|
What type of plants are you interested in growing? This poll is closed. |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Perennials! |
|
142 | 20.91% |
| Annuals! |
|
30 | 4.42% |
| Woody plants! |
|
62 | 9.13% |
| Succulent plants! |
|
171 | 25.18% |
| Tropical plants! |
|
60 | 8.84% |
| Non-vascular plants are the best! |
|
31 | 4.57% |
| Screw you, I'd rather eat them! |
|
183 | 26.95% |
| Total: | 679 votes | ||
|
I've got a few stonecrop, hens and chick and ice plant inside that have aphids (apparently from other plants that were since removed). Should I try to fight them off or maybe just stick them outside? They've been sitting under fluorescent lights at ~65 F for a few months and the weather outside is going to be in the 40s. USDA says I'm zone 8b. They'd be on the south facing side of the house that gets a little warmer.
|
#
¿
Nov 25, 2013 20:52
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 8, 2024 02:30 |
|
|
stubblyhead posted:I bought a new house recently, and the previous owner (now deceased) was an avid gardener. Every couple weeks something new starts sprouting or blooming, and lots of it we have no idea what they are. Can anyone identify this flower? That looks like a cornflower/bachelor button that hasn't fully bloomed yet. (I am not a flower expert!)
|
|
#
¿
Apr 23, 2014 03:04
|
|
|
Apple rootstock isn't selected for it's fruit quality, so yeah, either graft something as a fun experiment or replace with a new grafted tree. If you are going to dig it up you might want to take a look at this system: http://www.davewilson.com/home-gardens/backyard-orchard-culture Basically you plant 2 or more trees close together, head them back so the scaffold branches are much lower and do summer pruning instead of winter to keep the height down for easier maintenance.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 23, 2014 19:21
|
|
|
AlistairCookie posted:Groundcover chat please! I guess you're looking for something shorter and smaller, but what about hostas?
|
|
#
¿
Jun 10, 2014 22:41
|
|
|
EagerSleeper posted:Speaking of the opposite of giving thingsa long life, here's a list of things that I can absolutely not grow: Lupines, Nasturtiums, and now recently Cosmos for some reason even though I did grow one last year. I have no idea about the Lupines and Nasturtiums. No matter whether full sun or some shade, these guys were either wrecked by snails or withered away slowly which sucks. Nothing on the internet says that they can't grow in zone 9, only that they're so easy and fool-proof. According to the USDA site I'm in zone 8b and lupines, nasturtiums and cosmos grow like gangbusters. USDA zones are based on average annual minimum temperatures though. Summers here rarely get above 80 for more than a few days. Here's a daylily that was given to me by a friend. This is the 3rd year after transplanting and it's really starting to bloom well now:  And a bonus mutant sunflower from my community garden plot: 
|
|
#
¿
Jul 7, 2014 01:22
|
|
|
SniperWoreConverse posted:eugh does it actually put out seeds? All the sunflowers on that plot are volunteers so I would assume so. I don't know if the particular shape of the flower is genetic though. Want me to save you some seeds?
|
|
#
¿
Jul 7, 2014 04:45
|
|
|
unprofessional posted:That trait is fasciation, and is a recessive trait in sunflowers, so you'll need to collect seed from it, breed the seed back to its siblings, and a percentage of that seed that you get should exhibit the trait. Breed two of those exhibiting the trait and all your babies in the next generation will be fasciated. Keep this up and you'll create a seed strain that you could potentially name and distribute. I just got back from the garden and a master gardener there told me the same term. When you say breed it back into its siblings do you mean: collect the seeds and plant them next year, save the ones that show the trait, plant them next year, and so on? It sounds like some work but I grow sunflowers every year anyways.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 7, 2014 23:00
|
|
|
unprofessional posted:None of next year's plants will show the trait, but they'll all have it as a recessive gene. Breed next year's normal looking plants to each other, and the following year will have 1/4 be fasciated. Cull all the normal looking ones that year (so there's no chance of them crossing with your fasciated ones), then cross fasciated to fasciated, and all your seed crop for that year should result in fasciated plants. Breeding plants is a great project, and one that pays off over the years. To have a really good success rate, you'll have to be a bit clinical - don't germinate any seeds that come from non-fasciated plants next year (or any other variety), and cull every volunteer that comes up. You don't want them getting in your gene pool and messing up your results. In water lilies, I put ziploc bags over blooms I want to germinate/collect, so that no stray pollen gets in them and I don't lose any seed. Once you have a stable seed line, you can complicate matters further by breeding the trait into other varieties! Soon you'll be the sunflower king! Awesome, I vaguely remember that stuff from Biology 101. I'll have to grow them at home since everyone grows sunflowers at the community garden, but no one does around my house.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 8, 2014 16:22
|
|
|
