2020 Gardening: digging up some new dirt on an old hobby

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

12 hours ago, Mrs Whiggins said:

If you need a little time to perhaps see about delivery instead of going out, maybe read this article and see if it would be pertinent for you. It has some advice for if you need to delay planting for awhile including longer than ten days.

https://www.starkbros.com/growing-guide/article/how-to-delay-planting

Nice thought, but these were bare root trees, so they pretty much had to go in the ground today. Local feed lot is offering "order on line, drive up, we put it in your truck" service, so I never had to even roll down the window when I went out. Probably a good thing, too. I planted roughly twenty trees, came inside, took my temp, it was an even 101°. No respiratory symptoms, but still, I am glad to be done planting for a few days. I may not have Covid-19, but I have something, and it sucks.

[Pato del Muerto 52,485]

I has a question, looking for some experienced guidance. Wife bought a cheap greenhouse kit, 6x8 footprint, thin plastic panels. Now that I have it and started scanning the assembly instructions, I see that part of the structural integrity comes from the base being secured to the floor we put it on.  Driving stakes into bare earth is one choice, but since we plan on using layered grow boxes inside, I was thinking a build a wooden floor for it and screw the frame into that. 
so, boxed 2x4s with another or 2 down the middle, and plywood top? That simple?  Or should I have 4x4s on the outside, and open ended more like a large pallet so it’s easier to level?

is there treated plywood that would be ok in the elements, including snow on it for weeks at a time?  Or would some sort of deck build be better?

Edited March 22, 2020 by Pato del Muerto

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Finished up the top trim on the raised beds and got both started with vegetables/herbs. Also started to make three tapered planters for container growing some citrus trees.

Well even if your veggies go to shit, you still win the internets.

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Even with it being a turd floater, I have to get the extension onto the raised bed done. Bought a bunch of plants yesterday that can sit around a couple days till I get time to get them on the soil. Only have this afternoon of some free time for prep before back to the grind tomorrow.

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

16 hours ago, Walden Ponderer said:

Nice thought, but these were bare root trees, so they pretty much had to go in the ground today. Local feed lot is offering "order on line, drive up, we put it in your truck" service, so I never had to even roll down the window when I went out. Probably a good thing, too. I planted roughly twenty trees, came inside, took my temp, it was an even 101°. No respiratory symptoms, but still, I am glad to be done planting for a few days. I may not have Covid-19, but I have something, and it sucks.

I hope you feel better soon, but don't overdo the exertion for sure.

8 minutes ago, Both Tacos said:

Even with it being a turd floater, I have to get the extension onto the raised bed done. Bought a bunch of plants yesterday that can sit around a couple days till I get time to get them on the soil. Only have this afternoon of some free time for prep before back to the grind tomorrow.

I have garden space jealousy here. That is a nice setup.

[Both Tacos 1,806]

It's been a process over time to get it that big (that's what she said).

What I'm going to like is I can spread out the plants and not getting hung up on cages or two plants growing into one another. It also gives me the room to grow cantaloupes and melons.

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

My neighbor has a cattle panel trellis where they bent it in a gentle arch and secured it to four metal T posts. They grow small melons/squash on it. Their backyard has a lot of play equipment for their children so they maximized their space. Your ability to spread out like you said is a big plus.

The rain has been a blessing, but I am looking forward to putting in some more seeds this week.

[4th and 5 4,914]

On 3/22/2020 at 2:13 PM, Pato del Muerto said:

I has a question, looking for some experienced guidance. Wife bought a cheap greenhouse kit, 6x8 footprint, thin plastic panels. Now that I have it and started scanning the assembly instructions, I see that part of the structural integrity comes from the base being secured to the floor we put it on.  Driving stakes into bare earth is one choice, but since we plan on using layered grow boxes inside, I was thinking a build a wooden floor for it and screw the frame into that. 
so, boxed 2x4s with another or 2 down the middle, and plywood top? That simple?  Or should I have 4x4s on the outside, and open ended more like a large pallet so it’s easier to level?

is there treated plywood that would be ok in the elements, including snow on it for weeks at a time?  Or would some sort of deck build be better?

You know what you can't fuck up?

Cut stone. I built my garden years ago and it looks the same today

[Irwin F Fletcher 3,550]

I has a question, looking for some experienced guidance. Wife bought a cheap greenhouse kit, 6x8 footprint, thin plastic panels. Now that I have it and started scanning the assembly instructions, I see that part of the structural integrity comes from the base being secured to the floor we put it on.  Driving stakes into bare earth is one choice, but since we plan on using layered grow boxes inside, I was thinking a build a wooden floor for it and screw the frame into that. 
so, boxed 2x4s with another or 2 down the middle, and plywood top? That simple?  Or should I have 4x4s on the outside, and open ended more like a large pallet so it’s easier to level?
is there treated plywood that would be ok in the elements, including snow on it for weeks at a time?  Or would some sort of deck build be better?

