any gardeners?

“Some critter chewed off the tops of some of my snow peas last night. grrrrr I'm still trying to figure out just what critter did it. I'm thinking a skunk because they are out there at night. Whatever it was didn't get inside the fence, but seemed to crawl up on it and lean in to bite them off.”

“I have a fungus that creates smallish dry looking circles in the grass, and everything within this circle dies. Time for counteractive measures, after the in-laws leave. I won't be able to get anything done for the next 4 days now.”

“Maybe it's "from" your in-laws:)”

“I gave away a few bags of cukes and summer squash yesterday. This morning I'm freezing green beans before it gets too hot.”

“Can anyone tell me what bug this is on my corn? I have a lot of them!

”

“Just came in from my daily crop harvest. I picked 21 cucumbers, a dozen summer squash and 2 gallons of green beans. I'm surprised the bean harvest is slowing so quickly. The previous 2 pickings yielded 4 gallons each time. I don't think it should be slowing down so soon.

My corn is definitely shot. That nitrogen was absolutely the wrong thing to add. Tall plants, no yield...next year will be different.

I have lots of cantalope on the vine and it's time to start making little harnesses for those that climbed the fence, so they won't separate from the plant as they gain weight. It seems I should also place some carpet remanents underneath those on the ground to keep the bottoms from rotting.”

“nimble, i never once fertilized my corn, it's now 6 feet tall and ears are jsut now starting to form.”

“Mine is 8 ft tall, nice silk, no ear. I read in a gardening book that it is helpful to give some plants a boost just before they start forming fruit. With this in mind I went to the local feed store for some fertilizer (I was out of manure). They told me that 10-10-10 would be just fine for my intended use. Still a little concerned, I called the manufacturer before putting it around the plants. They also said it would be just fine. Not so, at least not with the corn.”

“What variety of corn? Some varieties form up later in the season.”

“SC, that is deadly brain borer beetle.”

“Silver Queen. I think it's late, the silk is starting to brown.”

“SC - thanks for the link, I'll check it out. Woo-hoo!

Sass - well, I'm planting butterfly bushes for several reasons, and attracting the butterflies is only one of them. Partly I want them because I enjoy the various colors and scents, partly because they need almost no maintenance (cut 'em off in the winter is about it), partly because some varieties will grow tall enough that they will give me good shade for at least my first floor. I'll look into milkweed, though.

edit: looks like it grows up to 2 feet, which wouldn't give me much shade. However I may plant it elsewhere, thanks for the tip.
last edited: 8/06/07 2:04:49 PM”

“Tech if you want some I'd gladly mail you a root ball of swamp milkweed come fall.”

“Some varieties of butterfly bush do get really tall, but you have to research the varieties before you buy. In Florida my brugmansias were about 9 feet tall. Here, I'd have to bring them in in the winter.”

“A lady moves into her new house and spends three days planting daffodils. When she at last completes her task she steps back to admire her handiwork and envision the beauty that will come next spring. Her neighbor steps out of his house and says "lady you think this place is pretty now, wait till spring, there are daffodils every where!"”

“Good one!”

“If that is a general offer on the milkweed I'd like a clump.


Those are bugs, spirit coyote.”

“sure violin. email your address and I'll send you some once things cool off.”

“One of my zucchini plants developed powdery mildew disease and it looks like my tomatoes contracted a blight. I thought at first it was blossom rot on the tomatoes, but I just looked it up and it looks more like a leaf spot disease which is worse. I doubt I'll be getting much out them beyond what's out on the plants now.”

“RichB, gardens alive has some organic gardening compatible treatments for fungi, et al. I'm going with one of their sulfur based products for the fungus rings coming up all over my lawn (all grass within the circle dies) I was going to try copper, but koi fish are extremely sensitive to copper poisoning so I don't even want to risk it.”

“My tomatoes are too far gone to dust with anything. I doubt it will help now so I'll just get what I can out of them. I'll just get what I can out of the zucchinis too and it's only on one plant.”

“it's only on one plant.”
RichB


For now... the other thing to remember is that the fungi and whatever else will be there waiting for next years crop to be planted. IT really is best to treat the existing plants and the soil to kill any spores. Amazingly I didn't have to deal with anthracnose or anything on the tomatoes; just huge growth and the plants heaving themselves out of the ground thanks to a big storm.”

“sass, thanks for the offer, address is on its way. Do you want me to send you something for postage?”

“I read that about the fungus being in the soil. I'm not even sure I'll plant anything there next year. The soil in the spot I planted isn't very good. It really needs to be replaced with quality soil.”

“Nope, I'll just jam them in a ziplock and stuff that on a paper envelope. I may save some seeds too (I usually pick off the pods so they don't spread).”

“tb, my toms were huge plants too...untill a storm a couple weeks ago LOL! I had to prop em up, and it didnt slow them down any.

I'm seeing jsut a touch of powdery mildew on my gourd leaves now But I tend to expect it and there hasn't been much of it at all this year to my surprise!”

“Anyone here familiar with the growth patterns of columbine? Does it die down in summer, or did two of my plants just suddenly turn crispy and die for an unknown reason?”

