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Another dirty goon reporting in! I had some packets of seeds, so I threw them in this planter, to see what could grow. Two weeks later, this is what I have!   I've got chamomile, chocolate sunflower, ice lavender, and candy tomato. I'm pretty sure the weird tube looking one is the tomato. I forgot to mark which one is which  I water 'em every other day, trying not over-water and kill them.
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Sep 13, 2011 21:23
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Finally got around to harvesting the garden huckleberry (first year trying it) First batch of cooked fruit tasted terrible, metallic and bitter Second batch, I did some more research and added some baking soda. After that (and a good amount of sugar) they're pretty drat good! Makes a good pie filling, jam or syrup Plants fruit prolifically, self seed and fruit early in the season They are however tedious to pick and clean and they need to be cooked
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Sep 14, 2011 02:57
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My mom is bringing me her plant rack next time she visits. It has trays and plant lights on shelving. I'm going to try an aquaponics set up with it I think.
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Sep 16, 2011 19:28
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Anyone grow mushrooms (un-magical ones, of course!) ? I have been reading up on sites like this one : http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/11/oyster-mushrooms-coffee.php about how you can grow oyster mushrooms in used coffee grounds, which sounds awesome to me. Where is a good place to buy cheap spawn?
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Sep 17, 2011 04:06
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Alterian posted:My mom is bringing me her plant rack next time she visits. It has trays and plant lights on shelving. I'm going to try an aquaponics set up with it I think. I'm definitely going to try some sort of hydroponic setup very soon. I wanted to do it a while ago indoors but it was just too expensive to do it. It's finally starting to cool down outside enough for me to do it outside so I don't have spend money on grow lights and the electricity to power them. I'll probably start with 3 or 4 simple deep water culture buckets with pepper plants and cucumber and see how it goes. Depending on the outcome, I may try a more difficult and better setup for outdoor hydroponics. If I make any progress, I'll buy a cheap digital camera and take pictures. I'll continue to do some container gardening to see how it goes. I did retry some pitaya seeds and have about a dozen seedlings doing okay. Unfortunately they are a bit on the leggy side because I kept them indoors too long with a lovely LED panel. I was afraid that they wouldn't survive in the 105F heat, but apparently they can hold their own quite well when I did finally put them out. Sadly they did get a bit roughed up during a couple vicious 10 minute storms.
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Sep 17, 2011 04:32
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I had to transplant my rhubarb in to a planter in order to save it from the centipedes and ants which were murdering it. They cut down all the stalks within a week. I managed to sever two large rhizomes and threw them out but apparently I could have just planted them and they might have sprouted. Also looks like I'm going to get a fall raspberry crop. I'm worried though because it's already mid September and it's starting to cool down. The berries are on the canes and green and will hopefully get a chance to ripen before the frosts come.
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Sep 21, 2011 04:30
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ijii posted:Let us know how that works out. Pitaya are vining cactus, they thrive on heat, sandy soil, and small but frequent watering. Absolutely no wet feet though. There's a ton of them growing on the central/southern Florida barrier islands, the flowers are beautiful and last a decently long time.
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Sep 21, 2011 20:17
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So, in the three weeks it's been, the tomato plants have shot up to like 3, 3 1/2 inches! The others are smaller, like 1 inch or less. I'm wondering, when do I start thinning them out? And how, do I just pluck it from the dirt? I picked up a sweet basil plant and pot while I was at home depot. Gonna see how that does. edit: Oh, and I've noticed little bugs crawling around my planter. Not aphids, I don't think, they seem to have wings. Gnats or something maybe? Is it true I can spray my plants with soapy water as a deterrent? Deep Thoreau fucked around with this message at 00:35 on Sep 23, 2011 |
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Sep 23, 2011 00:33
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I got my hands on some columnar grown apples, how would I go about making them into the weirdest apple tree I've ever seen? Just put seeds into a pot and wait or is there something else to it?
