Garden thread
Replies
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Hmm... hilling up...
< reconsiders cucumbers >
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I can't remember the name of the system, it might have originated in Germany. As well as building up soil they started by laying out dried off tree/hedge trimmings and the like, again, I can't remember the maximum diameter. Possibly its an alternative to having raised edges to beds.0
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Hmm... hilling up...
< reconsiders cucumbers >
OK, then, intermediate/advanced hilling: Sink a clean gallon milk jug with a few holes in the bottom in the center of the hill. When water's required, if that's a thing in your damp area, put the water in the jug for trickle-watering. You can even put fertilizer (organic if that's your thing) in the jug occasionally as needed. Cap loosely on the jug slows the flow, but is optional. After seeding, a cloche or HotKap (official or improvised) may speed germination.
** If you don't know what HotKaps are, not that you need the official brand-name ones:
https://www.originalhotkaps.com/1 -
Does anyone know what veggie grows well in perpetually wet soil? Seeing the first volunteer tomatoes pop up here and there. I have space in the Rising Damp Zone, but know tomato roots will surely rot there. If that area won't host veggies, I may just move some mint there. Any ideas?
Asparagus?3 -
Only 1 photo so far this year... the rest is still very much a work in progress! But on Sunday morning this bed was full of crabgrass and weeds, packed down like concrete, had several huge craters from a diggy puppy, and no fence. And by that afternoon I had this 😃 (and heatstroke, but win some/lose some, I guess??) The white thingies are seeds from the huge elm trees that line our boulevard. T'is the season 🙄
The yellow posts will be replaced with rebar to be less obvious and ends of the zip ties trimmed in the next few days.7 -
I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....5
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I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.0 -
enlightenme3 wrote: »I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.
Easiest thing I do is just steam them. Note; put them upside down in the pot! I sometimes make a dip of lemon garlic butter, but they really don't need it if I cook them right when I harvest. They have so much flavor! I can par cook them and then roast them if it's cool enough to run the oven. For a while, I'd steam them to half cooked, slice in half, and then put them in the smoker. My smoker died. Roasted in the oven is really nice; it does help to briefly steam them first.
No, mostly I steam three at a time and dig in. The ants give a little spicy flavor, but I don't like the earwigs. The come swimming out when I immerse them in water before I cook them. I don't use pesticide.
And OK -- a picture from the other day:
Looks like raspberries will be ripe in two weeks. Mmmmm.9 -
enlightenme3 wrote: »I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.
Easiest thing I do is just steam them. Note; put them upside down in the pot! I sometimes make a dip of lemon garlic butter, but they really don't need it if I cook them right when I harvest. They have so much flavor! I can par cook them and then roast them if it's cool enough to run the oven. For a while, I'd steam them to half cooked, slice in half, and then put them in the smoker. My smoker died. Roasted in the oven is really nice; it does help to briefly steam them first.
No, mostly I steam three at a time and dig in. The ants give a little spicy flavor, but I don't like the earwigs. The come swimming out when I immerse them in water before I cook them. I don't use pesticide.
And OK -- a picture from the other day:
Looks like raspberries will be ripe in two weeks. Mmmmm.
Love this picture! Only growing herbs, cucumbers and blueberries this year. Maybe I'll grow artichokes next year? They're amazing.1 -
enlightenme3 wrote: »I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.
I'm not mtaratoot, and I like them plain like he does or with just a little lemon or a light vinegar, but if you prefer a dip and are willing to experiment, I had some once in a restaurant that had a roasted red pepper dip that was really nice. The roasted red peppers were pureed, I'm sure there was salt, not sure what else - I'll bet a web or Pinterest search would turn up some light dip recipes. Here's one simple example I found that way (that I haven't tried making, just an example):
https://theskinnyfork.com/blog/roasted-red-pepper-dip2 -
I harvested my first squash yesterday.
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I have a whole wall o' last year's pickles in the larder.
Not gonna plant cukes this year.
Not gonna plant cukes this year.
Not gonna plant cukes this year.
< three volunteer cuke seeds sprout >
Whoohoo! Gonna have cukes this year!
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enlightenme3 wrote: »I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.
