which is why they are grafted onto dwarf rootstock for actual fruit production and harvesting.
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Sep 13, 2021 03:57
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Platystemon posted:Starting trees from seed is rarely the most practical option, but if you want to try it, go for it. Just keep your expectations reasonable. It can take many years to get fruit, and if you want fruit that tastes good, you should learn how to graft. It was a wrench to leave those trees behind. If you have time on your hands and want a rare tree variety, check out http://www.greenmantlenursery.com/
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Sep 13, 2021 03:57
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drat, a good demonstration of why yucca is a hardy plant. We ripped out a somewhat large one in this spot last year and replaced it with iris bulbs. Apparently I didn’t get as much of the root as I should have because it grew back in during the summer. thankfully it all pulled out easily but that was cool to see.
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Sep 14, 2021 16:35
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This could’ve gone way worse. I thought I was mowing far enough from the bank and going reasonably slow. I’m not sure what happened, but I saw the front spindle veering toward the water, over-corrected and backed it into the pond.  Yes I’m putting my rops bar up now.
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Sep 14, 2021 18:41
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devmd01 posted:drat, a good demonstration of why yucca is a hardy plant. We ripped out a somewhat large one in this spot last year and replaced it with iris bulbs. Apparently I didn’t get as much of the root as I should have because it grew back in during the summer. thankfully it all pulled out easily but that was cool to see. A lot of them churn out suckers at an alarming rate, particularly filamentosa which is what that looks like. They can grow laterals pretty deep that will send up new shoots so I'd still keep an eye on it even if you think you got it all. Wallet fucked around with this message at 21:45 on Sep 14, 2021 |
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Sep 14, 2021 21:43
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Don’t mind me, friend. I’m just a rotund iris. 
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Sep 14, 2021 21:49
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devmd01 posted:drat, a good demonstration of why yucca is a hardy plant. We ripped out a somewhat large one in this spot last year and replaced it with iris bulbs. Apparently I didn’t get as much of the root as I should have because it grew back in during the summer. thankfully it all pulled out easily but that was cool to see. That plant is actually considered an invasive where I live in Indiana. It survives the winters, and its always growing in the middle of the woods where nothing else gets the sunlight to survive. Tough plant indeed. I think it survives controlled burns too. eddiewalker posted:This could’ve gone way worse. I thought I was mowing far enough from the bank and going reasonably slow. I’m not sure what happened, but I saw the front spindle veering toward the water, over-corrected and backed it into the pond. Don’t feel too bad, I have done this plenty of times. What happens is the wheel closest to the pond slips just enough that its like pulling back on the lever and the next thing you know your pointed the wrong way. Rops up, seatbelt on. 
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Sep 14, 2021 22:45
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If I do one more pass just a little closer I won’t have to weed wack though… (I’ve also done that, twice.)
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Sep 15, 2021 00:29
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dangling pointer posted:If I do one more pass just a little closer I won’t have to weed wack though… (I’ve also done that, twice.) Sounds like an excuse for a swing deck finish mower to me.
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Sep 15, 2021 00:41
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Motronic posted:Sounds like an excuse for a swing deck finish mower to me. No room in the budget for that. …. Because my dad told me to come see him at work when a greenworks rep brought a bunch of toys to demo. They’re trying to get our city park department to go electric. (No chance they do, I don’t think their electric zero turns make sense for heavy commercial use.) That didn’t stop me from having a blast zipping around on their mowers though. Maybe they’ll come down in price enough to make for me to justify buying one when my ex mark lazer finally dies. https://www.greenworkscommercial.com/shop-by-tool/zero-turn-mowers No idea what their maintenance intervals are like or anything. It was my first time on an electric riding mower and they seemed pretty cool though.
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Sep 15, 2021 01:03
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The Aging Wheels YouTube guy really likes his Ryobi zero-turn, for whatever that’s worth.
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Sep 15, 2021 19:48
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Can someone take a guess for what kind of grass I have? This is around the DC area. https://imgur.com/a/s6qtEmi
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Sep 18, 2021 00:31
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Insurrectum posted:Can someone take a guess for what kind of grass I have? This is around the DC area. Green
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Sep 18, 2021 00:56
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Insurrectum posted:Can someone take a guess for what kind of grass I have? This is around the DC area. Looks like a mix of a couple rye and fescue types.
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Sep 18, 2021 01:31
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Barring appraisal tragedy, I've got a house with dirt for the yard in the midwest. I want to keep the good level of dirt around the house itself in place. What are my options? I'm thinking mulch might work until I can get plants in early spring.
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Sep 20, 2021 14:54
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ThePopeOfFun posted:Barring appraisal tragedy, I've got a house with dirt for the yard in the midwest. I want to keep the good level of dirt around the house itself in place. What are my options? I'm thinking mulch might work until I can get plants in early spring. Mulch does nothing to stabilize soil. You're going to have to be a lot more specific about what you're talking about. Are you talking about landscape beds? Are you talking about an entire yard? Is it on a slope/is there any draining that will cause running water (the answer is "yes" because you almost definitely have gutters and/or a sump pump)? Because if so running water will scour bare dirt - this is one of the reasons grass is the default answer. It provides enough root structure to stabilize the soil so these things don't happen. Also, this is the right time of year to plant a new lawn. It's also the right time of year to transplant many, many types of shrubs and bushes as well as to plant bulb flowers.
