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Saturday Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, April 23

goslinngs 1.jpg

We are starting to get some great photos and information in now, as the weather warms up. Didn't get to all of them this week, but we're working on it. We had a little rain this week. Surprise! How's your weather?

Don't you love the photo above?

New Canadian Goslings at Stowe Lake from San Franpsycho

And a nice view of the lake, too.

goslinngs 3.jpg

Great photos. One left over for the Pet Thread.

Flower Power

From 40 Miles North:

aquill.png

Love those columbines.

Iriiisss.png

And the irises are great, too.

Science

Via Bird Dog at Maggie's Farm,

pansies21.jpg

How do pansies survive freezing weather?

Pansies are members of the Viola family. They are kissing cousins to the wild violets that lawn lovers find so difficult to conquer. Violas and violets have been cultivated for hundreds of years, both for their flowers and for the perfume they produce. Our hybrid garden pansies, Viola x wittrockiana, are annual flowers but all other violas are perennial.

Pansies protect themselves by allowing moisture to escape their leaves as temperatures fall. Other plants cannot do this, so when the temperature goes below freezing the water in their cells freezes and ruptures the cell walls. That's what happens when you leave a houseplant on the patio during a freeze. Dry cells, though, can't rupture. They just go limp. It is normal to see pansy leaves completely wilted at dawn but green and perky by noon. That's why it is important to keep the soil in pansy beds moist after a freeze.... so their roots can re-hydrate the leaves.

Other plants also protect themselves in this manner. . .

Maybe that's why some fall/winter veggies taste better after cold or even freezing weather.

Putting Things By

You might remember from last week By-Tor's egg salad sandwich with home-fermented pickles. Here's another view:

egg salad 2.jpg

Here's how he made the pickles:

My first try at authentic naturally fermented kosher garlic dill pickles. I'm using small pickling cucumbers, garlic cloves and fresh dill. I didn't wash them because I don't want to wash off any of the natural yeasts and bacteria that start the fermentation process. Any harmful ones will be killed off by the salt water brine.

Simple enough-trim off ends of cukes, put in the jug with the dill and garlic, and top off with a 4-5% salt water brine. Let ferment for 3-6 days, then water bath can in jars or put in the fridge. Use non-iodized salt like canning salt or this pink salt.

Iodine kills off the necessary yeast and bacteria.

Update to follow next week.

pklls1.jpg

pklls 2.jpg

Even better if you can get dill seed heads (still green)

pklls 4.jpg

pklls 3.jpg

Anybody else ever made these?

Pickle fermentation Day 2. Salty, starting to get sour, nice dill flavor. They need another few days to get more sour.

The brine is getting a cloudy, a sure sign of active fermentation. Pickles getting translucent, also a good sign.

pklls day 2.jpg

Jarred up my naturally fermented dill pickles. Saved some for the fridge. Total fermentation time 5 days. 12 minute water bath.
The advantage of this method is you can ferment them whole, then when you feel like it, slice them, or keep them whole. Or both, like I did. I thought they were a bit too salty so I adjusted the salinity by adding a bit of fresh water. Now they are just right.

I'm going to make a bigger batch since a one gallon jug only made about 4 pints. like with the sauerkraut, I will reuse the brine to jumpstart fermentation.

Note: By-Tor will be submitting pickles and jerky to the County Fair later . . .

pklday5a.jpg

pklday5b.jpg

Carnivorous Plants

Our outdoor carnivorous plant expert, Tony Litwin, has sent in some spring photos. Here are a few of these fascinating plants:

3-)RED DRAGON VENUS FLYTRAP.jpg

Red Dragon Venus Flytrap

4-)SARRACENIA FLAVA ORNATA.jpg

Sarracenia flava ornata (with bonsai)

7-)DROSERA TRACYII X DROSERA FILIFORMIS FLORIDA RED.jpg

Drosera tracyii x D. filiformis 'Florida Red'

My favorites. At least in low sun.

The Worst Weeds

These are blooming at our house. Goathead Stickers, Toritos, Puncture Plants or whatever they are called where you live, are really nasty weeds. No fun in bicycle tires, human or doggie feet.

Here's a guy who decided to fight back. He invented a tool to get rid of those nasty seed heads, which can persist for up to eight years before sprouting. Around here, they sprout after most weeds, but set seed before many other weeds. Aggressive!

