Gardening 2023

[TDM]

I had 5 extra tomato plants in pots as kind of a replacement in case any others froze out. That's now way beyond happening. My nephew took the Old German and the Cherokee Purple this morning. Said he only had 2 pots. I thought for sure he would have taken the Red or Black cherry tomatoes.I guess I'm stuck with them along with the 5 of those varieties that I already have in the garden.

Those should be tasty!

 

[SOLANCO]

Wife does mainly flowers, but always puts a few vegetable plants, tomato and squash, in. Which always amuses me, as every farm driveway in this rural area will have a stand selling beautiful fruits and vegetables cheap once they start to produce. But few if any flowers.
As posted earlier, I grow herbs, which I never see for sale in the farm driveways.

 

[Eutycus]

I tried that herb/flower bed thing several years ago. I hand tilled up a small plot,brought in soil, put landscape timbers around it and called it "Carol's Herb Garden". She flat refused and now it's full of weeds (again). Her mother told her years ago that "with that brown thumb of hers , she could kill a plastic flower". I use it occasionally for starting tomato seeds. But it's on the South side of the garage and in the direct sunlight. Great for winter/spring time but it gets too hot later on.Only weeds and cactus can stand the heat.

 

[SOLANCO]

I tried that herb/flower bed thing several years ago. I hand tilled up a small plot,brought in soil, put landscape timbers around it and called it "Carol's Herb Garden". She flat refused and now it's full of weeds (again). Her mother told her years ago that "with that brown thumb of hers , she could kill a plastic flower". I use it occasionally for starting tomato seeds. But it's on the South side of the garage and in the direct sunlight. Great for winter/spring time but it gets too hot later on.Only weeds and cactus can stand the heat.

Wife's garden is on a slight south facing slope. Our soil is so rocky that when we drilled a well the material brought up out of the bore was grey like stone. So I built her raised beds out of locust and brought in soil and compost to fill them.

My herbs are planted along the top edge of a stone retaining wall just outside the kitchen door. They get full sun from about noon on. Plus it is an easy location to water.

 

[Eutycus]

Like I emphasized: full sun, south side, later in the season, South Texas = hot.

 

[oldwood]

Never tasted a Zucchini squash , until I found some out in the woods , while on an ATV ride . Was a couple miles back a dirt township road , early one AM , and saw a good size cardboard box along the road. Was a thick cardboard type box from a grocery store vegetable dept. . Here in the Central Pa. back woods , ya never know what could be left in a large box , for an unexpecting fool to find ,box of timber rattle snakes , dynamite bomb , skunk , body parts , jug a shine , ya just never know. i went back to the box with a rock , and smacked it good from a distance. No rattle snake Buzzing , no explosion, no smell , so opened up the box , and jackpot. Six big green blimp looking fruit. Loaded the box onto the ATV, and headed out with my prizes to meet the wife , and her girl friend in another UTV along the trail. Done riding , the girls divided up the prizes , and we headed for home , and a kitchen. I was treated to breaded squash , and for desert , warm , fresh baked zucchini bread. Ain't been right since. I have , garden grown , wheel barrows of zucchini squash . It got so bad , the neighbors would pull their window shades ,and close their doors , if they saw me coming with , more squash. Now a days , I leave a box of them at the church door , and sometimes after church , the box is empty , so other folks like squash , too........oldwood

 

[Eutycus]

There's an old joke about people at church locking their cars so a person won't leave them some "more" squash. Pretty sure that joke was based on fact.

 

[johnraleksa]

Indiana weather is so fun one day hot next day frost. Asparagus trying to come up but cold spell slowed it down. Did get 4 pounds of rhubarb stocks. Wife made a great big tasty pie. Planted onion bulbs some time back, then Brussel sprouts and broccoli. They made it though the cold and frost so far. Got hold of some onion plants and planted them yesterday. Supposedly going to get warmer this week. Best thing is we had some good rains lately.

