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Garden thread

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Replies

  • MsCzar
    MsCzar Posts: 1,079 Member
    edited April 2024
    Today, I was clearing out last year's garden debris in preparation for this year's plantings. I went to pull last year's peppers when I noticed that roots were still supple and there was about 2"-3" of green at the base of each thick dry stalk. I'm guessing that I should trim to the top of the green? Has anybody ever grown peppers from this sort of "dead" plant? Or is this just mold? Four of six stalks have this green at the base.

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  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,429 Member
    @MsCzar, I vote that the green is not a sign of a live plant. Whether it's mold or something else (algae, lichens, early-stage moss . . . .) I don't know, I'm not expert on those. But that sure looks like a dead stem underneath.

    Pepper plants are quite sensitive to cold (might over-Winter in roughly 8b or warmer in the US) . Even if we could somehow protect them over Winter in a colder climate, I don't think they'd thrive. I'd start over with new plants.
  • MsCzar
    MsCzar Posts: 1,079 Member
    Thanks Ann - I would have thought that if the roots weren't so good looking. I'll chop into it after I mulch. I do have pepper seedlings started. We only had one bad cold snap here. Surprisingly, my kale, beet greens and Swiss chard all made it through the winter and have new growth.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,429 Member
    MsCzar wrote: »
    Thanks Ann - I would have thought that if the roots weren't so good looking. I'll chop into it after I mulch. I do have pepper seedlings started. We only had one bad cold snap here. Surprisingly, my kale, beet greens and Swiss chard all made it through the winter and have new growth.

    If you want to try an experiment, sure, leave one and see what happens. Even if it lives, I'd expect it to be not very robust, but I could be wrong.

    Kale, beets, and chard are quite hardy. Kale can tolerate temperatures well below freezing, and with coverage, the roots reportedly will survive to as cold as zone 2, and sprout again in Spring. Chard can survive somewhat below freezing, but I believe not quite as cold-tolerant as kale.

    Beets are also quite cold-tolerant, especially the roots. In case you're not aware, most beets are biennial, i.e., grow leaves and nice roots in year 1, then flower in year 2. I believe the leaves are still edible in year 2, but I don't know if the flavor is impaired when they flower, or whether the roots get woody in year 2. (Some other biennial plants get bitter during the 2nd season or roots are less acceptable texture.) Here - previously zone 5b - I'd always planted beets early in Spring, or occasionally in late Summer for Fall/early Winter harvest. I love beet greens, but would usually harvest the greens when thinning the plantings, since they have those funny multi-part seeds so plants end up closer together than ideal for root growth.

    Just my experiences here, though.

    If you're in the US, what zone are you in? Knowing that could let others give you more tailored advice. The map got updated recently, BTW: I used to be 5b, now 6a, and there have been more dramatic shifts elsewhere.) If you don't know, you can look up by zip code here:

    https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/

    Here, even in the 5b years, quite a few root crops or the tougher leafy greens like Kale can be harvested well into the Winter if not all the way through, with some straw or other mulch, some row cover, a mini-hoop setup, or something like that. Some taste sweeter after a frost.

    The tender things like tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, most of the vine-y things (cucumbers, squash, melons) for sure are done out doors here with hard frost or freeze, even with some protection.
  • MsCzar
    MsCzar Posts: 1,079 Member
    6b here with the east facing plants within 8 feet of the house which provides a good wind break.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,429 Member
    MsCzar wrote: »
    6b here with the east facing plants within 8 feet of the house which provides a good wind break.

    Then the kale, chard, and beets don't surprise me. I still suspect the peppers are goners, but like I said, maybe leave one and see. :) If it's going to re-grow, that'll show up once consistent warm weather arrives. If nothing happens, there'll still be time to plant some fast-growth thing in that spot if you wish.
  • SuzanneC1l9zz
    SuzanneC1l9zz Posts: 479 Member
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    Baby brassicas 😃
  • SuzanneC1l9zz
    SuzanneC1l9zz Posts: 479 Member
    e75mu8t77ehu.jpg
    The leaves at the bottom of this container include the first head of pak choi I've harvested this year.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,055 Member
    MsCzar wrote: »
    Thanks Ann - I would have thought that if the roots weren't so good looking. I'll chop into it after I mulch. I do have pepper seedlings started. We only had one bad cold snap here. Surprisingly, my kale, beet greens and Swiss chard all made it through the winter and have new growth.
    MsCzar wrote: »
    6b here with the east facing plants within 8 feet of the house which provides a good wind break.

    6b here too. (Massachusetts.)

    My Swiss chard also survived the winter...but has since bolted, which means it's pretty much done. Has yours bolted as well?