“For now... the other thing to remember is that the fungi and whatever else will be there waiting for next years crop to be planted. IT really is best to treat the existing plants and the soil to kill any spores. Amazingly I didn't have to deal with anthracnose or anything on the tomatoes; just huge growth and the plants heaving themselves out of the ground thanks to a big storm.”
treebait
8:11:09 AM
8/07/07
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Its also good to remember crop rotation.....

I've never had blight, anywhere becuase I've always rotated my crops on a 3-4 year basis.”

“Article on adjusting gardens/techniques to match changing climate: http://robots.cnn.com/2007/LIVING/homestyle/08/08/climate.gardening.ap/index.html”

“Thats why I like open pollinated viarities rather then hybrids...

hybrids are great....so long as teh conditions are perfect for that hybrid from year to year, but open pollinated types of plants continue to evolve from generation to generation. If you grow an open pollinated viarity in you own garden year after year, you'll have a strain that is resistant to your disease, your funguses, is adapted to your soil and climate.”

“mother natuer hates me today


ran out of gas for the mower
ran out of battery for the hedge trimmer
weed whacker broke

then swept all the leaves into a pile on street and went to get trash bag and car parked right on the pile”

“mapes...good to see you back :)

mapes, nature is jsut telling you to use the old fashioned push mowers...you know, the kind that doesnt use fuel....I prefer those to power mowers....and they make scissors, jsut for trimming the edges ;)
and compost bins, perfect for leaves!”

“We've been harvesting a few tomatoes a day here. Made tomato/basil/mozzarella salad for dinner. Apparently we threw out the balsamic vinegar when we packed up the kitchen, so the salad wasn't as tasty as it could have been.

What else can I do with a million tomatoes, that doesn't include canning or other major amounts of work? Basically I'm after lunch/dinner recipies I can use up some of the maters.”

“A little salt works well.”

“tomato and grilled cheese sandwiches are my favorite! Roasted cherry tomatoes are amazing and onlt take a few minutes. Grilled are great too. Make salsa! Make pasta with chopped fresh tomatoes instead of sauce. Make brushetta for a snack at night. Start leaving them on your neighbor's porches in the middle of the night. =)”

“Yum, tomato and grilled cheese for lunch it is. :)”

“Yeaaaa, I got sweet corn. I tossed it in the boiling water within 5 minutes of picking. Yummy! The timing is perfect because my son will be here from Virginia on Thursday, my daughter on Friday. We're going to eat like pigs. OINK!”

“Hmmm.... I wonder if the Silver Queen has 'hatched' around here yet?   Probably so!


Here's a couple of books for you Lawn Rangers mentioned on CBS' Sunday Morning program yesterday:

Lawnscapes: Mowing Patterns to Make Your Yard a Work of Art
(crop circles, anyone?)

American Green: The Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Lawn
(and an article about it)”

“The quest for a perfect lawn is not something I've been cursed with, or am likely to. I spent about 20 minutes sitting in my easy chair this morning, enjoying the coffee and watching a buck and 2 does slowly eat their way across my yard.”

“good deal on the corn Nimblefoot, cant beat fresh sweet corn. Ever cook it in the husk?”

“Me neither.  I thought the geometry of the designs had an interesting angle to it (aHem)... and the History of the Suburban Lawn in the other.  I'm a serious weeds and pinestraw kinda guy.

Apparently the people who do the landscaping here at the condo are also.”

“I haven't, Birch. My son and daughter are going to be here in a few days and the plan was for a campfire and roast the corn in their husks. Sadly, it's been so dry that there is a ban on ALL outdoor fires.

Tilt, I did some landscaping at Colonial Williamsburg shortly after I retired. The lay of my land is perfect for some sort of formal garden, but I'm just not interested.”

“Bummer nimble. We had a similar burn ban here (I know we just got a ton of rain the last two days, I am assuming lots of the state has too). Woulda put a damper on the kids hike for sure.

You can also do the corn in husk on your grill.

Enjoy the kids, I hope they get along well.”

“My corn will be ready in a few days...can't wait!!”

“My mom grew up on a farm. The saying there was that if you tripped on your way in from the field, the corn was no longer fresh. Ya had to go back out to the field to pick new corn!

My farmer's market on Saturdays generally sells produce picked that morning. Unfortunatly, one can eat only so many veggies in one day, so storage becomes a necessity!”

“Why is this thread under the backpacking category???”

“Why do you keep asking the same question?!

Our garden went from saggy and dry to lush and green. I think we managed to overfill the rain gauge, which holds six inches of water. The tomatoes and raspberries should go nuts now.
Anyone ever grow kohlrabi? We've got it for the first time this year. The plant is very attractive.

Got a call from Abby's Principal and head custodian. They want me to design and install a 48' garden along the front of the building. Cottage garden with loads of spring and fall blooming hardy perennials and shrubs and trees. $800.00 budget!! Donations from other people's gardens welcomed. Should be lots of fun. Anyone have any plant recommendations please shout them out.”

“"Marijuana"

WingdingO, I carry my produce from the garden to the house in a backpack. Sometimes, if I'm a little drunk, I pass out in the garden and score a bag night.”

“Way cool, Sass! I'm so excited for you, I wish I could help!”

“I wish you could too!”