What Are Some Tips for Successful Gardening?

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Gardening is a cherished activity for many participants, with roots tracing back to childhood experiences and family traditions. Organic gardening methods are favored, emphasizing the use of natural techniques over chemicals. Current gardening efforts include cultivating perennials like blueberries and raspberries, alongside plans for vegetable and herb gardens. Participants express a desire for more space to garden, reflecting on the challenges of apartment living and the joy of nurturing plants. The discussion highlights cultural differences in gardening practices, particularly contrasting American and Spanish lifestyles regarding home and garden ownership.
  • #1,701
We had a freeze overnight here last night too. The growing season started last week, so I've been getting freeze advisories. But, for the most part, I think most have likely been saved by all the rain, so haven't likely gotten a chance to do more than get seed in the ground last week when we finally had a few dry days. I don't think anyone is far enough along in planting to have plants to protect yet. I always wait for that one last May frost, because I know we always get one.

Though, it was a wonderful day for mowing the lawn and moving the last of my "stuff" from the old house to new yesterday. I'm glad it hasn't gotten too warm while I'm still doing so much work. Though, the lines where I'm mowing the lawn are looking more like a topography map than straight lines...the yard is very hilly, but for this area, it's pretty mild and I think would still be called a "flat" yard here. :smile:
 
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  • #1,702
Moonbear said:
As I mowed the lawn today, I spotted a few ferns trying to grow. I spared them with the lawnmower, and am now thinking that I should look for some of the varieties that like wet soil (some don't) and plant those in the yard. I either need to plant something tolerant of wet soil or I need to put in French drains or something like that. The low lying areas of the yard are definitely staying very wet. No wonder there are so many maple trees here...maples LOVE moist soil. There are some baby maples trying to grow, and I avoided mowing that part of the yard too...I'm going to give a few of the babies a chance. Since I have no intention to move again, it'll be nice to watch if a few of the baby trees survive and to see them grow.
MB, you might want to ask a landscape company to assess if raising the areas up will help, they will have to project where the water will go and how it will drain. I had a yard raised and re-graded before, it was really worth it in the long run.
 
  • #1,703
Evo said:
MB, you might want to ask a landscape company to assess if raising the areas up will help, they will have to project where the water will go and how it will drain. I had a yard raised and re-graded before, it was really worth it in the long run.

I don't think that'll help in this case. Just looking at the overall topography of the land, if I raised that area enough to shift drainage to along a property line instead of diagonal across the backyard, I think I'd instead end up putting the house in a bowl. And, I kind of like having the "texture" to the yard. I think with some creative planting, and a little guidance from some low retaining walls, I can channel the water through a path that makes it more help than hindrance in terms of landscaping (I've always wanted a water feature, so I could also consider creating one along that path and when it rains, it just refills the fountains...water features are very popular around here for that very reason, with the mountain terrain, it gives people a way to channel drainage in an aesthetically pleasing way. What I really might need to do is just lower one area a bit where the water pools some so it just continues running off the hill instead of sitting.
 
  • #1,704
turbo-1 said:
I did the weed burn-off yesterday

grass_fire.jpg
 
  • #1,705
Now, now Borek. The wildfire didn't consume THAT much property.

Our cold-tolerant plants are now in the ground. This morning, my wife and I planted and mulched cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, and leeks. We also put in seeds for lettuce, spinach and Swiss chard. We had planned to set out our peppers, tomatoes, etc, too, but the long-range forecast predicts frost on Tuesday night.
 
  • #1,706
It is a bush with cone shaped flowers lots of little ones form the cone, the cones are about 1.5 inches long and they are blue, what is it please, can't find it on google.
 
  • #1,710
My wife brought some tomato plants home from her sister's house this afternoon. She starts the plants in a south-facing daylight basement room. Unfortunately, there is not enough sun, so the seedlings are always "leggy" (skinny, tall plants incapable of properly supporting their own foliage in a proper garden with wind and rain).

To anybody with such tomato seedlings, PLANT THEM DEEP! Trench the rows if you have to, and plant the seedlings kind of "laid over" if that's what it takes, but only leave a few of the top branches out of the ground when you're done. Tomato plants have quite a number of indeterminant structures that will develop into roots if they are buried in moist, nutrient-rich soil. Even the crappiest, gangley-looking, tomato plants can develop impressive root systems if you bury them deeply enough. If you go to a greenhouse or nursery and see really spindly tomato seedlings, you may be able to get them very cheaply. Bury them deeply, and they will rival the performance and yield of the healthiest-looking seedlings costing much more.
 
