Garden thread

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Replies

  • DWBalboa
    DWBalboa Posts: 37,239 Member
    I got about 50 seeds planted, 5 type of hot peppers, 4 types of tomatoes, various squash, cucumbers, pumpkin and watermelon. Got a few more things to sow indoors and a few I'll sow directly in the ground in just a few weeks.
    I also have two new additions to my bee and butterfly garden to plant.
    I just love this time of the year.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,724 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Finally first crocus!

    Hey, when is my ornamental grass going to start coming back? I'm in Zone 6b. Google was no help.

    I planted Zebra grass and one other type whose name escapes me last fall.

    <lovely crocus photo snipped for length.>

    When it feels like it. ;) (I'm in zone 5, I forget whether a or b.) Seriously, mine is usually fairly late, I wanna say maybe even May, and the first sprouts hide amongst last year's stubble for quite a while, only to burst forth about the time I get around to cutting down last year's growth (which I keep around in Winter for texture and insect habitat protection).

    The rock garden iris are finally popping open here, later than usual by a bit, I'd say. I think this is Iris reticulata (some say histrioides) 'George', a cute little guy about 6 inches high and nearly as broad.

    rbeq1q42ztod.jpg

    Tommie crocus all over the place now, and the snowdrops still hanging on . . . not for long, though, if it stays in the 50s F.
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
    I have to start over with my planting in my enclosed bed. The door never fit right and rats got in and robbed me. Like, little cartoon holes where every seed was. I repaired the door and plan to get some stuff in the ground this weekend.
  • losingit711
    losingit711 Posts: 316 Member
    I’m starting my pepper seeds tomorrow!!!!! Can’t wait. Then start my tomatoes, onions and cukes in 2 weeks. Woo hoo!!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,846 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Finally first crocus!

    Hey, when is my ornamental grass going to start coming back? I'm in Zone 6b. Google was no help.

    I planted Zebra grass and one other type whose name escapes me last fall.

    <lovely crocus photo snipped for length.>

    When it feels like it. ;) (I'm in zone 5, I forget whether a or b.) Seriously, mine is usually fairly late, I wanna say maybe even May, and the first sprouts hide amongst last year's stubble for quite a while, only to burst forth about the time I get around to cutting down last year's growth (which I keep around in Winter for texture and insect habitat protection).

    The rock garden iris are finally popping open here, later than usual by a bit, I'd say. I think this is Iris reticulata (some say histrioides) 'George', a cute little guy about 6 inches high and nearly as broad.

    rbeq1q42ztod.jpg

    Tommie crocus all over the place now, and the snowdrops still hanging on . . . not for long, though, if it stays in the 50s F.

    Those little iris are so cute!!!

    Where do you live or what gardening zone are you in?
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,724 Member
    edited March 2019
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Finally first crocus!

    Hey, when is my ornamental grass going to start coming back? I'm in Zone 6b. Google was no help.

    I planted Zebra grass and one other type whose name escapes me last fall.

    <lovely crocus photo snipped for length.>

    When it feels like it. ;) (I'm in zone 5, I forget whether a or b.) Seriously, mine is usually fairly late, I wanna say maybe even May, and the first sprouts hide amongst last year's stubble for quite a while, only to burst forth about the time I get around to cutting down last year's growth (which I keep around in Winter for texture and insect habitat protection).

    The rock garden iris are finally popping open here, later than usual by a bit, I'd say. I think this is Iris reticulata (some say histrioides) 'George', a cute little guy about 6 inches high and nearly as broad.

    rbeq1q42ztod.jpg

    Tommie crocus all over the place now, and the snowdrops still hanging on . . . not for long, though, if it stays in the 50s F.

    Those little iris are so cute!!!

    Where do you live or what gardening zone are you in?

    Zone 5**. Most rock garden types are hardy to zone 5, don't know if some varieties might tolerate lower. Presumably you could zone-push a bit with the proper microclimate. These go through temps well below zero F here regularly, just out in my yard/garden. I think we got down to -15F or lower this year a few times, without a huge bunch of protective snow cover at the time, either.

    Most varieties are a little later than 'George', but they're all pretty early.

    ** ETA: In the palm of Michigan's lower peninsula mitten.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    edited March 2019
    I'm 5b. No signs of life yet around me (I have some perennials in my garden (still in winter mode) and we have some in a community garden that's in front of my place, and the grass is still looking like winter. We had some crazy cold days (don't remember temp without windchill, but I think it was like -20 or worse, which is not something we normally get at all), within an otherwise mild winter (all freezing rain and snow that melted and turned to ice, so not that cold, but not great). And not much snow cover on those extreme cold days -- hope it didn't kill everything. Bad enough one of my pipes burst.

    I have some seeds planted indoors to be planted outside later. Supposedly going to be 25 tomorrow night, sigh. I've always been told outdoor planting is Mothers Day weekend, although I know from experience you can get away with going a week or two early, usually. The gardening.org site gives me the earlier April 25, which makes sense.
  • nooshi713
    nooshi713 Posts: 4,877 Member
    9B here.

