|
A Pack of Kobolds posted:Anyone doing a winter garden or anything? I'm thinking about planting some winter radishes to see what happens. I actually have some tomatoes now fruiting from plants that popped up from compost last September. A couple birdseye chili plants I didn't pull up also starting flowering and fruiting again just last month.
|
#
?
Nov 20, 2018 15:34
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 18, 2024 21:53 |
|
|
Has anyone done mushroom spawn plugs on Redbud? Cause I just cut down a big one that was going to start causing problems, and now I have about 12 good sized logs of it. I don't think it's a dense enough wood for shitake, but I figured it doesn't hurt to ask.
|
|
#
?
Nov 23, 2018 18:23
|
|
|
Ape Has Killed Ape posted:Has anyone done mushroom spawn plugs on Redbud? Cause I just cut down a big one that was going to start causing problems, and now I have about 12 good sized logs of it. I don't think it's a dense enough wood for shitake, but I figured it doesn't hurt to ask.
|
|
#
?
Nov 23, 2018 18:45
|
|
|
At this point I'm beginning to wonder if home mushroom spawn innoculation is like chinchilla and bullfrog farming during the 1940s - the money is in selling starter kits, not farming the critters. Last spring I innoculated maple, poplar, and spruce with shiitake, Angel Wing, and Chicken of the Woods plugs. At this point both the innoculated and uninnoculated (i.e., firewood) poplar logs are covered with a tiny blue bracket fungus I can't identify and did not buy and only the maple and spruce are showing activity around the plugs that might be fruiting bodies developing. Could be I should have ignored the advice to let the poplar logs sit for several weeks before innoculation and innoculated them sooner. Maybe now would be a good time to try the technique of giving each log a good thump with a sledge hammer. Or maybe I just need to have more patience and sit tight.
|
|
#
?
Nov 23, 2018 19:44
|
|
|
I took advantage of a rain-free day to spread woodchip mulch over one of my beds, but ran out of daylight before finishing the other. By next weekend my winter salad seedlings will be big enough to be planted out (under cloches). Because I cannot judge measurements nor do basic sums, I may have a couple of extra square feet in my SFG plot. I'm thinking fennel or wildflowers.
|
|
#
?
Nov 26, 2018 01:03
|
|
|
I finally filled in the Swale I dug uphill of my new fruit trees with gravel and my graywater piping, complete with mulch shields. Took forever, and the flow probably still needs to be throttled to be equal to all the trees, but looking more complete than it was, and ready for berry bearing shrubs next year.
|
|
#
?
Nov 26, 2018 03:09
|
|
|
Lady Demelza posted:Because I cannot judge measurements nor do basic sums, I may have a couple of extra square feet in my SFG plot. I'm thinking fennel or wildflowers. I always keep local wildflowers around the garden, or at least in the yard itself. I usually just sow a solid line in the garden of them and let them go crazy. You'll see positive impact on pollination. It'll bring in birds too. I think I like my bird feeders more than my garden for outside happiness.
|
|
#
?
Nov 26, 2018 03:21
|
|
|
Yeah, I always plant a bunch of wildflowers around my veggies for polinators. Plus they're pretty.
|
|
#
?
Nov 26, 2018 22:19
|
|
|
My pepper cuttings are not doing very well, so I'm changing a few things to see if I can't turn it around before they're goners. It's not a big deal as I've been able to bring the whole plants indoors, but it would be nice to have a few more with a headstart for spring. So, my guess is they need nutrients as the leaves are yellowing and the stem is starting to harden instead of grow. So I'm going to instead move them into milk jugs with a potting medium and maybe add a very small amount of root promoting nutrition as well. The milk jugs will keep them at a better temp as it's not routinely below freezing and my room with the space and the light will have temp swings. Logic tells me to keep them moist, but not soaking to give it enough water too. Cursory googling says this should work, so anyone who's done this before, please tell me how badly my logic is wrong. My worry is that I'll over feed them, so I may just stick with peat moss and a little potting soil so that it's pretty loose, but can hold some water okay too.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 17:15
|
|
|
Last winter my potted mint plant died outside on my roof deck. They are supposed to be indestructible, go figure. Current plan: Keep it in the garage by the window that gets some ambient light, water it twice a month. Garage is a lot warmer than the outside even though it itself is not heated. When I put it out in Spring, cut off only the dead-looking stems. Otherwise don't trim anything. Sound like a good plan?
