For those of you who like to dabble in the dark arts of gardening. Thought I would start a thread to see if there be interesting in sharing/discussing your potions, elixirs, and general wizardry. I have set out some spring onions and potatoes, but still a little early for me as for the edibles. About three weeks to the last frost date. Supposed to be in the 70's most of the week so I moved about 90% of the houseplants outdoors to start getting them acclimated and growing again. Anyway, I thought maybe I would start a thread and wish you luck with the 4 leafer I found last week.
I built a mini green house out of a mason jar as an experiment to see if I could keep a Venus fly trap I got at wall Mart alive last year, and its still going. With any luck, ill get to feed it again this spring.
I've got snow peas, onions, lettuce, spinach, potatoes, straight neck squash, tomatoes and bush beans planted..And all is up but the taters and squash...naturally.. The last frost date is April 15th, yet, according to the signs it not going to frost anymore...This week it's, peppers, black eyes peas(cowpeas) and okra planting along with some herbs..
We were held up by the snow cover, which now seems to be mostly melted. Instead, we took a trip to Lancaster near the Mennonite and Amish farms to a dedicated seed and gardening store to purchase seeds--and now probably have enough seeds to plant ten gardens instead of the little township plot we actually plant each year. We can use the extras for replanting and future seasons. Before the snow, there was time to get the soil ready, so we're good to go asa the soil is dry enough. In our growing zone 6, the last frost date is usually May 11, so we usually don't plant anything but onions, peas, radishes, and cole crops before then, along with spinach, beets, and Swiss chard. Most of the other vegetables, like squash, green beans, cucumber, tomatoes, etc are very cold sensitive and even if they do not experience frost, planting them too early can reduce production if they survive. We're waiting to see if another plot gardener that planted peas before the snow will get any, though, as there is a risk they could rot. I love Dave's Garden's free frost date selector page: http://davesgarden.com/guides/freeze-frost-dates/#b
My daffodils. I also have tulips blooming. I have green peas up, cabbage and broccoli planted, peppers started, tomatoes started, and some flower seeds. But the daffodils are the only pics I have right now. And I am also raising goats. Our latest right after being born...still wet
Our last frost is also April 15. but I never risk it. The growing season is very long. I'll wait. But I want to plant sweet corn so bad.
The considerable strong high pressure systems on the southwest have been influencing the weather since July indicating and early spring, and as papa always said, a late Easter means an early spring..
It's raining right now and my soil has a lot of clay. And the rule is..."never work clay soil when wet". So I will wait. But where I am going to put the corn is sawdust and horse manure it probably wouldn't hurt. I have been hauling it off and on since last November. But most of it is on my pasture. It grows the best ryegrass for my goats. Good luck on your early planting. Spring fever got ya?
If you are not past your frost date yet, it is most definitely too early to be putting corn in the ground. It will mostly rot before the soil warms enough for it to germinate. I have much better luck waiting until mid may to put corn in. It is the last thing on my planting calendar.
I forgot to mention lettuce. Lettuce does better in cold weather; when it warms up it bolts and goes to seed.
Everybody talking about food crops.... I moved a year or so ago and some of the bushes I planted actually drowned from standing water. I did research and am going to plant 2 varieties of blueberry (patriot and Jersey) and Hazelnut bushes, as they are supposed to be tolerant of some standing water. Both will be used as a hedge. My "tip" - Milorganite - comes from processed sewage sludge from Milwaukee - has been around for many decades, been tested over and over and found safe - and best of all - it doesn't burn! You can put out a pile and not hurt the plant. Lowes carries it.
We can't get any humanure around here but we have millions of chickens and about twi cows for every three people. My tip is a warning. Test any horse or cow manure for persistent herbicides. Get two pots. Put your composted manure in one...mixed with some potting soil, and another pot without manure as a control. Plant some green beans in each pot. The herbicide will show up as twisted leaves. The control should be fine. You could also use a tomato plant. You can also get contaminated hay or straw. The herbicide is concentrated when the manure is composted. It doesn't affect grasses.
I love goats. That one in the pic is a real cutie. Do you keep them or sell them as pets? Ive had horses, cats, dogs, fish & birds at one time or another but Ive always wanted a goat. My backyard is pretty woodsy in the back, my goal is to make it 100% natural habitat. Right now I'm looking at mini ponds, something small that I could handle building.