They have a taproot and can be easily dug up if you catch them before they set seed, but it's hard to see them sometimes. The little yellow blossoms are light-sensitive and open in the morning. If they have blossoms, inspect carefully for seedheads.

If you don't get them all in the spring, they may look like this in the summer. My photo, 2020, looks like one plant, but had several taproots, because each seedhead has several seeds:

goathdpun.jpg

There are nicer photos here. Including close-ups. With descriptions of the problems they can cause for people, pets and bicycle tires. Tribulus terrestris, AKA "puncturevine". Hate them.

Do you have a control technique that you like?



If you would like to send photos, stories, links, etc. for the Saturday Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, the address is:

ktinthegarden at g mail dot com

Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.


Week in Review

What has changed since last week's thread on owls, cherry trees, variable weather here and in Switzerland, wildflowers in the woods? Oh, and chickens, UFO chicken coops, eggs, egg recipes, passover veggies and a reminder to leave the lights on your indoor plants for Earth Day? The comments here are closed so you won't get banned for commenting on a week-old post, but don't try it anyway.

Posted by: K.T. at 01:30 PM




Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Good afternoon Greenthumbs

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 01:34 PM (BoHLr)

2 Plants

Posted by: Dr. Varno at April 23, 2022 01:35 PM (vuisn)

3 >>Don't you love the photo above?


NO
Canada geese suck. They block traffic with their silly slow-walking and they shit everywhere. They can turn a nice patch of grass, big or small, into a minefield of gooseshit in no time. They are pests.

Posted by: DB at April 23, 2022 01:36 PM (geLO8)

4 Nice pickles!

Good afternoon everyone.

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood today: I cleaned out the fish pond and refilled it, helped my lovely wife plant a bunch of her annuals, planted my elephant ear tubers, and trimmed back the spearmint. I'm pooped.

Posted by: Tonypete at April 23, 2022 01:36 PM (Msys3)

5 They are kissing cousins to the wild violets that lawn lovers find so difficult to conquer.

My boyfriend's back yard is a carpet of violets, he hates them, but I go and pick bunches for my tiny little vases.

That reminds me, I have to pull out the white/blue variegated ones to plant in my violet bed.

Also, your explanation for why pansies stay alive is timely. I looked at the pansies and violas I have on my deck and wondered how they maintained during the very cold nights we have had. Now I know!

Posted by: kallisto at April 23, 2022 01:37 PM (DJFLF)

6 The columbine is beautiful. I really miss mine. They eventually all died off I think from too much rain and not good enough drainage.

Posted by: Jewells45 at April 23, 2022 01:37 PM (nxdel)

7 I like the iris. Egg salad is good too. But Canada geese SUCK.

Posted by: DB at April 23, 2022 01:37 PM (geLO8)

8 DB at April 23, 2022 01:36 PM

Yes, they can be pests. Leave them at the lake.

Posted by: KT at April 23, 2022 01:38 PM (rrtZS)

9 My amaryllis that made me so happy a month ago is now a disappointment. It's all leaves, no flower. I researched it and found out that I neglected to give it a downtime rest during the winter.

bleh

Posted by: kallisto at April 23, 2022 01:39 PM (DJFLF)

10 I love columbines! I especially love the wild western ones that are two-toned.

Posted by: Tom Servo at April 23, 2022 01:41 PM (r46W7)

11 I tried my hand a pickling pickles... didn't work out so good. I think my brine was not, uh, briny enough.

Also, I did not know the name of those "Goathead Stickers" before, but they takeover entire areas of our yard, flowerbeds, etc. One word... RoundUp.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 23, 2022 01:47 PM (BFigT)

12 This is one of our pair of I think flowering crab apple, or something similar
https://tinyurl.com/yc7es4ay

Posted by: Skip at April 23, 2022 01:48 PM (2JoB8)

13 that's a beautiful tree Skip! I have one flowering tree since I had to remove the cherry tree that died. It's a redbud. I so miss the cherry tree because I could see its flowers from my kitchen window.

Posted by: kallisto at April 23, 2022 01:50 PM (DJFLF)

14 They use to be quite spectacular but are attacted by tent caterpillars every year so it's a battle.

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 01:50 PM (2JoB8)

15 Our dog broke through the barrier we'd put up and ate all the little peaches on our tree and keeps going back to the to check for more. Broke a few branches in the process. Didn't get sick, so at least there's that. Guess there will be no peaches this year.