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 17:32
|
|
|
Comb Your Beard posted:Last winter my potted mint plant died outside on my roof deck. They are supposed to be indestructible, go figure. Should be fine. I abused potted mint on my porch when I lived in Louisville. It came back three years in a row and I did literally nothing but take part of it from time to time for cooking/beverage purposes. I don't live there anymore, but it could still be living there and refusing to die.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 17:52
|
|
|
Jhet posted:My pepper cuttings are not doing very well, so I'm changing a few things to see if I can't turn it around before they're goners. It's not a big deal as I've been able to bring the whole plants indoors, but it would be nice to have a few more with a headstart for spring. What type of peppers saplings are struggling? Can you narrow down the cultivars that are struggling?
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 18:30
|
|
|
I've noticed that the pepper cuttings I have going are taking quite a bit longer than the jalapeno that I did by accident a couple of months ago. The days are much shorter and colder now than then, so that may have something to do with it. I'd be interested to see if they root quicker with a grow light and not sitting six inches from a cold window, but I don't have space for that right now. I hope at least some of you have success with it. The aforementioned jalapeno cutting survived transplant and has new, blossoming growth, so I know that it's at least worth a try.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 18:50
|
|
|
Pillow Armadillo posted:What type of peppers saplings are struggling? Can you narrow down the cultivars that are struggling? Carolina Reaper, and the Carribean Reds are not far behind. It's a little too cold, so I've already fixed that, but there's no sign of rooting and it's been a few weeks already. I change the water with room temp water, so it's not that bad, but I definitely need to pare down some of the leaves as well. They each have 3-4 nodes per stem, so there should be enough there to succeed.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 19:40
|
|
|
Jhet posted:My pepper cuttings are not doing very well, so I'm changing a few things to see if I can't turn it around before they're goners. It's not a big deal as I've been able to bring the whole plants indoors, but it would be nice to have a few more with a headstart for spring. 4/4 of my habanero cuttings I'm trying the cutting in water trick with are dying. Really wish I just tried transplanting it and putting it in a pot in the greenhouse
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 22:17
|
|
|
Harry Potter on Ice posted:4/4 of my habanero cuttings I'm trying the cutting in water trick with are dying. Really wish I just tried transplanting it and putting it in a pot in the greenhouse I feel responsible for making it sound like such a sure thing.  My arbol and bell pepper cuttings are still alive, and I'm hoping that they're just delayed with the change in season. The banana pepper died. I swear this was not an elaborate ploy to kill off your favorite peppers, goons.  You could try moving them to a potting medium like this technique describes as a hail mary. I've had more success rooting rosemary in water than in soil/medium, so that's what I opted for with the jalapeno which rooted just fine. gently caress.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 22:40
|
|
|
I’ve never rooted peppers because I don’t grow them, but high humidity and bottom heat really help with rooting. A big clear soda bottle or a plastic grocery bag loosely tented over the cutting and lightly misted once or twice (don’t want it too humid or you get fungus and mold) helps with the humidity, and they make heating pads for rooting or stick the tray on top of a warm appliance. I’m always tempted to leave too many leaves on herbaceous cuttings, but fewer seems to be better, or you can cut the leaves in half crossways to reduce moisture loss. Cuttings from new growth always seem to root better than older growth that has hardened off. I’ve never saved a cutting once it started going downhill, but it’s worth trying something. All this reminds me I need to take a million rose cuttings here soon and ignore all my own advice and just stick them in pots outside and see which ones grow come spring because I’m lazy as gently caress.
|
|
#
?
Nov 27, 2018 23:28
|
|
|
It seemed fairly painless, and the theory of it was good. Only one of the Reaper cuttings went too far south and I still have two living plants in the basement under grow lamps. So it's not really the end of the world. I saw that article and I kept digging and ended up doing a few things. I used an old washed milk jug cut sort of into half that I was going to use for seed starting outside over winter, but haven't used yet. I used about 3:1 seed starting mix to potting soil for about 2". I trimmed and roughed up the bottom of the stems. I trimmed off the larger leaves and anything that was yellowing. I used some root growth feed diluted weaker than recommended as this way I can add more again in the future without as much worry. I put it back in the sunny spot, which is about 5' away from the radiator, and above the pipes that feed the radiator. It's a warm spot on the floor so that should help. I can water regularly enough, keeping it moist but not too wet. If I'm keeping too much humidity, I can take off the cap or punch holes, but it's so very dry here and will be for the next 4-5 months that I'm not sure it's going to be a problem. Hopefully this will work! It seems rosemary is fairly easy to coax into rooting from cuttings, so I'll probably do that with my rosemary plant the next time I'm planning on cutting a bunch for cooking. I can just strip the petals I need and root the rest.
|
|
#
?
