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HeatherChandler posted:I have worked myself in a tizzy. I know a thousand times over that you are NOT supposed to handle tomatoes after smoking since it is very possible that your cigarettes have tobacco mosaic virus infected leaves in it, and it survives proccessing. I have drilled this into my head. I wash my hands several times in between handling plants and after smoking.
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Apr 29, 2009 00:48
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Magipp posted:Calm down. Viruses can't even get into a plant unless they are placed there through a wound made by a vector animal like a thrip or nematode. You're not going to infect your tomatoes. Haha, I need to be told to calm down more often, thanks. I damaged a few leaves the other day when I knocked the tray over so would that make them more susceptible? I've just read several articles warning about the smoking so it made me all paranoid. If an act of God or something kills my plants I am totally cool with that, it happens. But I get really upset when I do something airheaded that fucks something up. Ok, I can see the microgreens being a cheap source of nutrition--are they cut and come again?
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Apr 29, 2009 01:51
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HeatherChandler posted:Ok, I can see the microgreens being a cheap source of nutrition--are they cut and come again? No, but there are rear end tons of them on a tray. Seriously a tray makes way more than you think, especially of the stronger flavors. If you ate a fourth of a tray, you'd have a rather large salad.
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Apr 29, 2009 15:26
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Anyone have a good method for killing off fungus gnats? I've got three raised beds with tomatoes and peppers that are all about 2 months old. The gnats have only emerged in the past week or so. I cut back on watering to let the soil dry out, but the little buggers are thicker than ever. They don't go after the foliage at all, but I know that they can mess with roots, especially young ones. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
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Apr 29, 2009 21:40
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Ominous Balls posted:Anyone have a good method for killing off fungus gnats? For larvae you can try beneficial nematodes watered in (edit: looked it up, Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis or Steinernema feltiae), adults you can trap with those sticky cards.
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Apr 30, 2009 03:24
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This is my first year taking gardening seriously. About two months ago I started my herbs; basil, chives, greek oregano, spearmint, and rosemary. To my surprise I didn't kill them all, and they are thriving in my living room window. About three weeks + ago, I started swiss chard, lettuce, spinach, zucchini, and cucumbers. To my dismay, only the zucchini and cucumbers have survived. I live in the Pacific Northwest, Zone 8, and it's almost warm enough outside, but not quite. I have my raised beds ready and I am excited! My question is, my cucumbers are doing great, they all have little buds that should open any day (week?), and I even have one fruit that is about an inch long. The only problem is that the leaves of the cucumber plant look all wilted. I have heard that over watering can cause this, but is there any other reason I should no about? Thanks for the advice fellow gardeners!
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Apr 30, 2009 03:41
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I bought 2 kilos of white clover seeds. 40 loving dollars. The lady at the garden centre said it will only do about 1000 sqft on its own, but if I plant some grass first, wait a few weeks, and then plant the clover, the seed will go a lot farther. Anyone had any experience with that?
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Apr 30, 2009 04:12
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Slung Blade posted:I bought 2 kilos of white clover seeds. 40 loving dollars. What are you trying to do? It sounds like you might be trying to plant them instead of a grass lawn.
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Apr 30, 2009 04:45
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I am. Grass is terrible stuff, I want the clover because it doesn't grow too high and it will feed bees.
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Apr 30, 2009 05:02
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Slung Blade posted:I am. Grass is terrible stuff, I want the clover because it doesn't grow too high and it will feed bees. I'll slap you across the face with a wet noodle! I would mix it in with the grass. Monocultures are terrible things and unsustainable in nature. If you planted nothing but the clover, by next year you will have grass mixed in anyway, and it would probably be an undesirable grass like crab grass or quack grass instead of a grass with desirable turf properties. I think you would be well served to plant it with the grass. Grass is more resilient to foot traffic and more general wear and tear. The clover will fill in some of the bare patches and every time you mow it, the nitrogen rich clippings will fertilize the grass.
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Apr 30, 2009 05:18
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I have the grass seed too, I just wanted to know if the advice the lady gave me was sound  So you would say seed them at the same time then?
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Apr 30, 2009 05:22
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HeatherChandler posted:For larvae you can try beneficial nematodes watered in (edit: looked it up, Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis or Steinernema feltiae), adults you can trap with those sticky cards. Looks like I'm headed off to get some fly traps and Bt after work tomorrow. I'll update once it's all been put in place. Thanks for the info.