My guess would be to get whatever structure you are planing to secure the sides to off the ground. Treated lumber will last for a couple years I would imagine, but any wood in contact with the bare earth will eventually succumb Mother Nature more quickly.

[Pato del Muerto 52,485]

More searching shows that some people just build a frame out of 4x4 cedar and fill it in with pea gravel for better drainage. 

[Both Tacos 1,806]

My neighbor has a cattle panel trellis where they bent it in a gentle arch and secured it to four metal T posts. They grow small melons/squash on it. Their backyard has a lot of play equipment for their children so they maximized their space. Your ability to spread out like you said is a big plus.
The rain has been a blessing, but I am looking forward to putting in some more seeds this week.

I do the same thing with 16 ft cattle panels to grow cucumbers and green beans.

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

16 hours ago, Irwin F Fletcher said:

On 3/22/2020 at 3:13 PM, Pato del Muerto said:

I has a question, looking for some experienced guidance. ...is there treated plywood that would be ok in the elements, including snow on it for weeks at a time?  Or would some sort of deck build be better?

My guess would be to get whatever structure you are planing to secure the sides to off the ground. Treated lumber will last for a couple years I would imagine, but any wood in contact with the bare earth will eventually succumb Mother Nature more quickly.

Some of us take advantage of that, actually. It's called "huglekultur", and it has a ton of benefits, not the least of which is, it's easier than hauling off scrap wood from when you prune, trim, clear, etc. Here's a good primer on the subject, though it's really pretty straightforward. Just build a mound of old scrap wood, make layers of logs, trimmings, leaves, compost, etc., and as each layer rots, you get a new planting surface. You can cheat the first year by adding topsoil directly to the top of your mound in the area you want to plant, but a good huglekultur mound can last for a decade or more before you have to move on to the next pile of rotting wood on your property. Or, you can cheat again, by adding more compost to your existing hill.

 

 

 

Edited March 27, 2020 by Walden Ponderer

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

Finally harvested a couple of strawberries this weekend. It was my first attempt at growing them. My contraption to keep the critters away is homely but did the job. Planted some garlic bulbs a little late, but it is an experiment so we'll see what happens. The peas have some blossoms and the bees have been buzzing around due to the other flowers. I really enjoy having some veggies sprinkled in among the flowers. It is more stressful as I worry over crops more than I do blooms, but given the shelter in place going on, gives me a different outlet for the worry I suppose! My next door neighbor thinks I'm turning into a female version of Elmer Fudd based on my squirrel comments. Not wrong. He was digging around my seedlings and ruined a bunch of them.

[NorthLoop 14,180]

So I got my plants into the topsy turvy's this weekend. 2 Japs and 1 cherry tomato. I may have murdered the tomato plant upon transfer though. If you ever decide to try one of these, make sure you (GENTLY) put them through the hole plant first, despite what the instructions say. 

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Alright, who's going to make this?

 

[4th and 5 4,914]

That’s a shitload of work and materials only to have Mother Nature and gravity fuck it up in 5 years or less.

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

56 minutes ago, 4th and 5 said:

That’s a shitload of work and materials only to have Mother Nature and gravity fuck it up in 5 years or less.

No shit. I don't understand the enclosure idea, anyway. I plant out in the open, following my grandma's advice, planting three times what I want: one third for me, one third that fails, and one third for varmints.

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

I typically don't go for ornamentals -- I mean, why plant something that's just pretty, when fruit trees are pretty and productive? But this piece of property has things growing on it that I never would have put there on my own, and now that they are blooming, I'm glad to see them. Saucer Magnolias, Bradford Pear, Wisteria, and a bunch of stuff I don't even recognize, and they are all over the place.

[Pato del Muerto 52,485]

Looks exactly like Augusta National!

[Horn of Gabriel 1,614]

X-posting on landscaping thread...

I have what I guess you could call an ornamental garden in the backyard.  It has knockout rose, mountain laurel, purple lantana, lily of the nile, plumbago, mexican bush sage, Esperanza, texas sage, red bud, weeping red bud, red yucca, pink skull cap, purple heart, indian hawthorne, artichoke agave, turks cap, loropetalum, soft leaf yucca, variegated ginger, abulia, liziope, oak leaf hydrangea, beauty berry, and black & blue salvia, and flax lily.  80% of these were installed in Nov 2019, and the remaining 20% is going to go in over the next 60 days.