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Sep 23, 2011 15:19
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Can anyone recommend good free (or low cost) garden planning sites/software? My yard is a super bizarre shape so something that would let me input the dimensions of my backyard would be awesome. Is there like... AutoCAD for gardening? The most ideal would be something that allowed me to use the CAD drawings I have of my house to plan out the yard but maybe that's a bit unrealistic.
Triangulum fucked around with this message at 15:52 on Sep 23, 2011 |
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Sep 23, 2011 15:29
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Boiled Water posted:I got my hands on some columnar grown apples, how would I go about making them into the weirdest apple tree I've ever seen? Just put seeds into a pot and wait or is there something else to it? Apples never grow true from seed- their genetics are just too wildly varied. If you wanted apples just like the ones you have you'd have to get a cutting from the tree and graft it onto the proper rootstock for the purpose you have in mind.
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Sep 23, 2011 15:55
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Marchegiana posted:Apples never grow true from seed- their genetics are just too wildly varied. If you wanted apples just like the ones you have you'd have to get a cutting from the tree and graft it onto the proper rootstock for the purpose you have in mind. That's not an option unfortunately, will nothing grow from apple seeds?
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Sep 23, 2011 15:58
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Oh you'll get something, but it's a total crapshoot as to what you get. You could get the most beautiful, delicious apples you've ever had, or you could get something that looks and tastes more like a potato than an apple. And you won't know which it is for about 5-6 years when it reaches maturity. I'm actually gambling on an apple tree grown from seed right now- my daughter planted it and cared for it, and actually got it to sprout and thrive. She's so excited about it I didn't want to just get rid of it. So I put it outside last fall; right now it's just the lead stem and about 3 feet tall. In another 3-4 years we'll find out if we have apples we can actually eat, or if I'm going to have to invest in a cider press.
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Sep 23, 2011 16:10
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Consider it an investment in future grilling and/or smoking.
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Sep 23, 2011 22:01
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So after about a month of having buds, my butternut squash has finally started flowering. Is there still time to get any actual squashes? I live in South East England for reference. I also have tomatoes coming through outside, but I'm sure they won't ripen now. What can you do with green tomatoes?
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Sep 23, 2011 23:50
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madlilnerd posted:I also have tomatoes coming through outside, but I'm sure they won't ripen now. What can you do with green tomatoes? If they turn yellow AT ALL you can pick em and place them inside in a room temperature room in the dark (cover them with some newspaper or something if the sun comes in the windows easily) and they'll ripen up nicely. If they're 100% green and you get a frost you'll probably be screwed though.  Some of these might be too green and shouldn't have been picked, but I've had 3 nights in a row with temperatures of 2 C so I'm expecting it to freeze any day now.
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Sep 24, 2011 05:07
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... (deleted post)
Teltrons fucked around with this message at 09:16 on Sep 24, 2011 |
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Sep 24, 2011 08:50
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... (deleted post)
Teltrons fucked around with this message at 09:16 on Sep 24, 2011 |
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Sep 24, 2011 08:58
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First Harvest ... 06.09.2011 ...   
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Sep 24, 2011 09:21
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madlilnerd posted:So after about a month of having buds, my butternut squash has finally started flowering. Is there still time to get any actual squashes? I live in South East England for reference. Fried green tomatoes are one of the best things about the cool season showing up for gardeners here in the south.
