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The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby mm1991 » Jun 23, 2019 12:02 pm

Do you gardeners embrace the fact the bees are attracted to your garden? It's my dream to one day have a garden, but I'm steeling myself to learn to live amongst the bees. I have been stung SO MANY times in my childhood that I've developed a fear of bees.
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby johobbit » Jun 23, 2019 3:22 pm

Yes! In fact, I have just planted some meadow sage to attract bees, and also butterflies and hummingbirds. Sorry, though, to hear of your ouch-laden mishaps with them in the past, mm, yikes. :(

Our gardens—floral and veggie—are, for the most part, burgeoning! The potatoes really grew up recently, and I have mounded them for the first time. The tomatoes plants are doing well (2 Brandywine; 1 cherry); the peas, beans, peppers, broccoli, cuc plants, and some of the carrot rows are growing. But of the latter, one row is not. Now, I planted them later (but I forgot to mark on my calendar what date), so I'm wondering if they have yet to appear. If they are not up by mid-week, I will buy more seeds and re-plant.

We have had such a lot of rain this spring, and a bit more sun lately, so between the two, everything is very lush.

Some of the perennials I purchased a few years ago are coming into their own—particularly the clematis and the peonies. The floral gardens are laden with perennials, with annuals tucked inbetween to fill in those emptier spaces. The peonies are in full bloom now and falling over, they are so heavy with flower.

The long-range forecast is for a wetter, cooler summer than usual (fine by me), so this bodes well for the gardens and subsequent harvest :) ... as long is there is sunshine periodically. ;))
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby mm1991 » Jun 23, 2019 6:10 pm

Jo, I don't mind butterflies, or I guess hummingbirds either. And I appreciate bees, I just don't like them invading my personal space! :p Maybe if I put a little pollinating station in a far off portion of the yard, they will stay away from everything else? lol
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Jun 24, 2019 11:07 am

mm1991 wrote:Do you gardeners embrace the fact the bees are attracted to your garden? It's my dream to one day have a garden, but I'm steeling myself to learn to live amongst the bees. I have been stung SO MANY times in my childhood that I've developed a fear of bees.

I don't notice many bees in the vegetable garden, but if they are there, that is a good thing. Wasps, on the other hand, I can live without!

We received a welcome near inch of rain yesterday. I'm happy to not have to water the garden and I'm also happy to have a good excuse to not weed today (too wet :) )

Most things are growing well. I'm having trouble with lettuce transplants. They haven't been developing much of a root structure in the seed starting mix and so they tend to die off once they are in the garden. If the ones I transplanted on Friday die, I will just direct seed more right in the garden. In the past, my transplants have usually gotten too big before they make it in the garden, so I don't know why I'm having issues this year.
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby johobbit » Jun 29, 2019 3:14 pm

mm1991 wrote:And I appreciate bees, I just don't like them invading my personal space! :p Maybe if I put a little pollinating station in a far off portion of the yard, they will stay away from everything else? lol

Totally!
Now, there's a good idea. ;))

Ugh, wasps, yeah.

Sorry to hear about your lettuce transplant issues, Grandmama. Keep us posted!

I'm still filling in a few spots in our floral gardens, so I planted Dusty Millers a couple of places, completely forgetting to put netting around them last night. Sure enough, one set was bitten right off. For some reason, the others were okay. To be sure, now we have cute little cages around the three sets, so hopefully that should deter those persistent bunnies. ;))

Our peonies just finished (nearly a month late), but many other things are in full bloom. I keep on finding more perennials I like, so the one front garden, in particular, keeps on expanding. :P

My neighbour split her Phlox last year and plants she gave me are doing so well! Two long-ish sections against our front porch filled in nicely with these lovely plants.

Btw, the carrots that were not up in my previous post, now are. :D But our cucs seem to be struggling a bit this year, which is unusual. Not sure how much they will grow or produce. Keeping a close eye on them.

