Saturday Gardening Thread, October 20 [KT]

The great photo above is from first-timer ByTor. There are a couple more below the fold.

Wildlife and Wild Places

ByTor lives in California. Anybody want to try for a species ID on the hummingbirds?

Hummingbirds, Canon EOS 1D, Sigma 100-300 EX

Burrowing owls near Ontario International Airport make use of sewer drains for shelter. Canon EOS 1d, Sigma 100-300 EX

Stay out of the way of the planes, little owl.

Thanks for the photos, ByTor.

Illiniwek caught this little guy on a sunflower stem. They can be cute where they are alone.

Illiniwek reports that he is still getting raspberries and peppers. But there is something more exciting going on at the farm:

17 turkeys showed up on a trail cam ... had seen some younger ones a couple months ago, could be the same group.
Haven't seen this many together for a decade or so. Have also seen quail more frequently.
This is why I've removed a lot of raccoons, trying to give the turkeys and other fowl a chance to recover.

Gordon in Minnesota has been busy. Last week in the comments he asked about experience with galvanized raised beds. Anybody? I'm saving his harvest report and Farmer's Market report for next week, but I liked this photo. I know it's not is a wild place, but it brings a touch of nature to the city. Glad he thought to send it along to us. This is at the Mall of America.

Gardens of The Horde

The comments of the famous Pat* in Idaho are one reason to go back and check the comments to the Gardening Thread later in the weekend, most weekends. (But don't comment on this old thread now). The recipe requested by gingeroni sounds great. A way to use some of the peppers below.

Well, now Pat* has sent us some photos of her pepper harvest!

When husband and I got back from a short trip on Sat. 13th, we found out the coming week would bring freezing nights, so we hastily harvested all our peppers on Sun. 14th.
Our indoor mat, at the door that goes out to the vegetable garden, says "Gather", which is quite appropriate... This is the bell pepper crop (2 plants), not counting 4 greens and 4 reds that had been harvested and chopped previously. This is the best bell pepper crop we've ever had.

We also harvested the jalapenos and the pepperoncini (1 plant each) - this doesn't include the pepperoncini that were pickled earlier in the season. (They're in 1 pound salad tubs.)

Then there are the poblanos... lots and lots of poblanos. (I think there were 4 plants.) The small tray and flat box at the front hold the huge ones that will become pre-packaged frozen chiles rellenos, while the 5-gallon bucket and larger tray hold the smaller or misshapen ones that will go into our new recipes for chile relleno casseroles... lots and lots of casseroles.

Love to see that great harvest, Pat*. Poblanos are my favorite.

If you would like to send information and/or photos for the Saturday Gardening Thread, the address is:

ktinthegarden
at g mail dot com

We will be featuring hardscaping, statuary and such in the near future if you want to send in a photo or two.

Got pumpkins?

Or, wanna go fishin'?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 12:33 PM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Based on my back-road drives, Vermont is about to have a bumper Fall turkey hunting season. Everywhere I go I come across flocks of turkeys.

Posted by: Captain Ned at October 20, 2018 12:37 PM (XIfux)

2 Those hummingbirds appear to be females, I can't recall the name of the species though.

Posted by: Surfperch at October 20, 2018 12:41 PM (o4fG0)

3 Good afternoon, everyone. There is little sign of autumn color here in northern Virginia so far. A few hints but nothing more. However, this week has had the first really cool nights of the season so there may be hope in the next couple of weeks.

We actually had a couple of nights where you could see stars and the moon. A far cry from the constant steamy overcast that has been the norm for a long time.

Posted by: JTB at October 20, 2018 12:41 PM (V+03K)

4 Garden is about done for the season. I am still picking habanero peppers (cooking with some and drying the rest is a nesco food dryer).

Still getting some winter squash and some Chinese loofah squash.

A whole flock of ducks came to my pond and have been there for about a week so they are fun to watch. My domestic ducks and chickens haven't noticed them yet.

Getting ready to order a some honey bees by mail to get delivered next year.

I'm thinking about getting a pair of goats but its just in the thinking stages now.

My little place is small, only 2 acres but I do what I can with it.

Posted by: The Walking Dude at October 20, 2018 12:42 PM (yuVxc)

5 Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.