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Sep 24, 2011 16:06
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Okay garden goons, I've successfully ignored the Finance A/T thread (Do Never Buy!) and I'm in the process of buying a house. Barring something major happening in the next week or two (inspector finding bigtime problems, situated on an Indian Burial Ground, etc) I'll be moving in within a couple months. It'll be in the depths of the extremely rainy season by then, but that'll give me plenty to plan my plot (see what I did there?  ) and get things going for the spring.(facing south from driveway. The raised box appears to've held a decent-sized apple tree for a while, there're random apple seedlings coming up in the grass, and a good-sized divot that looks a couple/few years old, and no apple trees to be seen anywhere in the neighborhood.)  (facing south over the fence, toward the back corner. Pretty nice old cherry tree.)  (facing north from back corner of fence - this is the sunny spot in the backyard. Bamboo will be dug out with extreme prejudice, my parents - pictured wandering around the photos - headed the Oregon Bamboo Association and I know exactly how obnoxious it can be if you let it run rampant.)  (facing east - that tree in the middle will be cut down - it's a Smoke Tree and drops nasty seed pods all over the goddamned place, and will continue to make a mess of the roof and the deck and the yard if I don't. Also, the neighbor on the south has some great big evergreens which provide ample shade over the east half of the back yard and the house itself.)  Right now I'm planning on a couple/few 4'x4' or 4'x8' raised beds in the back yard near the new boards on the fence, preferably with lots of peppers, tomatoes/tomatillos, peas, radishes, and garlic, among other things.. Maybe some strawberries depending on how much I feel like making a cover for them. The old apple tree box I'm undecided on, it could be a good spot to put squash or something that tends to run rampant and which would naturally keep down the years-old grasses and weeds in the box's soil, though.. It's also open to people wandering by so I'm a bit averse to putting anything super tasty into it until/unless I get some sort of fence up around that area - strawberries would be good there but I don't want the neighbor's kids eating them all Summer long while I'm away at work!  I have a question that's been bugging me though - I'd like to put in some rain barrels. My question centers on the topic of screens for rain barrels, in particular.. I couldn't find much online to help, so maybe this is a harebrained or plain terrible idea: I've seen some pre-made "kit" rain barrels which feature planters on the top. Would it be feasible to use some kind of grass/etc on top of a barrel, as the filter itself? I can potentially see runoff issues during heavy rainfall as the earth and plants would be much less porous than a fine mesh screen, but it seems like it might be viable.. Any thoughts?
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Sep 26, 2011 03:58
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I've had this gut-wrenchingly wonderful desire to build my very first vegetable garden... too bad I had it in September. I'm at work now, but when I get home and weed my flower gardens and measure the spot I want to place my veggie plots, I'll take a BUNCH of newbie pics and post them. However, I would really like to get the ball rolling.... could I buy some garlic, onion, and pepper seeds now? I want a couple indoor plants, I have a nice spot behind the kitchen sink that floods with direct sunlight until late afternoon. If so, what kind of garlic and onions? Seeing as I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about plants (but I'm reading up on it every day), all I know is I cook a lot using yellow onions I get at the ShopRite, and just your every day grocery store garlic... I'm on territorialseed.com right now, and holy moley there are a TON of types of onions and garlics. As for peppers, I want to grow some jalapenos. Are there any other vegetables I can grow either indoors or a trough-style bed until I can build a decent ground garden? Edit: As for garden experience... I wouldn't say none, since I was 7 my dad has always kept a vegetable garden, and I learned a lot by watching him... I guess my biggest problems are just the types of each vegetable and the times to start plotting. miseerin fucked around with this message at 18:52 on Sep 26, 2011 |
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Sep 26, 2011 18:48
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This is the time to plant garlic, so you could do that right now with your new bed outside. Peppers might work indoors in a window but don't expect much. You could start herbs indoors too. You'll have all winter to plan your garden for next year.
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Sep 26, 2011 19:15
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Cpt.Wacky posted:You'll have all winter to plan your garden for next year. This is why I firmly believe humans should hibernate. I can't handle the wait... even though I'll be gone at annual training for two weeks in October and Mexico for Christmas and New Years and a wedding in Michigan for Thanksgiving, it's taking everything in my power not to cut the bottom of a 2-liter bottle and take a garlic plant with me to drill in 2 weeks. Now that I said that out loud.... maybe I could... e: is there a certain kind of garlic? That territorial site had SO MANY! 