Posted by: soulpile at April 23, 2022 01:50 PM (hiX0r)

16 I use the 2-4-D I think it is ester spot sprayed on our goat heads. Catch them before they are setting stickers and it works pretty well. I can leave the Bee weeds, aka Navajo spinach to help keep soil stabilized in the horse paddocks. I will also hoe up the goats heads that did not get sprayed in time and bag them before they drop the burrs, this helps reduce the # coming next year. Perennial battle though. It would not take the handful that survive long to take over again.

The places where I managed to spray regularly for 2-3 years have hardly any goats heads now, but I always miss spots in the bigger paddocks.

Posted by: PaleRider, simply irredeemable at April 23, 2022 01:52 PM (3cGpq)

17 Got the garden planted... Had to wait till last week because of cold temps.... We planted way too much for 2 people, but we always give it away

Posted by: It's me donna at April 23, 2022 01:55 PM (dvgPQ)

18 Yea, that 2-4-D is good stuff. I use it around the perimeter of our property to keep the annoying weeds at bay.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 23, 2022 01:56 PM (BFigT)

19 Canada geese are pretty birds, and I love to watch them fly. But they are asshoe!! I love mallards. So much more chill.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Gen X Ne'er-Do-Well at April 23, 2022 01:58 PM (x8Wzq)

20 I think I'm going to try my hand at pickling this summer when I have more time.

I'll start small. I like dill pickles, but really love that giardiniera stuff with pickled cauliflower, carrots, peppers and stuff.

I'm open to good recipes, cookbooks or online sources for pickling tips

Posted by: ghost of hallelujah at April 23, 2022 01:59 PM (sJHOI)

21
It's been so dry in these parts that the main attraction of our garden for the birds is not the feeders but the birdbath and fountain.

I was joking with Her Majesty that when we were in Ohio we loved seeing red-winged blackbirds as harbingers of Spring. Now? They're just asshole bully birds.

We want to put down weedblock and lay down Mulch but the winds have been 20+ miles an hour for the last two weeks

Posted by: Hadrian the Seventh at April 23, 2022 02:00 PM (/U27+)

22 I also like the 2-4-D because is is not persistent so weeks that are not as nasty can come in after the goats heads are killed. I'm trying to get more grass in the 'pasture' section that the horses get to access only in the last spring but for the paddocks and farmyard area weeds that don't have burrs or thistles are fine. There isn't enough water to try to grow grass in the farmyard and with grazing and hoof traffic there is no way grass would survive in the paddocks even if we were not so dry.

Posted by: PaleRider, simply irredeemable at April 23, 2022 02:00 PM (3cGpq)

23 I have been reading about how to improve soil. Still working through The Intelligent Gardener. I also got The Ideal Soil v2.0 by Michael Astera. The raspberries in pots and the potatoes in Grow bags are fine. I did buy more Grow Bags but I don't think I will plant in them. I think I will take my garlic and daffodil bulbs out of the planters and replant in new soil after I'm moved.

Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:01 PM (YynYJ)

24 Haven't got garden plants yet, soon. But another big problem is happening, I have a number of dead pines that have to come down asap.

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 02:01 PM (2JoB8)

25 Do you have a new state picked out Notsothoreau?

Posted by: PaleRider, simply irredeemable at April 23, 2022 02:02 PM (3cGpq)

26 Wyoming, the Dakotas and Montana are getting dumped on with snow. All we have here is wind.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Gen X Ne'er-Do-Well at April 23, 2022 02:04 PM (x8Wzq)

27 >Do you have a new state picked out Notsothoreau?



I always read that as 'Nosferatu'
sorry

Posted by: DB at April 23, 2022 02:05 PM (geLO8)

28 Thanks to all who submitted lovely pictures.

Posted by: PaleRider, simply irredeemable at April 23, 2022 02:06 PM (3cGpq)

29 Got all my plants in this week. Just have to start some seeds for herbs today. It's a gorgeous cool spring day here in so cal so I will be enjoying the outdoors and that fresh spring smell!