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Sep 20, 2021 16:04
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Motronic posted:Also, this is the right time of year to plant a new lawn. It's also the right time of year to transplant many, many types of shrubs and bushes as well as to plant bulb flowers. This is good news. I'll take some pictures and come back to the thread with actually helpful information. Thanks!
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Sep 20, 2021 16:36
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ThePopeOfFun posted:Barring appraisal tragedy, I've got a house with dirt for the yard in the midwest. I want to keep the good level of dirt around the house itself in place. What are my options? I'm thinking mulch might work until I can get plants in early spring. This is the best time for planting a cool season yard but if you just want to keep your dirt for the winter and deal with it later - Till it up, add lime/fert according to soil test, and spread 100-150lbs per acre of wheat or annual ryegrass. Wheat is cheapest. In the spring you can spray it back, till in the organic matter and plant a more traditional turf grass. Tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, etc. Do not plant Kentucky 31. Its a clumping fescue and better suited for cow pastures.
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Sep 20, 2021 19:45
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I am actually half way through doing this myself. For 1.5 acres the coop said I need 10-12 50lb bags of lawn seed, same in triple 15. I limed in the spring but I have 20 bags of pellet lime that will go down too. I have been leveling with the blade. After that, 3pt tiller, after that, drag harrow, spread seed and fert, drag again, cultipack, and blow 130 bales of straw. I need to rent the straw blower.
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Sep 20, 2021 23:01
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rdb posted:I limed in the spring but I have 20 bags of pellet lime that will go down too. Dammit I just put down potassium today, was getting ready to put down nitrogen and now you've reminded me of what I forgot. I need to get my tow behind broadcast spreader going.
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Sep 20, 2021 23:11
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It’s terrible grass but annual rye germinates super fast and will keep dirt in place. I’m down south though so that’s about the extent of my knowledge. #teambermuda.
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Sep 21, 2021 14:33
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blugu64 posted:It’s terrible grass but annual rye germinates super fast and will keep dirt in place. I’m down south though so that’s about the extent of my knowledge. #teambermuda. Frontier Grazer rye is no joke. You can just broadcast it, the stuff will germinate and grow 6’ tall and put out seed heads by next april. You have to watch it when it goes to seed because it can stick in livestock mouths. But thats crop rye. Ryegrass is different. I think the key with a yard is to use a turf grass. Not a clumping one. Although it would be cool to have native bluestems/buffalo grass and never mow.
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Sep 21, 2021 17:19
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rdb posted:I think the key with a yard is to use a turf grass. Not a clumping one. Although it would be cool to have native bluestems/buffalo grass and never mow. If I woke up tomorrow with my entire lawn gone the last thing I'd do is put more turf in. It's a void into which chemicals and nutrients and water are poured for no practical purpose (unless you're big into soccer or something, then go for it I guess).
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Sep 21, 2021 22:27
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Yeah that recommendation was mostly a “keep dirt from going away” type deal. Germinates fast enough that they’d be able to reseed again in a week or two if they see any empty spots. Perennial Rye looks a bunch nicer but germinates a bit slower. Frankly I kinda want to do a winter lawn (again down south) with it some year when I’ve got the time and weeds under better control.
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Sep 21, 2021 22:36
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Wallet posted:If I woke up tomorrow with my entire lawn gone the last thing I'd do is put more turf in. It's a void into which chemicals and nutrients and water are poured for no practical purpose (unless you're big into soccer or something, then go for it I guess). I think that depends on how much you care about it and where you live. Here I never water it and it gets the same $5 per acre of ag lime as any other field I have. No fertilizer ever. The part that I hate is mowing. I make sure to use a dull blade so it doesn’t grow back fast and I keep bees so clover/dandelion are welcome.  Here’s part of what I have been working on. Old house will get torn down. New house is behind me. Its too wet today to do anything. And its too sandy to leave bare. Ugg. Going to run 6 strands of electrified high tensile along the waterway and let goats/cows do most of the mowing.
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Sep 22, 2021 01:08
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Can anyone recommend some resources about taking a mostly second growth deciduous forest and making it look more groomed or like parkland? I've got about 1.5 acres of forest. There are a couple huge, old ash trees and cottonwoods, but it's mostly younger growth. Looks very overgrown and uncared-for. I've already taken down a handful of dead trees but I'd like to thin it out some and make it more like an urban park. No budget for arborists or landscapers. If it can't be done by me and my chainsaw then it's not getting done.
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Sep 23, 2021 16:07
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Call your local county ag extension. And depending on where you are you need to get those ash trees treated right away or you're gonna lose them to EAB.
