Garden thread

1235796

Replies

  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Did you get snow, French Peasant? We actually did, although its been a low snow year otherwise. I don't recall where we were talking about this.
  • French_Peasant
    French_Peasant Posts: 1,639 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Did you get snow, French Peasant? We actually did, although its been a low snow year otherwise. I don't recall where we were talking about this.

    I think it was on the Ranc Dressing thread. It snowed all day here, quite vigorously, but it was just fine little icy flakes, so we maybe got 3 inches with a lot of drifting. Did you get the cat to the vet? We did not drive at all yesterday but the kids played outside most of the day and we took the crazy dog out to burn some energy pulling my daughter on her sled.

    I am looking at buying a vacant city owned lot, but over the weekend came to the realization that we would be on the hook for not just mowing but also snow removal...and it is a corner lot. Both are tougher when you are not allowed to put up a shed to store tools in. (It doesn’t appear that anyone else in the neighborhood bothers with snow removal.)
  • daklock
    daklock Posts: 54 Member
    Great thread. Looking forward to planting some early plants like peas, lettuces, spinach. I have three raised beds. One has herbs like chives, oregano, thyme, parsely and sage as well as rhubarb at the other end. In between I might put in tomatoes. I'll put the spring plants in the other bed. Last fall I was relocating some perennial flowers from the different areas around the house and I plopped those into the third bed for now. Not quite sure where I want to move the plants yet, so I'll just leave it as a flower bed this year, and maybe plop a few annuals in for more colour. We'll be travelling east to the Maritimes in August and September so won't be around to tend to the garden when it will really needs it most. I'm also in Southern BC where it can get hot, and dry, and although we do have underground irrigation - it is not drip. That's something I'll need to work on this year and since I'm now retired, I can. And the maple trees have grown quite large now and are providing lots of shade - great in the hot sun, but not so wonderful for vegetable gardening. Oh well, its all fun to see what will grow and thrive. Good luck everyone.
  • French_Peasant
    French_Peasant Posts: 1,639 Member
    daklock wrote: »
    Great thread. Looking forward to planting some early plants like peas, lettuces, spinach. I have three raised beds. One has herbs like chives, oregano, thyme, parsely and sage as well as rhubarb at the other end. In between I might put in tomatoes. I'll put the spring plants in the other bed. Last fall I was relocating some perennial flowers from the different areas around the house and I plopped those into the third bed for now. Not quite sure where I want to move the plants yet, so I'll just leave it as a flower bed this year, and maybe plop a few annuals in for more colour. We'll be travelling east to the Maritimes in August and September so won't be around to tend to the garden when it will really needs it most. I'm also in Southern BC where it can get hot, and dry, and although we do have underground irrigation - it is not drip. That's something I'll need to work on this year and since I'm now retired, I can. And the maple trees have grown quite large now and are providing lots of shade - great in the hot sun, but not so wonderful for vegetable gardening. Oh well, its all fun to see what will grow and thrive. Good luck everyone.

    You sound like me--somehow those dang perennials keep on ending up in the vegetable beds! I have columbine seeding throughout and can't bear to pull it. Also, annuals...my kids receive a variety of seeds for a school children's competition, so we have a good chunk of space dedicated to flowers that I would not, myself, choose to grow.

    In the shadier areas of the garden, I have had good luck with greens and herbs. Maples can be jerks because they have shallow roots that compete with everything. I have what I call my "square of desolation" at the front of our driveway, maybe a 10 x 10 space, that has a large old maple in it, and nothing else will thrive there in the barren, dry shade. I have some stunted hostas and boxwoods, suffering along; if I fertilize them with compost and worm castings the maple jams its roots into the area and just makes it worse. But then it puts on its fall show and all is forgiven!
  • daklock
    daklock Posts: 54 Member
    @French_Peas
    Yes, that's how things started in the fall. I wanted to move the hostas that were basically sitting and dying under the maple trees. Moved them into other garden areas necessitating moving the plants from there - and on it went. We have about 20 maple trees in the yard. Love them and won't cut them down, but will be moving things around until I'm satisfied with how the plants are looking and performing. Can't wait. It snowed here yesterday which is good for the ground, but I'm itching to get my hands into the soil. p.s. we used all those leaves to make leaf mold. We'll see how that goes.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    carakirkey wrote: »
    Yeah, last year sucked for this. Here's hoping the province isn't on fire again this year. Camping in Oliver in July (and visiting wineries) so would really like sunny vs smokey.

