any gardeners?

“Did someone say fly's??? I just got attacked a few weeks ago. Aleast 100 in the basement, a few upstairs, and yet more stuck inbetween the window and screen in a few windows.

I have no idea where they came from,,cockroaches starve in my house,, but I'm thinking the decaying cicadas might have something to do with them,,,I also notice late this spring a squirrel setting up shop in a chimney. I'm thinking the CO gas from the H2O heater might have did it in and the flies came in thru the exhaust gas vents.

Who knows,,,they're gone for now,,thanks impart to Jezebel, my four-legged fly trap.”

“Save $20 on orders of $40 or more at Gurney's.

I've ordered from them before. They're just OK but the deal rocks.”

“tree - It's real funny when she goes after them. I can can them in one shot, but she'll waste 4 rolled up newspapers trying to hit one!

LOL!


I had to pull up my pumpkin plants yesterday, along with my broc plant and one califlower. The Butternutt sqwash s next if it doesn't get it's act together.

Lack of mulching has done me in this year. I try to keep the soil moist, but with school I didn't have enough time to buy any mulch and the soil dries out.


My tomato plants are about ready. I picked a few yesterday tat were almost done turning; it's going to be a real bumper crop.

My hot peppers took off after I put them under a shade tree. They were wilting under direct sun light and have been exploding ever since.

I'm planting my second sow of spinich and Romain and carrots today or tomorrow. The Cuccs have been out standing and the star of the year.


Very mixed results this year, that's for sure, but in the front yard, my Northern Oak that I planted in spring has jumped up about a half a foot at least! What a beut she is!”

“Diatomaceous Earth for the slugs and other bugs. Perfectly safe for pets.”

“Just made an awesomw salad from the garden. Two varieties of tomatoes,green beans,yellow squash, zuchinni,brocolli and green peppers, topped with oil and vinegar and some sheeps milk feta cheese. Yumilicious!”

“While watering the peppers today, I took a close look and I saw what I think are peppers starting to grow on the branches. I can hardly wait!”

“U know i am a landscaper on the side (i am also a chef) rather than watering them everyday u should install a drip system that is all peopel use to water their plants out here in ne mexico.

They are super easy to install any idiot can do it!!”

“Love the tomatoes fresh from the garden-- if I don't do anything else, I usually plant tomatoes (early girl, burpee big boy, romas and this year some cherry tomatoes as well.)

I also plant basil and am hoping to finally get some peppers this year -- apparently was planting them in a spot that wasn't sunny enough in prior years, but this year, we cut down the tree that was causing the shady spot.... :-)

have had a few tomatoes, but the weather's been a bit weird in Michigan and it seems that they are taking longer to ripen... but they should be bursting with tomatoes when we come back from Alaska!”

“Lots of fruit on our single Patio variety tomato plant, but none ripening yet. The jalapenos are slowly forming, hope they get done before frost.

The dahlias have gotten so lush a couple are falling over from the weight of all the flowers. Heavy wind and a brief hard rain yesterday afternoon was hard on a few of the hollyhocks, but I tied the leaners up to some poles and all seems right with them this morning.”

“BL, all my plants are in pots, and I move them around to maximize sunlight, so a drip system isn't possible. Besides, I enjoy the ten minutes I spend watering my plants everyday and communing with them.”

“I agree, pink. I have loads of tomatos that are just green! Every week for the last month, I keep thinking .... any day now they'll turn!.

One by one they do, but not all at once, which I guess is a good thing!

My Tam Hot peppers, Hot banana peppers, red hot cherry peppers and cayan (finally!) have provided LOADS of fruit! I've become very good at homemade salsa!”

“laqtis...
it seems like usually by this time in summer I have more tomatoes than I know what to do with!

Oh... yummy-- home-made salsa-- my friend makes it, too. I've never been brave enough to can tomatoes-- I understand that if you do it wrong, you can get really ill.... Otherwise, I would-- my hubby's allergic to onions... the only "salsa substitute" that we have found is La Preferida's Tomatoes & Jalapenos!!!! But it is very hot to the average person (we've burned our taste buds a long time ago, so it doesn't seem quite so hot to us!)”