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Sep 23, 2021 16:28
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Yeah just take out the ash trees. Those are going to die. As far as the undergrowth goes, there are a few control methods the forest service uses. Spraying, grazing, controlled burn. I had a controlled burn demo on my ground earlier this spring. You want to do it while the invasive species are growing but the good stuff (oak, hickory) is dormant. Fast low fires wont kill the good stuff. You don’t need to do acres at a time, small spots are easier but you should definitely involve someone who knows what they are doing. I know Illinois anyways has volunteer groups to help with controlled burns. Spraying is easier. Do it in the spring when the good native stuff is dormant and poo poo like honeysuckle and multiflora rose isn’t. If you want to physically thin things out a brush cutter blade on a trimmer works, but make sure you don’t hit poison ivy/oak. Alternatively you could contract out someone to come in with a forestry mulcher and clear it out. If you go this route plan on spraying what comes back. You should also spend time identifying what invasives are on the property. Things like tree of heaven you don’t want to cut, they send out shoots and just come right back. Basal bark that.
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Sep 23, 2021 17:19
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Are there any other central Texas goons in here? My backyard is basically a dust bowl with the heat and lack of rain that we've had. The Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center has developed or tested some native grass seeds that are supposed to be better for our climate: https://www.wildflower.org/learn/how-to/create-a-native-habiturf-lawn Now, reading their instructions, they say you basically have to tear up the entire yard, possibly add top soil, till it, and then broadcast the seeds and water heavily. My lot is about a 1/4 acre or 10,890 sq ft. Subtract the footprint of the house, garage, and driveway and it's still a lot of ground to cover. I've cleared the blue corner, and I am planning to put in some raised garden beds and maybe pavers or crushed stone, but for the rest of the lot it's a blank slate-- especially in the back yard.  I watched this video last night, and now I'm curious if I could try reseeding my lawn with a tool like this "slice seeder" they use, but my soil is very rocky with a lot of limestone near the surface so I wonder what the risks are of damaging one of these machines if I rented it. I also don't have an irrigation system and I'm not sure if you could accomplish something like this without having one installed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfJ_u490z0M I've been trying to find inspiration from videos on youtube, like Central Texas Gardener, but I have yet to figure out what a manageable or cost effective solution might be.
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Sep 23, 2021 22:38
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Yeah that’s buffalograss. It’s good for around here but the seed is pretty pricy comparatively. You can also get sod, but it’s special order I believe, might see how that stacks up cost wise. The big problem you’ll have aside from cost, is outcompeting Bermuda (if your land has had Bermuda on it) and there aren’t many (if any) selective herbicides labeled for buffalograss to kill off the weeds that do sneak in. You might find something to that will work, or you might kill your expensive grass. Personally I’d love to try it, but I’m not quite willing to spend the money on it. The aggies have some good articles about it. https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/turf/publications/buffalo.html https://aggieturf.tamu.edu/texas-turfgrasses/buffalograss/ (Australians call st aug Buffalograss so it gets a but confusing googling stuff btw) Edit: I do have a little spot where I’m considering putting down some blue grama/Buffalo to see how it does, but I’m fully expecting the Bermuda to outcompete it, even in minimally watered areas. blugu64 fucked around with this message at 16:53 on Sep 24, 2021 |
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Sep 24, 2021 16:49
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You're right about the price. I recall reading that their habiturf seed was quite expensive relative to other grass seed and it seems like if you screw up the seeding process you might just be throwing money down the drain. I have read about zoysia being okay in this climate, and I know you can get it as sod, but for how large my back yard is I think that cost to plant it and keep it watered would be prohibitive. I do like that it apparently doesn't require much mowing once established, though. My whole yard is a big mix of grasses. The front yard, I think, is or was buffalo grass, horse herb, and St. Augustine near the property line with my neighbor. My backyard has a patch of Bermuda grass between the front yard and the shed that the PO must have seeded. The big unshaded patch is mostly horse herb, and the shaded area under the live oaks is something that looks like St. Augustine, but I'm not very knowledgeable about identifying grass types. All of the unshaded grass has died back or turned to dust, partly since I don't want to water it, and also probably from our new puppy running around and digging in the back yard. Since I don't have an HOA I don't have to worry too much about maintaining a particular type of lawn or condition, but aesthetically I would like it to be a little nicer. I think for the front yard I would like to do some sort of xeriscape just for ease of maintenance and drought tolerance. The front is small enough that it would be feasible to sod it myself but I'm not entirely sure what you do along the property line where my neighbor's grass would likely compete with whatever I put down.
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Sep 24, 2021 17:43
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Overseeded my lawn with tall fescue about 10 days ago and finally started seeing some germination this past weekend, which now seems to be kicking into high gear. That week+ of absolutely nothing happening while I watered it daily stressed me out a bit, though: "Did I just pointlessly throw a bunch of money into the ground?"
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Oct 5, 2021 16:33
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I'll be spreading 4 yards of topsoil and 15# of seed tomorrow, filling in some low spots and bringing back some spots that died off during the heat this summer. Hopefully the truck gets there early in the day, and not late afternoon. Yard work never ends.
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Oct 6, 2021 19:13
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rdb posted:Spraying, grazing, controlled burn.
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Oct 6, 2021 19:32
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