Saturday Gardening Thread: Hollyhock Dolls and Parades [KT}

Good afternoon, Gardeners and Friends of Gardeners. Last Sunday in CBD's famous Food Thread, a discussion of children eating kale, grass, clover and honeysuckle nectar led to the topic of hollyhock fairies, AKA hollyhock dolls. I neglected to mention in the thread that hollyhock dolls are edible. I have eaten hollyhock petals myself. They don't have much flavor, but they are pretty in a salad and probably contain lots of healthy phytonutrients. If you chew them long enough, they can develop some of the slimy sensation that their relative okra can produce. So I usually just look at my hollyhocks.

Flower-eating aside, some gardening questions about hollyhocks came up in the Food Thread. I also saw a Fourth of July reference in the news last week. So I though hollyhocks would be a good lead-off plant today.

Fourth of July on Hollyhock Lane

Hollyhocks have a reputation for rustic, small-town charm in the USA. There are a lot of places called "Hollyhock Lane". They sound like nice places to spend the Fourth of July. Via Y-not, I learned that Justin Amash, one of the more Horde-friendly members of the House of Representatives, participated in the Hollyhock Lane Fourth of July Parade in Grand Rapids Michigan. But my favorite part of the parade is kids on bikes. Brings back memories.

Making Memories

The parade is traditionally led by local teens who portray Uncle Sam and Miss Liberty.
After the marching, locals participate in a short program involving a flag-raising and singing the National Anthem.

A neighborhood association explains the focus of the parade:

For over eighty years, the Hollyhock Lane Parade has welcomed each Fourth of July morning on the streets of the northwest portion of Ottawa Hills. Started as a bike parade for kids in 1934, it was a way to entertain the kids at little cost during the Great Depression. It then became a tradition in itself when the neighbors running it incorporated as the Calvin-Giddings Patriotic Association, with the objectives "to Instill Patriotism" and "to Promote Neighborliness."

I love that.

Hollyhock Dolls

Did your Mom teach you how to make hollyhock dolls as a child? Mine didn't. She thought hollyhocks were a sign of poverty, because they grew with no care at all around the homes of poor people, including her own family. She was ready to leave that plant behind for something more civilized. But I grow hollyhocks today. In my case, they may still be a sign of poverty, or at least drought.

But those little dolls are kinds cute. Here are some good instructions for making Hollyhock Doll Cupcake Toppers.

Here are some summer fairies made from other kinds of flowers. Some of these would be fun for crafty members of The Horde.

Growing Hollyhocks

Hollyhocks are one of the easiest plants to grow in the garden, other than weeds. Many of the tall ones do not bloom until the second year. They are biennials or short-lived perennials. There are some strains that bloom the first year, though. These are generally shorter than full-sized hollyhocks, with more branching. Hollyhocks prefer regular water when young, but can take a lot of drought when established. The will take heavy clay soil. They are best in full sun, but will tolerate quite a bit of shade. Hollyhock rust may be worse in shade.

The single flowers look like hibiscus. Alcea ficifolia, the fig-leaved or Antwerp hollyhock, is said to be more rust-resistant than common hollyhocks. I'm not sure if there is definitive data on this.

Some of the doubles are quite elegant. Until they stalks start going to seed. More in the comments.

Peaches 'n' Dreams

Hollyhocks in Japan

Hollyhocks may be rustic and homey in the USA, but in Japan, they are an imperial flower, with their own parade and festival every year in Kyoto. interesting history.

Nothing much is going on in my garden right now. Maybe I should plan a trip to Japan. Anything going on in your garden?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 12:45 PM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Chives and don't tomato soup with grilled cheese for lunch

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 12:50 PM (Yo9Lf)

2 Don't know how "don't " got in there.

Good afternoon greenthumbs.
Tomatoes, peppers and squash are slowly coming but nothing on cucumber plants but lots of flowers. Didn't have many last year and am thinking same thing is happening.

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 12:53 PM (Yo9Lf)

3 Hmmm...hollyhocks, or the toilet thread. I'm not really prepared to make such lofty decisions. The hollyhocks thread smells a lot nicer though.

Posted by: Corona at July 09, 2016 12:54 PM (ragzU)

4 Hoping to have some ripe tomatoes in the next few weeks. We had a late cold spring this year.

Posted by: Infidel at July 09, 2016 12:54 PM (9jI1O)

5 Didn't quite finish proofing this morning. Sorry for the boo-boos.

I think the Japanese hollyhock festival was more impressive in imperial days than it is today, but still very interesting.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 12:56 PM (qahv/)

6 Gerald Ford marched in the Hollyhock Lane Parade while still in Congress.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 12:57 PM (qahv/)

7 Skip at July 09, 2016 12:50 PM

Sounds delicious. Chives from the garden?