Posted by: keena at April 23, 2022 02:09 PM (RiTnx)

30 Stowe Lake!
One of my favorite hangouts.
The grill at the lake has a pretty good burger too.

Posted by: gourmand du jour at April 23, 2022 02:10 PM (jTmQV)

31 We are still getting the occasional frost warning at night but that should be about over now. It isn't slowing down the local azaleas and dogwoods, which are in full, glorious flower. I like the way dogwood blossoms, so bright with pink or white flowers, contrasts with the rather spare skeleton of the branches. A bit different from the way flowering fruit tree blossoms obscure the shape of the tree. Our little dogwood survived another winter and is in full leaf which is always nice to see.

Posted by: JTB at April 23, 2022 02:10 PM (7EjX1)

32 We've had so much wind out here on the high plains that I haven't even started digging my garden area yet. If I had, it would be either in my house all over my furniture or in Oklahoma and Kansas. We've gotten the ass end of every storm system that's come down from Canada this year and zero moisture from them.

Posted by: huerfano at April 23, 2022 02:11 PM (MzKgG)

33 Been cold and rainy forever here when today pops up in the 80's. Anyways, caught my asparagus just coming up, earliest ever I think. Got a nice handfull.

Posted by: dartist at April 23, 2022 02:13 PM (+ya+t)

34 What a clever and stupid-simple solution for a weed problem. Hope he makes millions.

There's been more than the usual amount of Canadian geese in the south SF bay area this year, they seem to be doing ok. Also on the bird front, I think I have at least 2 hummingbird nests in a tree in the backyard. I don't know what the heck it is (I'll send pics) but it puts out big clusters of pink flowers every year they seem to love. The tree is alive with hummers when the sun first comes up, sounds like a bunch of 2-stroke micro-motorcycles flying around and squeaking the way they do. Funny how you can tell the species from their "hum". I think it's all RPM's and wing size/shape. The feeder I kept up all winter helped, along with a decorative flowering sage I told the gardeners to leave alone (they always trim it back in the dead of winter so the hummers have no flowers).

I'll be interested to see what I can attract down in Carmel after my move. There's trumpet vines everywhere, and I'll be planting plenty of butterfly/hummer friendly stuff.

Posted by: clutch cargo - Now fortified with CPM-S90V at April 23, 2022 02:13 PM (wAnMi)

35 All geese are welcome in Canada and I'll confer citizenship on all that want it!

Posted by: Justin Trudeau at April 23, 2022 02:16 PM (C52p/)

36 Stickers, larkspurs, cockleburrs, sheepburrs, stinging nettle, bull nettle. Where most profanity comes from, well a lot of it anyway.

Posted by: Eromero at April 23, 2022 02:17 PM (gktX6)

37 I had a drainage ditch on country right of way that needed to be cleaned up. After contacting the right people they dispatched a crew out with one of those articulated mower decks on a large tractor to clean it up. The guys doing the work mentioned using 2-4-D as it wouldn't kill grass and other desirable vegetation from returning and keeping the area looking at least somewhat respectable.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 23, 2022 02:18 PM (BFigT)

38 Goose defends its nest in a parking lot.
Hilarity ensues.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UYcS1XgZ0Q&t=2s

Posted by: gourmand du jour at April 23, 2022 02:19 PM (jTmQV)

39 Interesting to see that each set of goslings, and there were several, were closely guarded by two parents.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at April 23, 2022 02:19 PM (KYQaT)

40 No iris up yet, will get a picture when they do

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 02:24 PM (BoHLr)

41 It will be in the midwest, possibly Kansas or Nebraska. I can't seriously look till I have cash on hand. I am thinking about buying a 35 pound bag of Solomon Gold to move with me, since the company that makes it is in this state. Shipping will be high elsewhere and I will need it wherever I wind up.

We have this tree in the back yard that may be a crap apple. It looks like hell most of the year. But right now, it's in full bloom and glorious. I should try and get a good picture.

Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:24 PM (YynYJ)

42 Wouldn't Roundup, spot applied, kill the puncture vine? I think I might have that at the AZ place.

Here at home in Alberta, I am puttering. Too early for garden chores yet. A month before it's considered safe to plant.