Leperflesh posted:It should get up to like 90 degrees or more in the center when it's cooking nicely, but don't put it up against your house, and keep the brush and stuff around your compost bins well trimmed. It's extremely unlikely you'll have a fire, but just be aware it's a remote possibility. Keep it moist and you'll be fine. I assume that's 90 C (which is ~194 F). I've always heard the target is about 160 F. I have a 3 bin setup made with pallets. The main problem I ran into was the gaps between boards were too big and would let the fine stuff slide out. I've patched a lot of them up with pieces of scrap wood. If I was starting over I would sacrifice a few of the crappier pallets and use those boards to fill in the gaps. I also started out doing lazy cold composting: pile it up and forget about it for a year or more. Now that I'm producing more garden waste I bought a machete a started chopping stuff up smaller. Mixed with sawdust from my neighbor and a little compost accelerator it makes a big difference in the speed of decomposition. I turned a pile over last weekend that had only been there for about 2 weeks and it was steaming hot, dark brown with white rot. Assuming I turn it once or twice more then it should be ready to go in another 4-6 weeks.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 24, 2014 21:52
|
|
|
The picture is a little blurry for both leaf and fruit detail but it could be a chestnut.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 24, 2014 01:02
|
|
|
Fozzy The Bear posted:I've been cutting down this 10 foot long row of Yucca trees, that must be 20-30 years old. Down at the base/root of the plants they are about 3 feet in diameter. What can I spray on the cut trunk to kill the roots? I think glyphosate needs to be sprayed on the leaves, right? The tool is a stump grinder, used to chip up the stump below the soil line. An arborist should be able to advise you on whether that would work or other methods available.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 10, 2014 23:27
|
|
|
Kenning posted:I just finished the 100th post on my carnivorous plant blog. In celebration I took a picture of every plant in my collection. Did your persian carpet flower survive? I remember liking the plant and then recoiling in horror at the linked photo of a bloom.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 19, 2014 18:43
|
|
|
 Rescued this abandoned plant from the work lunchroom. What is it? What should I do to save it? That long piece in the front is broken off. It was sitting on that dish but the bowl doesn't have any drainage holes.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 13, 2014 19:45
|
|
|
I'm not a tree expert but the branches look like an elm. Do a search for elm seeds and see if what's still up in the tree looks similar.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 13, 2015 22:24
|
|
|
Skizzzer posted:I'm in Victoria BC, so I think I'm in zone 9a? I'm just south of you so I think you're more likely zone 8a/b (and AHS zone 2 or 3). I don't know much about vines either (aside from hops), so I'd probably try a variety and see what does well.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 6, 2015 22:58
|
|
|
kedo posted:Hmmm, well that's a bummer. Also as an aside I totally neglected to read the few posts above mine and didn't realize apples were already the topic of conversation. Weeeirrd. See if you can find someone with a Fameuse (snow apple) tree and get one of the apples. It's one of the few varieties that grows relatively true to seed.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 23, 2015 21:47
|
|
|
That70sHeidi posted:I did a mixed scattered seed planting this year, which means I've come up with some stuff I can't figure out and was hoping you guys can help out again. Most of these are one of a kind, though I think the possible poppy has three friends. F is a poppy. It will stand straight up and then bloom. Once the petals fall away and the pod dries out you can harvest the seeds. Look for the little openings all around the top, then shake them out. The amount of seed you get is ridiculous. E looks like Candytuft (Iberis umbellata).
|
|
#
¿
Aug 13, 2015 05:52
|
|
|
Bozart posted:So I'm thinking of planting a flower that happens to be of "special concern" in the state I'm in. (so, endangered). I'm allowed to get rid of it if it doesn't work out, right? The usda and epa isn't going to call in a drone strike if I remove it? I think it's mostly intended for governments to consider when doing projects and permitting, in an attempt to avoid the more costly federal endangered species type stuff. They won't care about a few plants in your yard.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 20, 2015 21:19
|
|
|
vanmartin posted:Any tips on speeding up composting? My compost heap is producing the most lovely compost but demand is starting to outstrip supply. See if your local extension office offers a class. Around here it's called the Master Composters. Other than that, fine tune your ratios of C and N, keep the moisture level where it should be and turn it as often as you can, like every day.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 27, 2015 17:20
|
|
|
vanmartin posted:I'm really trying to avoid daily turning because: One of the main reasons for turning is to introduce oxygen. The bigger commercial operations actually use perforated pipes in the bottom of piles to force air into them. I've heard this type of aerating tool works well but I've never tried it myself. People will also just use a garden fork or the end of a broom handle to poke holes in the pile.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 28, 2015 15:08
|
|
|
Looks more like an iris to me.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 10, 2015 19:04
|
|
|
Alpine Mustache posted:Two plant-related questions: Search for soil or compost sifter/screen designs but as usual: cheap, easy, fast - pick two. Most of the DIY versions are a wood frame, various sizes of hardware cloth, and hopefully something to suspend the frame making it easier to agitate. I've built one that sits on top of my wheelbarrow and runs in a track on rollerblade wheels. I've seen a lot of variations of suspending the frame with rope so that it can swing. There's also the kind that sit on the ground at 45 degree angle, you toss shovelfuls of soil on it and gravity does the work sifting. If you want to get a little fancier there are mini-trommel sifters too. How about dutch white clover to go with the bugleweed?