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Apr 30, 2009 05:27
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Slung Blade posted:I have the grass seed too, I just wanted to know if the advice the lady gave me was sound I don't see why not. I think she wanted you to plant the grass because most people want lawns that are primarily grass and assumed the clover would be an afterthought. By planting the grass first, it would get a head start, plus grass seedlings take a while to get going. If you plant them both at the same time, you might have a lawn that is largely, but not entirely clover at first, but the grass will fill in over time. If you want to advance scientific knowledge, or at least goon knowledge, you could do both in different parts of the yard and report back with pictures what happens.
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Apr 30, 2009 06:04
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Good idea. My acreage is basically going to be a giant experimental farm.
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Apr 30, 2009 06:12
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Anyone have any non-pesticidal methods for killing slugs? I've tried beer in a tin pan and it only got 3 or 4. I'm talking 20-30 per night infesting my gardens last year and I want to be proactive this year. It's common for our entire town to have slugs, they lurv the soil.
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Apr 30, 2009 15:04
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There are organic slug pellets. I'm using up the non-organic pellets I got a couple years ago, that's the only non-organic part of my gardening right now. I haven't tried copper strips or whatever, but emptying beer-filled plates of dead slugs is not something I want to do every day. I have read about people using 3M Scotch-type pads with holes cut in them to keep the slugs away, but again I don't want to get into that hassle. I wish I had a couple of friendly hedgehogs to keep the slugs and snails away. krushgroove fucked around with this message at 15:24 on Apr 30, 2009 |
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Apr 30, 2009 15:22
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MarshallX posted:Anyone have any non-pesticidal methods for killing slugs? I've tried beer in a tin pan and it only got 3 or 4. I'm talking 20-30 per night infesting my gardens last year and I want to be proactive this year. Slugs are a nightmare, something I won't miss about England. They were the only thing I resorted to chemicals for. Still, things to try: -Beer traps, only a whole lot more of them. Every 3 feet or so. -Plant garlic and chives around the perimeter. -Copper is supposed to work, I've never used it but I am sure someone else can elaborate. -Make a frog habitat--this was popular on the allotment, people used half barrels sunken down as a makeshift pond, there are lots of ideas online on how to do this. I was considering making one myself hoping to catch hornworms, I am really squeamish about them, they are just so so gross. Not sure how this works in the US, I don't see as many frogs around here as I did there, so I don't know how easy they are to attract. -Make plastic collars out of old water bottles
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Apr 30, 2009 15:45
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MarshallX posted:Anyone have any non-pesticidal methods for killing slugs? I've tried beer in a tin pan and it only got 3 or 4. I'm talking 20-30 per night infesting my gardens last year and I want to be proactive this year. Beer traps have to be deep or the slugs just slither back out. I use an ice cream tub full of beer every square metre of plot. Deterrents, such as eggshells or used coffee grounds (get em free from Starbucks!) don't generally work for me, although I did have some success with a clay pellet one I bought- you had to use it so frequently that it was costing about £5 a week! But if you have a really high slug population, then you're going to have to introduce a predator- frogs, nematodes or yourself. frogs and toads Make a pond, or provide lots of ground cover in shady places to create damp amphibian habitat Nematode worms You buy the nematodes as little eggs which you then sprinkle into your watering can and use to water the plants as you would with normal water. The tiny worms then enter the slugs and kill them from the inside out. You have to reapply a sprinkling of worms every so often (read the packet for instructions). A good brand is Nemaslug. This option is fairly expensive too, but very safe. human Go out into the garden in the dark with a torch and a bucket of boiling, salty water. Pick up slugs, drop in bucket. Rinse and repeat. You can also cut them in half with scissors.
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Apr 30, 2009 18:11
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madlilnerd posted:human Ewww. Gardening is icky.
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Apr 30, 2009 19:40
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Cakefool posted:Ewww. Gardening is icky. Oh, is it? Dun dun DUN!  If you start finding these, you have to squish one just once to see what happens.
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Apr 30, 2009 20:00
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HeatherChandler posted:Slugs are a nightmare, something I won't miss about England. They were the only thing I resorted to chemicals for. I like this idea but can't they just go up and over?
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Apr 30, 2009 20:50
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HeatherChandler posted:Oh, is it? I know I know... The untidiness of gardening bugs me. It's so untidy.