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 12:58 PM (qahv/)

8

How charming! This delights me

Posted by: ThunderB at July 09, 2016 12:59 PM (zOTsN)

9 I just broke a chain on my Poulan trying to drop the trunk of a Southern Pine I topped last year. Heart pine is like iron. Not only is it hard, it literally throw sparks when the chain hits it. A new D70 ought to finish it though so back to the barn.

Posted by: Grump928(C) says Free Soothie!, with purchase of commenter of equal or greater value at July 09, 2016 01:00 PM (rwI+c)

10 Skip,

Cucumbers often make a bunch of male flowers before they start making female flowers. You might try an all-female parthenocarpic cultivar next year. There are also female strains that require pollination. You would need some regular plants with those.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 01:00 PM (qahv/)

11 I love chives in salad and in tomato soup. Yes stated soup and took scissors out and lopped off a bunch like cutting hair.

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 01:04 PM (Yo9Lf)

12 Also been having wax beans every day but need to give them a few days to catch up.

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 01:05 PM (Yo9Lf)

13 stupid but awhile back I planted tomato seeds from Burpee, the package saying they were cherry tomatoes.

they weren't. in fact they aren't even tomatoes. I'd been watering and such, trying to see what's what.

They're a kind of pod. not beans, not peppers, not cucumbers. obviously mislabeled, although the seeds decidedly looked like tomato. I've no idea even at this late date.

so, out they go.

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:06 PM (Cq0oW)

14 I can't grow hollyhocks in my yard. I tried, but every single time, the leaves of the young plant get covered in some kind of insect-egg or insect-larva-type encrustations, and the infection makes the plants stop growing. Not die, but just stop maturing. One leaf will get so infected it will fall off, and then the infection will progress to another leaf. Incredibly, I have now had a hollyhock plant in my yard that has been alive for FIVE YEARS, and it only about 8 inches tall and has never made a flower! Very bizarre.

Posted by: zombie at July 09, 2016 01:07 PM (jBuUi)

15 I love hollyhocks! Grew some black hollyhocks once and they really look nice against brick walls.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, Literate Savage at July 09, 2016 01:09 PM (jR7Wy)

16 The year I'm getting the typical "summer gloom" problem I often face here in the SF Bay Area: My vegetable will grow great like gangbusters in April and May, and then right when the plants expect a big blast of summer heat to get them the sun-power to make the vegs/fruits, instead the classic SF summer fog moves in and the plants "get disappointed" and start getting all shriveled and wilty, as if an early winter had interrupted their life-cycle.

Frustrating as hell, but happens more often than not around here. The very months that garden vegs need the most sun are the very months where there is the LEAST sun. Fog fog fog just screws everything up -- and least screws up the maturation cycle of vegs evolved to need summer warmth.

Posted by: zombie at July 09, 2016 01:12 PM (jBuUi)

17 Squash flowers are pretty good fried and on top of a garden salad. I wonder if you could do that with hollyhocks?

Posted by: CrotchetyOldJarhead at July 09, 2016 01:15 PM (OKpu1)

18

Beautiful flower image.

God, I love flowers.

I went for a walk a few days ago, a different path, and I counted at least a dozen varieties of wild flowers (a potentilla snuck in from the winds). They were each so absolutely beautiful. I saw so many on the way, that I counted them on the way back.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:15 PM (qCMvj)

19 zombie at July 09, 2016 01:12 PM

I dealt with "June Gloom" in Southern California. Didn't know you got the same thing up north. I thought it was caused by the deserts drawing in cold air off the ocean.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 01:16 PM (qahv/)

20

We just came in, a bit drenched, from cleaning out some gutters. We forgot to check them this spring. And we noticed one was clogged when the torrential rain hit, lol. So, we went out in the rain with our big ole ladder.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:17 PM (qCMvj)

21 Hollyhock Dolls

I never heard of this.
So cute.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:18 PM (qCMvj)

22 Those flower dolls remind me of the flower ballet in Fantasia:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzCUEQxOT3U

Bonus: Deems Taylor dubbed in French.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, Literate Savage at July 09, 2016 01:19 PM (jR7Wy)

23 I am having a great time vacationing in Santa Barbara, CA. Nice people, great weather and interesting plants.

Yesterday we went to Lotusland, which is considered to be one of the best botanical gardens in the world. It was fantastic.