    I didn't grow any kale last year, but it often survives the winter...and then produces tiny leaves the next year.
  • SuzanneC1l9zz
    SuzanneC1l9zz Posts: 479 Member
    It's been so, SO windy here for the last few weeks, everything is drying out super fast after I water. My tomatoes are all droopy and sad! On a better note I've finished the first crop of pak choi and debating planting more, and starting to harvest small amounts of spinach as well.
  • jess2023mac
    jess2023mac Posts: 51 Member
    This is the first year I've planted spinach and it seems to be taking forever to grow. Hoping it amounts to something.
    Other than that I've got green beans, edible pea pods, cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, and pumpkins(growing from a leftover Halloween pumpkin) and a small strawberry patch. I pulled up my 2 patches last year because they'd become so overgrown and saved about 2 dozen healthy looking babies. I can't wait until the tomatoes and cucumbers start producing.
    We started with very dry weather, now we're in a very wet spell.
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 14,644 Member
    I noticed the last couple days that I have English daisies and violets blooming in the lawn. How nice! The hyacinth are pushing big greens up, and I can see flower buds. The slugs are enjoying them.... My camellias are still a few weeks off. I'm also probably just a couple weeks away from starting to trim small branches from the flowering cherry to bring inside to force.

    We continue to have cold nights but clear, mild, sunny afternoons. I took advantage of this weather again to keep getting after the garden.

    Yesterday I did a bunch of work on the most difficult fig tree. I still have some work to do; I'm going to borrow a small rechargeable chainsaw to get after those parts. I also got to the plum tree. I got my green waste cart totally full. I noticed my one neighbor hadn't set his cart out, so I borrowed one from my other neighbor. We share that kind of thing. She had ten gallons or so of things in there, and I filled it all the way up and put it where the one neighbor had their other cans. When the truck came and dumped the bins, I returned the empty one back to the neighbor and filled mine back up. It's full once again. I piled up the remaining branches from the pears trees and the cherry tree so they will be easier to put in the bin after it's emptied next time.

    Today I started weeding the blueberries. They were BAD. I got them mostly done, but I'll have to go back and do another round. I'll maybe get the hula hoe out. Then I'll cover the ground with cardboard and cover that with fir shavings. I tried to weed under the raspberries, but that earth doesn't get any sun, so it was frozen solid. I couldn't get the roots out, so I stopped. I have four five-gallon buckets STUFFED FULL of weeds to put in the green waste cart when they empty it next. Then I finally planted the garlic I should have planted in October or November. It may or may not grow. We shall see.... Then I got back after the raspberries. I tied up two or three canes at a time to the wire. Then I cut back all the other canes to the ground. I piled all those canes near my green waste cart... so I can put them in after they empty it next time. I went back and trimmed the canes I tied up to the wire to a good height. I also did a little weeding in the artichoke bed.

    I put all my dirty jeans in the wash, and now I'm enjoying a cup of green tea. Later I'll pressure cook the black beans I put on to soak this morning.
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 14,644 Member
    I'm starting to see some blossoms. I planted some crocus bulbs the fall before last. They bloomed a bit last year, and I think they're doing better this year. A few have opened. I have one daffodil open out back and a bunch more that are getting ready. I can smell someone in my neighborhood has a Daphne. I sure miss mine. Some other plants are leafing out just a tiny bit. The buds are just starting to swellon the flowering cherry. I cut some branches about a week ago to force to open sooner.

    I am looking after a cat for a couple weeks, so I moved all the potentially toxic houseplants to a room I can close off. While I was doing that I noticed that one long branch of my hoya had found its way into the drain hole of another pot and started rooting. Kind of air layered itself. I cut that piece off and potted it up. I cut it into shorter segments and put the other segments in there too. Perhaps they will root. For sure at least one will take. Unfortunately, moving things around I broke another branch. To be honest, it probably would have healed. And now that I think about it, I should have just wrapped the wound and let it air layer, but I cut it off and chopped it into short sections and put them in water to root. I may go from having one hoya to at least three. Then I can pass at least one along. I think it's about to flower which is really nice. I probably should take advantage of getting it untangled and string it up instead of letting it drape across the shelf where all the other plants are. Hmmmm.

    Finally I did something I've been waiting to do for several weeks. I had collected a bunch of ginkgo seeds on campus when I was up there doing a sensory analysis panel. I put them in the refrigerator for several weeks. Today I put them in some soil and put them outside. I used a seed starting tray that has 60 spots. I had about 100 seeds, so I put two seeds in some of the spots. My plan is to make one or six into bonsai and possibly plant some of the rest out in the yard. If they do well, I'll have quite a few to share.

    Artichoke plants are looking really good as usual except all the weeds. Raspberries are starting to show signs of life. Camellias will be opening up soon. I've already mowed the back yard twice this year. I need to divide some pots out back like a scarlet bee balm and some rudbeckia. This year I need to repot ALL of my bonsai.

    How's YOUR garden?
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,745 Member
    I wanted to start planting my autumn garden but my summer garden has lost its mind. My cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant and tromboncino plants, which I assumed would be winding up by now, have gone crazy and are now producing at triple the rate they have done all summer. I'm up to my ears!!

    My autumn garden theory is that it's silly to plant veg I can buy cheaply in season, so I'm going for interesting things that are not as easy to come by. Romanesco broccoli, golden beets, harlequin beets, watermelon radish, black radish, mini cauliflower, sugar pumpkin, and keeping the tromboncino going until it quits :)
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 35,429 Member
    @Mtaratoot's area is once again way ahead of where we are here. All my Spring bulbs are later than usual this year besides, because of late very-cold weather plus snow cover. Only snowdrops have shown up so far, and those just barely. Some years they've been as early as late January, usually sometime early to mid February. This year, almost the end of February. Recent photo when they were just starting to show:

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