The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

[johobbit]

we have fond memories of their children as toddlers helping out with the planting, weeding, and eating in the garden.

Exactly! It's a great family activity, and a great example of seeing solid (and delicious) results at the end of the season's diligent work.

So glad our resident and knowledgeable gardeners frequent this topic (fk and Digs) to answer the very good questions asked.

*loves the picture of Tom and the massive tomato 'bush'*

I had purchased an Everbearing strawberry plant from WalMart at the end of summer, and it almost grew two fruits, but then died because of the frost and snow. Out of curiosity, will it grow back in springtime?

We had everbearing raspberry plants for years, and some winters were terribly hard on them, but they always managed to bounce back the following year, provided, as fantasia said, that their roots were cozy. Let us know what happens in the spring with yours, Bella.

Really?! That's incredible, because tomato leaves have an alkaloid toxin in them! Rabbits must have specialized enymes inside of them that helps to neutralize this toxin!

Maybe just Canadian rabbits.

wolf, a few humble suggestion of mine for indoor plants:

Plants:
Philodendron: these are pretty much always successful (and especially nice as a hanging plant), if you don't over-water them, which was my mistake for awhile. Now, I basically forget about it for a few weeks, and it's doing much better ... in fact, thriving.

Zeezee Plant: I bought one of these last fall, and have basically ignored it (watering it maybe once every few weeks): it's doing very well, and is growing steadily and heartily.

Spider plant: these are really easy to grow and keep, and it's fun to see the baby 'spiders' as they flourish. (Not that I'm a big fan of real spiders, but a plant similarly-named, I can handle. )

Corn plant: these are really cool-looking, as well as being easy and hardy to grow, but I did find it tended to attract small bugs.

Boston fern: I've had off-and-on success with these pretty plants. They can thrive for a long time, then sometimes just turn brown and wither away. 'Though I haven't had one since I've learned not to over-water.

I found this info interesting on houseplants. (If the page first asks for info, just click on "continue on to my page" or something like that.)
And on blooming plants.

Flowers: have you ever tried a Christmas cactus? Even though their blooming is very unpredictable (and they don't care to be moved and fiddled with), their leaves stay lovely, and when the blooms do come, they're a beautiful bonus.

I have a hibiscus tree, which gives magnificent tropical flowers like this. You can also get them as smaller plants. They need regular watering and do not liked to be moved or hardly touched. Their gorgeous blooms last but a day, yet, when they decide to, the buds are prolific. Mine has done exceptionally well this winter. I move it outside, despite its protests , in the warmer months, and whenever its moved, it usually puts up a fuss, refusing to bloom for a few weeks, at least. But, for some reason, last fall when I brought it inside again, it recovered the trauma remarkably, and, for the first time in years, began budding again within a short time (a few days)! And it hasn't let up. Sometimes we have four or five bright blooms at a time, whose diameters are 6"+. Yes, I love hibiscus.

[wolfloversk]

Domestic Rabbits (aka the eurasian rabbit) can't eat the leaves or vines of a tomato apparently. (the fruit may be another matter)

So far from what I've read Eastern Cottontails (which is likely the type you are referring to Jo, though I'm not positive which species live up there) will typically avoid them for the same reason.

I'm guessing however that if they're eating the plants themselves... it might be dependent upon the toxicity of that particular breed of tomato or they might be developing an immunity to it in small populations.

I know we've had deer eating our tomatoes in the past, if not hornworms...

This is interesting Sorry but I find this stuff fascinating- I hope I'm not too off topic

[fantasia]

EDIT: FK, do you have any suggestions for good hardy spring veggies that could handle a bit of frost? I know that peas, broccoli, lettuce, and cabbage can handle a bit of cooler weather, but can you think of anything else? I'm thinking of something that could be planted late March, and perhaps be ready by early May.

Hmmm.... spinach is something my parents have very good luck with, but be warned, they cover theirs every night it freezes. Spring turnips can handle a bit of frost. Maaaybe beets and radishes, but I'm not 100% sure on that one.
Usually I just go to the gardening center and read the back of all the seed packets. Then I make a list of what needs to be started when. A lot of those things need to be started indoors and that's what I tend to do. I'm not very good getting out in the cold and doing gardening.

By the way, for those of you who are asking about indoor plants, if you have pets (especially cats and dogs), remember to make sure to check that the plants aren't highly toxic!