  • #1,711
Purple is now in full bloom. All the buds are fully opened, and I expect the bloom to last for at least another month.

img4935.jpg


This, definitely, is the largest bloom (both in terms of number of flowers and the size of the flowers) that I've gotten out of this orchid plant in the 4 years that I've had it.

Zz.
 
  • #1,712
Wow, that's a gorgeous orchid, Zz!

I spent yesterday and today out learning why this yard has no landscaping. The soil, if you can call it soil, is a mixture of clay and rock. Nonetheless, with some persistence, I got a couple of willows, a couple of ferns, and some lilies planted and have a big pile of pretty rocks.

I have some vegetables I was going to just plant in the front of the house, but under the rock, there's more rock, so that's going to take more work than planned too. But, at least I know what I'm tackling now. I'm still just going to plant the few vegetables in the front for this year, because I need to work on that bed anyway to prepare it for flowers eventually, so might as well use it for some veggies this year as I work on parts of it. But, long term, this means it'll be raised bed gardening for me.
 
  • #1,713
wolram said:
It is a bush with cone shaped flowers lots of little ones form the cone, the cones are about 1.5 inches long and they are blue, what is it please, can't find it on google.

I think it might be a Ceanothus species.
Maybe C.Skylark or C.Arboreus?
http://www.plant-encyclopedia.net/genus-ceanothus.aspx
 
  • #1,714
Try eating it, and let us know if it's not poisonous.
 
  • #1,715
NeoDevin said:
Try eating it, and let us know if it's not poisonous.

Okay, but if it kills me i will blame you. :-p
 
  • #1,716
Moonbear said:
Wow, that's a gorgeous orchid, Zz!

I spent yesterday and today out learning why this yard has no landscaping. The soil, if you can call it soil, is a mixture of clay and rock. Nonetheless, with some persistence, I got a couple of willows, a couple of ferns, and some lilies planted and have a big pile of pretty rocks.

I have some vegetables I was going to just plant in the front of the house, but under the rock, there's more rock, so that's going to take more work than planned too. But, at least I know what I'm tackling now. I'm still just going to plant the few vegetables in the front for this year, because I need to work on that bed anyway to prepare it for flowers eventually, so might as well use it for some veggies this year as I work on parts of it. But, long term, this means it'll be raised bed gardening for me.

You can make a raised bed. That should help even with the bad soil.

So what are you going to grow? I can give you my grocery list! :)

Zz.
 
  • #1,717
ZapperZ said:
Purple is now in full bloom. All the buds are fully opened, and I expect the bloom to last for at least another month.

img4935.jpg


This, definitely, is the largest bloom (both in terms of number of flowers and the size of the flowers) that I've gotten out of this orchid plant in the 4 years that I've had it.

Zz.
<GASP>

OMG, Zz, they are gorgeous!
 
  • #1,718
My organic-gardener neighbor raised a bunch of extra seedlings, and a few days ago he told us that we could have all we wanted. 4 heirloom varieties of tomatoes and several varieties of sweet peppers. I picked up 48 tomato plants today and hoed up a raised bed and mulched it with newspaper and straw. He also told us that we should use his greenhouse to start our cucumbers (which I took advantage of today) and to top it off, he gave us a mini-greenhouse that he built last fall. It's a little larger than 3x3' and about 7' tall. with lots of shelving He had a bunch of aluminum framing and aluminum-framed windows in storage, and after he planted so much more stuff in his existing greenhouse than the little one could ever hold, he decided to build a large greenhouse on the side of his barn, and turn his present one into a garden shed. Gotta love neighbors like that. My wife is thrilled - she's been wanting a green house for quite a while but the cost of the commercially-built ones and kits kept us out of the market.
 
  • #1,719
Hairy Vetch Mulch Activates Genes For Phytonutrients In Tomatoes
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080405095039.htm
Hairy vetch mulch activates, in regular tomatoes, some of the same metabolic pathways and genes that are activated in biotech tomatoes by the insertion of the ySAMdc gene, which makes tomato plants more vigorous and makes their fruit more tasty and nutritious.

. . . .

Mattoo found that tomatoes reacted to the extra polyamines produced by the new gene the same way that they reacted to the yet-to-be-determined compounds or signals from hairy vetch. He saw significant buildup of amino acids and choline, an essential micronutrient for brain development, as well as other nutrients or antioxidants in both transgenic and non-transgenic plants grown in hairy vetch.
. . . .