Posted by: Insomniac at October 20, 2018 12:43 PM (aROE4)

6 We have hummingbirds that stay all year now, I got 2 feeders out and several of my neighbors have multiple feeders. We have a lot of honey suckle and those trumpet type wild flowers around here that they seem to like

Posted by: The Walking Dude at October 20, 2018 12:45 PM (yuVxc)

7 Remembered the name, they're Calliope Hummingbirds.

Posted by: Surfperch at October 20, 2018 12:47 PM (o4fG0)

8 Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.

Posted by: Insomniac

And I hope you have a nice day too !

Posted by: JT at October 20, 2018 12:48 PM (2s3aR)

9 Love that owl picture
Good afternoon greenthumbs

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 12:49 PM (T4oHT)

10 I'm jealous of Illiniwek's property. Any place that can support wild turkey and (sigh) quail must be a pretty healthy environment.

Posted by: JTB at October 20, 2018 12:49 PM (V+03K)

11 My little place is small, only 2 acres but I do what I can with it.

Posted by: The Walking Dude

Nice.

Keep us posted.

Posted by: JT at October 20, 2018 12:50 PM (2s3aR)

12 I like the owl photo, too. Such a direct look. Reminds me of the little burrowing owls around here.

Posted by: KT at October 20, 2018 12:51 PM (BVQ+1)

13 Transferred my two past year compost piles into 1 and cleaned out the compost bin to get ready for new leaves.
Also been pulling out old garden plants and burning them as a offering to Gaia for a better harvest next year ( and less rain)

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 12:52 PM (T4oHT)

14 That's so fucking Hot!

Posted by: Zombie O'Keefe at October 20, 2018 12:52 PM (3wGnw)

15 Like many of us, our garden is mostly done for the year although the chives are still delicious and the leaf lettuce, planted recently, is still coming along. We did put a couple of clumps of sweet alyssum in a hanging basket. Whenever I have the dog in the backyard, I enjoy the scent.

Posted by: JTB at October 20, 2018 12:53 PM (V+03K)

16 Good day all. Hailing a bit here with the afternoon storm front, hope my new transplants fair ok. Never seen hail this late in the year before. Thanks for the thread KT. Cream cheese stuffed baked poblanos are simply the bombe.

Posted by: BebeDahl at October 20, 2018 12:58 PM (WWS2B)

17 Should try to find a area of my oregano that looks most promising and pot it for inside. Maybe pot my chives too but if winter isn't to bad they will live through.
Got a feeling a bad winter is coming.

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 12:58 PM (T4oHT)

18 leaves on the hard maples are about half turned here, but other trees are mostly green. Hard freeze (26) last week ended the cosmos and peppers, grass is still vivid green but not growing ... which is nice.

A peregrine falcon swooped down about a foot above one of my chickens, while I was standing 20 feet away. I saw him coming but didn't realize it was a falcon till I saw his intentions ... not sure if he saw me or decided the chicken was too big ... I yelled at him, never saw him again.

They're fast ... usually go for other birds like pigeons, dive bomb them in flight from above, at up to 200mph (from what I read) Have only seen one here before this one, the red-tailed hawks are common but haven't bothered with the chickens (used to call them "chicken hawks" in my youth).

Those bell peppers are attractive ... sliced pieces are good with cheese and crackers ...

cheers ...

Posted by: illiniwek at October 20, 2018 01:06 PM (Cus5s)

19 Vegetable garden is all cleaned up for they year. Just waiting for all the leaves to fall. I'm at our lake cottage for a few days, leaves haven't fallen much here either.

Posted by: Evasiveboat42 at October 20, 2018 01:06 PM (Ct8k6)

20 I picked and dried my Cayenne and Thai peppers a couple of weeks ago, and this Thursday I ground them in the mill that attaches to my Kitchenaid.

I sneezed for a solid hour, and then got chili powder in my nose. It was glorious.

I got about two cups of ground Thai pepper and one cup of Cayenne. in all, and this is off just one plant each. I did not have so much luck with the jalapenos.

They have all gone red so it is time to pick them and cut them into strips and dry them. The GF eats them like funyons.

(She finds my cooking bland, but is sweet enough to keep the heat low when she cooks to let me survive.)

I am pretty much done with the garden this year, I have to pull everything out and sow a cover crop for winter.

Posted by: Kindltot at October 20, 2018 01:09 PM (mUa7G)

21 I have a bunch of bird feeders in my yard but the hummingbird feeder is my favorite. Right in front of the kitchen window and many Rufus and Anna hummingbirds to entertain.

