Weekly Gardening Thread – 2009 Vol.2 – May 22

FreeRepublic | 5-22-2009 | Red_Devil 232

[HiramQuick]

You can cut those “black thumbs off” paint them pink or your favorite color ... and still the daylillies will flourish.

I've been at this gardening bit for a long long long time ... since mobydick was a guppy .. and I have never found a plant that thrives despite how much I may neglect it. And then it mocks me as an all knowing gardener and rewards me with unbridled beauty and I didn't even have to raise a finger to bring it about.

The one difficulty ... is obvious in this thread. Everyone has hundreds of divisions to find a place for. I am a plantaholic and have a hard time discarding any plant. With daylilies, I just force myself to do it.

I've got several hundred divisions as well .... its daylilly funeral time in a few days if I cannot find a local taker.

[Red_Devil 232]

Oh I meant seeds after the season is done. I have Arkansa Travlers, Marion, Early Girl, Roma and Better Boy growing well so far. The romas already have small tomatoes.

[RSmithOpt]

You can still get it here.

[HiramQuick]

A photo of Peonys always brings up the old wives tale that ants must be present for a peony to bloom. Not true. Ants just love a good meal, and in prebloom stage, peonies emit a sweet nectar that is ant candy. When they open (the peony,not the ant) the ants go away.

Ants and peonies go together like romance and accordions (ok .. so I am a sick puppy .. sue me)

[Gabz]

Lucky you!

[cripplecreek]

The main rule with peonys is that you shouldn’t plant them too close to the house unless you plan on killing the ants.

[Gabz]

I picked up 2 interesting yellow tomato plants in WalMart. Both are supposed to be heirlooms. The one really has me intrigued, it’s called Mr. Stripey.

[Red_Devil 232]

I have been told that the Marion Tomato was originally developed here in Mississippi by a local gardener who lived the town of Marion and the tomato is named after the town. I have not been able to find out if this is true.

I am interested because the little, and I mean little, town of Marion is just about 1.5 miles up the road from my house.

[P8riot]

That’s A LOT of veggies!!!!

I have a lot of friends too.

[Gabz]

I have a lot of friends too.

Well that's a good thing!!!

I am so behind getting things in this year, it's not even funny.

[Gabz]

It may bery well be true. I recently read a book (copywright 1962) entitled “Garden to Order” about the Burpee seed company and the Burpee men. It was really fascinating, but there’s all kinds of neat anecdotes about how different plants have gotten their names.

[OB1kNOb]

I need sure fire (non-lethal) ways to scare deer away from my garden. They wiped it out this week under cover of darkness with my dogs sleeping not 100 feet away. I’m so mad I could spit. I’m about ready to shoot them, but I won’t. Normal remedies don’t seem to work and fencing isn’t an option. ARRRGH!

[P8riot]

My secret is chickens. I "free range a few dozen fryers" in "chicken tractors" in the areas I want to plant the following year. The chickens take care of bugs, grubs, and weed seed, scratch up the soil all while adding nitrogen. They do almost all of my prep work for me, all I have to do is turn it over a couple of times and plant. The chickens love it as it is their natural diet, and they are better tasting than anything you can get in the store (if you don't mind processing them).

During the growing season I turn my layers loose in the garden and they take care of any bugs that attack my plants, and keep down the weeds as well. They REALLY like Japanese beetles.

This isn't "organic" farming. This is "natural" farming.

[Gabz]

I hear you about fencing not being an option, but how about tomato stakes, then string wire or twine between them. Tie foil pans or CD or anything else that moves in the wind and is kind of shiny along the wire/twines.

Both human and dog hair either stuffed into old panty hose or just scattered round the perimeter is also good. Deodorant soap in pantyhose is another idea.

Twinkling Christmas lights .......

[Red_Devil 232]

Check out last weeks Gardening thread. One of the first topics discussed was deer problems.

Weekly Gardening Thread - 2009 Launch - May 15

I am sure you will get some advice on this weeks thread also.

[Gabz]

Way Cool. My husband had been making noises about chickens, but I haven’t heard anything on the subject in a while. I’ll show him that chicken tractor link and maybe he’ll start thinking about it again!

[mad_as_he$$]

Basically you are out of luck - sorry. I have seen everything tried but nothing but very good fence is 100%. May be new dogs? FReeper Sasquatch had a doe that would hold open holes in the fence for the fawns to get through.

[Marmolade]

Our tomatoes are going in tomorrow. The plan is to get the bulk of our garden in by tomorrow. We planted potatoes, peas, cucumbers, & kohlrabi after work this week. The ground has been too wet with frequent rains to do much before now. And we had a freeze warning on Monday night. At least we’ve got terrific weather today and tomorrow.

[HiramQuick]

I don't spend a lot of time on a vegetable garden. I plant primarily heirloom tomatoes .. they are a pain compared to the hybrids with disease tolerance .. but the taste is where most heirlooms excel. An old standard “Rutgers” may be my favorite. This year I threw in some green beans, and always 2 dozen Bell Peppers and a dozen banana peppers.

I grow potatoes in 5 Gallon buckets, but I confess, I do so more for the foliage. Potatoes spilling out of a bucket is a marvelous backdrop for my perennial beds. different textures make the Achille, coreopsis, roses, salvia and joe pyweed “pop out” And then of course in Sept, I dump the buckets and have no dig potatoes. The potatoes are started in 3” of soil in the bucket, as the plant grows every 3” I cover it up with compost until the bucket can't hold any more. I've got pot. plants that are a good 18” out of the buckets now.

I'm a lazy fat boy .. I don't dig potatoes, but oh my ... the taste of fresh new potatoes. Incredible.

I hope global warming takes hold ... I'm tired of covering plants this late in the season. May 11th is our frost free date.

Good luck with your gardening this weekend.

[Red_Devil 232]

Those 5 gallon buckets for potatoes sounds good. They would be perfect for me. Can I use any type of potato or do I need to use a seed potato? I sure do like new red potatoes!