What Are Your Garden Tricks?

[MEASURE TWICE]

Hops leaves look a lot like grape leaves in the pictures, but I know the difference as my neighbor has a starting vine of grapes. The grape vine though does not have the scratchiness as the bines of hops. Wear long sleeves and gloves while handling hops bines or else it is not really a rash, but a reaction to the small cuts it makes in the skin and any thing around contaminating the skin after getting scratched that makes it swell up the skin on some people. I found out the hard way, but as one said at least that is not as bad as having a bad reaction to hops as it is used in flavoring and gives off nice aroma to beer and ale!

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Well my tomatoes were rocking. Estimated about 100 coming by this fall. Now more like 50. Dog stretched it's legs. Had it elevated above him in a custom planter. He removed a trophy branch from the plant. lol. 6 month old pup. Can't blame him really my fault for knowing better about curiosity. lol.

Where you been Goat Herder? Was it your dog that likes tomatoes... haha!

I was thinking of it probably skunk or racoon or possum that came around lately and I did not have a net up to keep em out.

MT

 

[Goat Herder]

Been working my butt off saving monies. Work and home. Starting a new well paying job too.

Found my nitch with tomatoes this year. Not one blossom end rot to date and a ton of mators to boot! figured out the city water over time tries to lock up my soil. Ph was creeping too high over time. Fixed my whole garden. Simply bought a 2 liter bottle of Coca Cola classic. ''It has phosphoric acid''

Way cheaper than the same size bottle from the likes of a hydroponic store. About 30 bucks cheaper. Heh Heh

Roughly 3 ounces to a five gallon bucket of water did the trick over about 3 scattered intervals days apart. Got a feel for it now..Bingo everything is rocking. Of course around harvest time everything wants a little more phosphate anyway. This stuff just fixes the Ph cheap! Tomatoes were a problem for me for a couple seasons. Got them in 30 gallon trash cans. Bottom drilled out to breath and sitting on 5 sets of stacked cinder blocks.

Doggies can't reach now! I will take a picture tomorrow.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

I've heard of that and also vinegar used to acidify more the soil. I got some organic sulfur pellet that I added to my soil for citrus tree.

There was a sunflower I had but exchanged it under warranty as then thing was badly root bound in the container when I purchase it. It came out of the large planter a few weeks later and still the root ball was the same shape as the container it came in. I would have helped the roots by loosening them, but actually this was the second plant of the same kind of sunflower I brought back under warranty. The first one I tried doing just that and it had a time with that and just went down hill. Even though I picked a smaller plant the second time, it did not really matter as all of them were in too small containers for there size.

I got some flame shape yellow annual plant Celosia, but in my zone it will act as a perennial. I did loosen the root ball on this plant and it did not wilt after that so it is a keeper. Give the garden some color and attract pollinators too. I'm going to try from seed Sunflower next year.

I went to a nursery that had offered when I asked about buying those large black plastic grow containers they have, they said if a few you want just come by, so like 6 of them were free. They are like around 15 gallon size. I will transplant both hops plants into these and and then train both up the structure I made along with the one climbing it now.

 

[Goat Herder]

Plants are pretty high up there lol. Chiltepins peppers here looking like a lot of blooms forming .

 

[rustycase]

Fixed my whole garden. Simply bought a 2 liter bottle of Coca Cola classic. ''It has phosphoric acid''

Way cheaper than the same size bottle from the likes of a hydroponic store.

Excellent !
I shall do the same !
Tnx for all ur good advice!!!

and congrats on the new job, too !

