What Are Some Tips for Successful Gardening?

[Math Jeans]

I already have. I have made a couple salsas, one of them was good . The first one, I only used habaneros and no jalapinos, just a little overpowering. I'm going to start adding random things to the salsas and cooking the ingredients in ways that I just feel will make them taste good.

That's what you are supposed to do right? Wing it?

On monday we are having gumbo for dinner, and I'm planning to use the last few habaneros from my dead plant in it for a little extra spice. Might as well, I don't have enough left to make a habanero based dish (I have 3 left).

Now that I also have a dehydrator (for making chili powder), would you suggest making habanero beef jerky? With the different types I have growing it could be quite colorful .

 

[Astronuc]

I already have. I have made a couple salsas, one of them was good . The first one, I only used habaneros and no jalapinos, just a little overpowering. I'm going to start adding random things to the salsas and cooking the ingredients in ways that I just feel will make them taste good.

That's what you are supposed to do right? Wing it?

On monday we are having gumbo for dinner, and I'm planning to use the last few habaneros from my dead plant in it for a little extra spice. Might as well, I don't have enough left to make a habanero based dish (I have 3 left).

Now that I also have a dehydrator (for making chili powder), would you suggest making habanero beef jerky? With the different types I have growing it could be quite colorful .

You need to take some pictures of your peppers (and plants) and post them here.

Habanero jerky would be good.

or some Atomic Chicken Wings.

 

[Math Jeans]

You need to take some pictures of your peppers (and plants) and post them here.

Habanero jerky would be good.

or some Atomic Chicken Wings.

The problem is that it truly only broke the surface yesterday. In fact, I was lucky to see that little speck of green sticking out of the dirt, so unfortunately, I cannot get an effective picture until it gets bigger.

 

[ZapperZ]

Orchid Update

My blooming orchid has now matched its record number of flowers in a single bloom. There are 7 individual flowers now, and if the small bud at the end opens up, it will be a record 8 flowers in a single bloom. I'm observing it every single day (yes, I know, I'm obsessed).

Maybe it LIKES the cooler temperature! Who knew?

Zz.

 

[Astronuc]

My blooming orchid has now matched its record number of flowers in a single bloom. There are 7 individual flowers now, and if the small bud at the end opens up, it will be a record 8 flowers in a single bloom. I'm observing it every single day (yes, I know, I'm obsessed).

Maybe it LIKES the cooler temperature! Who knew?

Zz.

Cool!

I see Larkspur has some serious competition brewing.


A black or dark blue background would accentuate the white and pink petals.

 

[Evo]

Beautiful Zz! I'm tempted to try orchids now.

 

[ZapperZ]

Beautiful Zz! I'm tempted to try orchids now.

But don't you have to get rid of your cat first? :)

Zz.

 

[Evo]

But don't you have to get rid of your cat first? :)

Zz.

I have to figure out what to do. A friend of mine has 3 cats and a lot of beautiful orchids. I don't know how he does it.

 

[Math Jeans]

I'm a little confused.

My white lantern habaneros sprouted about 4 days before my paper lantern ones, however, my white lanters have grown only about a quarter of an inch, where only a day after my paper lanters sprouted, they are already hitting the top of the cover (that thing is growing REALLY fast). Whate the real difference here?

 

[turbo]

I have to figure out what to do. A friend of mine has 3 cats and a lot of beautiful orchids. I don't know how he does it.

Well, you have to mist orchids, so keep a spray bottle handy, and when your cat approaches the orchid, mist the cat. Afterward leave the spray bottle right beside the orchid to remind the cat. A little aversion training might do the trick.

BTW, that technique did NOT work with our ferrets. They thought of it as play, and some actually liked to shower with us, though they were not so eager to have warm, soapy baths and get their under-coat saturated.

 

[turbo]

I'm a little confused.

My white lantern habaneros sprouted about 4 days before my paper lantern ones, however, my white lanters have grown only about a quarter of an inch, where only a day after my paper lanters sprouted, they are already hitting the top of the cover (that thing is growing REALLY fast). Whate the real difference here?

Don't know for sure. Could be individual variation by species. Did you use the same potting soil for each? Peppers are very vegetative if you give them too much nitrogen, and will get bushy with lots of leaves and not so many chilies. They need enough nitrogen so that their leaves are green, not yellow, but any more than that can hinder fruiting.

If you're serious about tracking this stuff, for about $20 or less, you can buy a colorimetric soil-testing kit that will test pH, Nitrogen, Potassium, and Phosphorus. The kit will have enough color-coded capsules of reagents so that you can do at least 10-12 sets of each test. Record your results and keep track of which nutrient levels give the best results.

 

[ZapperZ]

OK, I have no idea why most of my plants decided to flower in the middle of winter. You've seen 2 of my orchids doing that. One is in full bloom, while the other already have put out flowering buds. In addition to that, both of my palm plants have been "flowering" on and off for the past 2 months.

Now, one of my many amerelis plants has decided to join the fun. This is one of the oldest plants that I have in the house. This time, it is putting out, not one, but two flowering shoots.