[fantasia]

Unless I get more requests for plants this year (which I might get a couple still) I am done with my first round of planting peppers and eggplants. All 99 of them.....
Next on my to-do list will be tilling my backyard and getting the cold weather seeds in the ground both here and at the farm.
Also here in a couple weeks I'll be planting my tomato seeds.

I had to laugh cause I had moved my potted Blueberry and Nanking Cherry plants into the greenhouse to keep them warmer. I guess they are a little too warm cause they're completely leafed out now. Whoops!

ETA 1/31/12 9:48am CST: Up to 108 peppers and eggplants. AHHHH!!!!

Oh, and as of yesterday (Jan 30th) my eggplants and jalapeno peppers started sprouting.

[Shadowlander]

I'm thinking seriously of planting a small garden this year, sorta like a victory garden like they used to do back in WW1 and WW2. If I did this I have no idea where I'd do it on my 2 acres, but I'm thinking right behind the house would probably suffice (my brother is just going to have to park his car somewhere else, not on my bean patch ).

Planned

Greenbeans - easy to grow, almost impossible to kill, and yields several times over the summer
Watermelon - oh yeah, baby! The ultimate summertime dessert.
Summer Squash - cut into thin disks and saute with some olive oil and lemon juice = win
Kale - It's like collards. Almost. Or should I just go with collards?
Tomatoes - I'm thinking cherry tomatoes for snacking, beefsteaks for burgers, and Roma tomatoes for my planned sad, silly attempts at homemade spaghetti sauce.
Turnips - I love turnips! Plus you can cook the greens and eat em' like collards. Did I mention I love collards?
Oregano and Basil - for Italian foofs. Also they're pretty easy to grow and haven't automatically died on me before.

Maybe

Corn - I've always wanted to plant a few rows of sweet corn for summer nights alongside of steak and potatoes. I'm told they're not easy to maintain though.
Beets - I love beets...willing to give it a go, but unsure how it would work.
Carrots - Not really a big fan of carrots but can't deny that they'd still get some usage around the house. If nothing else I could feed them to the next door neighbors' horses
Spaghetti Squash - It's difficult to wrap my head around eating a squash in lieu of pasta but one cannot deny the diet possibilities
Cantaloupe - I'd like to try my hand at watermelon first, but this theoretically shouldn't be too hard...right?
Jalapenos - Oh yeah baby! I know enough to plant this away from where I plant everything else because then everything it is near will end up tasting hot and spicy. Does planting it around the perimeter deter pests I wonder?
Sweet Potatoes - They grow rabidly in my home state's soil. But I don't really eat enough of them to warrant growing them. Or maybe if I did I'd eat more. Who knows? Thoughts?

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

Shadowlander. . . I don't think you'll find it easy to call that a "Small Garden"

A decent row of green beans (as in, a row that will make it worthwhile to plant, weed, feed, etc...) needs to be at least twelve feet long. And I think two rows of twelve feet would be more adequate. Last year, for the three people in our house, we planted four fifteen foot rows, and we still ran out by Thanksgiving.

Watermelons are big for a reason. . . they take up a lot of room!

I'm unfamiliar with squash, but I know that it too is a vine veggie, and those tend to take up a good deal of room.

I'd suggest four tomato plants if you want to make spaghetti sauce. Roma's are the best for sauces. If you want additional tomatoes for eating, then you're looking at more tomatoes.

Turnips aren't a problem as they don't take up much room.

Oregano and Basil are (for all purposes) weeds, and grow as such.

I would estimate that this size of a garden would require a patch of ground about 40 ft x 15 ft. Perhaps that's just because I like a lot of room in my garden. . . but that's my thought.

Kale (if it grows like other lettuces) should be fine

[fantasia]

SL, do you have any experience growing things? In your previous posts it sounds like you don't, but then in this one it sounds like you do. Just curious if you know what you're getting into.

Kale - It's like collards. Almost. Or should I just go with collards?
Turnips - I love turnips! Plus you can cook the greens and eat em' like collards. Did I mention I love collards?

I think you should go with collards.

Jalapenos - Oh yeah baby! I know enough to plant this away from where I plant everything else because then everything it is near will end up tasting hot and spicy. Does planting it around the perimeter deter pests I wonder?

Based on how often you talk about hot and spicy foods, I'm surprised this is on your maybe list. It's easy to grow, it doesn't take up much space, and it's pretty prolific. No need to move it away from your other stuff as it will only cross with other peppers. (At least, I'VE never had trouble and I even plant my hot peppers next to my mild peppers. )

I'm unfamiliar with squash, but I know that it too is a vine veggie, and those tend to take up a good deal of room.