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Sep 26, 2011 19:19
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miseerin posted:This is why I firmly believe humans should hibernate. I can't handle the wait... even though I'll be gone at annual training for two weeks in October and Mexico for Christmas and New Years and a wedding in Michigan for Thanksgiving, it's taking everything in my power not to cut the bottom of a 2-liter bottle and take a garlic plant with me to drill in 2 weeks. You want to have raised beds (4 foot width is reasonable, you DO NOT want to be walking on or between or near your plants and skinnyish raised beds make it easy to not stomp around them! 4 foot is a good width because you can easily reach into the center even if you don't have long arms.) An in-ground garden really works best if its a large farm plot, and even then you want to have rows to walk in between the upraised growing areas. Even walking just somewhat nearby and around your plants can compact the earth a lot, which can negatively affect drainage, and impede root growth. coyo7e fucked around with this message at 21:46 on Sep 26, 2011 |
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Sep 26, 2011 21:09
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My true blue potatoes did alright, filling well over two baskets of tasty starchy goodness. Tomatoes and peppers grew but didn't really produce. I do have a question though, I got a great deal earlier on blackberry plants but they later said they wouldn't ship them till fall. I forgot about them for awhile but got a shipping notification emailed to me. Am I going to be ok planting these things in zone 6 or should I try to keep them alive and inside until spring?
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Sep 26, 2011 23:24
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Fall is generally a great planting time. The cool weather won't stress the plant and it can establish itself before winter comes.
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Sep 27, 2011 00:17
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Just mulch your roots and you'll be fine.
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Sep 27, 2011 00:30
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Anubis posted:I do have a question though, I got a great deal earlier on blackberry plants but they later said they wouldn't ship them till fall. I forgot about them for awhile but got a shipping notification emailed to me. Am I going to be ok planting these things in zone 6 or should I try to keep them alive and inside until spring?
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Sep 27, 2011 00:49
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coyo7e posted:If you accidentally find a way to kill blackberries, I'll give you money because it'll be worth a loving fortune. I like this because I wanted to start a blackberry section against my fence in my garden. I didn't get as much done today as I thought I would... I did, however, weed the poo poo out of the side plots, where no one wanted to tell me PEPPERS WERE GROWING! Sadly, no one also didn't want to clue me in on the dying cat in our front garden last week, so I walked up all happy joy joy to weed a garden and saw a cat skeleton. What a way to totally ruin your day.  Also, I tossed all 5 of the peppers due to half of each one was eaten up already. But here is the picture of the sneaky little suckers behind my AC unit:  I'm tired, but it's SO FUN! I can't wait till tomorrow when I finish weeding and buy my own pair of gardening gloves. 
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Sep 27, 2011 00:59
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miseerin posted:I like this because I wanted to start a blackberry section against my fence in my garden.
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Sep 27, 2011 01:32
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It doesn't even matter if you keep them in a barrel or something, within 2 or 3 years the birds will have spread them all over the goddamned place. At least Raspberries just kind of wander around where they want and you can replant them, but when you start getting blackberries, you'll have them for-ever. If you ignore them for 2-3 years they can get bigger than your home. I've seen abandoned houses that were taken over by blackberries. I've personally knocked down dozens of acres of blackberries in my life by machete and tractor and chemicals, and they almost always come back. 
coyo7e fucked around with this message at 05:13 on Sep 27, 2011 |
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Sep 27, 2011 05:10
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So is there a reasonable solution? Maybe keep them in a barrel with mesh on top? This way they're maintained, you can trim it down to where birds can't peck through, and if they get out of control you can just nuke the barrel? Or is it just better to go for planting sugar snap peas along the fence instead? I guess I should mention I have ridiculous lily (or iris) bush things on the other side of the fence. They were my boyfriend's mom's before she died, so I don't want to be a jerk towards his dad and rip them out... I think they just need a little maintaining... but I don't think it will be a problem if the two plants mingle ever so slightly, will it?
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Sep 27, 2011 05:24
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coyo7e posted:You want to have raised beds (4 foot width is reasonable, you DO NOT want to be walking on or between or near your plants and skinnyish raised beds make it easy to not stomp around them! 4 foot is a good width because you can easily reach into the center even if you don't have long arms.) An in-ground garden really works best if its a large farm plot, and even then you want to have rows to walk in between the upraised growing areas. Even walking just somewhat nearby and around your plants can compact the earth a lot, which can negatively affect drainage, and impede root growth. This is good advice. 5 feet is too wide. I did a 5 by 20 double-dug bed this year and it was a ridiculous amount of work, mainly because the ground was compacted fill of clay and rock that had to be screened. My plan for next year is to convert it to a raised bed, probably reduced to 4 feet wide and add another 4 by 20 bed next to it. If you can't afford the wood and soil for a raised bed, look into sheet mulching (aka lasagna gardening). It's a no-dig method where you build up layers of material that compost in place. You can dig a shallow, narrow trench around the edges to keep the grass separated.