I want to enrich my raised beds for spring so I will plant some cover crops but I'm trying to decide what else I should add...compost. My friend puts her chickens poop in hers and gets great results but do you need to worry about salmonella in veg beds?

Posted by: keena at October 20, 2018 01:10 PM (Wg3NH)

22 And I hope you have a nice day too !
Posted by: JT at October 20, 2018 12:48 PM (2s3aR)

It's become my Saturday gardening thread tradition.

Posted by: Insomniac at October 20, 2018 01:10 PM (NWiLs)

23
Usually by Halloween all the leaves have fallen. Doesn't look even close yet, most are still green.

In most years here in Pennsylvania August and September is fairly dry. Not this year. Record rainfall amounts.

Posted by: Embedded in my Pre-Frontal Cortex at October 20, 2018 01:12 PM (URwyc)

24 " Any place that can support wild turkey and (sigh) quail must be a pretty healthy environment. "Posted by: JTB

a lot of the woods are overgrown ... big storm damage left trees laying everywhere four years ago, then that got overgrown ... but might also help for the bird habitat. A wood chipper for the tractor is next ... to help clear out the invasive bush honeysuckle and honey locust. The big brush piles are not very attractive. It's all good.

Posted by: illiniwek at October 20, 2018 01:14 PM (Cus5s)

25 No sign of color yet in the pine needles at WeaselAcres. Sort of a let down.

Posted by: Weasel at October 20, 2018 01:15 PM (CQ8KO)

26 No sign of color yet in the pine needles at WeaselAcres. Sort of a let down.
Posted by: Weasel at October 20, 2018 01:15 PM (CQ8KO)\

I'll send you some currant bushes, that might give you some color changes on your white pine needles.

Posted by: Kindltot at October 20, 2018 01:18 PM (mUa7G)

27 Had dinner at uncle's, his sister made sauce from his jar tomatoes. Have no idea what variety he grew but they had a natural sweetness, the sauce was superb. There were the skinny green hot peppers as condiment but their heat was barely noticeable. Too much rain?

Posted by: kallisty at October 20, 2018 01:18 PM (Mh0FI)

28 Jealous over those bell peppers, got nothing to speak of of all the sweet peppers I planted. Only got some hot peppers.

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 01:21 PM (T4oHT)

29 21. My grandmother used chicken poop water to fertilize her tomatoes, didn't cause sickness.

Posted by: kallisto at October 20, 2018 01:24 PM (Mh0FI)

30 23
Usually by Halloween all the leaves have fallen. Doesn't look even close yet, most are still green.

In most years here in Pennsylvania August and September is fairly dry. Not this year. Record rainfall amounts.
Posted by: Embedded in my Pre-Frontal Cortex at October 20, 2018 01:12 PM (URwyc)

Same here, in central Ohio.

Posted by: Evasiveboat42 at October 20, 2018 01:24 PM (Ct8k6)

31 Gosh, those hummer pics are great. Such a challenge to get a clear image of them!

I'm not sure that this is what Gordon is asking about, but we built 2' tall raised beds with wooden frames and galvanized roofing sheets for the sides. Caulked the joints and screened the bottom.

I think the idea came from a link K.T. posted here. They still work and look great after 5 years or so.

Posted by: OldDominionMom at October 20, 2018 01:24 PM (t0Z53)

32 25 ... Weasel, Sorry to hear about the pine trees lack of autumn color. /snark

How goes things in texas? Even if the weather doesn't cooperate, there are sure to be a lot of fun folks at the MoMe.

Posted by: JTB at October 20, 2018 01:27 PM (V+03K)

33 I think lots of past rain will make autumn colorful

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 01:30 PM (T4oHT)

34 So glad (NOT!) that I spent two hours yesterday doing yard work. It's super windy today, and all the leaves and pine needles are down again...

Posted by: Ladyl at October 20, 2018 01:31 PM (TdMsT)

35 ByTor needs to snap a picture of Snow Dog.

Posted by: Bea Arthur's Dick at October 20, 2018 01:31 PM (jWe5r)

36
The deer got every one of my tomato plants this year. Even the ones planted next to the foundation. I guess next year I'll go rooftop/balcony container with cherry tomato only.

It's funny, they've become like leftists, every year more aggressive and entitled acting. They used to stay a couple hundred feet away.

They're even eating stuff they never used to -- like marigolds.