|
|
#
¿
May 21, 2016 21:26
|
|
|
Cakefool posted:I've pulled up a bunch of turf putting down a patio, I've got 3 bulk bags and the soil that came up with the turf is fairly nice, I don't want to pay to dispose it so I was hoping to use it for a raised bed next year. What can I do to it to kill off the turf leaving me useful soil next year? So you have 3 bags of turf/sod? Pile it up, get it moist and cover with black plastic. Ideally chop up bigger chunks with a shovel and pile it so the grass is not exposed. Regular woven poly tarps will let light in that keeps the grass growing. Check on it once or twice to see if it needs more moisture. You're essentially composting the grass. PS we also have a gardening thread.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 11, 2016 16:21
|
|
|
Schiavona posted:I want to make a few sealed jar terrariums for my apartment and my desk at work. From basic reading I see that I need some pebbles, charcoal, and potting soil. Where's the best place to get these in small quantities? Any regular garden store? Garden stores should have the pebbles and potting soil. You'll get more selection on pebbles at a pet store though. They may also have the carbon.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 1, 2016 16:40
|
|
|
Elderbean posted:We have a large west facing window/nook in our living room that would look great with some plants. Any recommendations for a beginner? There's a fair amount of space in the ceiling of the nook, so I can hang planters as well. I think something with vines would look pretty cool, but I'm open to suggestions. We also have a bathroom with an east facing window that could use something. We live in Seattle, so we have short cloudy days during the winter and bright summers. A snake plant on either side of that large window would do well too. They grow mostly upright, about 3 feet high. Head out to Home Depot and browse their indoor plant section, checking the tags for light requirements.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 8, 2016 16:45
|
|
|
Stumbled across a huge christmas cactus the other day. That's a north-facing window.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 11, 2016 18:06
|
|
|
EagerSleeper posted:This just in: turns out that creating a grow room with stagnant air causes fungus problems. Who would've thunk. It was mostly my fault for trying to block out the tell-tale pink light that's associated with a grow closet, but still, my mini African violets are paying the price with white dust creeping on their leaves' edges. I'm trying to rectify the issue with better airflow and by lowering the soil pH, but I might have to chunk them out if they can't recover. I always found that red/blue LED light to be off-putting for a grow light. I've been watching some videos from weed growers, specifically growmau5, on building your own LED grow lights with COBs (chip-on-board) that have a more pleasant full-spectrum white light and are passively cooled. They seem to be easy to put together and fairly competitive with the MarsHydro-type stuff on price. Here's one of his kits with a single light: https://www.cutter.com.au/proddetail.php?prod=cut3012
|
|
#
¿
Nov 30, 2016 18:53
|
|
|
goodness posted:Is that a 60w? I'm having a hard time figuring it out. It's a 50 watt light. I'm still pretty new to this stuff and haven't actually built anything yet. The COBs run at a particular voltage and a range of current with varying efficiency. You pick the driver based on the voltage and current you want to run the COB at with enough wattage capacity for the number of COBs you want to use. So that driver supplies 1400 mA at 36V and can support a max of one COB. 1.4 amps x 36 volts = 50.4 watts, which is less than the 60 watt capacity of the driver. So it's a 50 watt LED light but you can't compare it directly to another type of LED like the MarsHydro stuff by just looking at wattage because that doesn't account for efficiency and other factors like spectrum and distribution pattern. The single light kit is about $100. The 4 light kit draws about 200 watts and is recommended for a 2x2 space (when growing weed), and only costs $300. I have no idea how the light needs of other plants compare to weed though. Even if it costs more upfront I feel like it's going to be more efficient in energy consumption over the long run, passively cooled for less noise and not have the annoying pink light, so it's worth it.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 30, 2016 22:15
|
|
|
surf rock posted:After moving into my own apartment for the first time, I ended up getting this. However, I'm a big dumb idiot and I didn't realize I would need to get an actual planter to put this thing in. Given that it's an 8.75 inch pot, it should fit in this 9 inch planter since they're both circle-shaped, right? No need for a planter unless you care about the aesthetics. I've had mine in the original pot for a few years with a plastic tray under it to catch any excess water draining out. I give them about 1/2 cup of water every weekend.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2016 21:55
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 8, 2024 02:30 |
|
|
Fitzy Fitz posted:I'm kinda interested in using clover as a winter cover crop. If you mean for a veggie garden then you're better off with something else since clover can take a while to get established. Your local extension office should be able to recommend the best stuff for your area. Around the PNW I like to use vetch for nitrogen, rye for organic matter and fava for both. If you leave some of them growing you can collect more seed for next time too.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 29, 2017 20:23
|
|