“It's been too cool around SE MI. Our peppers aren't ripening and our pumkins are still blossoms! The raspberries, on the other hand, and the lettuces and snow peas, are still producing. =)

I was really looking forward to picking a pumpkin from the garden this year though.”

“Well I'm off to the back yard for a busy weekend.

The new place is beginning to take shape. My shade garden is now well planted with rhododendrons, azaleas, mountain laurels, pieres, ferns, hostas, daylillies and more. I found two curved concrete benches and made a nice, secluded sitting area.

My blueberry plants came FedEx yesterday. I bought them from Water’s Blueberry Farm in Missouri. They sent really beautiful, healthy looking 3 year old plants for far less than I could find anything comparable here. I heard about them from a co-worker who got some from them last year. He had a good crop this summer. I can highly recommend these people. Give them a try: http://www.watersblueberryfarm.com/plants.html.”

“What the heck are pieres?

My garden is a relatively clean slate now. Time to start the autumn/winter garden. Frances took out all my bean poles, so no beans this time around. Thanks to the limb breaking affects of Frances, I do now have more sunlight in the south part of my lot.”

“Pieres japonica commonly known as Andromeda.”

“OK, still not familiar with it. I'll have to look it up later. Must not grow in the south I guess.”

“Prolly not. You find it wild in the mountains and it needs shade.

It would help if I spelled it right http://images.google.com/images?q=Pieris%20japonica%20&num=20&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&newwindow=1&c2coff=1&sa=N&tab=wi”

“Ah, family Ericaceae. Relative of my namesake. Looks like a cross between bleeding hearts and camellia. I've seen them before, but never knew their name. Coolness.”

“I got the blueberries planted just as it was getting dark. Again - really nice plants.

I didn't get everything done I wanted too but did more than I thought I would. Just finished washing all the soil off of me - I wash good and filthy.”

“Maybe we didn't get enough sun or my husband planted his tomatoes late in the season, but very few turned red. The plant guru on this tv show says to but the vines and hang them in your garage to rippen. I think he wants it done before it gets too rainy here in WA.

They are tearing down a forested area behind where I live, and a possum has been eating into some of our tomatoes. He probably used to live in those trees.”

“If you put the tomatoes inside paper bags, they'll ripen better as they only ripen in the dark.”

“Here in north/central Ohio, my garden is about finished. I planted 55 peppers plants this year and had a wonderful crop. 8 different kinds in all kinds of colors. Planted watermelons for the first time. I'll be picking them in the next week or so. My tomatoes were below average this year. Cucumbers were fair.”

“The only crop that's done well for me here in NE Fl. is malabar spinach, a tropical vine. It's perennial here, annual elsewhere. Yummy stuff and very good for you.”

“looking foward to spring for the garden. This year I am going to go all out and make the whole backyard an eden. I am starting seeds galore inside. SO far its just pansies and yellow and red alpine strawberries but I have tones more seeds and am itching to plant em.”

“I've got swiss chard, onions, garlic, shallots, broccoli, cabbage, and kohlrabi going in the garden right now. The lemon bee balm and the lemon grass are the only herbs really going outside. The mint and sage are in the greenhouse, along with the my peppers.
I've got A LOT of things on order, though. The only thing holding me back is my old junker car that's sitting where I plan to install some raised beds. That's going away this weekend.”

“you folks down south!!!!!


it is in the sigle digits here today.


Seed catologues have started to come in.


We'll order soon and then get busy in the basement with the grow lights.”

“Yep Lee, I grow more things in the winter than the summer. Too many diseases in the summer, for most plants. I am getting some products from "Gardens Alive!" a company that promotes organic gardening. They claim their products will help even down here, with all the heat and humidity.”

“I'm going to be starting my seeds indoors in a couple of weeks. Our last frost is usually around the end of March, but sometimes as late as early April. This year I'm planning to do jalapeños, bell peppers, squash, roma tomatoes, and okra.”