    I just planted my onion bulbs, squash, tomato, and pepper seedlings and cucumber, beet, carrot, beans, watermelon, lettuce, and herb seeds. I will plant eggplant next month and corn in summer.
  • daklock
    daklock Posts: 54 Member
    We have got the whole yard raked up and the winter debris was hauled away. Things are looking clean for a week or two but I see signs of weeds starting to spring up. The daffodils and irises are coming up, the peonies are starting to poke up their heads and the crocuses are in bloom. The trees are starting to bud up, and the birds are singing their hearts out looking for their mates. I love this time of year. Oh yeah, and we ordered a greenhouse that will come next week. We probably won't put it up until later in the summer as we have some reorganizing to do in the yard. Which also means I won't be having a vegetable garden this year as we will be hiring some heavier equipment to move around dirt, and pour some walls. But I can enjoy the flower beds.
  • dulcitonia
    dulcitonia Posts: 278 Member
    Love this thread ❤️
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,846 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    I'm 5b. No signs of life yet around me (I have some perennials in my garden (still in winter mode) and we have some in a community garden that's in front of my place, and the grass is still looking like winter. We had some crazy cold days (don't remember temp without windchill, but I think it was like -20 or worse, which is not something we normally get at all), within an otherwise mild winter (all freezing rain and snow that melted and turned to ice, so not that cold, but not great). And not much snow cover on those extreme cold days -- hope it didn't kill everything. Bad enough one of my pipes burst.

    I have some seeds planted indoors to be planted outside later. Supposedly going to be 25 tomorrow night, sigh. I've always been told outdoor planting is Mothers Day weekend, although I know from experience you can get away with going a week or two early, usually. The gardening.org site gives me the earlier April 25, which makes sense.

    Mother's Day is the planting date for Warm Annuals. You can start some Cool Annuals now. I'm going to plant peas tomorrow, and have done that as early as St. Patrick's Day.

    https://www.sunset.com/garden/garden-basics/cool-season-crops-0

    Cool-season veggies grow best at temperatures averaging 15° cooler than those needed by warm season types.

    Many have edible leaves or roots (lettuce, spinach, carrots, and radishes); others (artichokes, broccoli, cauliflower) are grown for their immature flowers. A few (peas, broad beans) produce edible seeds.

    Most can endure short periods of frost.

    For best results, you need to grow them to maturity in cool weather; otherwise, they can turn bitter tasting, or bolt to seed rather than producing edible parts. Except in coldest climates, plant them in very early spring so the crop will mature before summer heat settles in, or in late summer for a crop in fall in winter.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    The gardening.org said April 25 for outdoor planting, and said I could start sprouting indoors for a lot of cooler weather plants as of a couple of weeks ago, which is what I'm doing.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,724 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    The gardening.org said April 25 for outdoor planting, and said I could start sprouting indoors for a lot of cooler weather plants as of a couple of weeks ago, which is what I'm doing.

    Row covers, reusable cloches, or HotKaps (and their kin) are useful for some things, too (though all but the last have offseason storage implications). I particularly like them for things that can be planted in hills (squash, cukes, melons) to get a jump start on pre-planting soil temp, then a faster start on germination and initial growth.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    I'm actually not quite ready to start planting outdoors anyway -- I need to do a spring clean up and add my raised beds.

    I do have buds on the trees now, and the tulips are just starting to come up.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,846 Member
    I planted violas (little pansies) two days ago and yesterday transplanted bee balm roots into the mess out back behind my fence - the city removed some dead trees that were on their property up against our fence. They said they'd be taking out a strip of 10 feet in order to do this, but it ended up being more like 30. There was a line of trees up against the fence and the middle was lots of multi-flora roses and stuff like that. Trying to decide what to do. There's a ground hog under the shed so I planted some clumps of sod with clover for her. Hoping to keep her back there instead of my yard. So far she's ignored my veggies, maybe due to the marigolds I plant with the kale, but if she ever gets in there she will wipe out my kale in no time. I have a little fence around the veggies, which has been keeping out the rabbits, but will not stop a determined wood chuck.

    It's pretty wet in places out back and the middle spots in the picture tend to have standing water, so I planted some phragmites there to soak it up. I am aware that phragmites is generally considered an invasive pest, but there's no where for it to go, and may not even be consistently wet enough for it to take.

    There are tons of daffodils out there. My OH's parents have been dumping Easter flowers out there for years, covering them with grass clippings, and apparently the daffodils took and got spread around by the city's tree clearing machine.

    There's one common day lily. I may move some more from the side of the house that I never see and my OH doesn't like to mow near them anyway, and in fact weed-whacked half of them last year.

    I have some packets of wildflower seeds that are old but I will try sprinkling them around and see what happens.

    Suggestions welcome!

    sv1x1paqucby.jpg
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,846 Member
    Planted peas at lunch time. Transplanted some plugs of grass in the gardens to bare spots in the lawn. Moved some lamium that had escaped my bed to my neighbor's bed. Noticed that the deer have been eating the tulips I planted there last fall so planted some Irish Spring hanging on a stick there too.

    This is one of my "satellite" gardens. Used to garden across the street as well but he passed away :(
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,846 Member
    Waiting for the rain to stop so I can plant Swiss chard, boy choi, curly kale, and dinosaur kale.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Bump. I think there's another garden thread but I didn't find it.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,899 Member
    Everyone on this site told me planting was fine weeks ago, and I planted some herbs on Easter (and have some seeds sprouting for a few weeks) but it snowed on Saturday. (Everyone locally was "duh, don't plant before Mothers Day").

    Not sure what to do with my plants that are desperate to be put out.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,724 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Everyone on this site told me planting was fine weeks ago, and I planted some herbs on Easter (and have some seeds sprouting for a few weeks) but it snowed on Saturday. (Everyone locally was "duh, don't plant before Mothers Day").

    Not sure what to do with my plants that are desperate to be put out.

    That's the sort of thing where row covers, cloches, or HotKaps are potentially helpful, depending on what you're growing. HotKaps would the lowest investment to try, I would think.

    For future reference, I think the following can be pretty helpful, though it's not totally comprehensive:

    https://www.johnnyseeds.com/growers-library/seed-planting-schedule-calculator.html

    (I love nearly everything about Johnny's.)

    I think you're in the Chicago area? Similar to my zone (mid-Michigan), I think. Some things could be planted weeks ago, but some probably shouldn't have been. And any given year can be exceptional, of course.