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Weekly Gardening Thread – 2011 (Vol. 34) September 2
Free Republic | 09-02-2011 | Red_Devil 232

Posted on 09/02/2011 5:25:52 AM PDT by Red_Devil 232

Good morning gardeners. I Hope all is well with you, your gardens and your endeavors. To make saving your prized tomato seeds easier than ever try using some Oxy-Clean. Oxy-Clean? Yep the same stuff that Billy Mays pushed in all those TV commercials! Thanks to Freeper “who knows what evil?” for the heads up on this easy to do technique. Here is a link to a web page that describes the procedure - Saving Tomato Seeds

Now how easy is that?

If you are a gardener or you are just starting out and are in need of advice or just encouragement please feel free to join in and enjoy the friendly discussion. Our Freeper community is full of gardeners, each with varying interests and skill levels from Master Gardener to novice.

I hope all your gardens are flourishing.


TOPICS: Agriculture; Food; Gardening; Hobbies
KEYWORDS: garden; gardening; recipes; weekly
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To: Ellendra

Agreed...I grow ‘Striped Cavern’ and ‘Yellow Stuffer’...tasty packed with chicken salad...


41 posted on 09/02/2011 7:42:58 AM PDT by who knows what evil? (G-d saved more animals than people on the ark...www.siameserescue.org.)
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To: who knows what evil?

Yum. Smells heavenly.


42 posted on 09/02/2011 7:43:45 AM PDT by lysie
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To: tubebender

How do you know if you have blight? What does it look like — potato and tomato?

Love your postato “sculpture”. You should enter it in the Fair. Blue ribbon for sure.


43 posted on 09/02/2011 7:46:01 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
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To: who knows what evil?
I'm trying to grow yellow stuffers, but all my tomatoes are stunted this year. Only one has green tomatoes on it, but they aren't ripening. The yellow stuffers have blossoms now, my Triple Crops and my Opalkas don't even have those. It's depressing.

I'm trying a tip involving Epsom salts, but no change yet.

44 posted on 09/02/2011 7:56:54 AM PDT by Ellendra (God feeds the birds of the air, but he doesn't throw it in their nests.)
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To: afraidfortherepublic
He is a teenager...what do you think?

He did a fine job on the roofing, though.

45 posted on 09/02/2011 8:01:47 AM PDT by Redleg Duke ("Madison, Wisconsin is 30 square miles surrounded by reality.", L. S. Dryfus)
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To: Redleg Duke

Ahhh! Doesn’t he enjoy the ducks and the chickens? I ‘m far beyond my teen years, and I just love critters.

It’s good for all teens to learn practical skills, however. (and they love to hear praise from their dads, even when they won’t admit it.)


46 posted on 09/02/2011 8:23:53 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
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To: Red_Devil 232
Upper East Tennessee, USDA 6B, in the low hills and dolomite valleys of the Watauga River region, reporting here:

I've done harvested and rejoiced in all my pole beans, corn, and tomatoes, and pulled it all out already, fairly satisfied.

Why is it that my acorn quash did splendidly --- more than enough to eat and store and freeze and give away --- but the delectable Charentais Melons, which would seemingly have very similar cultural requirements, bore very sparingly and then withered?

I winder if I paid too much attention to my Charentais melons, tweaking the soil, watering every day during the worst of the hot weather, while practically ignoring my squash. The melons made a few, and then fizzled out, whiele the squash, thriving on neglect, came on like gangbusters.

I'm doing the Fall Crop thing now, with my lettuces, beets and turnips half-grown. Yeah, I'm turning green. That's probably better than turning purple-top-white-globe!

(A turnip reference there, for Those In The Know.)

47 posted on 09/02/2011 8:34:05 AM PDT by Mrs. Don-o (When I grow up I'm gonna settle down/ Chew honeycomb and drive a tractor, grow things in the ground.)
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To: Ellendra

I have used Epsom salt as a foliar spray in the past. I did not get around to it this year, and still have a bumper crop. Many swear by it, though...


48 posted on 09/02/2011 8:40:07 AM PDT by who knows what evil? (G-d saved more animals than people on the ark...www.siameserescue.org.)
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To: Ellendra
>> I'm trying a tip involving Epsom salts, but no change yet.<<

If the Epsom salts isn’t working you may need to put a partial shade over them. I don’t remember if you are in a hot climate but I’m in SC and needed to put shade over all my plants. I used a 70% shade and the ones that had been in full sun which looked all but dead took about 3 weeks to begin putting out new green shoots and are now producing. The ones I planted under shade to start with never wilted.

49 posted on 09/02/2011 9:30:16 AM PDT by CynicalBear
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To: Ellendra
what I don't understand is why all of a sudden the vine started growing hard, round, melon-or-pumpkin-looking fruits that start cracking before the blossoms even open, instead of these long, tender squash. This was the only round one I was able to pick, the others started rotting on the vine.