Nov 28, 2018 05:44
|
|
|
A Pack of Kobolds posted:I feel responsible for making it sound like such a sure thing. you liar you probably HATE heat! No I'm not blaming you at all I'm still really interested in figuring it out ain't no thang
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2018 02:35
|
|
|
Can anyone suggest why swiss chard would be all floppy and droppy? The seedlings are just over a month old and have always been...horizontal? The internet suggests too high humidity but the spinach and rocket in the same propogator are doing OK.
|
|
#
?
Nov 29, 2018 23:52
|
|
|
Lady Demelza posted:Can anyone suggest why swiss chard would be all floppy and droppy? The seedlings are just over a month old and have always been...horizontal? The internet suggests too high humidity but the spinach and rocket in the same propogator are doing OK. An old hippy I know pets/lightly brushes the tops of his seedling flats a few times a day and claims it helps them stiffen up and keep from getting leggy. He also keeps a small fan on low speed blowing on them for the same reason, and he grows some good seedlings. I wouldn't do the fan unless they're in pellets with their feet wet or somehow irrigated well so they won't dry out.
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 00:52
|
|
|
That makes perfect sense! Thank you. If it is a lighting issue then I'd like to see if they can get stronger, because they're eventually destined for the garden.
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 01:28
|
|
|
Kaiser Schnitzel posted:Seedlings can get leggy if the light is too far away. Moving the grow light closer (like 3"-ish from the tops of the seedlings) might help. The petting doesn't matter. The fan made all the difference for me when I first started growing from seed - and keeping the light close. I have a cheap rear end oscillating fan in the hoop house and it does the trick just fine. But I do love old hippies and their quirky poo poo like that.
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 05:15
|
|
|
Motronic posted:But I do love old hippies and their quirky poo poo like that. Last spring I was at a local greenhouse picking an old ladies brain on peppers and she volunteered some information about "using her vibrator to stimulate her tomatoes and simulate bees, it would work the same with pepper so maybe if you have an electric toothbrush try that?" and a different random other old lady laughed and chimed in and said I DO THAT TOO! My jades love a little pet every now and then to keep clean 
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 06:47
|
|
|
Harry Potter on Ice posted:Last spring I was at a local greenhouse picking an old ladies brain on peppers and she volunteered some information about "using her vibrator to stimulate her tomatoes and simulate bees, it would work the same with pepper so maybe if you have an electric toothbrush try that?" and a different random other old lady laughed and chimed in and said I DO THAT TOO! Life, uhh, finds a way.
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 17:33
|
|
|
Harry Potter on Ice posted:Last spring I was at a local greenhouse picking an old ladies brain on peppers and she volunteered some information about "using her vibrator to stimulate her tomatoes and simulate bees, it would work the same with pepper so maybe if you have an electric toothbrush try that?" and a different random other old lady laughed and chimed in and said I DO THAT TOO! And this is why you wash all fruit and veg before you eat it.
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 22:40
|
|
|
A Pack of Kobolds posted:I feel responsible for making it sound like such a sure thing. It's never a sure thing, and my milk jug method with starting mix + potting soil with root fertilizer is doing a great job. All the cuttings have perked right up and look very strong and happy. Pulling a bunch of the leaves off probably helped a lot too. So for your pepper cuttings, if they start looking sad or looking like they'd rather rot in the water only method, this is seeming to work. Only time will tell and not for a couple months, but I have a lot of hope for them again.
|
|
#
?
Nov 30, 2018 23:54
|
|
|
Harry Potter on Ice posted:Last spring I was at a local greenhouse picking an old ladies brain on peppers and she volunteered some information about "using her vibrator to stimulate her tomatoes and simulate bees, it would work the same with pepper so maybe if you have an electric toothbrush try that?" and a different random other old lady laughed and chimed in and said I DO THAT TOO! I didn't know about that for peppers but I have used an electric toothbrush for tomatoes. Maybe I'm missing out and will need to upgrade to a vibrator.
|
|
#
?
Dec 1, 2018 22:15
|
|
|
Does anyone have any mini/patio fruit trees? What's the yield like? If they are planted in the ground, do they still stay mini or do they grow taller? I don't want trees taller than about 2m/6ft!