Posted by: stace at July 09, 2016 01:19 PM (bCZgc)

24 Grump928(C) . . . July 09, 2016 01:00 PM

Hate to hear about broken chains on chainsaws. And sparks from cutting wood. Manly, though.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 01:20 PM (qahv/)

25

All's growing out of control over in our gardens.

I had to cut back the cilantro and dill a day or so ago. I just let my potted mint go crazy.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:20 PM (qCMvj)

26 I am having a great time vacationing in Santa Barbara, CA. Nice people, great weather and interesting plants.

Yesterday we went to Lotusland, which is considered to be one of the best botanical gardens in the world. It was fantastic.
Posted by: stace at July 09, 2016 01:19 PM (bCZgc)

beautiful place
keep having fun
seafood

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:21 PM (qCMvj)

27

my roses did exceptionally well this year
and my lilac (which is really nothing new)

lunch time creeping up

have fun green thumbers

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:23 PM (qCMvj)

28 They're a kind of pod. not beans, not peppers, not
cucumbers. obviously mislabeled, although the seeds decidedly looked
like tomato. I've no idea even at this late date.

so, out they go.
Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:06 PM (Cq0oW)

Okra?

Posted by: Kindltot at July 09, 2016 01:29 PM (ry34m)

29 Finally got 3 tomatoes a 1 cucumber planted. I'm using the deep root watering method. Got some hail yesterday, but not enough to cause damage.

Posted by: Ronster at July 09, 2016 01:33 PM (K/7P+)

30 CrotchetyOldJarhead at July 09, 2016 01:15 PM

I'm pretty sure you could fry hollyhock blossoms and put them on salads. If you used butter, they might even taste good.

Heh.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 01:33 PM (qahv/)

31 28

They're a kind of pod. not beans, not peppers, not

cucumbers. obviously mislabeled, although the seeds decidedly looked

like tomato. I've no idea even at this late date.

so, out they go.
Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:06 PM (Cq0oW)

Tomatillo?

Posted by: Mimzey at July 09, 2016 01:34 PM (aRUb8)

32 I actually have thumb-sized eggplants now, when they get a bit larger I will go and start eating them.
I had on jalepeno and one unripe paprika pepper so far, I chopped them up to add to my cornbread.

And my earliest corn is starting to tassel, but it is only 3 feet tall. I think that means I need to water the garden more

Posted by: Kindltot at July 09, 2016 01:35 PM (ry34m)

33 I am still way short of rain. I've had 1 t-storm in over a month. Suppose to get some tonight but easy could see them pop up all over and around and not here.

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 01:36 PM (Yo9Lf)

34 Skip at July 09, 2016 01:05 PM

Beans from the garden are the best.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 01:36 PM (qahv/)

35 We had Hollyhocks in our back yard when I was a kid growing up in a poor neighborhood in upstate NY. It was many many years ago and I recall I didn't like the feel of the hairy leaves. Fast forward from the 40s to the 90s and my enjoyment of the large group of them growing along side of our favorite restaurant at 8000 + ft. in the white mountains of AZ. Once again fast forward and now we are in 2016 living in Boise ID where I can enjoy them as they grow along our Daughters fence in a neighborhood that is definitely not poor. A simple flower that thrives with little attention and brings a smile to my face remembering where I started and where I am now.

Posted by: Buffalbob at July 09, 2016 01:40 PM (8nL8o)

36 Oh, and Zombie, thank you for encouraging me (you are unaware of it, but anyways) to get Jerusalem artichokes. The patch I planted that are getting to be 9 feet tall, and no flowers yet.
If I had known they would do so well, I would have planted them, crunchy sweet roots, or no crunchy sweet roots.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 09, 2016 01:40 PM (ry34m)

37 and my lilac (which is really nothing new)

*lavender

I hug a bunch of it, and wow. Intoxicated.

/wave

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:42 PM (qCMvj)

38 Pepper plant came up in an amaryllis pot. Don't know how the seed got there. Anyway the plant is putting out more than the peppers I tried to grow on purpose last year. They are not as hot as I would like, but hey.

Posted by: Ronster at July 09, 2016 01:44 PM (K/7P+)

39 Love the hollyhocks.
KT I have a question for you. After we came back from vacation I am getting many delicious sweet cherry tomatoes of many varieties. However, the skin is incredibly thick. The only difference between last year and this year is we've had a much cooler and cloudy here late spring early summer. I'm pretty sure my watering and fertilizing is the same. The super sweet 100 and sun golds taste just as good as last year but the skin makes it really difficult to eat them it is so thick. Any ideas? I'm not really having this problem with my regular and heirloom tomatoes.