Posted by: Embedded in my Pre-Frontal Cortex at October 20, 2018 01:35 PM (URwyc)

37 It's become my Saturday gardening thread tradition.

Posted by: Insomniac

I know.

I was just saying hello.

Posted by: JT at October 20, 2018 01:39 PM (v9cHT)

38 I think lots of past rain will make autumn colorful

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 01:30 PM

Remember that year, a couple back, when the leaves were still on the trees, before Halloween, and we had a heavy snow and ice event here in SE Pa? Lost power for a couple days on that one.

If the leaves had already fallen it wouldn't have been such a big deal. I wouldn't worry about this stuff if I thought Al Gore was even remotely correct. It just seems as if winters are getting worse every year.

Posted by: Embedded in my Pre-Frontal Cortex at October 20, 2018 01:40 PM (URwyc)

39 Love the bird photos. Hummingbirds are so interesting. It amazes me that something so small, maybe the size of my thumb, can survive so well.

And I never get tired of owl photos. The back cover of the current "Birds and Blooms" magazine has a snowy owl perched on a weathered fence post. I got lost looking at the bird, those intriguing feathers, and even the textures of the weathered wood.

Posted by: JTB at October 20, 2018 01:40 PM (V+03K)

40 Good morning, insomniac!
I hope you are doing well. Please take a moment today to close your eyes, clear your mind and breathe. Live in the moment. not the past, nor the future. just let yourself exist, even for a moment, completely in the present without judgement.

then repeat after me:

GO COUGS!!!

Posted by: nurse ratched at October 20, 2018 01:41 PM (PkVlr)

41 I took off a few of the excess branches from an elm tree for my gardening effort today. I am not a good tree keeper and have let many of these elms just become bushy rather than making them grow up into a proper tree tall enough to provide a bit of shade. I am slowly learning.

Posted by: PaleRider is simply irredeemable at October 20, 2018 01:41 PM (cLj/v)

42 No sign of color yet in the pine needles at WeaselAcres. Sort of a let down.

Posted by: Weasel

On the other hand, if they do start changing colors, they might be radioactive.

Posted by: JT at October 20, 2018 01:42 PM (v9cHT)

43 Life is So Grand!

Posted by: The Invisible Hand at October 20, 2018 01:51 PM (YpRda)

44 galvanized metal doesn't w*rk well with compost and fertilizer, in my experience.

i made the mistake of storing a batch i mixed up for a friend in a galvanized trash can and, when we emptied it out, the tin had been eaten away...

my $0.02, after taxes, would be to use something non-reactive, such as the traditional wood, or maybe the corrugated fiberglass panels they make.

we have a raised bed planter of sorts in the backyard, but we made that out of cement retaining wall blocks. it's in recovery mode, right naow, but i'll have to 'member to send in some photos one of these days....

along with all the shots of the front yard native plants i keep meaning to submit, but don't.

Posted by: redc1c4 at October 20, 2018 01:56 PM (kRSP9)

45 Well done ByTor. Great Photo. Welcome to the Horde.

Posted by: Plum at October 20, 2018 02:03 PM (1a6n7)

46 Pines do loose needles, I have half pines half maples and the needles are a big mess.

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 02:05 PM (T4oHT)

47 Illiniwek,

"This is why I've removed a lot of raccoons, "

Ballistically?

Posted by: Fox2! at October 20, 2018 02:06 PM (MwFQu)

48 39. Last week I noticed these intricate, beautiful spiderwebs had appeared on my firethorn. I was going to leave them alone, then I recalled hummingbirds can get caught up in them. I have pots of agastache and salvia that attract the little birds. There was a pretty neat dragonfly who'd hang out, I'd hate to see him hung up in the web too.

Posted by: kallisto at October 20, 2018 02:07 PM (b/7jm)

49 I hope you are doing well. Please take a moment today to close your eyes, clear your mind and breathe. Live in the moment. not the past, nor the future. just let yourself exist, even for a moment, completely in the present without judgement.

then repeat after me:

GO COUGS!!!
Posted by: nurse ratched at October 20, 2018 01:41 PM (PkVlr)

Cougars cougars, or horny older women cougars?

Posted by: Insomniac at October 20, 2018 02:09 PM (NWiLs)

50 So out here in wine country in Oregon, Mrs. Windsor and I maintain a mixed flock of chickens and ducks, mostly for eggs but also meat. Last year, we lost 10 or so birds in a 4-week period. Complete disappearance, no feathers, nothing, except one that looked like a RT hawk got it, feathers everywhere. Built a double ring fence - 8 ft deer fencing around coop area, no problems since.