Best
rc

 

[gaffo]

I wish I had luck with tomatoes, but never did. I'm finally moving on - to **** with em. I'll stick with Cantalopes and Watermellons and Beans - at least they produce food for me.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

The tomatoes from a 99 cent single seedling at the OSH store was the greatest for a small about 5 gallon planter. Another tomatoe plant that I grew had no tomatoes at all. It was a heirloom type. Seems the temperature here might have been too hot for it and had a few flowers but grew very slow. The flowers never produced any tomoatoes. Maybe find the receipt for warranty from Lowes somewhere, but I remember it was like maybe 3 dollars. I however would like to see if I could grow heirlooms, but home grown anything is way better than from the supermarket. The racoon I suspect, that stole a few tomatoes for a while, likes them ripe or green. I have no more ripe ones left now only a few small green ones. I put up a net and kept them from being stolen, but teeth marks and being ripped from plant is not good. Sure they were not taken away through the netting, but they were damaged none the less. Next year I will make a frame over the plant rather than just the vine wire thing. The distance that the varmint can use claw or teeth and stretch the netting to damage the tomatoes even though it never gets through the netting and steels anything, needs a no varmint zone. That I mean is to be extra space it can stretch the netting, but not reach anything but an air gap. What I used while there were berries on the plant was netting that I put over blueberries and blackberries and used a dual post trellis structure so that the berries were a distance from the netting on the inside. I just lifted one side and stretched it out to go inside to harvest berries. Watering I just watered through the netting as the square size of the netting is like 3/4 inch.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

I have pictures of claw or teeth marks in one of the tomatoes. The oranges I finished picking all of them and mostly all very good.

Check it out, I have for the first time in the 7 or so years I've had my Valencia Dwarf Orange Tree, I put a few humming bird feeders in the tree rather than hanging them from the eve. It seems that humming bird poop kill the leaves of the branches that they sit on and probably are pooping on.

I was thinking a specific branch on the orange tree void of any leaves now, and it was the bigger feeder for the humming bird, might be dying. I was concerned if it might become brittle and the feeder fall to the ground. It seems fine, but no leaves. Maybe a combination of other pests that like humming bird poop. Don't laugh, as it is aphids that supposedly squeeze ants feeding on nectar to eat the poop of the ants. No amount of searching the internet have I found about leaf death as a result of humming bird poop. Thinking maybe just let the humming birds eat the flowers nectar and have the sugar water humming bird feeder a few feet away from the tree.

 

[rustycase]

Gaffo...

Soil and climate conditions are certainly better for some plants than others.
Without significant amendment to the soil, and even protection from the WX, with hoop houses and such, it's generally best to grow what does well with the least amount of attention !

I might advise off-season growing of soil building plants... legumes do a fine job of generating nitrogen in their root system, derived from the air. Depending upon other conditions, tomatoes may grow well for you after beans are grown, or when grown at the same time.

Best
rc

 

[gaffo]

Gaffo...

Soil and climate conditions are certainly better for some plants than others.
Without significant amendment to the soil, and even protection from the WX, with hoop houses and such, it's generally best to grow what does well with the least amount of attention !

I might advise off-season growing of soil building plants... legumes do a fine job of generating nitrogen in their root system, derived from the air. Depending upon other conditions, tomatoes may grow well for you after beans are grown, or when grown at the same time.

Best
rc

Yep. I agree. Oklahoma just gets hot too fast in spring for much tomato production - we get "blossom drop" alot. the whole "babying them" - like 20 plants - for literally 5 tomatoes is too much for me. I've had it (and I grew Radiator Charlies' Morgage Lifter Heirloom (Measure Twice - if heat is your enemy WRT to Tomatoes, consider Morgage Lifters - mine performed better (though not good enough for me to mess with in the future) here in Ok heat than the other varieties I tried years ago.


i'll just stick with nuclear blast heat proof stuff like beans and mellons - they thrive before my eyes in OK blastwave heat of summer.

-I do love a good tomatoe, but will just have to buy them for the local farmers market ;-/.

 

[Allen_Wrench]

I rarely do anything that could be called gardening, outside of a couple houseplants and mowing the lawn. But my wife has rose trellises, planter boxes with flowers and vegetables, and peach trees and berry bushes. She has even grown rare heirloom roses of a species which date back to the middle ages. So she has come to detest the depredations of squirrels.