Posted by: keena at July 09, 2016 01:47 PM (Q1Btd)

40 no ideas.

about half a finger long, almost green bean lookalike. flowers are small white or pink 5 petals. the pods grow upwards. stalk is reddish.

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:52 PM (Cq0oW)

41 Lavender Festival here locally this weekend. I love the lavender fields.

Posted by: Infidel at July 09, 2016 01:54 PM (9jI1O)

42 Posted by: artisanal 'ette at July 09, 2016 01:21 PM (qCMvj)

Yes, ma'am, will do.

We're going home tomorrow, where's it's horrifally hot and humid now.

Before we came here, my husband told me he'd ask our renters next door to water my pepper plants on Hell Patio. A few days into the trip I thanked him for doing that, and he said, Whut?

I lost my shit right there in the hotel lobby. Anyway, he got right on it, so plants and marriage survived. Bonus: our sweet renters love doing yard work and they volunteered to cut the bamboo I neglected to control around the patio during our rainy spring.

Posted by: stace at July 09, 2016 01:55 PM (bCZgc)

43 by the way, also the radishes weren't radish.

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:57 PM (Cq0oW)

44 i kinda want to complain to the burpee folks

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:58 PM (Cq0oW)

45 I needed wasp spray and while I was at the garden center picked up two bell pepper plants, two eggplant plants, and a cherry tomato plant. Going to grow them in containers on the deck because that's the only place in the back yard that gets full sun. Pretty much a farmer now.

Posted by: Weasel at July 09, 2016 01:58 PM (Sfs6o)

46 I have a hollyhock gripe. It is a special case of a more general gripe about the mania for doubled flowers. Doubled roses and peonies are fine; they have the sanction of tradition and they were in cultivation before the doubling mania took hold. Doubled day lilies? Fine if you like your flowers twisted and deformed and think that such is worth the sacrifice of the beauty of singles. Which brings me to the matter of hollyhocks. Those wretched pompoms in the photo are trying to be double roses or petite peonies. They lack integrity and are without any character of their own. And the worst of it is that the good old humble but beautiful singles are no longer to be found. Those that are passed off in the seed catalogues are ugly solid colors. Where are the lovely bicolored blooms of yesteryear with bands of pink or red circling the middle part of the bloom? Last sighted by me c. 1980 in NC.

Posted by: Youkali at July 09, 2016 01:59 PM (pUFVi)

47 I'm still recovering from the friggin' leg infection, which put me three weeks behind on the garden. We have maters, volunteer taters, and peppers looking good. An earth box full of herbs is producing like crazy. I still have to get the tater barrels going.

Traye, you're in NC, right? I know someone there who's looking for good pork at the retail.

Posted by: Gordon at July 09, 2016 02:01 PM (PXmcz)

48 about half a finger long, almost green bean
lookalike. flowers are small white or pink 5 petals. the pods grow
upwards. stalk is reddish.
Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:52 PM (Cq0oW)

Does the flower look sort of like a hibiscus? I am going to guess Okra. Split the pod open and see if it looks pepperish in the middle.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 09, 2016 02:05 PM (ry34m)

49 zombie at July 09, 2016 01:07 PM

If the infection on your roses looks like red-brown or brown balls, it is probably hollyhock rust -- a fungus. Don't know if it is worthwhile trying a fungicide. I would probably dig up the plant and try again in a couple of years.

If lighter in color, you may have mealy bugs or scale. Both thrive in your climate.

Hollyhocks are not at their best after 3 or 4 years even if healthy. Generally.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:06 PM (qahv/)

50 Mimzey at July 09, 2016 01:34 PM

I would vote for tomatillo. And the seeds look like tomato seeds.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:09 PM (qahv/)

51 36 Oh, and Zombie, thank you for encouraging me (you are unaware of it, but anyways) to get Jerusalem artichokes. The patch I planted that are getting to be 9 feet tall, and no flowers yet.
If I had known they would do so well, I would have planted them, crunchy sweet roots, or no crunchy sweet roots.
Posted by: Kindltot

Nine feet tall is doing great! Your area/garden must be custom-designed for their success. I think 10 feet tall is their biological maximum possible height, so you're doing something right.

The flowers you'll get aren't going to be anything spectacular, though. They look like a cluster of yellow daisies sprouting out the tops of the stalks. Or, if you prefer, mini-sunflowers, which is what they are. They aren't big -- just the size of regular daisies, which look small compared to the size of the stalk. DON'T cut off the dead heads in the fall -- I think leaving them in situ helps encourage tuber growth.

In early winter, the stalks will turn brown/black and get stiff and breakable, and it is at that point that you dig them up and discover a whole bunch of potato-like roots (tubers, actually) underneath!