Depends on the squash. Spagetti squash I've never grown so I have no idea if it vines or not. Pumpkins do vine, but summer squash and zucchinis do not. I'm going through my pictures trying to find a good one of summer squash but do I have one? No, of course not. This is the best I could find....

I'm standing in front of the summer squash and zucchini bushes. They've of course grown together so they're hard to distinguish, but I'd say they have a 3'-4' diameter maybe?

Last year, for the three people in our house, we planted four fifteen foot rows, and we still ran out by Thanksgiving.

*cough*deeratethem*cough*

As of when I'm typing this post, I have planted 198 seeds. 94 peppers, 14 eggplant, 84 tomatoes, and 6 Carolina Cross watermelons (Mega Melons return baby!!! Yeah!!!!). The pepper and eggplants I started a few weeks ago and the tomatoes and watermelon I planted yesterday. Based on how many peppers are coming up I'm thinking I may go ahead and replant a couple varieties today. I just don't think I'll have enough otherwise.

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

*cough*deeratethem*cough*

I think you're confusing this year with last year. This year our beans did just fine. The deer didn't figure out how to get into our garden until near the end of the season. (And yet, they still got all of my okra before I got a single one).

But no, we had a good year for beans.

[Shadowlander]

SL, do you have any experience growing things? In your previous posts it sounds like you don't, but then in this one it sounds like you do

Yes and no . I've planted things in the past but in almost every case they all died. The notable exceptions were oregano (which grew like weeds, much like Digs said they would ) and greenbeans, which are super hardy and would probably survive a blast of agent orange. I have a large property but I don't have much selection on where to plop down a row of seeds, so I'm thinking it's going to be pot gardening this year. You know, put down a flower pot or box, load it with Miracle-Gro, toss in a few seeds, and let her rip.

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

I've actually heard of beans being planted this way, by having a long board with four sides, so as to make a trough about ten feet long, one foot wide and one foot tall.

SL, peppers and tomatoes are your absolute best bets with pot gardening! They thrive in pots (just make sure that the pots are big enough)

[Aslanisthebest]

My Totally Tomatoes catalog came! I've been anticipating its arrival and squealed when I saw it. I was also very pleased to see that if my order is $5 or more, then I get two free seed packets. Thanks to reading this thing, the aroma of delightfully acidic, savory tomatoes has been haunting me.

So, currently, my gardening lists:

-Jalapeno Goliath Hybrid
-Cayenne Pepper Thin
-Martino's Roma Tomato (it's a determinate plant, but my dad said these work best for cooking.)
- Free seed packets with Golden Treasure Peppers and a collection of Gourmet Heirloom tomatoes.

We also got some seeds from a Family Dollar nearby: a wildflower mix, some lettuce, dill, and sweet basil among some others, so I'm anticipating those! These will probably be potted plants, excepting the lettuce.

I wanted to get Brandywine, but since I'm getting the heirloom packet, I figured it probably might have Brandywine, so I don't need to get it. However, I'm wondering if there's any way I can know for sure....

Speaking of tomatoes...ketchup time! (credit for that pun to my sister.)

Thank-you for your response, fantasia! :O I'm saving that post.

Like you said, I think I'm going with the hardier Jalepenos over the Early ones. They look really good!

Are you starting them from seed or ordering a live plant? If you're starting peppers from seed, you need to order them now and "start seeds indoors 8 weeks before planting outdoors". You'll need to google your typical last frost date for your area to find out when it's safe to put them outside. I think I usually wait until it's no longer dropping below 40F at night.
If you're ordering the live plant, they'll ship it to you when it's ready to go in the ground based on your zone.

I'll be getting the seeds. Oh, okay! I'll get to ordering them sometime this week and probably start them then. With the very interesting weather, it is sometimes 40F or a bit higher at night, but I think I'll wait until May to put them outside.

*chuckles at the picture of Indeterminate Tomato Plants Gone Wild* xD The one tomato I'm getting is determinate, but the heirloom pack, I'm guessing, is mostly indeterminate...so I will plant with caution.

If your plants are coming up and look healthy and are producing well, it doesn't need plant food. Now last year I did have some pepper plants that at the end of summer were looking pretty light green/yellow and I should have given them fertilizer. I didn't cause I had planned on repotting them this spring but then I left them out during a hard freeze and killed them and that was that.
In terms of your mint, again, Ara can correct me if I've got the wrong chemical, but when I see large super-green leaves, they're getting too much nitrogen. Nitrogen stimulates foliage growth, but reduces fruit production.
Are you potting your plants or are you planting them in the ground?