Unfortunately I also have the dreaded NUTSEDGE coming up in the mulch.  Nutsedge laughs at Roundup and Glyphosphate.  Manual pulling makes it worse.

In the past I've used an Image/44% Glophosphate mix to kill it but I literally had to paint it onto the shoots.  That's no longer feasible here.

I have some SedgeHammer (halosalfuron) and a container of Dismiss (sulfentrazone) and I'd like to do a spot spray in the areas that have trouble, but I'm finding conflicting info on if that is OK in my landscape garden.  The Sulfentrazone label says not to use it in ornamental areas, but there are lots of threads online where it's fine.  SedgeHammer says its OK but apparently doesn't work as well as the Dismiss.  Apparently the Dismiss persists in soil for a year, whereas the SedgeHammer is much shorter.  I'm wondering if when they install the new stuff in the next month or two if that's going to interfere with the transplant process if I spray now.

Anyone have any thoughts/ideas?

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

@cactusflinthead would be the guy to ask pertinent chemical questions of; as you can undoubtedly tell, I don't even bother with weed control. We pull weeds and feed 'em to the chickens, so it just isn't relevant for us.

Nutsedge used to drive me insane before I started raising chickens.  Giving up that fight has lowered my blood pressure. 

[NorthLoop 14,180]

I've got some tangly grass growing around my nutsedge.

[cactusflinthead 27,598]

1 hour ago, Walden Ponderer said:

@cactusflinthead would be the guy to ask pertinent chemical questions of; as you can undoubtedly tell, I don't even bother with weed control. We pull weeds and feed 'em to the chickens, so it just isn't relevant for us.

Nutsedge used to drive me insane before I started raising chickens.  Giving up that fight has lowered my blood pressure. 

When I worked at Fossil Rim I'd bring nutgrass plugs to the prairie chicken pens. It was one of their favorites. 

[mulletpelini 5,210]

I've heard Sedgehammer brings out the honeybees

[NorthLoop 14,180]

This is probably a "no duh, dumbass" type of statement, but this year I mixed a bunch of perlite with my soil because I felt like my plants weren't getting enough drainage before and damn I can already tell a difference. Just about every plant I put out about 10 days ago has doubled in size. Took a month to do that in previous years. 

[cactusflinthead 27,598]

On 3/31/2020 at 5:37 PM, Walden Ponderer said:

I typically don't go for ornamentals -- I mean, why plant something that's just pretty, when fruit trees are pretty and productive? But this piece of property has things growing on it that I never would have put there on my own, and now that they are blooming, I'm glad to see them. Saucer Magnolias, Bradford Pear, Wisteria, and a bunch of stuff I don't even recognize, and they are all over the place.

Nice azaleas/rhododendrons 

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

I harvested four strawberries today. Take that squirrel!! Something, however, is consuming the pea plant so I need to figure out what to douse it with that won't kill me before the COVID does. Should I start small like dish soap and then go nuclear with a real chemical? I saw no bugs so it could have been the squirrel again as I am pretty sure he has built a nest in our elm. We have no rabbits in our yard. The leaves were eaten and the top looked like it had been chewed on too.

I do so much better with flowers. I take the crop plants personally and get a little mean inside when something attacks them.

[Both Tacos 1,806]

No shit. I don't understand the enclosure idea, anyway. I plant out in the open, following my grandma's advice, planting three times what I want: one third for me, one third that fails, and one third for varmints.

To keep the deer out. You have deer around a garden, there is no "one third for varmits". It all gets eaten by the deer.
Luckily I don't have that issue.

[miguelito 11,254]

What do y'all do about rabbits?  I'm moving to a place with deer and rabbits.  I'm thinking of an enclosed area with deer fencing, with rabbit fencing for the lower part.  Maybe I'll get a feral cat.

 

Oh, I'll have bigass snails, too.  Like 1" diameter snails.  I'll have to set up some traps or something for them.

[ZB'Tejas 593]

I harvested four strawberries today. Take that squirrel!! Something, however, is consuming the pea plant so I need to figure out what to douse it with that won't kill me before the COVID does. Should I start small like dish soap and then go nuclear with a real chemical? I saw no bugs so it could have been the squirrel again as I am pretty sure he has built a nest in our elm. We have no rabbits in our yard. The leaves were eaten and the top looked like it had been chewed on too.
I do so much better with flowers. I take the crop plants personally and get a little mean inside when something attacks them.