I got the tub/shower valve assembly out of the wall, and have it cleaned up. Turns out the cause of my long-running low flow issue was a flow restrictor built into the valve. That, plus years of lime and sediment = no flow. Drill press to the rescue. Should flow like a mo-fo, now.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at April 23, 2022 02:27 PM (HJDoQ)

43 those goatheads look terrible. Collecting the stickers helps, but I'd use chemicals and kill kill kill.

Someone mentioned asparagus this morning, so I went and checked ... collected 12 spears which I just ate. good stuff.

The mother Canadian goose has been on her nest of five eggs for almost 4 weeks, goslings should appear soon. A pair of wood ducks are around, might have a nest somewhere.

Late spring this year, no corn planted around me yet, cheers to the growers.

Posted by: illiniwek at April 23, 2022 02:27 PM (Cus5s)

44 What's Solomon Gold ?

Posted by: JT at April 23, 2022 02:27 PM (arJlL)

45 Do you have a control technique that you like?
-----
Herbicide and fire?

Posted by: Weasel at April 23, 2022 02:28 PM (yfQkF)

46 I got the tub/shower valve assembly out of the wall, and have it cleaned up. Turns out the cause of my long-running low flow issue was a flow restrictor built into the valve. That, plus years of lime and sediment = no flow. Drill press to the rescue. Should flow like a mo-fo, now.
Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon

I knew ya could fix it !

Posted by: JT at April 23, 2022 02:28 PM (arJlL)

47 I used to live in Turlock CA, which had a lot of puncture vine. We had these wire pieces on our bicycles to keep any thorns from sticking in the tires. It's nasty stuff. What I dread most is what we call cheat grass. It has an arrowhead shaped seed. It's terrible for your animals. It can get into the feet and work all the way up the leg. Gets in their ears and eyes.

Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:30 PM (YynYJ)

48 My Greek oregano is coming up nicely and chives are a foot tall. Hopefully dill will pop up soon

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 02:33 PM (BoHLr)

49 Love the sticker removal tool!

Alas, my most hated weed is nutsedge, which has once again taken over my (large) back yard. For years I tried to fight it by spraying with that Sedgehammer stuff, but now decided life is too short. It just comes back. Guess I'll just keep it mowed.

Put three tomatoes and three bell peppers in their big boy pots yesterday. Oh, my back...

Posted by: skywch at April 23, 2022 02:34 PM (uqhmb)

50 Solomon Gold is a fertilizer mix Steve Solomon created. You can adjust it for your location. He talks about the ingredients in The Intelligent Gardner. It's all about growing nutrient dense food. There is a company in Olympia WA that makes up a blend of it and markets it as Solomon's Gold.

Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:34 PM (YynYJ)

51 > What's Solomon Gold ?


no 'same as in town' joke?

Posted by: DB at April 23, 2022 02:38 PM (geLO8)

52 Watched the video for the goat's-head machine. It simply looks like a harvester for the seeds, but it does zilch to kill the plants, so you have to repeat the process periodically.

I say Roundup the entire yard, kill it dead, and replant with grass or non-irritating wildflowers indigenous to your area.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at April 23, 2022 02:40 PM (HJDoQ)

53 I like Canada geese so much more than the damned invasive mute swans. Those suckers kill other waterfowl (including each other) and tear out aquatic plants from the bed instead of nibbling the tops like whistling and tundra swans.

I wish I had irises. Mine died off in the shade except for teeny-tiny fleur-di-lis that were mixed into the crocus bulbs.

Posted by: NaughtyPine at April 23, 2022 02:43 PM (/+bwe)

54 One word... RoundUp.
Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 23, 2022 01:47 PM (BFigT)

I hope you don't grow your own vegetables if you use that poison.

Funny thing, my neighbor down the street sprays that crap all the time. He has the weediest damned yard you have ever seen. Weeds develop immunity so you are poisoning your land for nothing.

Posted by: Bonnie Blue - no longer playing the game at April 23, 2022 02:45 PM (9qiMu)

55 What I dread most is what we call cheat grass. It has an arrowhead shaped seed. It's terrible for your animals. It can get into the feet and work all the way up the leg. Gets in their ears and eyes.
Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:30 PM (YynYJ)


That stuff is all over California, it covers the hillsides. So common we just call it grass - but cheatgrass is the common name when getting specific. It's like retarded foxtails. But has little micro hooks on it that ensure it moves only in one direction. Unfortunately, it's incredibly common for pooches to get them in their ears and nostrils. More than once I've been to the emergency vet to dig one of those horrible things out. Sucks something awful.