“I am usually a gardener, but I'm holding off until my house sells. I don't know where I'll be living yet.

Still using canned jalapenos, dried ceyan, dried thyme from previous years”

“The 2 peppers I've had really good results with are ancho and a spicy variety called "red peter." Dang things do look like little peepers.”

“I have to do all my gardening in large pots because the only viable gardening area in our yard is taken up by my wife's flower garden.”

“lol bit, you got pushed outta the garden eh??

I did the same to mike. He's not allowed to even mow that back. Infact the lawn is going to compleatly disapear and he can't say nothing about it! :P”

“The wife is making me sod over the garden area. We planted a lot of stuff last year but I never had the time to pick anything.

The dog had a field day with the tomaotes”

“Nah, I was never really in it. It was already a flower garden when we bought the place. I didn't have any interest in vegetable gardening then.”

“WK...I just put edging around mine and it kept the dog out for somereason and when I took it down for the winter she went in it. HUH. Well wk, you'll have more time this year being as your backpacking days are going to be limited cause of the kid :)”

“WK, at least she isn't making you wash the outside of the house.”

“It is mine to take care of. Barbie has no interest in it what-so-ever.

I have to convince her that I want to keep a small section for vegitables and go from there.”

“anyone remember the old gardening show called Square Foot Gardening. It was shown on PBS. I think the guy who did the show is dead but his books are still out there.
he proved that growing flowers or veggies was easier by the square foot than by a huge area.

cool found the website
http://www.squarefootgardening.com/”

“Ewker, I remember it well. It's the basis for my raised beds actually. 4x4 foot and 4x5 foot beds, so I can reach everything. The ground around here is sand; it's cheaper to build beds and fill it in with good growing soil than the amend the whole yard.”

“Iv'e got cherry blossoms and crocus blooming in Seattle already.”

“Cool, I can't grow cherries or crocii here.

I do have a great crop of Swiss chard coming in, and the kohlrabi are going like gangbusters. I'm putting in the rest of my potatoes tomorrow, too. Red pontiacs, lol.

My onions and garlic are doing well, but some darn critter ate most of my shallots. Grr, I was really looking forward to early shallots. I still have time to put more in, though. I do have one thing blooming heavily right now; a Chinese rose called "Mutabilis;" the blossoms change color over several days. It's very pretty. I'm planning out some arches, for my vines, and maybe some indeterminate tomatoes. Those things get 10 feet tall here. How do tomatoes do in the northwest?”

“In this part of the northwest, tomatoes do great if you are inland a bit...the coastal winds tend to discourage any fruit otherwise. Here, all of the fruit trees are getting buds, the daffodils and crocus are up, but i don't plant this early, or the slugs will take everything!”

“This is the only time of year I really dislike living in Michigan. Not because it's snowy and cold but because of the TTers telling me about all their gardens and flowers. I hate having to wait until Mother's Day before I can plant anything.”

“Sass, this is why you plant snow drops and cold hardy crocii. This is when they'd start blooming for me when I lived in Lapeer, Mi.

Also, I need to build 3 more potato cages; I put in 3 yesterday. Big piles of dirt, in chicken wire cages, covered with leaves. I just keep heaping leaves on top, and at the end of the growing season I have potatoes and really good compost.
last edited: 2/06/05 7:23:25 AM”

“My crocus are cold hardy but they won't poke up for another month. Don't have any snowdrops but maybe I'll plant some this fall.”

“You could always force some bulbs indoors for color now, and dump them in the ground when they're done.”

“By the time they get out of the 'fridge it'll be spring, lol. Next best thing, I went and cut some forsithia branches and brought them inside. Hopefully next week they'll start to open up. Nice big fat buds on them.”

“How're the buds coming Sass?

I'm ordering seeds and plants this weekend. Someone keep me from ordering apple trees, please! I've wanted them, have a spot for them but shouldn't, really shouldn't if there's the chance I'll move.”