Posted on 07/20/2012 11:11:39 AM PDT by JustaDumbBlonde
Good morning, FRiends, fellow gardeners, and yet-to-be gardeners!
Thanks go out to all that participated in the thread last week. Beautiful photos were posted, and info was shared that will make big differences in the gardening lives of our members.
If you can ... please remember to add keywords that will make our threads more useful when searched. I think that I was the only one that added keywords as the thread progressed.
My thoughts and prayers are with everyone that needs a good rain. Drought is an awful situation.
I am off to the back end of the yard to tend my bees. I have 3 new queens that came in the mail yesterday, and need to get them installed before they are stressed any more. Then, if I have the strength after the heat zaps me, I need to harvest honey. This will be the third harvest in a few weeks ... the girls have been extremely busy.
What is going on in your neck of the woods?
The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you.
This thread is non-political, although you will find that most here are conservative folks. No matter what, you won’t be flamed and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked.
It is impossible to hijack the Weekly Gardening Thread ... there is no telling where it will go and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us!
Oh. Thank you.
I am so happy for you and your family, Gabz! Saw the photos and it looked like everybody had a great time. Your smile is gorgeous.
Here are the 3 other beds around oak trees, along with the beds I made on either side of the driveway. Oh, and one shot of a lily when I was playing with my camera. Thought the texture and color of the lily were nice.
Even the polk salad is wilting. Walnut, butter nut, and almond trees have dropped their fruit. We are still hauling water to water the perennials and fruit trees we planted last year. Every thing else is just about burned to a crisp.
I have a small batch of heirloom corn that I am watering - hoping to get at least one decent ear to plant next year (maybe it will be more drought resistant LOL).
Tomatoes are shaded, watered daily, and doing Ok. Still setting some fruit, but squirrels manage to get the green tomatoes before I do. This year they are even going after them before they even have a little blush - green as a gourd they are guess the little critters are thirsty!
Potted plants Tomato, Pepper, Basil, and Lemon Tree are shaded by a tree in the afternoon are doing ok for now. One Sugar Baby Watermelon and 2 Iroquois Melons are hanging in there. Quite a few flowers on the musk melon.
I think I am going to have to rethink the crops. Plant in the fall for winter garden to harvest during winter and spring. Plant stuff that matures quickly during the spring.
Plant more in pots on Patio where the afternoon is shaded and it is easier to water. Forget May, June, July, and August for the rest of the garden spaces.
Hubby is just about sold on buying a Walmart type above ground pool, setting it up next to the upper patio at the corner of the house in the back, putting up guttering to direct the roof's rain water to the pool.
Rig it up to use gravity to water the gardens. They have a pool that will hold 4 or 5 thousand gallons. Way more than we can trap in rain barrels/cans. Less expensive than a cistern. If the housing market ever gets better, the executor may sell his mom's house, so we could maybe have enough to pay for a cistern and used truck..
Have a great week. God Bless.
You know that reminds me of something kinda weird. I have not yet had to turn on the window air conditioner in the basement, except for the July 4 holiday when we were cooking and the place was full of people.
Usually we have to have it in August. This heatwave has been way hotter than usual August. Guess it is the lack of humidity?
We made some using green onions. Just washed them, put them in the dehydrater. Then blended and put into kitchen salt shaker - has big holes.
Ok, that sounds delicious. Making a mental note now to get some green onion seed and plant it when it cools off a bit. (and we’re getting all our rain and y’alls too unfortunately. my maters are so sad and drowned. as are my squash and just about everything else...raised beds doing somewhat better though)
Hope we get some of that rain back here to help you out!LOL
Rain? Do you think they got any over in the Milwaukee area? I’m back in CA, and have no idea what is happening at home.
Prayers for you and yours...
I thought ashes were supposed to be a good additive for your soil. I always turn some into my beds in the spring. Am I doing the wrong thing?
Looks great! Thanks for the seeds. I got damping off on the first few I tried to germinate. A little research and I discovered that the ghost pepper can have as much as a thirty day period to germinate so this time I am doing three seeds in a “chinese food” tray with lid instead of directly into a 1 inch tray. That should keep the fungus and gnat larvae out until they are ready to go. Wish me luck.
Septoria spot is really eating up my potatoes, tomatoes and peppers and it looks like I am going to have to start using chemicals. If I only knew how important it was I would have put clean straw mulch under everything from the beginning. It probably would have saved me a lot.
Make your own rocket stove. Do a search for “everyting nice stove”.
You can make your own rocket stove outa stuff you ususally throw in the trash. Do a search for “everything nice stove”. I gather branches from the yard under my oak tree and break ‘em into 9 inch lengths for the perfect fuel. I am hoping to start using the heat for somethign useful, like maybe distilling something. I have seeds for winter barley to use as a cover crop this winter. LOL.
We have an almost entirely shaded property, so we are learning new plants to use. Caladiums are a fav anyway, and she is using lots of different ferns, Impatiens, lilies.
We have three small sunny areas, one for the tomatos and peppers, one for the okry, and a small area by our mailbox, which she surrounded with sun plants, wandering Jew and mums.
I dont know just what she will plant in the bed around the fountain, but it will probably be caladiums, lilies, and various ferns. Yesterday I finished the electrical outlet and picked up the soil for it. I plan to place and level the base for the fountain before church and spread some dirt afterwards. Then I outta here! An afternoon of R & R before starting the final project of the summer tomorrow, building a screen back porch where someone had enclosed the porch into a storage room with plywood siding. It is not weathering well and looks terrible, so I am going to rip out the siding and two windows and re-space the vertical supports to an evenly spaced arraignment and make screens for them. Whew! Then a winter off, cabin fever and FReeping. Next year I get a reprieve from hunny-doos in the yard and get to work on my old car.
We had a wonderful time! As for the smile - I sure wish the pain would go away :-(
1 1/2 inches of rain last night. I wish that we could share some with the drought areas.
Looks like your St. Augustine is running to cover the bare areas ... yay!
I am so sorry about the fire ... please let me know how everything is now. I am lifting you in prayer.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.