That is very, very relieving to hear and saves me unnecessarily buying too much plant food. I saw you had reccomended cotton bol compost, and I'll go look that up; is that good enough fertilizer/food for a plant that needs some?
Ahh, okay, that make sense, about the nitrogen in the mint!

I'll be planting the plants in the ground after starting the seeds indoors.

Hopefully I didn't overload you with information, and good luck on your plantings this year!

Oh, not at all!! Thank-you so, so much. Your post really helped.

Thanks for the information on the strawberry plant, Jo and fantasia. Because of the spring time weather around here, I'm guessing that the roots have been pretty warm, but I'll move it in the garage to be sure.

Thank-you all for your help; I really, really appreciate it.

Like Shadowlander asked, will planting jalapenos deter pests nearby?

A couple other questions:

1. I don't know if seeds can expire or not...but the seeds I buy, will they be good for long or do they have a date where they won't germinate?
If hope they do.... and sorry for how amateur this question is, but is it generally a plant per seed?

And, also, there is a tall tree stump in our backyard that is infected with fungus, or so I think it is. (it has some white fuzzy stuff around and I think something on the side.) It doesn't appear to be rotting or anything, it just has that stuff.... is it infected, and if so, will this infection affect the plants I put in the ground? (my planting area is about the size of an average backyard; I'm planning to plant the seeds about...6/8/10 feet? from this tree.) And along with the tree, I've seen some fungi growing (the typical mushroom type) in the backyard. They aren't there now, but I'm worried that they will poison the plants I put in the ground. Will they? :S

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

And, also, there is a tall tree stump in our backyard that is infected with fungus, or so I think it is. (it has some white fuzzy stuff around and I think something on the side.) It doesn't appear to be rotting or anything, it just has that stuff.... is it infected, and if so, will this infection affect the plants I put in the ground?

It's really impossible to say without knowing the specific species of fungus, but I would greatly doubt it. Fungi that parasitize trees are typically too large to infect veggie plants. There are a few fungal infections that can infect vegetables, but I'm not too knowledgeable with these. FK, do you know anything?

I don't know if seeds can expire or not...but the seeds I buy, will they be good for long or do they have a date where they won't germinate?

Seeds will expire, but it takes a LONG time. The seeds you order will probably be good for three years. Even after that, I think that some of the seeds would be okay.

Like Shadowlander asked, will planting jalapenos deter pests nearby?

This has not been my experience. I've still had common pests break into my garden. I've had deer nibble on my jalapeno plants in the past. They quickly learn which plants to avoid, and which ones are okay. Animals are a lot smarter than people give them credit.

I wanted to get Brandywine, but since I'm getting the heirloom packet, I figured it probably might have Brandywine, so I don't need to get it. However, I'm wondering if there's any way I can know for sure....

Well Brandywines (at least the ones I've gotten) are insanely large (I've had one that was almost the size of a football!), and don't get incredibly red. Mine almost looked pinkish/orange. They also had rather a lot of seeds. Those are the traits I've noticed, but other than that, I have no idea

[fantasia]

I saw you had reccomended cotton bol compost, and I'll go look that up; is that good enough fertilizer/food for a plant that needs some?

Don't start your seeds in it. Just get some good potting soil to start with (I like Miracle Grow). But if you turn in cotton bol (or burr) compost into the dirt outside that you'll be planting in, it works wonders. And yeah, that should be enough to keep your plants going for the year.

I don't know if seeds can expire or not...but the seeds I buy, will they be good for long or do they have a date where they won't germinate?

I typically keep mine for two years. But I did plant 3-year-old Cayenne seeds this year, and they've all come up.

So just how ambitious are you feeling? I ask because you can pull the seeds out of an heirloom plant and use them to grow the same plant again the next year. You can't really do that with hybrids cause even though they grow, you end up with a really weird mutant plant. (Not really, but the times I tried it I just ended up with much smaller and flavorless peppers and tomatoes.)

but is it generally a plant per seed?

Yes.

Like Shadowlander asked, will planting jalapenos deter pests nearby?

What DiGs said. But interestingly enough, I've got a guy who ordered two Habanero plants from me this year, and his plan is to grind the peppers into a powder for his garden next year to try to deter animals. I'll be curious to see how that works out.

FK, do you know anything [about fungus]?