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 01:04
|
|
|
Lady Demelza posted:Does anyone have any mini/patio fruit trees? What's the yield like? If they are planted in the ground, do they still stay mini or do they grow taller? I don't want trees taller than about 2m/6ft! The rootstock the tree is grafted onto keeps it a dwarf regardless of where it's planted. I inherited a twenty year old dwarf pear tree from my mother that's about 1.5 metres tall and never produced until I planted it in the ground, probably because I didn't pay enough attention to fertilizer when it was growing in a pot. Yield has been about half to a dozen pears. I've sure you can do better with proper pruning, feeding, and sun exposure. I haven't worried about this tree's yield because we're inundated with fruit from our semi-dwarves at that time of year. The nice thing about dwarf stock is you can work them standing on the ground and cram a lot more trees into a given space, actually exceeding the yield per hectare of semi-dwarf or standard trees. On the downside the trunks are weak and must be supported, and the trees have a life expectancy of 20 years. Being nose-level with the deer can be bad too, depending on where you live.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 02:16
|
|
|
Lady Demelza posted:Does anyone have any mini/patio fruit trees? What's the yield like? If they are planted in the ground, do they still stay mini or do they grow taller? I don't want trees taller than about 2m/6ft! Look for "ultra dwarf" they will get no bigger than 6 feet tall (after 2 years mine are 4 feet). I have apple and peach and I get about 10-15 fruits per season, in 15 gallon pots. I'm told that if you prune perfectly and give it fertilizer and all that it should give you 30 to 50 fruits in one season, but I don't pay attention to mine. They are lucky to get water once a week. e: look for M27, P22 and CG65 rootstocks produce ultra-dwarf apple trees SA Forums Poster fucked around with this message at 19:14 on Dec 9, 2018 |
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 19:10
|
|
|
I have no input right now except that I want a dwarf kumquat tree so bad
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 19:36
|
|
|
I dug up my aunts 30 ish year grape vine "tree" when they tore down their house earlier this year, hoping it lives and I have a 4 inch thick and 4 foot tall grape tree! Hope its hardy enough  I want all the little fruit trees
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 19:48
|
|
|
elise the great posted:I have no input right now except that I want a dwarf kumquat tree so bad If you're in Jax, there's an abandoned kumquat tree in my back yard if you want to grab it. Couldn't take it when I moved.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 21:07
|
|
|
elise the great posted:I have no input right now except that I want a dwarf kumquat tree so bad I had to look up what this was and the good old BBC recipe pages described it as 'bitter and weird' with a 'love it or loathe it' taste. Sounds delightful! Thanks for all the advice, after Christmas I'm definitely going to get one of the mini-tree-trios. This is the wrong thread because it's not edible - at least, not twice - but after a recent dream I really, really want to grow belladonna in a planter decorated with dancing skeletons.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2018 23:20
|
|
|
If you like bitter-orange and citron flavors, enjoy a spike of tart in your citrus, and crave tiny morsels of condensed sunlight that will bear through the winter if given light supplement, kumquat is for you. I like them candied too, or rolled in coarse sugar and roasted at blistering heat until the sugar brûlées, but speaking as a person who will eat the peels off clementines, I will devour them warm from the tree.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2018 01:25
|
|
|
The bizarre thing about kumquats is that the peel is sweet and delicious and the flesh is bitter, but since they’re bite sized they balance each other out. I squish the insides out and toss them and put the peel in a Manhattan and it is delicious-the bitternes of the pulp get overpowering in a cocktail to me. Or I just eat them whole. I’m definitely in the ‘love them’ camp. I need to get one to go with my satsumas. I saw a picture once of a perfectly manicured hedge of kumquats in France somewhere with fruit on it and it was gorgeous.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2018 05:01
|
|
|
Jhet posted:my milk jug method with starting mix + potting soil with root fertilizer is doing a great job. All the cuttings have perked right up and look very strong and happy. Pulling a bunch of the leaves off probably helped a lot too. They were looking nice and healthy until this week. They dropped all their leaves and turned into sticks and started to decompose. The good news is I still have living plants and can try again next year. I think I'll probably need to try earlier (mid-summer or something), instead of waiting until the plants want to go into winter mode and trying to force it.
|
|
#
?
Dec 15, 2018 20:19
|
|
|
Hello. I am very, very new at gardening. Some friends and I started volunteering a few months ago at a community garden in the Phoenix area; mostly sowing and weeding in exchange for some space in some raised boxes so we can learn how to grow food. I hope it's okay that I'm going to have a trillion stupid questions. To start: On this page, there's some talk of sowing wildflowers around your crops - what purpose does this serve? I've noticed some of the boxes around the garden also have flowers mixed in with food - I assumed the people planting just wanted flowers. I guess I'm wrong! Related: I've heard of "companion plants" as some kind of pest control, which might be connected to the above? I didn't see anything in the OP about it and I'm curious about more "useful" plants like herbs or the like as companion plants. Thanks for any help.
|
|
#
?
Dec 16, 2018 01:04
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 18, 2024 21:53 |
|
|
Attracting pollinators
|
|
#
?
Dec 16, 2018 01:44
|
|