2 weeks ago, finally got a game camera picture of the culprit. A big male bobcat, caught on tape looking (but not touching) the birds. Classic. He's a beauty and I hope I don't have to shoot him.

Posted by: OrMan at October 20, 2018 02:11 PM (GSjKO)

51 The other thing to report those evil red body winged insects are dead all over the yard. But got feeling its their life cycle not just a mass destruction

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 02:18 PM (T4oHT)

52 Beautiful rock cut photo. I have mentioned this before, but Black Hawk statue over Rock River is in need of restoration. Beautiful piece.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Hawk_Statue

Laredo Taft was an astonishing sculptor and did some very, very, very good pieces.

Posted by: mustbequantum at October 20, 2018 02:21 PM (MIKMs)

53 Snow Dog does better photography

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at October 20, 2018 02:26 PM (39g3+)

54 ""This is why I've removed a lot of raccoons, "Ballistically?Posted by: Fox2!

mostly trap them, then underwear gnomes ????, then buzzards (turkey vultures, or maybe coyotes) finish removing them, to a better place.

They should be rated as "vermin", but I think they still have seasons for hunting them, so shooting them would be illegal, even though they have become way over-populated.

Posted by: illiniwek at October 20, 2018 02:38 PM (Cus5s)

55 Sure miss Idaho veggie gardening. Our neighborhood had such prolific harvesting that teh joke was " dont leave your car door unlocked when the harvest comes in." More than once I found a box of zuchinni at teh door, like I didn't have enough. You,ll find boxes of veggies on the entry to the green belt with a "take some" sign. I Just ruthlessly trimmed tomato plants here in AZ that made it through the summer. And we have Japanese eggplants growing from another plant that made it. Next year we'll skip summer planting.

Posted by: Cannibal Bob at October 20, 2018 02:46 PM (EzXDh)

56 I refuse to show Heidi the Idaho harvest. She'll make me move back.

Posted by: Cannibal Bob at October 20, 2018 02:47 PM (EzXDh)

57 No gardening today. It's snowing out. The middle of October and it's snowing. This damn global warming is relentless

Posted by: TheQuietMan at October 20, 2018 02:50 PM (SiINZ)

58 Stunning photos this week!

And I'm so jealous of Pat*s pepper harvest -- ours were just pitiful this year.

Think I'll plant garlic in a couple of the big pots, now that tomatoes are gone.

Was given a bag of tulip bulbs, so will put them -- and daffodils -- in another 2 or 3 of the big pots. Should be pretty next spring.

Need to finish organizing, then storing, various garden supplies and tools...

Posted by: JQ at October 20, 2018 02:51 PM (zMzA6)

59 thnx to KT, Pat* and everyone else for todays stuff.

i have a very old recipe for chile rellenos which came inside a PG&E bill. it's time consuming, but delish. it calls for anaheim chiles.

Posted by: concrete girl at October 20, 2018 02:56 PM (iF2CZ)

60 Love the bird pictures.

Sadly, a sparrow flew full speed into my bay window this morning and inadvertently self-inflicted a mortal wound to itself.

As I looked out onto the porch, one of my cats slinked up on the porch, grabbed the bird and hustled away underneath the deck, further proving yet again that cats have no remorse.

Posted by: Bitter Clinger at October 20, 2018 03:01 PM (7KYhd)

61 O/T

Cannibal Bob, Thinking of using that jerky recipe you referenced recently. About how think do you cut the beef? The recipe just says thin.

Posted by: JTB at October 20, 2018 03:02 PM (V+03K)

62 Pines do loose needles, I have half pines half maples and the needles are a big mess.
Posted by: Skip

Long leaf pine straw is big business in this part of the country. Other straw. Not so much.

Posted by: Golfman at October 20, 2018 03:04 PM (OgScI)

63 > They should be rated as "vermin", but I think they still have seasons for hunting them, so shooting them would be illegal, even though they have become way over-populated.
Posted by: illiniwek

Read your local Wildlife Furbearer Regulations. You'll likely see the final paragraph (or equivalent)-

"...Nothing in this regulation prevents the killing of furbearers actually found destroying livestock or poultry..."