I'm keeping an eye out on one of the other older amerelis to see if that will do the same soon.

I like amerelis, but the flowers really do not last very long.

Zz.

 

[Evo]

OK, I have no idea why most of my plants decided to flower in the middle of winter. You've seen 2 of my orchids doing that. One is in full bloom, while the other already have put out flowering buds. In addition to that, both of my palm plants have been "flowering" on and off for the past 2 months.

Now, one of my many amerelis plants has decided to join the fun. This is one of the oldest plants that I have in the house. This time, it is putting out, not one, but two flowering shoots.

I'm keeping an eye out on one of the other older amerelis to see if that will do the same soon.

I like amerelis, but the flowers really do not last very long.

Zz.

Sounds like your plants are excited. What have you been doing to them?

 

[Evo]

I went shopping for food last night and ended buying some tiered metal stands for my outdoor plants. I also bought green onion seed (scallions) never grown those from seed before. Burpee Eggplant seeds (regular) because I know that does well in a container and they're pretty plants with purple flowers.

I got a packet of Burpee Spacemaster seeds (the only patio variety they had), but looking at this article, I think perhaps that one of the others might be better.

Which is your pick?

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050522/news_1hs22sage.html

 

[Math Jeans]

I started up three new pepper plants yesterday.

I'm now growing Savannah red, tabasco, and tepin chilis.

 

[ZapperZ]

Sounds like your plants are excited. What have you been doing to them?

I walk naked in front of them and give them a dirty look. :)

I have no idea. It just seems that every plant in the house is doing something. I've never seen a palm plant put out these small grainy looking thing, but someone told me that that's the flower.

I'm still holding out for Freckles to put out just one more flower and break her record. But after inspecting it closely for the past 2 weeks, I don't think the last bud will make it.

Zz.

 

[Evo]

I walk naked in front of them and give them a dirty look. :)

I'd probably start sprouting too!

I have no idea. It just seems that every plant in the house is doing something. I've never seen a palm plant put out these small grainy looking thing, but someone told me that that's the flower.

That's fantastic. I had a cactus that decided to bloom, looked like leopard skin and smelled like carrion. The bloom was three times the size of the cactus. I think the pictures was lost in the move.

I'm still holding out for Freckles to put out just one more flower and break her record. But after inspecting it closely for the past 2 weeks, I don't think the last bud will make it.

Zz.

That's too bad.

 

[Astronuc]

I went shopping for food last night and ended buying some tiered metal stands for my outdoor plants. I also bought green onion seed (scallions) never grown those from seed before. Burpee Eggplant seeds (regular) because I know that does well in a container and they're pretty plants with purple flowers.

I got a packet of Burpee Spacemaster seeds (the only patio variety they had), but looking at this article, I think perhaps that one of the others might be better.

Which is your pick?

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050522/news_1hs22sage.html

Spacemaster has 7'' fruit, so that's about the right size for salads. The Bush Whopper is full size. The article doesn't really offer a good comparison. You'll also need some poles or a lattice frame for the plants to grow on.

Do you have MiracleGrow fertilizer for vegetables?

 

[turbo]

I'm anxiously awaiting gardening season, but as you can see from this image taken just minutes ago, nature is not being very cooperative. Every couple of days, we get a storm, and I think we have gotten at least 10' of snow so far. We have had a couple of thaws and a couple of torrential rains to knock down the snow-pack, but it's going to be a very long time before I get to see my garden and lawns again. Heck! I can only see the tops of my apple trees.

 

[Evo]

I'm anxiously awaiting gardening season, but as you can see from this image taken just minutes ago, nature is not being very cooperative. Every couple of days, we get a storm, and I think we have gotten at least 10' of snow so far. We have had a couple of thaws and a couple of torrential rains to knock down the snow-pack, but it's going to be a very long time before I get to see my garden and lawns again. Heck! I can only see the tops of my apple trees.

Wow, reminds me of when I lived in upstate NY. It would be June before the snow would completely thaw.

 

[Astronuc]

I'm anxiously awaiting gardening season, but as you can see from this image taken just minutes ago, nature is not being very cooperative. Every couple of days, we get a storm, and I think we have gotten at least 10' of snow so far. We have had a couple of thaws and a couple of torrential rains to knock down the snow-pack, but it's going to be a very long time before I get to see my garden and lawns again. Heck! I can only see the tops of my apple trees.

Hey, turbo - I didn't know you had 'igloo' season there!

I bet on the back side, you could build a two story or split level igloo.

 

[turbo]

Hey, turbo - I didn't know you had 'igloo' season there!

I bet on the back side, you could build a two story or split level igloo.

I've already got a good start on the back side. The snow slides off the roof and onto the back deck, so I have to shovel the deck every storm, and the snow pile is almost up to the level of the deck. It's not too hard to use a snow scoop and drop the snow off the edge of the deck, but if the pile gets much higher, I'll have to use a shovel and throw the snow over the railings.

 

[turbo]

Wow, reminds me of when I lived in upstate NY. It would be June before the snow would completely thaw.