There is a ground cover evergreen type plant in one of our front gardens that did look nice, but is now gradually biting the dust, so to speak. We are going to dig it out over time, and replace it with something else. Not sure what yet ... it is quite a shady area. It's fun going over the options and then making the big decision. :)

This Canada Day long weekend is very hot and humid here, but we had a great rain last night, although tonight I will have to water because things dried up so much today with the heat. #:-s

One of our local markets is a very favourite spot to shop. They only purchase locally, and are open from June 1 to October 31. It's an outdoor market too, which has its own lovely flavour and atmosphere ('though severe storms can cause grief :P). I absolutely love this "Your Farm Market", particularly in those months before we begin harvesting our own little gardens, which will be awhile from now.
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Jul 03, 2019 7:52 am

johobbit wrote:
Our peonies just finished (nearly a month late), but many other things are in full bloom. I keep on finding more perennials I like, so the one front garden, in particular, keeps on expanding. :P


I can relate! They look so lovely at the garden center. :) But I have learned not to buy a new perennial until I know where to put it and know I have the time to prepare that site. I have lost more than one perennial that stayed too long in the pot it came in because I never got around to planting it.

I took photos of the garden this morning and when I downloaded them, I realized that the lens was fogged up for the first few photos due to the high humidity outside! I will try again later, altho the day doesn't promise to get any better.

My sweet corn is doing really well--definitely more than "knee high by the fourth of July". Beans, tomatoes and peppers are also doing well. And the last lettuce transplants are still alive. :) The recent rain we've had has helped.

I know there are weeds out there that need to be pulled, but when it's this humid, it's hard to breathe and breathing is more important to me than having a weed free garden! ;)
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby johobbit » Jul 03, 2019 8:41 am

Grandmama wrote:But I have learned not to buy a new perennial until I know where to put it and know I have the time to prepare that site.

Yep! I do not tend to be an impulse buyer, and usually have some sort of idea in mind before I head to any garden centre. But if I do see, then purchase, a plant I did not plan on ;;), we make sure to get at it within the following couple of days so, yeah, the plants don't just sit around to fade away. :( That can happen so easily, I know!

And if I ever come home with a lovely plant and wonder where on earth I will place it, we just expand one of the gardens more. :))

I love wandering around the yard in the early mornings or evenings (when it's cooler!) and watering the gardens. This gives me time to assess how each plant/area is doing, and take stock of growth, needed work ... and weeds. ;))

I'd love to see your photos sometime, Grandmama. :D


breathing is more important to me than having a weed free garden! ;)

'Tis true. ;)) Last evening I braved the humidity, which wasn't terrible ('though today is), but still thick, and hoe-weeded the veggie gardens—very satisfying. And there was a stiff breeze blowing, which helped my sanity and any bugs to stay away (mostly). Then I came in and almost ran to get a cool shower, for I felt so grubby. #:-s

The gardens continue to flourish with our good mixture of sun and rain. Hoping this continues for the month of July, which is usually our hottest, driest (most miserable) month.
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Jul 04, 2019 7:38 am

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... _tn__=-U-R

Hoping this works--photos of our new garden
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Kalta79 » Jul 05, 2019 7:14 pm

Well the cotton is a no-go this year I guess, but the strawberries are getting bigger, so that's good! :-)
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Jul 15, 2019 9:57 am

Kalta79 wrote:Well the cotton is a no-go this year I guess, but the strawberries are getting bigger, so that's good! :-)

I'm sorry to hear that the cotton didn't work out this year. I have noticed that it seems like each year some things do really well and some things don't and it's not the same things from year to year. So, maybe next year will be better.

I am very, very thankful that my husband finished the irrigation to the raised beds and that they have been weeded and mulched because this week it is hot and sticky and I'm spending as little time as possible in the garden! Or outside in general, for that matter. B-)

I did notice the last time that I was out there that I have some little green tomatoes, some skinny 2" long cucumbers, the melons are trying to take over the garden and the corn has tassels showing.

I'm hoping this miserable weather doesn't last too long since we still have to work on the fence and gates in the fence.

The only thing I've harvested yet is lettuce, altho some of the beets are almost ready to pick. What have the rest of you been harvesting so far?
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby johobbit » Jul 18, 2019 7:04 am

Lovely photos, Grandmama! :D You have obviously worked hard.

Sorry to hear of the no-go cotton harvest, Kalta.

Nothing here is ready to harvest yet, but our first visible produce is cucumbers. Exciting! Everything is growing really well, with some steady rain yesterday, after a few days of sun and heat. I see the potatoes plants are in blossom too, quite pretty. :)

The floral gardens are beautiful too. Lush and green. Many years previously, July has hardly received any rain in our area, causing lawns to turn a sickly brown, but the past few years, we have been blessed with a decent mixture of sun and rain, so grass and plants have instead thrived through our hottest month.
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Jul 19, 2019 6:18 pm

I braved the heat index of 111 F to check the garden and found 3 cucumbers ready to pick! And a half a dozen more close behind them. :) The corn "is as high as an elephant's eye" and in full tassel. I also picked some lettuce that probably should have been picked sooner since it doesn't do well in this heat and is probably getting bitter.