Posted by: clutch cargo - Now fortified with CPM-S90V at April 23, 2022 02:45 PM (wAnMi)

56 "But has little micro hooks on it that ensure it moves only in one direction. "

Such was the inspiration for velcro.

Posted by: gourmand du jour at April 23, 2022 02:48 PM (jTmQV)

57 "I like Canada geese so much more than the damned invasive mute swans."

usually early march I see thousands of snow geese fly over, but never see them land. Canadian geese are a problem when they land in groups, but the male by my house chases off other Canadian geese, and I can chase off larger groups. A lot of farmers though, get a lot of damage to crops.

Posted by: illiniwek at April 23, 2022 02:50 PM (Cus5s)

58 Roundup does not work on blackberries. We have to use Crossbow.

I love the David the Good videos because he experiments. You'll see a plant in a mixed row of veggies getting eaten by aphids but nothing else is touched. Healthy plants don't have the bug problem.

Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:50 PM (YynYJ)

59 Cotton, corn, soybeans. Three different pre-emerge weedkillers, and three different post-emerge weedkillers. And that's only three different crops, you still have truck crops like tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, eggplants. We're only talking weedkillers here, not insecticides. Lotta bugs out there want to eat what we call our supper. Farmers work their fingers to the bone.

Posted by: Eromero at April 23, 2022 02:59 PM (gktX6)

60 I say Roundup the entire yard, kill it dead, and replant with grass or non-irritating wildflowers indigenous to your area.
Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at April 23, 2022 02:40 PM (HJDoQ)


Or agent orange and concrete painted festive colors.

Posted by: clutch cargo - Now fortified with CPM-S90V at April 23, 2022 03:02 PM (wAnMi)

61 I hope you don't grow your own vegetables if you use that poison.

_

We never use it near our veggie garden.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 23, 2022 03:04 PM (BFigT)

62 It's too easy to have Roundup kill plants you want. Having said that, blackberries here will easily cover your house in five years. If you and keep the roots disturbed for three years, it will kill it. Meanwhile birds keep shitting out the seed to replant it.

Posted by: Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 03:12 PM (YynYJ)

63 One of my pals reported that when her hubby removed the wintertime caps from the outdoor faucets, all the faucets were gone. Damned thieves have gotten worse.

Posted by: NaughtyPine at April 23, 2022 03:12 PM (/+bwe)

64 A month to six weeks late, but I finally planted pansies earlier this week. I always start my garden year with pansies. When the magic lollies bloom, I know it's the beginning of the end of summer. When the waters bloom, that's it. That's the end of the gardening months. (No, I don't grow veggies. I am totally incapable of growing anything useful.)

This has been a wild week. Easter, we drove to our daughter's house in a lovely mixture of snow and rain. Wednesday, we hit close to 80°. Today is very cloudy and the wind is incredible.

My butterfly bushes made it through another winter. The wild violets are blooming, as are the ground moss. I bought a mat embedded with a variety of sunflower seeds from #2 and #3 grandsons' school fund raiser, and I have some packets of fancy zinnia I got from Park Seed. I'll have to buy my herbs and lantana in another couple of weeks. So, not so much this year, but my butterfly bushes make up for everything else.

Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin -- bitterly clinging to the deplorable life '70s style! at April 23, 2022 03:15 PM (HVZDN)

65 Getting weeds out, then will till soil, mutch with compost then get plants

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 03:17 PM (2JoB8)

66 And it's dripping on me

Posted by: Skip's phone at April 23, 2022 03:17 PM (2JoB8)

67 Problem with roundup for goats heads is the burrs can lie dormant for 8 years. Plus roundup would not get rid of the burrs. The roller is a neat idea for moving into a neglected yard that has a bunch of the nasty burrs lying on the dirt. Collect em and burn them and then spray the burrs that sprout the next spring.