I've spent time working at a training facility at a nuke plant in Oswego, NY and the early-winter lake-effect snow was incredible. Of course, I live far inland, near no large lakes or ocean and we're getting scary amounts of snow. This winter has been on a par with winters of the '50's and 60's. We've gotten more snow this year than probably the last 3-4 years combined.

The state's emergency planners are getting nervous. If we have a "normal" spring with weeks of daily freeze/thaw cycles, that would be OK, but if we get a stretch of warm days and rain, like back in '87, and all this snowpack let's loose at once, we will have disastrous flooding that will make '87 look tame in comparison.

http://centralmaine.mainetoday.com/floodof87.html

We lost dams, bridges, houses, businesses, etc, and that was primarily due to run-off from a rain storm in the Western mountains. This time, the whole interior of the state has this incredible snow, and the water content of the snow is very high. I'm glad my little log house is high on a hill.

 

[Evo]

I started my tomato, eggplant and cucumber seedlings last night. I still need to find the bush squash I want. I also started some green onions. I think I'm going to have to get a flourescent lamp or grow light to help the seedlings when they sprout, there is not enough sun inside and they will get too straggly.

 

[turbo]

I started my tomato, eggplant and cucumber seedlings last night. I still need to find the bush squash I want. I also started some green onions. I think I'm going to have to get a flourescent lamp or grow light to help the seedlings when they sprout, there is not enough sun inside and they will get too straggly.

Definitely invest in grow-lamps. Plants can only take up nutrients and develop properly when they have a proper source of energy. Those lamps can run pretty hot, so make sure that you you buy fixtures that can be solidly mounted so that your pets can't knock them down. You'd be pretty devastated to get a call at work telling you that your place just burned down. If you can find some track-mounted pendant fixtures that are rated to take the wattage of grow-lights, that would be ideal. You could slide them back and forth as needed to provide the best coverage for your seedlings.

 

[Andre]

Definitely invest in grow-lamps.

Absolutely, if you want to have a good harvest. The question is though, is it worthwhile? Grow-lamps = energy = cost. Are you better off than buying veggies in the mall? If the answer is irrelevant, would it have been more fun to do other things with patios and grow-lamps?

 

[turbo]

Absolutely, if you want to have a good harvest. The question is though, is it worthwhile? Grow-lamps = energy = cost. Are you better off than buying veggies in the mall? If the answer is irrelevant, would it have been more fun to do other things with patios and grow-lamps?

The grow-lamps will be usable for years to come, and will only be needed when the outside temperatures/light availability are hostile to the plants. The rest of the season, they will be unused. If you're a fresh-food fanatic like me, the up-front expense and the additional energy costs are well worth the pay-back in fresh taste and availability. There is nothing like going out to the garden and picking a couple of fresh tomatoes, a cucumber, some greens, and some scallions/green onions to throw together a salad. You can't buy that flavor in a store or restaurant.

 

[Andre]

The grow-lamps will be usable for years to come, and will only be needed when the outside temperatures/light availability are hostile to the plants. The rest of the season, they will be unused. If you're a fresh-food fanatic like me, the up-front expense and the additional energy costs are well worth the pay-back in fresh taste and availability. There is nothing like going out to the garden and picking a couple of fresh tomatoes, a cucumber, some greens, and some scallions/green onions to throw together a salad. You can't buy that flavor in a store or restaurant.

Been there, done that. Only to discover that I could not compete with professional greeneries around the corner. Mind that in Holland, the veggies are just about as fresh as you'd harvest them from your own garden. The only competition you could give the commercial providers for freshness and value for money were cherry tomatoes, strawberries and sugar snaps.

 

[turbo]

Been there, done that. Only to discover that I could not compete with professional greeneries around the corner. Mind that in Holland, the veggies are just about as fresh as you'd havest them from your own garden. The only competition you could give the commercial providers for freshness and value for money were cherry tomatoes, strawberries and sugar snaps.

Understood. Here in the northeast US, most of the produce in the markets comes from Florida, California, Mexico, etc, etc, so the stuff has been grown, warehoused, trucked, and displayed for sale before you ever get a chance at getting it. For some vegetables, this is tolerable. For others (especially delicate vegetables and herbs) these delays and variables in handling/storage can kill the flavor. I love walking out on the back deck to cut some basil for a sauce or strolling down to the garden to cut some fresh dill florets for salsas and chili relishes. There are stores that carry dill seed and dill weed, but there are no stores that carry the fresh florets - the most wonderful product of that herb.

 

[Astronuc]

Well, spring is close at hand in the Northern Hemisphere. Time to start thinking about spring planting and perhaps even start some plants in trays.

Here's an idea - http://www.parkseed.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?storeId=10101&catalogId=10101&langId=-1&mainPage=gatepage&gate=CompanionPlanting&cid=pem000898 "is the Native American technique of direct sowing Corn, Beans, and Squash together as the Three Sisters. Corn acts as a support for climbing bean vines, beans fix nitrogen in the soil, and squash provides mulch and root protection!" Now I just have to figure out what to do about squash vine borers.

I'm going to try companion planting this year.


I'll be planting more hot peppers.