My solution, which works well if you're a parent, is to let one of your daughters have a Nerf Bow, and encourage her to practice with it. Foam rubber Nerf darts can't hurt a doggone thing, but for a squirrel they're a nasty surprise. So while she's getting good with it...you tell her that any squirrel that dares venture toward the garden or peach trees is fair game. Shoot away.

Earlier this summer, we saw out the window that a particularly plump squirrel we named "Brunswick" (he's the worst so far) was doing his level best to tear up the nearest peach tree to get at one of the peaches. Liesl grabbed her Nerf Bow, opened the door, and from the side porch she nailed his fat a$$. He jumped out of the tree, darted across the street, and lay hunched down in the neighbors driveway panting and with a wide-eyed look. It was hilarious. He came back a couple of days later to raid sunflowers and got nailed again. He never came back after that. He would just gaze longingly from across the street. The other squirrels have gradually been making themselves scarce.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Just make sure the archer knows the difference between squirrel and skunk! I was told by my neighbor that their outdoor cat does not like tomatoes. This maybe so, and I do believe the claw or teeth mark in the pictures I took of the few tomatoes affected are not of a cat. Either a skunk, opossum, or those masked raccoons. I've heard to leave water out for the creatures sometimes helps. That is if it they are thirsty and leave tomatoes alone. But I'm not so sure that is best, possible breeding mosquitoes and flies is not good. The berries are all gone a few months ago so the spider is welcome to stay. I know they eat things that adversely affect the plants. This one however is darn big, so a bite from it when trying to pick berries during the season I think I'd have him relocate.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Celery seems to be able to tolerate the cold. I harvested just a little for a tuna sandwich. Was at the market getting stuff to make Coq au Vin and remembered not to buy celery. There is enough growing in the garden with the blueberries. Blueberry buds and flowers are happening. Blueberry plant is hardy to the frost also. I have heard that California is not cold enough region to grow blueberries, but not so. There are commercial growers near Sacramento I know. My few plants got 6 gallons this last season and credit it to removing old soil from the pots adding new and also adding amendments to adjust pH and fertilizer.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Looks like a praying mantis. At night I picked it off my truck thinking it was a leaf. Then I saw it was not. I thought it dead, but later while videoing it, the head swung around to the bright light. Touching one of the legs lightly and it moved a bit and hung still again. I guess there good for the garden. Another person said that in his garden a bunch bit his neck. I cannot be sure, but I guess it is sort of like bees. Don't mess with them, or be gentile and they just move away.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Dwarf Valencia Orange Tree likes above 50 degrees so cloths dryer and water heater are its friends. Humming birds are still around and as usual the blueberry plants have a couple flowers still.

 

[hurtnesnuckle]

Nice garden you got there. They seems healthy and very well taken.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Under cover for branch and leaves, along with soil cover in bubble wrap, 8ea 25 watt incandescent bulbs, hot water poured onto potted plants soil every now and then and nothing dies with 20 degree F morning temp stretches. I got string bulbs and covered all but 8 or the 24 weather proof sockets to keep from oxidation and water. Planket is a name brand I bought in something like 15 by 25 feet and it is quite strong. No complaints with it. Sure freezing fog here does have it stick to the rocks I placed to hold it down in the wind. It will tear if hot water is not poured over it first, or left till after noon sun makes it melt away the simulated glue of sorts freezing fog does. Buds are all over the blueberry plants and I have hopes the rhizome of the hops comes out soon to make new bines and leaves. One day some cones of the hops to harvest if it grows to 20 plus feet. When it seems like the right time I can take the half wine barrel with Valencia dwarf orange tree out of the wash room and put it out on the lawn again.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Flowers opened on the blueberry buds in the mist of snow and still more expected. Only about 4 inches and it practically all melts except in the shade before the next snow is expected. Still in 20's in am hours, but I keep the incandescent bulbs on for heat under the Planket brand cover. Also now and then add hot water into the containers and all is staying unfrozen. Just need bees to cross pollinate and they are not out yet.

 

[cutecuddle]

Ours is just small. We only got some pots of roses, yellow bells, aloe vera, Bonzai and the only vegetable we have in the garden is the eggplant.