They will last for months in the refrigerator (as they have evolved to last the whole winter in the cold ground.)

Save the runty/brown/little/ugly ones, and use those to plant next year's crop!

The Jerusalem Artichoke roots are super-delicious -- basically look and act like potatoes which amazingly taste exactly like artichoke hearts! Downside: they can cause intestinal gas. To avoid this problem, either boil them in lemon juice, or make pickles out of them (seriously!). But frustratingly, if you just cook them normally (such as frying in oil or boiling in water), they will cause an unpleasant "reaction" in your gut, which is often long-lasting because you eat so many because they're so delicious!

Posted by: zombie at July 09, 2016 02:10 PM (jBuUi)

52 not like a hibiscus.

there's a line of small spherical pea/beans along one side in a dry woody pod.

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 02:10 PM (Cq0oW)

53 i love hollyhocks......and that doll is adorable!!!

Posted by: phoenixgirl you must fight for independence EVERYDAY at July 09, 2016 02:10 PM (0O7c5)

54 looked at tomatillo pictures

nope.

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 02:11 PM (Cq0oW)

55 Tomatillos won't make fruit if there is only one plant. Generally.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:12 PM (qahv/)

56 not okra

Posted by: Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 02:12 PM (Cq0oW)

57 Our non-pickle cucumbers are weird. They get full size but as they mature, especially after being picked, the skin takes on a bronze color. The cuke itself is fine, it's just the rind. Never heard of this before.

Posted by: JTB at July 09, 2016 02:14 PM (V+03K)

58 keena at July 09, 2016 01:47 PM

Generally, thicker than normal tomato skins would be a sign of slow growth (which cool weather could cause) or stress. I frequently see tough skins on tomatoes grown in containers.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:15 PM (qahv/)

59 Keena,

Did your cherry tomatoes set more fruit than normal? Could also stress the plant.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:16 PM (qahv/)

60 Were pickling beets today.

Wish I could upload a picture. They look really good.

Posted by: ScoggDog at July 09, 2016 02:16 PM (fiGNd)

61 Bigby's Knuckle Sandwich at July 09, 2016 01:58 PM

I would complain if I got 2 kinds of mislabeled seeds. Burpee needs a little more work on "work" and a little less on glitz.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:19 PM (qahv/)

62 Trunks down. That SOB did not want to move. It was so big and so perfectly vertical that I had to cut completely through it and use all my wedges to get it to fall. It refused to hinge.

It only killed one oak sapling in the felling which is fine. I mean to remove most of the ones whose trunk is smaller than my forearm anyway.

Posted by: Grump928(C) says Free Soothie!, with purchase of commenter of equal or greater value at July 09, 2016 02:19 PM (rwI+c)

63 Weasel at July 09, 2016 01:58 PM

Welcome to the Tenders of the Land.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:20 PM (qahv/)

64 Grumpy, can you sell that wood if it is that hard? Or will you use it yourself? (no insinuations, horde.)

Posted by: Infidel at July 09, 2016 02:21 PM (9jI1O)

65 Zombie, I think the Jerusalem artichokes have some sort of natural anti-freeze.

I bought my tubers last fall and left them on the back porch in a bucket to get dusted with snow and freeze. I planted them and thought they wouldn't sprout.

And yes, that's the patch where I buried a lot of trimmings and cut brush, and afterwards put in a compost heap for a year.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 09, 2016 02:24 PM (ry34m)

66 Thanks, KT. I'm thinking buying a tractor might be a logical next step.

Posted by: Weasel at July 09, 2016 02:24 PM (Sfs6o)

67 Grumpy, can you sell that wood if it is that hard?

I doubt it. When we first bought the property I offered some of the pines to a guy who had a portable sawmill, and then to the pulp wood guy. Both declined, even for free. We have such a surfeit of pine down here you have to pay people to haul it away. If it's not unsightly by location, I usually let it lay. After 5-10 years everything but the fat pine has rotted away and you can pick it up for firestarter.

Posted by: Grump928(C) says Free Soothie!, with purchase of commenter of equal or greater value at July 09, 2016 02:26 PM (rwI+c)

68 I learn more every season we garden. This time it's zucchini. We are growing Fordhook heirloom zucchini. The first ones grew normally and were absolutely delicious. Since then, the fruit sets fine and gets to be about half size then withers on the plant. This variety is from the late 1800s. We're growing it in a good sized container and make sure it gets proper watering. I wonder if it should be planted in the ground instead of a container. Also, being an older type, it might need fertilizing periodically. This is all guess work. Our other summer squash, also in containers, are doing great, so I assume this heirloom variety has different requirements. More research is required, I guess.