Squash, melons, and cukes often abort small fruit, sometimes before the flower has opened. It can result from high temps, inadequate water, or the plant's inability to support more fruit, among other causes.

If the fruit fails after the flower dies, another possible reason is incomplete pollination. You can pollinate them yourself by picking a male flower and rubbing the relevant parts on the relevant parts of a female flower. Be sure to do this no later than mid-morning.

Another possibility might be blossom-end rot (it affects more than just tomatoes).
Missouri Botanical Garden's page on blossom-end rot in cucurbits

I have no idea about the fruit shape issue. [Are you sure the two shapes don't come from different vines? I have a tomato situation like that: fruit of two different shapes and colors on what I thought was a single, multi-stemmed vine but must be two different plants growing together. The black beefsteaks are the labelled variety; the smaller dark pink oblongs with the wonderful taste are something else, probably a cross.]

If you don't get an answer here, you could ask at GardenWeb's Veggie or Squash forums (you must be a member to post, but membership is free):
Vegetable forum
Pumpkins, squash, and gourds forum

50 posted on 09/02/2011 9:55:33 AM PDT by Tea Party Hobbit (The RINOs lack all conviction, and the Dems are full of passionate intensity)
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To: EnglishCon; rockabyebaby; Texas Fossil; afraidfortherepublic; stefanbatory
How is this for a label?

Photobucket

51 posted on 09/02/2011 10:07:01 AM PDT by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: pyx; All
The color of this Canadian Blonde Brew has change dramatically since I first started it 4 days ago. I put a light behind the vessel so the color would show up in the picture

Photobucket

4 days ago

Photobucket

52 posted on 09/02/2011 10:25:16 AM PDT by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: Red_Devil 232

I am lazy my first batch will be named Beer. If it is good then I will name future batches.


53 posted on 09/02/2011 10:26:07 AM PDT by Ratman83
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To: Red_Devil 232; All
Good afternoon and thanks for the thread. Well the heat wave is back for at least a week. Lots of tomato flowers and new fruit buds drying up again. Brought out the sheets for shade on the tomatoes, since several are large enough that I would like to let them ripen on the vine.

So far this summer I've had 5 tomatoes none larger than 2” and 2 were from cherry tomatoes. Two of the larger ones were volunteers in the compost pile. I found 2 of those tomato worms, and killed them, but not before they stripped every leaf from my mortgage lifter. I grew more tomatoes last winter in three 6” pots than I have seen this summer.

We also have a huge crop of some sort of beetle this year, but the homemade garlic/pepper spray seems to be effective in the battle. We got enough cukes to eat this year, but not enough to can any pickles. Peppers have done only slightly better than tomatoes.

Next year, I think I will try an earth box for a tomato and pepper plant. At least that way I can drag it indoors during the heat.

Have a great weekend everyone. God Bless.

54 posted on 09/02/2011 10:30:34 AM PDT by greeneyes (Moderation in defense of your country is NO virtue. Let Freedom Ring.)
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To: Red_Devil 232

The Devil in Blue Jeans


55 posted on 09/02/2011 10:32:35 AM PDT by hattend (If I wanted you dead, you'd be dead. - Cameron Connor)
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To: Red_Devil 232

I need a bit of advice about planting Mums in a planter. Any tips?

Thanks,
AR


56 posted on 09/02/2011 10:48:03 AM PDT by alarm rider (The left will always tell you who they fear the most. What are they telling you now?)
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To: Red_Devil 232

Very nice, except I think that the picture of the blonde lady you posted would sell more brew! ;)


57 posted on 09/02/2011 11:00:49 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
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To: Red_Devil 232
Hey any of y’all have a suggestion for a name for my homemade beer?

Red_Devil, Cathair, The Mourning After, Door in the Wall, Friar's Bread, Heavenly Harvest, Red Nose, Katz Brew, Tiggers Furball (after the cat)..........

My home brew kit came with bottle caps emblazoned with a "B". Everyone asked what the "B" stood for. I told them it was "Beer". Plain and simple!

58 posted on 09/02/2011 11:01:31 AM PDT by Sarajevo (Is it true that cannibals don't eat clowns because they taste funny?)
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To: Red_Devil 232
I checked out your profile page (which is fantastic, BTW) and I have a question regarding your drip system in your garden. It says you drilled 1/16 holes in PVC. How do you control the water flow? I tried a similar system on a 100ft hose, and water flies everywhere unless I use drippers and 1/4in tubing. Do you have some sort of pressure reducer on your system? After having used it, do you see a downside to the system?

Cheers- S

59 posted on 09/02/2011 11:10:10 AM PDT by Sarajevo (Is it true that cannibals don't eat clowns because they taste funny?)
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To: Red_Devil 232

Tomatina in Bunol Spain. Tomatina is a tomato festival where the townspeople pelt each other with tomatoes. Anybody caught doing that at my house goes directly to JAIL!

60 posted on 09/02/2011 1:05:55 PM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
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