    I hope for your sake too! Oliver is lovely. So are the wineries! at least can visit wineries in smoky conditions. Usually July is OK. August has been challenging for forest fires for a number of years. Pro Tips- Visit Hidden chapel winery. Great people, small winery but great wines. Best beaches are in that area too- Okanagan Falls on Skaha lake, and Haynes Point in Osoyoos.

    We go to OK falls to swim so the dogs can go as well. Since we live an hour or so north, we know ALLLLL the wineries :) Oh, and the gin that Duhb Glass sells is my fav.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,718 Member
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.

    I'm a lazy *baby-feline* . . . I just use soaker hoses with quick connectors, laying out the hoses at planting time**. Inelegant, but flexible as to arrangement, and pretty affordable. At least it reduces the potential for damp foliage (thus fungus type stuff), and wastes less water.

    ** In the perennial beds, I just leave 'em there until they leak a gush, and won't repair with tape. They last many, many years, even here in mid-Michigan with Winters that routinely drop below 0 degrees F each year.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.

    i have a sprinkler. run that in the evening
  • French_Peasant
    French_Peasant Posts: 1,639 Member
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.

    I don't have any irrigation system set up. I have focused on building the soil over the years with plenty of compost, and then in my vegetable beds mulch with a heavy layer of rotted straw, which is incredible for retaining moisture. My perennials kind of fend for themselves (I mulch them with a fine hardwood mulch, but I don't think it's that great for retaining moisture) but if the grass/garden starts getting crispy I drag the hose around and water for a half-hour in each section 1x per week. (I use one of those small rectangular sprinklers that outs out a lot of water but doesn't cover a big area).

    I have a lot of flowers in pots on our front porch and deck, but those I pretty much have to hand-water every day.
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,967 Member
    edited March 2019
    I'm bringing this back! it's almost time for me! I'm so excited lol. I was wanting to start seeds indoors this year but I don't really have any good windows with a lot of light so I'd have to get some sort of grow light which I didn't really feel "up for." I'm just going to buy tomato plants at the nursery again like I always do. I think I'm just going to plant cherry tomatoes, roma tomatoes, cucumbers, zuccini and a few different types of peppers and that's it. Maybe green beans, I don't know. My green beans never turn out that well, I need to try a different variety.

    What are you guys up to?
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,967 Member
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.

    I want to do this... I was thinking about even just buying an extra hose and poking holes in it that way I can just lay it however I want in the garden. That would work right?
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    hesn92 wrote: »
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.

    I want to do this... I was thinking about even just buying an extra hose and poking holes in it that way I can just lay it however I want in the garden. That would work right?

    i feel like we had something like this as a child. i think they make hoses premade holey
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,843 Member
    Back on topic, how do most of you set up your irrigation? I put in hard pipes to my planters last year and ran small nozzles off of them, but I'm wondering if I should go to something more flexible so I can do some re-arranging if needed. I know I need to redo my potato box.

    When I had more extensive gardens I mulched and used a sprinkler when needed. I just have 7 boxes now and mulch and water by hand.

    For those of you who use premade soaker hoses - what brands do you use and where do you get them? I tried this years back and wasn't happy with the results - I think they got clogged.
  • AudreyJDuke
    AudreyJDuke Posts: 1,092 Member
    What great ideas!!!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,843 Member
    According to the "Victory Garden", in my area (Boston) peas can be planted on St Patrick's day. I usually wait until April 1 though - peas I plant on March 17 and two weeks later develop at the same rate. Also, right now there is still snow in my beds so I will wait for the ground to dry out.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    According to the "Victory Garden", in my area (Boston) peas can be planted on St Patrick's day. I usually wait until April 1 though - peas I plant on March 17 and two weeks later develop at the same rate. Also, right now there is still snow in my beds so I will wait for the ground to dry out.

    not in the same area but the ground is still frozen, so i won't be planting anything just yet
  • anthocyanina
    anthocyanina Posts: 86 Member
    I need to pull what's left of the broccoli, kale, and Brussels sprouts out of my raised bed and prepare the bed for planting. Planning on 3 tomato plants: Roma, cherry, and some kind of heirloom, basil. Swiss chard and maybe peas from seed. I have a smallish pomegranate tree and several dragonfruit cacti that need to go into the ground (if the latest cold snap hasn't killed the poor dragonfruit off completely).