Posted by: PaleRider, simply irredeemable at April 23, 2022 03:19 PM (3cGpq)

68 I say Roundup the entire yard, kill it dead, and replant with grass or non-irritating wildflowers indigenous to your area.
Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at April 23, 2022 02:40 PM (HJDoQ)

Or agent orange and concrete painted festive colors.
Posted by: clutch cargo
------

Call in a napalm strike.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at April 23, 2022 03:20 PM (R6ndO)

69
I say Roundup the entire yard, kill it dead, and replant with grass or non-irritating wildflowers indigenous to your area.
Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon

Or agent orange and concrete painted festive colors.
Posted by: clutch cargo


Miniature golf course

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at April 23, 2022 03:22 PM (63Dwl)

70 Love the goathead tool! It's part of a good eradication plan:

--Pick up as many burrs as possible, before they sprout
--Use 2,4,D to kill the ones that grow
--Maintain vigilance and repeat the process as needed

One burr has many seeds, so seedlings appear in groups. Notice the linked photos, last one especially, where it shows the tiny seedling. The first leaves are distinctively rectangular and bluish-green, making them easy to recognize and destroy before they can ever bloom.

Posted by: JQ at April 23, 2022 03:26 PM (dpnJh)

71 I am not planting yet because the ground is far too wet and I am afraid that if I till I will just be forming bricks. I took the post-hole digger and dug down and I discovered the water table in my back yard is at 2 feet down.

Solomon's Gold is an organic fertilizer that has micronutrients in it to make it a complete fertilizer. It was developed by Steve Solomon who started Territorial Seeds in Oregon. If you search for Solomon's Gold COF it will tell you about it.

Posted by: Kindltot at April 23, 2022 03:29 PM (xhaym)

72 Switching my veggie gardening from a normal plot to containers only. Physical limitations. It is warm enough here that the broccoli, cauliflower, collards, cabbage and lettuces can stay outside all night. If we get a late frost, I will tuck them in the garage or back porch.

Transplanted my brussel sprouts today into a large tote and put carrots in along the sides. I put my totes on plastic lawn chairs to keep them at a waist high level.
Used a soldering gun to burn drainage holes in them.

Too cold for the tomatoes and peppers yet, they need another month inside under the grow lights.

Waiting to plant the cukes, beans and squash.

Trying to not bite off more than I can chew.

Posted by: cfo mom at April 23, 2022 03:30 PM (Q8bDL)

73 I tilled our veggie garden Thursday. It was damp but not too wet. It'll take another one to really get ready. I do the first one in a cross hatch pattern then do rows. It seems to work...

Posted by: Martini Farmer at April 23, 2022 03:40 PM (BFigT)

74 Re- weed control methods for Nature's Caltrops:

I'm happy to say that we don't have any around here. I am however, testing the efficacy of boiling water poured directly on offending plants.

The idea is that it kills the plant by parboiling all of its energy gathering surfaces. And probably any random seeds laying around in the area of effect.

So that might be one thing to try.

Posted by: FeatherBlade at April 23, 2022 03:42 PM (tIxf9)

75 I went on a hike yesterday and dug up a patch of wild strawberries to put by the foundation of my house. They spread fast, and I don't care if they don't have any decent fruit, I mostly like the leaves and flowers anyways. Today I was out and dug up some blackcap wild raspberries. My domestic raspberries are dying back from what I suspect is a root canker and I am hoping I can fill the plot with blackcaps and thimbleberries that will be more resistant

It also looks like my apple grafts may all be surviving, except for the Grimes Goldens which I suspect is the package of scion wood I accidentally left on top of the fridge.
So yay

Posted by: Kindltot at April 23, 2022 03:47 PM (xhaym)

76 That roller thing is pricey! ("sale" price $200) Would be worth it, if one had a large space overgrown with stickers.

For our small area, only moderately infested, I used corrugated cardboard (the really flimsy kind with soft paper cover) and then an old fleece stadium blanket: put it down, stepped across it, pulled up and threw it away. There were lots of burrs! Then I watered the area & let things grow for about a week or two, treated it with 2,4,D. Repeated this a couple times. Was also nice to get rid of that scrap stuff in the process.

I still monitor that area, pull up one or two plants every now & then. They sprout at higher temps, like 75F, so not coming up here yet this year.

Posted by: JQ at April 23, 2022 03:53 PM (dpnJh)

77 Boiling water works on shallow-rooted weeds and grasses, I use it along a brick path.

Dandelions and chickory keep coming back, though. And bindweed. Effing bindweed, my toughest enemy...