Aside from the fact that it grows in damp environments, no, not really. Is this tree alive or dead? Cause if it's dead, I'd say it's just the early stages of rot. Either way, plant your stuff in full sun, don't overwater, and you'll hopefully be ok.

I wanted to get Brandywine, but since I'm getting the heirloom packet, I figured it probably might have Brandywine, so I don't need to get it.

I got the same packet you'll be getting and mine just says indeterminate and a variety of colors. So I have no idea if Brandywines will be included or not.

Well Brandywines (at least the ones I've gotten) are insanely large (I've had one that was almost the size of a football!), and don't get incredibly red. Mine almost looked pinkish/orange.

I think the most common Brandywine out there is the Brandywine Pink tomato, which is probably what you've gotten DiGs. But there are other Brandywine colors out there, including a red one.

Speaking of Brandywines, my tomatoes are popping up like mad today. At least one of everything (except the Early Girls) are up. We actually have full sun today so all of my plants are in the greenhouse today. Hopefully they'll get lots of good growth.

[fantasia]

I planted some stuff outside this weekend! Two rows of broccoli seeds and one row of cabbage seeds. I was going to do some cauliflower seeds as well but the back of the packet was like 'start indoors several weeks prior to moving outdoors'. Yeah, I've done that, and they always died. So I'm gonna wait another week or two and plant them outdoors as well.

In other news, my blueberries have a whole ton of flower buds on them. They're going to bloom and I hope to get blueberries off of them. That would be so exciting. I didn't have much hope as blueberries prefer acidic soil or they probably won't produce fruit and I have very neutral soil. I guess dumping coffee grounds on them and mulching them with cedar wood chips has paid off!

[DiGoRyKiRkE]

FK, do roses require acidic or basic soils? I can't remember which. Some people baby their roses to no end, and still have difficulty growing them, but ours grow like weeds.

I've wanted to plant blueberries for a while now (because I LOVE them ) but don't know if I have acidic soils.

We're still in the frozen grasp of winter. . . gardening is far from my mind. Last weekend we went to our gardening store (they also sell fruits/veggies and we buy their bruised apples to feed our deer) and it looked so sad. The gardening area had been used for winter storage, and there wasn't a flower to be seen . Just a few more weeks.

[fantasia]

Oooh, man, I'm not a rose person. When I did some quick googling it looked like it depended on the rose. But the majority seemed to prefer neutral, clay soils with lots of organic matter mixed in.

...but don't know if I have acidic soils.

Soil testing kits are super cheap and you can get them at nearly any place that sells plant stuff this time of year, so if you're curious, that's a way to find out.

So I think that I am finally, FINALLY done with ordering all of my plants for the year.

In case anyone is interested, here is my MASSIVE list, and if you're not interested, just skip to the end.

Tomatoes: Sun Gold, Honeybunch, Juliet, San Marzano, Early Girl, Brandywine, Cherokee Purple, Random Heirloom
Peppers: Sweet Banana, Flavorburst, California Wonder, Whitney, Yummy Mix, Golden Treasure, Poblano, Anaheim, Green Chile, Jalapeno, Habanero, Red Thai, Cayenne
Eggplant: Burpee Hybrid, Random Eggplant
Broccoli: Green Goliath
Cauliflower: Little Cloud Hybrid
Cabbage: Earliana
Brussels Sprouts: Long Island Improved
Swiss Chard: Fordhook Giant
Lettuce: Burpee's Mesclun Salad Mix, Burpee's Lettuce Gourmet Blend, Iceburg A
Spinach: Olympia
Cucumber: Burpee Pickler, Wautoma, Raider
Squash: Saffron, Dark Green Zucchini, Piccolo, Burpee's Butterbush
Pumpkin: Early Sweet Sugar Pie, Big Moon Pumpkin ( )
Watermelon: Carolina Cross ( )
Cantaloupe: Sweet 'n Early
Turnip: Tokyo Cross, Purple-Top White Globe
Onion: Evergreen Long White Bunching, Walla Walla, Redwing, Ringmaster
Beet: Detroit Dark Red
Radish: Champion
Parsnip: Harris Model
Peas: Alaska, Sugar Snap
Green Beans: Kentucky Wonder (Pole)
Okra: Clemson Spineless
Corn: Jackpot
Sunflower: Mammoth
Peanuts: Jumbo Virginia
Sweet Potato: Beauregard
Potato: The only thing I don't have yet, but I'd like to get Yukon and Russet potatoes as well as a red variety.