Easiest thing I do is just steam them. Note; put them upside down in the pot! I sometimes make a dip of lemon garlic butter, but they really don't need it if I cook them right when I harvest. They have so much flavor! I can par cook them and then roast them if it's cool enough to run the oven. For a while, I'd steam them to half cooked, slice in half, and then put them in the smoker. My smoker died. Roasted in the oven is really nice; it does help to briefly steam them first.
No, mostly I steam three at a time and dig in. The ants give a little spicy flavor, but I don't like the earwigs. The come swimming out when I immerse them in water before I cook them. I don't use pesticide.
And OK -- a picture from the other day:
Looks like raspberries will be ripe in two weeks. Mmmmm.
Love this picture! Only growing herbs, cucumbers and blueberries this year. Maybe I'll grow artichokes next year? They're amazing.
That artichoke patch was planted from seed maybe ten or 15 years ago. In my climate, they come back. Every few years, I dig them up, divide them, give some away, and plant some back. One fall I dug them all out and just left the clumps sitting on the ground while I covered the bed in plastic to try to kill weeds. Spring came. I divided them and put them in categories of "Will grow for sure, probably will grow, might grow," etc. Unfortunately, they all survived so I'll have to thin them again sooner rather than later. There were, I think, originally two varieties. I can almost no longer tell them apart; I think they have morphed into a more "wild" cultivar. I just have a very few plants that have the traditional globe shape. Most look more like a thistle, with big, sharp spines that stick OUT instead of in. That said, their flavor is really intense. Quite tasty. I might do my first harvest today.
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enlightenme3 wrote: »I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.
I'm not mtaratoot, and I like them plain like he does or with just a little lemon or a light vinegar, but if you prefer a dip and are willing to experiment, I had some once in a restaurant that had a roasted red pepper dip that was really nice. The roasted red peppers were pureed, I'm sure there was salt, not sure what else - I'll bet a web or Pinterest search would turn up some light dip recipes. Here's one simple example I found that way (that I haven't tried making, just an example):
https://theskinnyfork.com/blog/roasted-red-pepper-dip
I have two jars of roasted red peppers that didn't get used last Christmas so checked that link out for inspiration. I'd like a recipe with more calories, and found this, which has too many calories, but I can lighten it up by using less walnuts and bread crumbs:
https://www.themediterraneandish.com/muhammara-recipe-roasted-red-pepper-dip/comment-page-5/
I do have pomegranate molasses, might have sumac, and see a suggestion for Aleppo pepper substitute, but am considering getting that for my ridiculously large spice collection.
ETA: I've been down an Aleppo pepper rabbit hole for almost an hour - time to get outside and work on my new garden bed!3 -
kshama2001 wrote: »enlightenme3 wrote: »I took a picture of my artichoke patch the other day, but I decided not to post it because it looks like so many other pictures of my artichoke patch I've posted over the years....
I may have missed it in your earlier artichoke posts, but do you normally eat them plain or with a dip of some sort? I enjoy grilled artichokes, but feel like they are mostly a vehicle for fat since I usually make some sort of lemon/mayonnaise sauce to go with it.
I'm not mtaratoot, and I like them plain like he does or with just a little lemon or a light vinegar, but if you prefer a dip and are willing to experiment, I had some once in a restaurant that had a roasted red pepper dip that was really nice. The roasted red peppers were pureed, I'm sure there was salt, not sure what else - I'll bet a web or Pinterest search would turn up some light dip recipes. Here's one simple example I found that way (that I haven't tried making, just an example):
https://theskinnyfork.com/blog/roasted-red-pepper-dip
I have two jars of roasted red peppers that didn't get used last Christmas so checked that link out for inspiration. I'd like a recipe with more calories, and found this, which has too many calories, but I can lighten it up by using less walnuts and bread crumbs:
https://www.themediterraneandish.com/muhammara-recipe-roasted-red-pepper-dip/comment-page-5/
I do have pomegranate molasses, might have sumac, and see a suggestion for Aleppo pepper substitute, but am considering getting that for my ridiculously large spice collection.
ETA: I've been down an Aleppo pepper rabbit hole for almost an hour - time to get outside and work on my new garden bed!
Haven't made it out to the garden yet, lol. Made the muhammara dip and lunch.