Yesterday I went out to do some weeding in our old garden beds (it wasn't nearly as hot/humid then), but my weeding didn't last long when I disturbed a nest of some kind of stinging insect. After getting 3 stings, I beat a hasty retreat to the house! I think a can of wasp and hornet spray is in order. . .
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Kalta79 » Jul 19, 2019 10:22 pm

Well some of the strawberries are getting redder every time I check, can't wait to harvest 'em! And this morning had the first bloom from the nasturtiums, and the spaghetti squash and cantaloupe have blossoms as well! Worried about the cantaloupe and that it might not produce, since it barely grew. At most two inches high I figure. We'll see. Spaghetti squash on the other hand, they grew rather well, even if they didn't get that big either. Maybe 6 inches tall. Pumpkins are only fist sized at best too, and one of them has cluster of beds...I mean buds, hehe oops! So not sure if we'll actually get anything this year, but I'm feeling blessed no matter what!
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Jul 25, 2019 7:55 am

I picked 15 cucumbers today and already had 4 in the frig from yesterday. I'm thinking that I planted too many cucumber plants! It's just that when you're putting them in, they are small and don't take up much space and I plant extra in case one dies.

I also picked a good sized bowl of green beans--I'm looking forward to having them for supper. I love fresh green beans!
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby johobbit » Jul 25, 2019 8:39 am

Yay for beginning to harvest! :D We have picked some cucs too, and, wow, are they tasty! More and more keep coming, so I think, like you, Grandmama, I might have overdone it on the plants. ;)) We will definitely be giving some away.

Sounds great, Kalta. 'Though I do hope your cantaloupe comes along well. Mmm, spaghetti squash. I remember growing that shortly after we were married. We cooked it up and poured homemade spaghetti sauce on it for many delicious meals.

I am also picking peas now. They never get to the pot, as we love 'em right from the pods. Beans are nearly ready (mmm, fresh beans, indeed, Grandmama!). And I spy some green tomatoes, both large and cherry. Can hardly wait to start devouring those Brandywines. :x Peppers are coming along too.

Broccoli, carrots, and potatoes will all be awhile yet, but all in good time.

The only floral plants that look kind of dumpy now are the lupins, which seem to go through a rather sad spell after they've bloomed so gorgeously earlier on. But they should come around and have some more blooms again in August. :) Everything else is flourishing. But now that the perennials are at their fullest, I'm seeing a few empty spaces that I want to fill next year. What a chore (<- sarcasm :), more lovely plants to buy (or split). ;))


Grandmama wrote:After getting 3 stings ...

Youch!
And you mentioned weeding in that same post. It's almost constant, isn't it?! If I don't get out every couple of days to keep up with it, those invasive plants can start getting ahead of me. Although I do find now that the flowers and veggies are well-established, the weeds don't grow as profusely as they did at the beginning of the season.
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Re: The thread for people who have Green Thumbs (Gardening)

Postby Grandmama » Aug 01, 2019 4:11 pm

We are starting to get Sun Gold (yellow cherry) tomatoes. Yum!

We are overwhelmed with cucumbers--I picked 16 more today. Yesterday I gave away 10 to neighbors. Either I'm popular because I bring cukes or they are dreading to see me coming with more cukes! ;) I'm looking forward to Sunday when I can bring all the extras to church and hopefully get rid of them then. There's only so much cucumber I can eat in one day.

I'm anxiously awaiting the sweet corn getting ready to pick. I'm really bummed that it isn't ready yet since my son leaves for National Guard Annual Training tomorrow and will be gone for a month. By the time he gets back, the corn will be done. I did find a sweet corn stand today and bought some so that we could have sweet corn with supper tonight.

This is the first year with all the new beds and I'm certainly learning some things from experience. Like next year I won't put cucumbers in at the end of the bed with melons. Too many vines that are hard to tell what is what. And, of course, too many cucumbers, period! I also will cut back on how many tomato plants I put in (12 this year), so there's more space for pepper plants. And if I grow nasturtiums again, give them LOTS of space to grow.
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