 

[Eutycus]

From what I've seen today while out weeding, We'll be eating fresh squash soon. Maybe tomorrow

 

[exPAtriate]

Solanco:. We're the rocks blue granite? I'm infested with them just south of you.

 

[sheriff john]

Wife's new heart pacemaker must be set on "high". "I'm not gonna put out a big garden this year." is complete b.s. Headed back to Amish greenhouse tomorrow for more plants- tomato, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc. etc.

We do about 1 1/2-2 acres. Spent my Biden "stimulus" on a 6-foot 3-point tiller. Best thing I've bought in years. At least I can keep ahead of her most days. N.E. Missouri's really dry, but planting's easy. Switched to 8 foot hog panels for climbing stuff. We do 50' rows. Broom corn goes in tomorrow.

Still shoveling out the chicken house for fertilizer. Cheers!

 

[SOLANCO]

Solanco:. We're the rocks blue granite? I'm infested with them just south of you.

Nope. PA Geology identifies it as Peters Creek Schist. This is apparently a generic name and does not rely on proximity to Peter's Creek. Good limestone soil with attendant limestone rock ends about 5 miles north of us at an escarpment.
Farmers here and to our south generally limestone their soil every other year if not annually. Here and there you can find old limestone kilns typically built into a hill side. Made best possible use of limestone bought and carried in by horse drawn wagon.
Not sure what blue granite is. You could say our schist is blue, but it is nowhere near granite.
Wife and I once examined some small streams which fed into the Susquehana below the Conowingo dam. We found different sorts of hard pebbles washed and smoothed by water. No schist.
I suggest to you that the geology of our mutual area is not a simple study. How much of what we see was washed down here over centuries by the Susquehana and its tributaries?

 

[exPAtriate]

I'm just south of the border. We have huge boulders of Port Deposit blue granite here, all through my hayfield and the pH is on average 5.5. I'd love some limestone naturally in the soil!

 

[SOLANCO]

http://www.mgs.md.gov/geology/building_stones_of_maryland.html

 

[SOLANCO]

http://www.mgs.md.gov/geology/building_stones_of_maryland.html

https://unchartedlancaster.com/2019...t-erased-lancaster-county-towns-from-the-map/
No way of knowing, but I would think those rocks came down the river L O N G before it was ever dammed. Just look at the gorge the river cut where the Norman Wood bridge is. Or look at the Chesapeake Bay, of which the Susquehanna was the primary architect. Can you even begin to imagine that river's flow at the end of an ice age?

 

[exPAtriate]

Thanks SOLANCO! I learn so much from here everyday!

 

[Eutycus]

I had a new water well drilled last week. I'm sure glad the driller talked me out of drilling on the corner of the garden. He chose another spot instead. This is what my garden wou

ld have looked like.

 

[TDM]

But it will sure be nice to have a new well. Good security.

 

[johnraleksa]

Every year I try to plant something different or unusual. Have tried sweet potatoes but our growing season is not long enough. I have two year old ginger growing in a pot. Tried shitake mushrooms and succeeded in harvesting exactly two. Even did rice by making a pond with 2 x 4's and a tarp which worked out pretty well. Peanuts were a failure. Have not yet decided what the experiment will be this year.

I'm like you trying to grow something different now and then. 4 years ago I tyed sweet potatoes . They grew great, but the mice love them too. The almost got all of them, bites and chunks gone off . Try different spot the next year same thing happened. Last year planted them in a 50 gallon plastic waste can and no mice and some nice potatoes. Going to try again with more cans . Already got regular potatoes started in 2 waste cans. For some reason there are no snakes on or near my property haven't seen any for years . No cats only a few owls and hawks , and they stay in the woods. Always fighting the mice trying to keep them under control.

 

[nhmoose]

Big frost coming tonight. Smudge pot getting lit in the apple trees. Rest of plants safe in greenhouse. There is a reason we do not plant the majority of the garden until Memorial Day here in NH. Frost is why.