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/afcm/vetch.html

Grow tomatoes with hairy vetch which prevents other weeds from growing.
http://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s1-5-16-1561,00.html
 
  • #1,721
A co-worker just gave me a bag of something she calls "mint". I've grown mint before and I don't recognize this. It doesn't taste like mint either. It has a very strong grassy tatse, but it does have a very slight hint of mint, like mint was near it and it absorbed a bit of flavor, it's that unnoticeable.

Here's a picture (sorry it's my camera phone)

A GOOBF card for the first positive ID.
 

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  • #1,722
I think it should be this that you tasted before http://expat21.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/mint-leaves.jpg
 
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  • #1,723
Evo said:
A co-worker just gave me a bag of something she calls "mint". I've grown mint before and I don't recognize this. It doesn't taste like mint either. It has a very strong grassy tatse, but it does have a very slight hint of mint, like mint was near it and it absorbed a bit of flavor, it's that unnoticeable.

Here's a picture (sorry it's my camera phone)

A GOOBF card for the first positive ID.
Here you go:

http://vietherbs.com/herb-directory/vietnamese-balm/
 
  • #1,725
Sounds like a banana mint, but I will be darned if I can find a picture of the leaf...

edit: or maybe this: http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/menniliaca.htm"
 
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  • #1,727
Well, take some leaves home and see if Foofer goes nuts. There are LOTS of species of catnip and most of them have serrated heart-shaped leaves.
 
  • #1,728
Oh dear, it DOES look like catnip!

This is exactly what it looks like!

https://www.artisticgardens.com/catalog/images/Catnip02.jpg

http://aboutcatnip.com/

Ahahaha, she's been using catnip, thinking it's mint!

Well, it is in the mint family, that would explain the odd smell!

Dr Foofer will have fun tonight. Thanks turbo. <slides 1 GOOBF card into turbo's computer>
 
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  • #1,729
Evo said:
Oh dear, it DOES look like catnip!

Uh-oh...how much did you eat, Evo?
 
  • #1,730
lisab said:
Uh-oh...how much did you eat, Evo?
Not much, it had a very grassy-weedy taste. *Evo lies on her back and swats the computer mouse*

How could she not know what mint is? Dare I bring her some real mint next week?
 
  • #1,731
Those leaves you photographed looked fairly large compared to those of most members of the mint family, but like I said, there are countless varieties of catnip and there may be some that have pretty big leaves. It seems that most members of the mint family have LOTS of variants. Give the leaves a "cat scan" and see what happens... ;-)
 
  • #1,732
turbo-1 said:
Those leaves you photographed looked fairly large compared to those of most members of the mint family, but like I said, there are countless varieties of catnip and there may be some that have pretty big leaves. It seems that most members of the mint family have LOTS of variants. Give the leaves a "cat scan" and see what happens... ;-)
The leaves are HUGE.
 
  • #1,734
And she told people that she had a lot of mint growing in her "organic garden" and sold a bunch to some startled people here that had said they'd buy mint. She had this left over and just gave it to me. o_O
 
  • #1,735
they look more like the leaves of a tree to me, maybe something related to a cottonwood
 
  • #1,736
Proton Soup said:
they look more like the leaves of a tree to me, maybe something related to a cottonwood
Cottonwood? The cottonwoods up this way have long shiny leaves that look like willow leaves.
 
  • #1,737
They look more like tree leaves than mint or catnip. Look at the pictures of basswood and mulberry tree leaves here:
http://saltthesandbox.org/trees/oval.htm

The leaves look like those of a tree that used to grow in my backyard when I was a kid...they grew like weeds, absolutely everywhere, but if you didn't pull them out when they were still small, they turned into huge trees in a very short time...REALLY fast growing!
 
  • #1,740
Evo said:
A co-worker just gave me a bag of something she calls "mint". I've grown mint before and I don't recognize this. It doesn't taste like mint either. It has a very strong grassy tatse, but it does have a very slight hint of mint, like mint was near it and it absorbed a bit of flavor, it's that unnoticeable.

Here's a picture (sorry it's my camera phone)

A GOOBF card for the first positive ID.
In our yard, we have two plants with similar leaves - garlic mustard and anise hyssop. Both can be found on prairies.

Garlic mustard is an invasive species and is one of the first greens. It takes a bit like mustard greens and faintly like garlic.
http://www.nps.gov/plants/ALIEN/fact/alpe1.htm
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=ALPE4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garlic_mustard

Anise hyssop (or some variant of the Lamiaceae family) - has a minty taste/flavor and a bit like anise or licorice

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyssop
http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/anise_hyssopx.htm - a.h.
www.kfunigraz.ac.at/~katzer/pictures/agas_01.jpg[/URL]
[url]http://media.photobucket.com/image/anise%20hyssop%20leaf/mthomasg316/garden%202009/DSC05218.jpg[/url]

If tastes a bit minty and looks like the images in the last two links, it's very likely a variant of anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum).
 