Posted by: JQ at April 23, 2022 03:57 PM (dpnJh)

78 Notsothoreau - look forward at April 23, 2022 02:30 PM

I think cheat grass is the one that scares me most, too.

Posted by: KT at April 23, 2022 04:07 PM (rrtZS)

79 They make a Canada Goose repellent for lawns that has artificial concord grape flavor in it.

Posted by: KT at April 23, 2022 04:08 PM (rrtZS)

80 Roundup works on goatheads if you apply it when the plants are very young. Once they set seed, I generally dig them up, with gloves.

Posted by: KT at April 23, 2022 04:10 PM (rrtZS)

81 The garden I left behind in Minnesota is being carried on by my ex. She and her gardening/canning partner started 400 seedlings for it and the additional garden up near Milaca. I asked if she was using the broadfork. "You try broadforking an acre! Besides, (friend) has a tractor." She is selling salsa, pickles and aprons at a market now.

I remember when I had to swear up and down to maintain it before she assented to a 4 x 8 plot.

Posted by: Gordon at April 23, 2022 04:36 PM (cG18q)

82 I'm sorry you had to leave your garden Gordon. It is cool that the ex got into it and is keeping the land productive.

Posted by: PaleRider, simply irredeemable at April 23, 2022 04:59 PM (3cGpq)

83 >> 9 [kallisto] My amaryllis [is] all leaves, no flower.
>> bleh

Are you sure that's not normal? I have a lot of belladonna amaryllis, and they never bloom while they have leaves. Mine have leaves right now, but they will bloom later. I'm sure KT can provide more details.

Posted by: 40 Miles North at April 23, 2022 05:51 PM (uWF4x)

84 40 Miles North at April 23, 2022 05:51 PM

Amaryllis that bloom in spring outdoors are generally Hippeastrum, not Amaryllis.

Your Belladonna Amaryllis probably blooms in August to fall, when the plant is about as close to dormant as it ever gets.

If you plant the seeds when they are still translucent, they sprout right away. Otherwise, they may take a long time to sprout. Usually grown from offsets, though.

Posted by: KT at April 23, 2022 07:29 PM (rrtZS)

85 Regarding goatheads: we've mostly got them out of our back paddock, but there's a horse pasture across the canal along the back, and the goatheads are all along the bank on that side, so we patrol the entire rear area of our property to make sure they aren't getting a foothold on our side. Husband finds that when you poison them, they will rush to set seeds (burrs/caltrops) before they die... So we dig them up and immediately put them in the outdoor trash container.

Posted by: Pat* at April 23, 2022 10:23 PM (2pX/F)

86 From Boise area: Lows 30-40, highs 55-72 F. Compost rollover from bin 3 to bin 2 is complete. Still 3 bins to shift.

Husband smoke-bombed gophers along the back property edge, sprayed weeds everywhere, trimmed the barberry bushes in front of the house (I raked up the trimmings). I moved some of the indoor tomatoes to larger pots, replaced some of the seeds that never sprouted, and put in a few new seeds since the weather is finally getting warmer. I still need to carry water to the garden in buckets.

Tulips finally opening - a few gold/red ones out front, 4 colors behind the kitchen. Waiting on the redbud tree out front, which is *covered* in buds! In the paddock, the Seckel pear is blooming like a mad thing; the Warren is blooming lightly. The Elberta peach still has flowers despite the winds we've had. The 3 small apple trees are barely budding out. Oregano is greening up - still need to cut off the old stems. Strawberries are thinking about poking up from under the dead leaves - need to cut those off too.

Interesting info on our version of violas, the Johnny Jump-Ups - no wonder they bloom almost the whole year round. They're gorgeous now, but not numerous yet.

Posted by: Pat* at April 23, 2022 10:39 PM (2pX/F)

87 Aborted attempt at puttering: Tried to pull the blades on the new mower for sharpening, whereupon I discovered the hardware is all metric and my biggest socket is one mm too small for the blade bolts. Grrrrr....

Posted by: Pat*''s Hubby at April 23, 2022 11:17 PM (2pX/F)

88 Useful infoгmation. Fortunatе me I discovered your web sitе by accident, and I
am stunned why this twist of fate didn't took place eaгlier!

I bookmarked it.

Posted by: digest at April 24, 2022 03:04 AM (ffdb/)

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