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Apr 30, 2009 21:29
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MarshallX posted:I like this idea but can't they just go up and over? The idea is that it is harder for them to climb and discourages them, but it isn't infallible. It at least can buy some time while they are busy crawling around that and on your plant until you can get out and start picking at them. Nemoslug or an alternative nematode for slugs is not available in the US. I think it is a combination of not wanting to release it into a nonnative ecosystem and that it won't use the species of slug in the US as a host.
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Apr 30, 2009 23:46
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Kimthecute posted:My question is, my cucumbers are doing great, they all have little buds that should open any day (week?), and I even have one fruit that is about an inch long. The only problem is that the leaves of the cucumber plant look all wilted. I have heard that over watering can cause this, but is there any other reason I should no about? Also in the pacific northwest. My cucumbers have all done best in the heat, and I find that to be true with most of the "juicy" plants (tomato, berries, melons, cucumbers). They need lots of water, but lots of heat so the roots don't end up rotting/molding.
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Apr 30, 2009 23:52
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jovial_cynic posted:Also in the pacific northwest. Thanks Jovial, I am waiting for the weather to stay nice here before I actually put them in the ground, I am hoping with your comments and more room they will perk up, but we will see!
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May 1, 2009 01:42
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Kimthecute posted:Thanks Jovial, I am waiting for the weather to stay nice here before I actually put them in the ground, I am hoping with your comments and more room they will perk up, but we will see! No prob. Here's a history of my successes and failures in gardening in the pacific northwest: http://newprotest.org/categories.pl?gardening
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May 1, 2009 02:13
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Anyone got tips on propagating tree clippings?
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May 1, 2009 19:02
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landis posted:Anyone got tips on propagating tree clippings? That depends heavily on the tree species. Which one are your clippings?
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May 1, 2009 20:28
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Quick question... I put in my first garden this year and it took a ridiculous amount of effort and materials to make the clay into something worthwhile. Like 650 lbs of mushroom compost, 9 cubic yards of peat moss, and 3 truck loads of soil conditioner. The dirt is pretty awesome now except when it rains. It makes a "skin" almost of clay on top of the dirt and pretty much strangles any new growth I've got from seed. My tomatoes, cukes, peppers, and bean plants are chugging right along just healthy as they can be, but lettuce, herbs, and other leafy plants got covered up before ever getting tall enough. Would mulch help this situation? I "mulched" the bean areas with some dried grass and dead frasier fir leaves and it seemed to help them considerably. What would the best mulch if that is what's needed? I'm running out of time to get good spinach and lettuce grown before it gets too hot I think. Edit: Added comically huge and badly focused pictures here, here, and here! mischief fucked around with this message at 23:25 on May 1, 2009 |
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May 1, 2009 22:31
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Update. Corn  Leaf Lettuce  Tomatoes, foot for scale. Sized 14EE.  Cucumber tower, bamboo.  Lil' bebe cucumbers at the foot of the tower  Cabbages. Notice the hugeness of plants. I'm scared. 
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May 2, 2009 02:28
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mischief posted:Quick question... I put in my first garden this year and it took a ridiculous amount of effort and materials to make the clay into something worthwhile. Like 650 lbs of mushroom compost, 9 cubic yards of peat moss, and 3 truck loads of soil conditioner. The dirt is pretty awesome now except when it rains. It makes a "skin" almost of clay on top of the dirt and pretty much strangles any new growth I've got from seed. My tomatoes, cukes, peppers, and bean plants are chugging right along just healthy as they can be, but lettuce, herbs, and other leafy plants got covered up before ever getting tall enough. Just an idea, I did something similar in heavy clay but only with transplants--take a trowel and dig out small holes where you want to plant and fill that with store bought garden soil or even potting soil and germinate the seed in that. Assuming the ground is worked enough that the roots will get through and have enough oxygen and the only problem is germination that should work well enough. I would mulch everything else later in the season once the ground warms if you are getting that crust on top--once it dries out hard enough it can get hard to rewet. ChaoticSeven: Did you make that bamboo thing or buy it? If you made it, any specifics? Is it just tied together? It looks pretty I could use something like that for flowers, I think. HeatherChandler fucked around with this message at 04:47 on May 2, 2009 |
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May 2, 2009 04:41
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mischief posted:Quick question... I put in my first garden this year and it took a ridiculous amount of effort and materials to make the clay into something worthwhile. Like 650 lbs of mushroom compost, 9 cubic yards of peat moss, and 3 truck loads of soil conditioner. The dirt is pretty awesome now except when it rains. It makes a "skin" almost of clay on top of the dirt and pretty much strangles any new growth I've got from seed. My tomatoes, cukes, peppers, and bean plants are chugging right along just healthy as they can be, but lettuce, herbs, and other leafy plants got covered up before ever getting tall enough. Did you even till that stuff in? It doesn't look like you tilled it enough...