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  • #1,741
Astronuc said:
In our yard, we have two plants with similar leaves - garlic mustard and anise hyssop. Both can be found on prairies.

Garlic mustard is an invasive species and is one of the first greens. It takes a bit like mustard greens and faintly like garlic.
http://www.nps.gov/plants/ALIEN/fact/alpe1.htm
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=ALPE4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garlic_mustard

Anise hyssop (or some variant of the Lamiaceae family) - has a minty taste/flavor and a bit like anise or licorice

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyssop
http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/anise_hyssopx.htm - a.h.
www.kfunigraz.ac.at/~katzer/pictures/agas_01.jpg[/URL]
[url]http://media.photobucket.com/image/anise%20hyssop%20leaf/mthomasg316/garden%202009/DSC05218.jpg[/url]

If tastes a bit minty and looks like the images in the last two links, it's very likely a variant of anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum).[/QUOTE]Oh dear, that one leaf picture does look identical.

I can'y believe this woman thinks this is mint.
 
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  • #1,742
I take it that Dr. Foofer did not swoon over the "catnip"? There are so many variants of herbs in the mint family (and despite the very large leaves, it is likely that the plant is in the mint family from the appearance of the leaves) that you could spend a lot of time trying to nail it down. There is an organic seed vendor a few miles from here, and they have a mind-boggling array of herbs that have been crossed and selectively bred so that you can buy seeds for basil that tastes "lemony", some that has hints of anise, and mints that wander VERY far in flavor and scent from peppermint, spearmint, and wintergreen.

It's nuts what these people can produce in a few generations with greenhouses and controlled conditions (no genetic modification). Gregor Mendel would be proud.
 
  • #1,743
Evo said:
Oh dear, that one leaf picture does look identical.

I can'y believe this woman thinks this is mint.

i can. the alternating pairs of leaves about a central stem is the classic mint growth form to look for. and it appears to be in the "mint family" also. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mint_family
 
  • #1,744
I'm buying a house, and planning on putting in a hedge of rose bushes around my front yard (both for looks and privacy). Can anyone give any advice on how to do that? What kind of roses should I get? (I want something about 5-6 ft tall, with either white or dark red flowers, and dense enough that you can't see through it very well) How should I prepare the ground? How far apart should I plant them?

Thanks in advance.
 
  • #1,745
NeoDevin said:
I'm buying a house, and planning on putting in a hedge of rose bushes around my front yard (both for looks and privacy). Can anyone give any advice on how to do that? What kind of roses should I get? (I want something about 5-6 ft tall, with either white or dark red flowers, and dense enough that you can't see through it very well) How should I prepare the ground? How far apart should I plant them?

Thanks in advance.

Where is the house, Neo (i.e., what climate)?
 
  • #1,746
Edmonton, Alberta.
 
  • #1,747
NeoDevin said:
Edmonton, Alberta.

Then, plastic roses will survive your winters. :rolleyes: :biggrin:

I know nothing about roses, actually, so can't help at all there. I seem to be having success with deer resistance, so far, but some of the things I planted aren't so happy with the wet soil. Several neighbors have expressed shock that my plants haven't been eaten by deer yet. I did plant only limited amounts of plants, expecting that to be a problem and not wanting to waste a lot of money on deer food. I might just be lucky that all the rain is giving them plenty of tasty food without having to venture out onto lawns yet. I am mostly selecting deer resistant plants too, but know full well that doesn't mean deer proof.
 
  • #1,748
I'm in the city, so deer aren't a problem.
 
  • #1,749
The further adventures of my herb growing co-workwer.

Today she brought in little baggies of what she called "flowering cilantro".

I picked up a bag, and here is what was in it.

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/355/herb2.jpg

This is what I expected in it.

http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/424/herb1p.jpg

I asked her where she learned about herbs. She told me she took a class from someone in her neighborhood that has a class on "natural organic herbs" and gave her the herbs she grows. :eek:

Ok she thinks catnip/hysop is mint. She thinks dill is cilantro.

Now she's told me she has morel mushrooms. I can only imagine what those might be.
 
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  • #1,750
Evo said:
Now she's told me she has morel mushrooms. I can only imagine what those might be.

That's hillarious and scary! If Evo's posts start turning purple we all know she tried her crazy coworker's mushroooms...
 

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