Posted by: Krampus at October 20, 2018 03:05 PM (QuUwV)

64 No gardening today. It's snowing out. The middle of October and it's snowing. This damn global warming is relentless Posted by: TheQuietMan at October 20, 2018 02:50 PM (SiINZ)
=====

Fast and furious for about an hour but all melted now. Seems a little early to me, but who knows?

Posted by: mustbequantum at October 20, 2018 03:07 PM (MIKMs)

65 Only got a few Anaheim peppers, no chile relinos but have eaten them all inother ways.

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 03:09 PM (T4oHT)

66 Pet Nood

Posted by: Skip at October 20, 2018 03:10 PM (T4oHT)

67
Cougars cougars, or horny older women cougars?
Posted by: Insomniac

Automobiles

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at October 20, 2018 03:22 PM (4mUNO)

68 >>>but might also help for the bird habitat.

yep. i keep my tree prunings for the birds in winter, and won't burn until next spring.

Posted by: concrete girl at October 20, 2018 03:23 PM (iF2CZ)

69 The Invisible Hand at October 20, 2018 01:51 PM

You made it through the system! Congrats!

Posted by: KT at October 20, 2018 03:45 PM (BVQ+1)

70 The second Hummingbird picture is a female Anna, not sure about the first one, but I think it's an Anna too

Posted by: GrandMa Bell at October 20, 2018 04:47 PM (WTcEx)

71 I'm late, I know...
Here, in MO., I use the nuisance rules to trap coons year round. Hav-a-Heart largest. Nothing else will catch a big male.
A .22 pellet makes them docile enough to handle, then the possums and vultures (in season) take care of them post-haste.
Kilt a pretty 6 point buck last week off the property. Passed a bigger 8 cause I'd never seen a mainframe 6 so symmetrical (outside the ears, too). Archery only inside the City.
We also have a scary looking sick doe. I spent too much time getting pictures instead of just killing her to get her to the Conservation Dept. Need to go looking for her carcass tomorrow. Bad juju.

Posted by: MarkY at October 20, 2018 05:07 PM (knfIw)

72 The Famous Pat* in Idaho's Treasure Valley

reporting in!

The predicted frosts showed up, so it's good we harvested everything we could, this past Sunday. It's warming up a bit this week, which means I can rake leaves in a T-shirt. Some dry oak leaves, and a lot of branches that fell or were cut earlier this year, got burned up atop the corn bed today. Husband had to cut down the corn stalks first - darn things just don't burn well, even in a hot fire.

I've worked on cutting up some of the smaller poblanos. Oh, and we had lunch with 4 friends yesterday - among them, they took that whole bucket worth of poblanos. I sent them my 3 poblano recipes.

We think the red raspberries are just down to being nibbled on, rather than harvested.

I emptied the last cloth pot of potatoes, and got a decent number (not like the last pot, that had only a few).

Irrigation shutdown will be tomorrow, so husband will do - well, whatever it is he has to do to the system before winter. We'll still need to have the system blown out. (We winterized the trailer as soon as we brought it home last Saturday, so that's off the list already.)

This past spring, my front sidewalk hyacinths struggled almightily to sprout up through the clay that had been used to cover them. So today I dug out the clay, and put decent soil on top.

I also did another lick of work on the compost rollover project. I'll keep working on that until the piles freeze, or I get done with shifting all 4 piles. The pile I'm moving now, has some roots from the next bin over, which will be the tough one, because it had all those tomatoes growing out of it.
*****
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Also, I was registered with the National Marrow Donor Program (bethematch.org). I registered quite a while back at Stanford's blood center in Palo Alto. I knew there were hundreds of thousands of German immigrants to the US (like my ancestors) and there was a chance I could be a lifesaving match for one of them. But, I have aged out of the program... (young marrow works better than old, apparently) So if there's anyone out there who might be willing, please, please find out more about what's involved, and consider registering. Ask your doctor or local blood donation center, and do online reading. (Thanks for this moment of your time.)

Posted by: Pat* at October 20, 2018 05:18 PM (2pX/F)

73 Thanks, Pat*

Posted by: KT at October 20, 2018 09:22 PM (BVQ+1)

74 Galvanized beds: I planted potatoes in one this year-a large oval type for water. Started with dirt half way. As plants grew, kept adding dirt. Sun warmed the container nicely with a bit of afternoon shade. Harvested fingerlings closer to the surface and monster ones further below.

Posted by: S.Lynn at October 21, 2018 08:23 AM (wN9xV)

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