Posted by: JTB at July 09, 2016 02:26 PM (V+03K)

69 Youkali at July 09, 2016 01:59 PM

I like both the fully double and single hollyhocks. Doubles may be better where you want to avoid encounters with bumblebees.

The ones I like less are the semi-doubles - an outer row of petals with a pom-pom in the middle. Some of the annual kinds are like this. I feel the same way about Dahlias - single or formal double.

If you want some pretty bicolor single hollyhocks, Territorial sells a Halo Mix.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:28 PM (qahv/)

70 Grumpy, interesting. Almost too dry here in the valley for pine. Dad tries. He has one in front that I have been trying to get him to water with something besides the sprinklers. He's a stubborn ol coot. Even the neighbors raz him about how bad it looks. Says he's bringing some color to the neighborhood.

Posted by: Infidel at July 09, 2016 02:30 PM (9jI1O)

71 BTW, Our Fordhook zucchini, from Burpee, was supposed to be a Fordhook acorn squash. Looks like the company needs better language comprehension or at least attention to packaging.

Posted by: JTB at July 09, 2016 02:31 PM (V+03K)

72 I'd like to get down to no more than 5 pines on the property. Just the biggest ones. I have a couple that two people could not like arms around. But, I have a bunch that are may 2 1/2 feet across but nearly 60 feet tall because they were crowed together. I fear them falling. Lucky for me all that have fallen in hurricanes so far have snapped off halfway up and fallen harmlessly, if messily.

Posted by: Grump928(C) says Free Soothie!, with purchase of commenter of equal or greater value at July 09, 2016 02:31 PM (rwI+c)

73 Gordon at July 09, 2016 02:01 PM

Take care of that leg. Those infections can be nasty.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:37 PM (qahv/)

74 Wow. Sounds like that hard dry pine would make nice furniture. The only thing we have too much of here are the damn elm trees and seeds.. They are horrible. And tamarisk on the Colorado river banks that they have been trying to eradicate for years. With limited success.

Posted by: Infidel at July 09, 2016 02:40 PM (9jI1O)

75 JTB at July 09, 2016 02:26 PM

Container growing could cause some fruits to abort. Or, they may not have been pollinated. There are a few diseases that strike half-grown zucchini, too.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 02:41 PM (qahv/)

76 Might have rain in a hour, if it doesn't dissappear

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 02:45 PM (Yo9Lf)

77 Just made zucchini fritters with parmesan cheese and garlic.

The fact that it's made from veggies negates the frying.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, Literate Savage at July 09, 2016 03:00 PM (jR7Wy)

78 All Hail Eris, Literate Savage at July 09, 2016 03:00 PM

Nice rule of thumb.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 03:04 PM (qahv/)

79 Pine grows OK here in Southern Indiana. Not as big as Grump describes, though.

Posted by: ScoggDog at July 09, 2016 03:06 PM (fiGNd)

80 Where my hose at?

Posted by: Insomniac at July 09, 2016 03:09 PM (0mRoj)

81
Traye, you're in NC, right? I know someone there who's looking for good pork at the retail.
Posted by: Gordon at July 09, 2016 02:01

Yes. Thank you. Our face book and gmail are both @ patchfarmstead.

And gadang it's good. Even better than I thought it would be. I eat so much I'm eating my profits, and not giving one darn about that.

Posted by: Traye at July 09, 2016 03:10 PM (CtZq8)

82 Our First batch of sweet corn is shorter than usual this year, putting out tassels at 4 feet tall.

Watering hasn't been an issue so far.

It's been cooler than normal and we put them in at the end of May. (I kept them in their starting pots for a couple weeks longer than should have. Roots were circling at the bottom!)

At any rate, the plants look healthy otherwise so we'll see how it goes.

The Second batch, also sweet, was started 4 weeks later and planted in-ground at the same time as First-- nearly as tall but no tassels.

The 'Glass Gem' (3rd batch) corn was started 2 weeks after 2nd batch, now in a planter box far away from main garden. About 2-1/2 ft tall and no sign of tassels.

The rest --peppers, eggplant, okra and tomatoes-- aren't as robust as I'd like, but there's plenty of hot weather yet to come so hoping they'll snap out of it.

The first ripe tomato is almost here!

Squashes are just beginning to 'take off' and since I might have mixed up zucchini and acorn... well, I'll know *soon* which is which, lol.

I put in lots of little orange and yellow marigolds, purple petunias and red seed-dahlias here and there.

The garden is very colorful, if not yet productive.