I will probably sell the Billies except for a breeder or two and keep the Nannies. One Billy can service a lot of Nannies. I have 5 small ponds, none of them are over 2,500 gallons. One is empty except for plants and the others have Koi and goldfish. My biggest pond is made of cement blocks coated with sand and cement as a sealer. I want to put only Koi in the pond with just plants.
Yea, plus I am having an operation on the 4th of April and won't be able to do anything until mid May, so I am jumping the gun..
My yard is fairly open but surrounded by my ginseng farm which is basically a forest cutting off most direct sunlight . Therefore I have difficult requirements. I need some types of plants that are edible and love shade. Also water loving flowers, perennials that grow quickly from seed to fill in low spots and finally, a quick spreading type of ground cover, all, again, loving shade. I have a type of grass seed that is said to tolerate shade well so I'm okay there
The herb Gotu Kola likes a persistently moist situation but it is not frost tolerant. Yellow Archangel could thrive for you as a ground cover but you might eventually regret planting it. It can reach up and kill small shrubs up to about 3 ft in height. http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/920#b For your shade, you could try Khaki Campbell ducks, which are excellent egg producers. They might eat up your excess Yellow Archangel and any other extras you have, like Japanese beetles! http://www.metzerfarms.com/KhakiCampbellDucks.cfm?Breed=Khaki Campbell&BirdType=Duck&ID=KC Daylilies really like sun, but can tolerate more shade than many flowers. Azaleas and rhododendrons also like shade. The Japanese Kerria shrub grows in clumps with thin bamboolike stalks with yellow flowers along them, and it is shade tolerant, as is also forsythia.
Y You might try some native wildflowers. I have transplanted Bee Balm, native Azalea, Trillium, Indian Pinks, and others. I like to get flowers that bloom at different times. You could also go with some plants for foliage like Hosta. It takes a little research and planning but it can be done with good results. As for edibles cabbage, broccoli, and fruit trees....also blueberry.
These all sound good, I will work with them, thank you. I am trying for the English Country garden here, where one type of effect one works toward is having a grassy sward with irregular patches of flowers, reminiscent of your typical English open field on a sunny day where the shadows of clouds produce a unique effect.
I just checked the soil temps in my area. The temp is 60 degrees. I planted my old fashioned sweet corn today. I need 5 more degrees for my sh2 corn. I am going to put some azaleas and hydrangea tomorrow. Also some Stella d Pro daylillies. My super sweet corn will be spaced 3 feet apart in rows and I think I will plant purple hull peas in between the rows. My whole garden is mulched with pine straw. I pulled it back to get some heat on the soil. Savoy and late cabbage. Tulips and other stuff. Looks better in person. Green peas....kinda crowded. But it is what it is. I think the soil is good enough to get a good harvest.
My spring onions are doing okay. No sign of the potatoes poking up yet. Worked this weekend on building a few 4X8 beds that will be my lettuce central. Hasn't been doing well in the existing beds and gets swallowed by weeds out in the big garden, so decided to make some simple wood sided beds along on property line that is a little sunny but not too sunny. Still need to get more dirt before I plant in them. I have several varieties of leafy things to try out this year so it will help to be more organized with those. Spent like $140 and some change today on the non-edible for looking not eating plants. A lot of money but not that many plants really when a lot of them are $7-$12 each
I have been using a deep mulch to control weeds. I use pine straw here because it is abundant and I just go out and load up the pickup. I also use leaves. With the leaves I run over then with the lawnmower and it shreds them nicely for getting mulch around smaller plants. If I do have to pull a weed it comes out easily. I still have fall onions in the garden (long day) and spring onions (short day) coming along. I set out tomatoes and bell peppers today and muched them. I also planted some more potatoes and filled a raised bed and planted carrots. You can hardly see the peppers and tomatoes because of all the mulch, but they will rise above it. My cabbage and broccoli are doing well. I would strongly suggest using a mulch for weed control. My garden is completely covered in mulch...except the carrots. Even the pathways. I probably have 30 pickup loads of mulch on my garden. Other than gas it was free.
I am not the gardener. I am the ...plant killer. How ever I'm experimenting. 8 tomato plants. Three in the arid but 100 % sunny front yard. Daily water a must. Yard is on a hill with ultra drainage. Two by my porch in partial Sun. I estimate they get at least four hours of sun. They retain water better then the ones in the front yard. These are doing well and thriving so far. And finally three upside down sticking out in a Wal-Mart reusable shopping bag. Topsy Turvy DYI. They look to be doing ok so far. I will let you know how it turns out.