I subbed 3/4 t ancho pepper and 1/4 Atlantic chipotle chili powder for the Aleppo pepper and really liked that. Turned out I did not have sumac, so used a little lemon.
I wasn't crazy about this recipe just tasting it plain or on a tortilla chip, but I added 50 grams to my chicken, rice, and spinach, and it was amazing! It has a sweet, sour, tangy, spicy flavor profile thing going on that I love.
We are having spaghetti and meatballs tonight. My partner will have our usual Newman's Sockarooni sauce and I will have this. (Just a little, because the olive oil and walnuts really bump up the calories.)4 -
On Saturday, I found this first little baby watermelon poking out to say, "Good morning, sunshine."
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Had about seven squashes growing, prior to first harvest, and they were all eaten off. Went out to my tomato bush to find five or six birds flying out, then looked at my juicy eggplants and realized that on the smallest, something helped itself to a hearty bit. I'm irritated. How would you keep birds and rodents out?4
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Caging the plants with a fine mesh, should keep both out. Extended family rabbits have a super cage, tall enough to stand in.3
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We can't have flowers or plants around here. The critters eat absolutely everything. We place pots of plastic flowers out, the deer come by, and eat all of the tops off. They're like a bunch of billy goats. 🦌3
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Back to critters...they got into my squash, and whatever it is, scratches the fruit assumably with teeth. Would you throw the whole squash away or wash and cut that part out and cook it? I hate the idea of throwing it away.1
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If I can keep the birds away (and the spotted wing drosophila), it might be a good year for cherries.
There are also SCADS of raspberries. Too many pears (I'll have to prune a lot off soon), more plums than there should be, and a decent looking crop of Marion berries. Artichokes are getting harvested now. Blueberries are OK, but not as abundant as most other fruits. We'll see what happens to the figs.
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Back to critters...they got into my squash, and whatever it is, scratches the fruit assumably with teeth. Would you throw the whole squash away or wash and cut that part out and cook it? I hate the idea of throwing it away.
I'd absolutely wash it, cut off the damaged part, and cook the rest, as long as it's not totally mangled.2 -
Back to critters...they got into my squash, and whatever it is, scratches the fruit assumably with teeth. Would you throw the whole squash away or wash and cut that part out and cook it? I hate the idea of throwing it away.
I'd absolutely wash it, cut off the damaged part, and cook the rest, as long as it's not totally mangled.
Thank you and no it's not, just a couple of tiny spots.1 -
Right now I'm working on the last gardening project before it gets too hot and I lose interest until the late summer/early fall. I just finished digging out the grass from what's going to be a mixed flower/edible bed and used the sod to patch parts of the lawn where the grass had been killed by having something stored on it. Someone here recommended the Root Slayer shovel which is the tool with the red handle. Although digging out the grass was still quite the task, the Root Slayer made it possible.
I found someone on Facebook giving away horse manure and today made my second trip there to collect some. There is also 1/2 - 3/4 of a bale of peat moss mixed in.
I found some free plants in my Facebook gardening group and am looking for more.
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kshama2001 wrote: »(snip)
I found some free plants in my Facebook gardening group and am looking for more.
Too bad you're not close, @kshama2001 - boy, have I got a lot of things that need dividing or volunteers that need relocating.3 -
kshama2001 wrote: »(snip)
I found some free plants in my Facebook gardening group and am looking for more.
Too bad you're not close, @kshama2001 - boy, have I got a lot of things that need dividing or volunteers that need relocating.
Thanks! Too bad
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And so it begins... Only got about a half pint this morning, but the bushes are full of ripening berries.
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I will be harvesting cherries today. I wanted to get that done yesterday because of rain, but I got busy pruning, and then the rain chased me inside. I hope the rain was light enough that the fruit won't split. I plan to get the dehydrator filled. There is a huge crop.
I also need to get back to the pruning - fruit pruning. There's way too much fruit on the Asian pear. It will break branches and make all the fruit small and not so delicious. I need to cut at least half the fruit away so what's left will be excellent quality. I need to do the same thing with the plum. Raspberries and blueberries are starting to ripen enough that it's more than one or three berries at a time.2
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