Posted by: JQ Flyover at July 09, 2016 03:14 PM (044Fx)

83 JQ Flyover, keep us appraised of the glass gem corn. Did you get it from Territorial Seed, or from another source?

Posted by: Kindltot at July 09, 2016 03:18 PM (ry34m)

84 Kindltot, I got the Glass Gems from

nativeseeds.org.

Packet of 50 was 4.95 plus shipping (About $8!!!) But what the hey, right?

Posted by: JQ Flyover at July 09, 2016 03:23 PM (044Fx)

85 Glass Gem: I only planted a dozen, half of those are in the planter box, the rest are still languishing in their starter pots while I work on where to put them...

It's not going as well as I'd hoped due to stump and roots not as decayed as I thought, so lucky I had an extra planter box or they'd ALL be doomed.

I sealed up the rest of the seeds and put in refrig.

Posted by: JQ Flyover at July 09, 2016 03:27 PM (044Fx)

86 Hearing thunder way off

Posted by: Skip at July 09, 2016 03:28 PM (Yo9Lf)

87 Oh, and I'm growing hops in the other planter boxes.

First year, so not expecting any big harvest. Just letting them grow.

And grow! omg, how they grow!

Posted by: JQ Flyover at July 09, 2016 03:29 PM (044Fx)

88 @ KT, thanks.

The cherry tomatoes are in my raised beds and the past two years were really warm but not this one. When we lived right on the coast, they pretty much always were thick skinned so I bet that cool weather the answer. Wonder if I wait to plant them until July (since the warm weather goes straight through October after that) would I get better results?

Another project for next year to add to my garden notebook.......

Posted by: keena at July 09, 2016 03:35 PM (RiTnx)

89 Also, have any of you gotten those Garden Gem tomato seeds from U Florida last year? If so how are they doing? They sent me two varieties of seeds for my donation: the garden gem and a roma variant they haven't named yet. Both are doing well but the garden gem is really thriving. Hope they are tasty!

Posted by: keena at July 09, 2016 03:37 PM (RiTnx)

90 JQ, you can always plant 3-5 corn around each squash. They will grow up and around them and get watered. You will have to hand pollenize or cut the tassel off other plants and slap the silk on the ears around a bit to get them pollenized

Posted by: Kindltot - Willfully thick at July 09, 2016 03:48 PM (ry34m)

91 Kindltot, I don't want to put Glass Gem in the regular garden, in case they tassel same time as the 2nd sweet corn (or my neighbor's corn, along the fenceline)

Thanks for the suggestion, though!

I have a spot almost ready, if I get off my butt and get out there to finish it...lol.

Posted by: JQ Flyover at July 09, 2016 03:56 PM (044Fx)

92 That might be the best flower picture I've ever seen!! Can't wait till I can have a flower garden again.

Posted by: Peaches at July 09, 2016 03:59 PM (EgOr3)

93 Hubby loved Hollyhocks; unfortunately, he didn't live to see them bloom on year 2. These are single black ones - quite beautiful.

I didn't expect to see anything this spring, but I guess they self-sowed. No flower stalks right now - I wouldn't expect any this year, though.

I had some doubles in Sweden and found them charming. As to the "poverty" label - I don't give a flying red one for anyone who judges flowers (or people) by such ungenerous terms.

Hollyhocks 4ever (or biannually, whichever comes first)!

Posted by: Starring Miley's Tongue as Paul Kersey at July 09, 2016 05:24 PM (4p3Tz)

94 keena at July 09, 2016 03:35 PM

You might try planting some early and some in July. In my experience, cool fall nights alter the flavor of tomatoes. And they start to grow slower due to shorter day length. Chocolate Cherry keeps a nice flavor into cool fall weather. Ditto Napa Grape.

Hope your Garden Gem tomatoes work out well.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 05:25 PM (qahv/)

95 Late here as usual. Garden in looking good. Onion tops have fallen over, as soo as we use use up the last of the store onions will start plucking them. Only when dry, I've learned they store better when pulled dry.

Trimmed up the "dwarf" apple tree. It's one of those 5 kinds in one dwarfs, supposed to get 10 ft tall. Planted in the front yard under utility lines the damn thing is 20 ft at least.