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Sep 27, 2011 08:27
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miseerin posted:So is there a reasonable solution? Maybe keep them in a barrel with mesh on top? This way they're maintained, you can trim it down to where birds can't peck through, and if they get out of control you can just nuke the barrel? Or is it just better to go for planting sugar snap peas along the fence instead? Why not buy something prettier and less thorny, like bamboo? At least it's predictable how far bamboo can spread, and it's easier to get rid of and keep gone. I was going to snarkily recommend kudzu. but I'm afraid you might take my advice, and at least bamboo is less disastrous when it gets out of hand, just just dig it up at the root and problem solved.. Cpt.Wacky posted:This is good advice. 5 feet is too wide. I did a 5 by 20 double-dug bed this year and it was a ridiculous amount of work, mainly because the ground was compacted fill of clay and rock that had to be screened. My plan for next year is to convert it to a raised bed, probably reduced to 4 feet wide and add another 4 by 20 bed next to it. That's pretty drat cheap, honestly. You can buy kits for beds for like 40 bucks for a 4'x4' I've heard, but with a hammer, a saw, a tape measure, and some nails, you can make one yourself for probably close to 10 or 20 bucks of material. http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/how-to-plans/lawn-garden/4308264 Everything after that point is just getting fancy. http://www.sunset.com/garden/perfect-raised-bed-00400000039550/ Earth is easy, if you live in city limits, you can check your city's leaf disposal service, and have them dump a truckload of leaves for you to compost up, for free.. http://www.google.com/search?q=city+leaf+disposal+compost Some cities even have community compost resources, where you can just drive up, fill up a truck, and take it home. Stay around 3' or maybe 4' for width though, because the loss of leverage makes it tougher to work in the bed. When picking stuff like radishes carrots potatoes etc, you don't want to have to put one hand or knee into the bed to reach far enough in.. coyo7e fucked around with this message at 14:46 on Sep 27, 2011 |
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Sep 27, 2011 14:10
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Recommending bamboo over blackberry seems a little crazy to me. Spreading bamboo is equally invasive and difficult to remove and infinitely less tasty Go with thornless blackberry
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Sep 27, 2011 17:54
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I might just go with peas. e: V V V Yeah I remember having bamboo near my driveway when I was a kid. I used to hide very effectively in that to escape my mom's wooden spoons... that bamboo was like a driveway jungle. miseerin fucked around with this message at 20:19 on Sep 27, 2011 |
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Sep 27, 2011 18:03
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dwoloz posted:Recommending bamboo over blackberry seems a little crazy to me. Spreading bamboo is equally invasive and difficult to remove and infinitely less tasty 
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Sep 27, 2011 20:10
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Blackberries (at least the thornless cultivators) are way less of a pest than most mint plants. If you really want to piss your neighbors off just plant a row of mint near the fence line and in a couple years you'll end up taking over everyone's yard. At least blackberries can just be pulled up roots and all as soon as that first cane pops above the surface.
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Sep 27, 2011 21:37
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Anubis posted:At least blackberries can just be pulled up roots and all as soon as that first cane pops above the surface. The ones in my garden can't. There's been an extensive bramble problem since before we moved into this property in 1995 and we've never managed to get rid of them all no matter what we throw at them- expensive weedkiller, fire damage, digging up as many as we can see. All it takes is a centimetre of root left in the soil, or some plants tucked away behind a neighbour's shed and suddenly- BAM- you're back to a thorny thorny garden. I'd much rather have a mint invasion. As seeing as my mother's spearmint escaped from its confines, it looks like that's on the menu. Sometimes I wish I lived in a place with loving awful soil so I could grow plants in compost in completely planned beds and not worry about escapees or invaders.
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Sep 30, 2011 01:54
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