Strawberries already? I think mine haven’t really gotten a chance to but maybe not enough sun. I’ve got something eating the leaves on my bell peppers. I don’t think caterpillars so haven’t tried BT spray. Perhaps aphids... tomato plants starting to grow other than just getting beat by this rain.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

1 hour ago, ZB'Tejas said:

Strawberries already? I think mine haven’t really gotten a chance to but maybe not enough sun. I’ve got something eating the leaves on my bell peppers. I don’t think caterpillars so haven’t tried BT spray. Perhaps aphids... tomato plants starting to grow other than just getting beat by this rain.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The strawberries are not very large, but I also kept them in a pot in an attempt to actually obtain one this year. That may have restricted the size, but I've had blooms since late last month. Of course, the bluebonnets were blooming then too so it's been freaky early this year.

I have two tomato plants and one has a bloom or two. So far, no caterpillars but I've seen the moths around so I should probably give them a shot of something. Peas have pods except for the one plant that is now sad due to its mauling by whatever gnawed on it. Dill, parsely, and basil are growing although the basil won't like this cool front so much. I got the garlic in late but it sprouted. It's an experiment so we'll see how it does. I'm planting the corn and eggplant when it dries out some.

Sunflowers are now about six inches tall and the milkweed that the early monarch caterpillars ate to nubs is now resprouting. Butterflies and bees are zooming when the sun is out. Almost got taken out by a bee to the face the other day. I wear a bright ball cap in the sun and it must have thought I was a flower. Oh! And a hummingbird too. Got one of the feeders up last week and he's been out and about.

The rain has been a blessing, but yes, everything is looking a little bedraggled right now.

[Walden Ponderer 12,639]

19 hours ago, miguelito said:

What do y'all do about rabbits?  I'm moving to a place with deer and rabbits.  I'm thinking of an enclosed area with deer fencing, with rabbit fencing for the lower part.  Maybe I'll get a feral cat.

 

Oh, I'll have bigass snails, too.  Like 1" diameter snails.  I'll have to set up some traps or something for them.

Just have a Covid patient cough on some carrot sticks, and leave 'em right outside your garden. That'll teach the little buggers. 

[Spoosner 86]

Amateur question.  I would like to spread some turf builder, and I think I need to aerate before doing so.  My yards are not big, total lot size is 7k sq. feet.

A professional service quoted me $150.  I don't mind spending some money, but that just seems silly for my small yards.

This is the only tool with decent reviews on Amazon.  Would seem like a slow process, but fine to go this route if it's the best idea: Yard Butler Lawn Coring Aerator Manual Grass Dethatching Turf Plug Core Aeration Tool ID-6C

This would seem like the easiest/most efficient, but reviews are pretty terrible: Rolling Lawn Aerator 18-inch Garden Yard Rotary Push Tine Heavy Duty Spike Soil Aeration, 50-in Handle (Green w/Fender)

The aerator shoes are the last option, but have read these are not the best idea.

Any advice on the best option?  

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Amateur question.  I would like to spread some turf builder, and I think I need to aerate before doing so.  My yards are not big, total lot size is 7k sq. feet.
A professional service quoted me $150.  I don't mind spending some money, but that just seems silly for my small yards.
This is the only tool with decent reviews on Amazon.  Would seem like a slow process, but fine to go this route if it's the best idea: Yard Butler Lawn Coring Aerator Manual Grass Dethatching Turf Plug Core Aeration Tool ID-6C
This would seem like the easiest/most efficient, but reviews are pretty terrible: Rolling Lawn Aerator 18-inch Garden Yard Rotary Push Tine Heavy Duty Spike Soil Aeration, 50-in Handle (Green w/Fender)
The aerator shoes are the last option, but have read these are not the best idea.
Any advice on the best option?  

Excuse me sir, but the lawn and landscape post is 2 aisles over.

[NorthLoop 14,180]

On 3/29/2020 at 9:29 AM, NorthLoop said:

So I got my plants into the topsy turvy's this weekend. 2 Japs and 1 cherry tomato. I may have murdered the tomato plant upon transfer though. If you ever decide to try one of these, make sure you (GENTLY) put them through the hole plant first, despite what the instructions say. 

Tomato survived and is doing quite well. 

 

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

Nice!

I have blooms on one tomato, nothing on the other variety but the first one is a Celebrity and I think it goes earlier. Many pea pods now. And have harvested under-sized strawberries but the subsequent ones have been better.