Posted by: Farmer at July 09, 2016 08:59 PM (o/90i)

96 Thanks for the report, Farmer.

It can be a challenge to prune a 5 in one tree so that all 5 cultivars are still represented. But trimming in summer is the way to go for deciduous fruit trees if you want to limit their size.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 09:25 PM (qahv/)

97 Starring Miley's Tongue as Paul Kersey at July 09, 2016 05:24 PM

So sorry your hubby didn't get to see those single black hollyhocks bloom. I have some in the yard. The flowers shine beautifully in the sun.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 09:40 PM (qahv/)

98 Youkali.

In case you check back on the thread in today or tomorrow, Swallowtail Garden Seeds also has a nice selection of single hollyhocks, tall ones, that can bloom the first year from seed. Including some pretty bicolors. Didn't know that allegedly rust-resistant Antwerp hollyhocks can bloom the first year. Hardy to Zone 2!

They also sell single colors of hollyhocks, both double and single. I prefer the doubles planted in groups of single colors, or in limited color mixes. I like the singles either in a wide range of mixed colors or as single colors.

I have a pale pink single with a cream center that I love. I also like the darker pinks with a subtly darker center. For some reason, colors other than red and pink don't seem to be too permanent in my garden. The only hollyhocks I have are the ones that plant themselves. They are all singles.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 09:57 PM (qahv/)

99 Zombie,

Swallowtail Garden Seeds also sells a yellow Russian single holllyhock that is "extremely rust-resistant", if rust is the problem with your plants.

Posted by: KT at July 09, 2016 09:58 PM (qahv/)

100 I built the A-frame and tied up 16 stalks of the three alleged chocolate cherry tomatoes. They grow like chocolate cherry, but the fruit thus far looks like yellow pear,only bigger. Whatever they are we will have many. Much more staking and such tomorrow because there's a lot more plants.

One little runt only had about five leaves and is less than six inches high. But it's got 15 rapidly maturing fruit. Tomatoes are interesting.

Posted by: Gordon at July 09, 2016 10:52 PM (PXmcz)

101 Treasure Valley (Boise area) of Idaho: For those who remember that I said I'd watch my niece run in the national championships/Olympic trials on the 4th of July: she did run in the 3rd heat of the women's 3000 meter steeplechase, against the eventual winner Emma Coburn. She did not run anywhere near her best time, and did not make it to the finals... but her coach had her training again on the 5th, so I anticipate being at the national championships for some years to come.

While we were gone, the tomato plants grew bigger, but still only a few ripe mini-gold ones so far.

Zucchini were harvested by a neighbor and she says she got a bunch. We grilled 2 more earlier tonight - also some of the green onions, and it looks like we had better start removing those, as well as the carrots (2 of them bolted). We're growing some onions for full-size ones.

Not sure if the neighbor harvested the red raspberries, since my husband gathered quite a few today. We are freezing them as we go - the plan is to run them through the steam juicer, and turn them into raspberry wheat beer.

The parsley is trying to bolt and I keep cutting those stems off. Time to get out the electric/hot-air food dryer and get some dried parsley out of it.

The radishes I was trying to let go to seed, are interfering with the irrigation sprayers, so it's time to pull most of them out.

The strawberries have mostly quit trying to flower and are putting out runners. We need to trim those to 2-3 per plant and start putting mounds under the baby plants so they can root. Next year, strawberry jam!

The first-year asparagus bed has plants still putting up stalks, which is a good omen for next year.

The potato plants are starting to wilt - I believe you're supposed to let them die all the way, and leave the potatoes in the ground as long as you can - I'll have to check on that.

I keep forgetting to go out and check on the sweet corn - most of it is taller than me now! We might actually have some ripe ears, since they're nice and fat - I'll need to look up how you tell when they're ready.

Posted by: Pat* at July 10, 2016 12:31 AM (ZdNOH)

102 Gordon, where did you get your tomato seeds? If it was from an heirloom type place, there are some yellow pear types that taste better than yellow pear (to most people).

On the other hand, if it turns out to be Red Pear or Red Fig, you might not be impressed.

Posted by: KT at July 10, 2016 01:59 AM (qahv/)

103 Pat*,

Your garden has sure been busy. Surprised that some of your carrots and parsley are bolting already. They're not from last year, are they?

If the radishes you were saving for seed have made pods, you can eat the tender, young ones.

Don't know the rules for leaving potatoes in the ground where you are, but you can start harvesting new potatoes when the plants blossom.

The first sign that your corn is ready to pick is when the silks start turning brown. You can open the leaves a little at the top to see if the kernels have filled in. I always liked it on the young side.

Posted by: KT at July 10, 2016 02:31 AM (qahv/)

104 KT, we bought plants from a local nursery because I messed up and roasted our first batch in the greenhouse. But we may have chocolate cherry ones anyway because we have a bunch of volunteers growing where last year's grew. The wife says I can thin them, but they are to be treated as honored guests in case they are CCs.

Posted by: Gordon at July 10, 2016 11:39 AM (PXmcz)

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