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May 2, 2009 05:05
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I made it. Went out and cut the bamboo, stripped it and tied it together with jute "garden twine". This promptly stretched out and made the knots loose. The bamboo was too wiggly and I didn't like it. So I pre-drilled screw holes and screwed it all the way around and added UV resistant zip ties on the pieces that run upwards on the sides. It's now plenty sturdy I think. I'm not sure how many seasons it'll hold up but I'd imagine it's good for at least this year and the next. It's cool enough I don't mind the effort. Hopefully the cucumbers completely encase it so I can sit in a chair in the shade later this summer.
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May 2, 2009 05:37
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I've had gardens before, but this is the first year I'm making a concentrated effort and actually doing like research and stuff. I broadcast sowed lettuce, onions, and carrots in one of my raised beds, on the advice of about a million sources. The reasoning being that I can just gradually thin as they grow and make salads out of the thinnings. The benefits being that you get to enjoy fresh baby veggies while you wait for the keepers to mature. I don't know if I broadcast too heavy or if I accidentally pushed all the seed together when I raked over, but the lettuces in particular look way too thick and all the seedlings have currently is the cotyledon. Is that what they're talking about making salads out of (ala microgreens) or am I to wait for the first true leaves to start thinning? Also: an aside to pacific northwest gardeners. Seattle Tilth publishes a maritime gardening guide which is a month by month to do list along with a boatload of information specific to our unique climate. I've found myself referring to it more than any other resource: http://www.amazon.com/Maritime-Northwest-Garden-Guide-Elliott/dp/0931380189/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241274368&sr=8-1 http://www.seattletilth.org/about/books-for-sale/sales
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May 2, 2009 15:28
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kid sinister posted:Did you even till that stuff in? It doesn't look like you tilled it enough... It definitely got tilled. A lot. With a commercial grade monster tiller. I actually dug all the clay out 18" deep and then added it back in to mix with the soil conditioner in equal parts, then everything else got tilled in. It got tilled thoroughly at least 4 times. It's like a thin layer of clay floats up out of the dirt when it rains. The soil itself is amazing now, you can plant by hand, it holds water well, drains perfectly. It just makes this 1/16" skin of clay on top when it rains.
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May 2, 2009 15:36
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kid sinister posted:That depends heavily on the tree species. Which one are your clippings?
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May 2, 2009 17:52
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landis posted:Maple is one of them. I don't know the other, but I don't have any clippings yet. I was going to take some. Google the hell out of the species you will be clipping. Most tree species will propagate from grafting cuttings onto new rootstocks. Keep in mind that some tree species are nearly impossible to propagate from cuttings.
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May 2, 2009 18:01
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I know this is a veggie thread, but since there's no general purpose gardening thread I figured I'd ask here: Anyone know how plants are miniaturized? I keep miniature rose plants, and bought two today that are a total mystery to me. They came in tiny 1.5" pots and are each less than 6" tall - but they're both blooming and have nice healthy buds, so they're not just young. They were rootbound as all hell so they must've been in those tiny pots for a while. I didn't see any grafts, but nobody bothers to graft minis anyways. How on earth did someone grow these things? Ridiculous pruning? Lighting really close to the plants so they grow out instead of up? I assume they're going to grow up and fill out like regular miniature roses, but I just can't fathom how they came to be in the first place.
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May 2, 2009 18:17
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Cuddlebottom posted:I know this is a veggie thread, but since there's no general purpose gardening thread I figured I'd ask here: It depends. A big part of it is the variety. Some varieties are bred to be smaller than others. Also, they could have done something hormonal. Just as they can pick green tomatoes and force them to turn red by applying ethylene gas, they can use natural plant hormones to force them to be small. Lastly, by keeping it in such a small pot, it kind of forced it to be a bonsai.
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May 2, 2009 18:26
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Zeta Taskforce posted:It depends. A big part of it is the variety. Some varieties are bred to be smaller than others. Also, they could have done something hormonal. Just as they can pick green tomatoes and force them to turn red by applying ethylene gas, they can use natural plant hormones to force them to be small. Lastly, by keeping it in such a small pot, it kind of forced it to be a bonsai.
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May 2, 2009 19:08
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