Posted on 02/01/2013 12:27:13 PM PST by greeneyes
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.
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Got our seed order lined out. Since this year is shaping up to be repeat of last year, we’re adjusting accordingly.
Going to try a large planting of mammoth sunflowers, as we’re inundated with their smaller wild cousins every year. Seeds, if it works out, will go to the chickens.
Also going to put in some Jerusalem artichokes, and hope they don’t escape. We had them decades ago in SoCal, and like them, but they are so invasive....
New this year also is giving in to nagging from townie friends: found some artichokes that are supposed to be early enough to start indoors, then get 1st year chokes before the early frosts kill them.
Oh I love squash! Thanks for that recipe...it sounds wonderful!
BGILL’s SQUASH RECIPE
Squash Soup - Saute one or two stalks of chopped celery and half an onion chopped. Then puree them. Bake a couple delicata squash and a couple sweet dumpling squash (probably any lighter flavored variety of winter squash will do). When soft, seed them and scoop out the flesh and add to the blender mixture. Also add, up to a cup of cream, a spoon of chicken boullion (I use the Knorr powder), garlic salt to taste, cayenne to taste, and water if it’s too thick but not much because you want it really thick. Puree all ingredients.
OH!! Last year we grew some Mammoth sunflowers! I had never even seen one in person before. They were a real amazing experience for me. I found just looking at them made me unreasonably happy. You’ll love them!
If I, a novice gardener, in drought-stricken Oklahoma, can grow them, I’d be amazed if they don’t work out for you too!
We’re definitely going to do them again this year!
It's getting warmer by fits and starts here in the desert. The wife already has a lot of vegetable sprouts outside--tomatoes, radishes, kale, chard, and some Asian stuff I don't know how to spell. She's got a lot more started in our little indoor greenhouse.
My flower sprouts I have started indoors are coming along nicely. I just thinned out my marigold/alyssum/zinnia seedlings I planted 2 weeks ago. The snapdragons I started last week are sprouting vigorously--once again, I put too many seeds and I'll have to aggressively thin them, probably next week. I hate doing that.
This week, I also planted some ornamental chili peppers, Explosive Ember and Bolivian Rainbow. It will still be a while until they sprout, and I'm really excited to see how they turn out. This is all new to me so I'm having a lot of fun.
I have become quite fond of amaranth. I decided a few days ago to start an experiment in sprouting them. They sprouted like TOPSY! I have several little egg carton cups lined up on our counter. We shall see.
Also found our sweet potato sprouting in the potato/onion basket, so cut its toes off and am letting it grow. It has joined the amaranth sprouts.
A) They stay viable a lot of years if stored right. B) Sounds like a lot of swapping material. C) Add the excess to your ground red pepper jar. D) Use some in a capsaicin-garlic bug spray.
Next year buy a pound, and do all of the above.
It doesn’t really ‘self-water’...the box has a reservoir of water in the bottom that you keep filled...just run water from a hose down the fill tube until water starts running out from the overflow drain. The plants access all the water they need as they need it. Just make sure that it never runs dry (it would take a breathtaking level of neglect for that to happen). I have a number of these EB’s...they grow just about anything anywhere. Drought never a concern because YOU supply the water. No weeding.
Forgot to mention the code for the Earth Box special...oops.
I have grown tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, broccoli, lettuce and cucumbers with great success in Earth Boxes...practically fool-proof. If I ever hit the lottery; I would be bale to buy enough Earth Boxes to accommodate all the varieties of tomatoes and peppers I have seed for...approaching 300...
Baker Creek has a wide selection of corns, but most of them are dent corns. I was specifically looking for a flour corn with solid-colored red ears. But thanks anyway :)
The variety I was hoping for is called Magic Manna. It has 4 different colors, but each individual ear is one solid color. Since each color has a different flavor, this makes cooking easier. Red makes a good parching or sweet bread flour, brown makes a good savory bread or gravy base. Yellow and white both taste like pancakes, but still slightly different from each other.
The one I ordered is an all-red flour corn with a good flavor when parched. Not all corns taste good parched. We’ll see how it does in breads.
Same here in Missouri. The temp rockets up and decends even faster. Poor plants are bound to be impacted.
Looking forward to hearing all about the experiences with the greenhouse. I hope Santa brings me one next year.LOL.
Sounds like you are off to a good start this year. I am glad to have the spinach, but I do wish I had planted more.
Well, that sounds irresitable. Thanks for the heads up.
I like the squash that has king or queen in the name. It tastes kinda like sweet potatoes, and makes a decent pie too.
Well, if you hurry, you could just set up a raised bed/sq foot garden - no digging needed. Planting close together means no weeding either.
Just 1 4x4 plot is supposed to give you enough veggies for 1 person for the season.
Well that makes them a very worthy plant for colder climates.
Maybe you should give away some of your extra seeds for Valentine’s day? Or maybe donate them to the local food pantry?
Will do. Welcome to the thread.
We are also making adjustments. All our favorites plus the earliest and shortest DTM available. Hope to get the short DTM started indoors, transplanted, and harvested before the July drought and heat - just in case.
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