I thought petunias were hard to germinate because the seeds are so tiny, but now I have so many I may have to text the neighbors and see if they'd like some left on their doorsteps. Problem is that my tag fell off and I have no idea what bloom color will be. Mystery! I have several that popped up in the beds this year and I left them and have been pleasantly surprised at how they managed to sort themselves out with respect to the adjacent plants' colors. White, pink, and purple. Pretty funny. The red ones (I usually have a large pot of red and white for my spouse's alma mater) must be sterile because they don't volunteer the way the other colors do.

The roses have been growing rapidly and I harvested my first bloom for hubby. Love to have a red rose for him when he sits down to breakfast. All of ours are scented except the Ducher (sp) which doesn't have much but has lots of blooms so quite pretty.

[NorthLoop 14,180]

My other tomato has blooms and has almost tripled in size in just a few weeks. The pot looks small because of photo perspective but I've started to worry that maybe I should've used a bigger one for this guy. 

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

That looks quite healthy.

I have mine potted as I would need to dig a lot more garden to do otherwise. I think my pots are between 18-24? I can't remember. I put the cages in when I buried the transplants and then cut a strip of bird netting to wrap around the rim of each pot (squirrel--he's sees fresh dirt as a potential acorn farm).  The Celebrity is at the top of the cage, but the other one is a bush hybrid and won't get as tall.

[NorthLoop 14,180]

Squirrels are not an issue for me. I live in a newer subdivision that has no trees. Plus I have a Jack Russell. 

 

[miguelito 11,254]

I've given away several red oaks that the squirrels have planted in pots, and I repotted.  And I don't even know where the nearest red oak is.  They bring the acorns from far away just to plant them in my pots.

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Possible frost tonight and I don't want to take any chances. Used leaves that I had for future mulching to cover up each plant. My garden has gotten too big to lay out covering, so hope this does the trick. It is only going to be in the lower 30's for a couple of hours, so I think I'll be fine.

[mulletpelini 5,210]

I'm jealous, my compost isn't even ready yet and my seedlings are still growing in the basement.  Oh to be a zone 6er

[NorthLoop 14,180]

Didn't freeze here but my plants took a beating from the wind. 

[ZB'Tejas 593]

My tomatoes are growing but peppers and strawberries are lagging. I think the issue is the area I have the beds don't get much sun until the afternoon. Last summer my tomato plants went wild late but by the time they started producing it was so hot they started wilting and getting bad. With my small lot I'm just not sure there is a good way to get more morning sun without chopping down the big oak trees.

I do have a little space in a planter on the other side of the house that the daughter and I have added a herb garden so at least we don't totally strake out. But it's outside the fence so vegetables might not survive the critters.

[Llano Estacado 1,257]

Okra tomatoes and pepper seedlings went in the ground Saturday.


...and now we wait.

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Uncovered the plants mid morning and no damage. Not sure what the temp got down to but there was frost on the lawn.

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

Weather today is beautiful. Lots of bees and butterflies on our flowers. Gave away a butterfly weed plant this morning to a family up the street with small children. Hope they get one of the monarchs I've seen fluttering about to lay her eggs on a leaf. The purple salvia is enjoying the heat but the peas are a little sad. They've had some lovely pods that we've shelled. We love to put raw peas on our salads. Can't put the tomatoes on them yet, though. Too small and green. The corn sprouted, which is good because I had it swathed in netting to keep the critters from swiping it.

Took out the cooler weather ornamentals yesterday: kale, cabbage, violas, and pansies. Still have snapdragons and they have been looking okay so they'll stay in longer. Have several flats of seedlings of zinnias, coleus, celosia, impatiens, petunias, etc. Although I could direct sow, between the squirrel and the birds I have to protect everything or they eat it all. Only the plants that absolutely hate being transplanted are put straight out in the garden, and even then I sometimes try and soak the seeds so they germinate faster. I have a ton of morning glory seeds that are soaking right now. Although they self-sow every year, they seem to be healthiest when I sprout them and wait for this warmer weather.

Good to be outside and enjoying the day before returning inside to work.

[Both Tacos 1,806]

Built a large self wicking tub this weekend to put herbs in right off the patio. Easier to get to that through the yard.

[Mrs Whiggins 13,050]

That is a sweet setup.

What herbs are you going to grow? I've grown dill, parsley, sage (that one I didn't do so well but at least it lasted until the Thanksgiving dressing), and basil. Are there other ones good for central Texas that I should try?

[miguelito 11,254]

Basil grows easy.  You could try different kinds of it, like lemon basil.  I like to let it go to seed and store them for next season.

Onion and garlic chives, mint (keep mint in a separate container, it spreads).  Oregano does well.

If I were a better chef I'd probably grow more herbs than that.