Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, July 1

Hi, everybody! Happy Independence Day Weekend!

Well, it's really summer here. How about where you are? Today, we have some flowers that are reminiscent of fireworks, sort of. The photo above is from Lurker Dave, in Oahu. There are more below. And we have some red, white and blue flowers.

We also have more photos of information on edibles coming in, just in time for the holiday weekend!

It is really summer now here. How about where you are? The forecast here today is 109 degrees, so it's probably higher than that in Phoenix. But at least it's sort of a dry-ish heat, compared to some places.

More photos from Oahu. Recognize any of these?

Edible Gardening/Putting Things By

From Gordon:

Along with what everyone else is saying, limes are drama queens. There's a reason why all of the mature trees you find around the valley are lemon, orange and grapefruits, not limes.

At least you don't have to shovel snow in that heat.

Gordon also saw this nicely pruned Pomegranate, and wondered if the fruits forming were from an ornamental or an edible variety. I think they could be from either. Edible pomegranates have quite attractive flowers, so it would not be unusual for people to plant them as shrubs.

Desert dwellers have more thoughts?

A story from Black JEM:

I started a strawberry bed a few years ago. My soil stinks, and unlike some of my other gardens, I didn't do enough soil improvement to make life easy for the strawberries. Even with that, I got some good crop, enough to make ice cream, and jam. I constantly fought thistles. SO, this year it became this:

You can see some random strawberry plants in there - but between grass, thistles, creeping violets and other uninvited plants. This is what it looked like when it was in shape. Amazing how fast it went. About 15 months.

Some of us have been there . . . .

So I went out and dug up about 75 strawberry plants. Sprayed down the roots, and wrapped them up and sealed them in bags and stuck them in the garage fridge to replant them once I've fixed my dirt. And gotten rid of the uninvited plants.

How long it takes to get everything done will be a function of whether I hit the place with nasty weedkiller or just roto-till and place and put preen down after I replant. Which may or may not work with strawberries. I admit as I write this I'm not sure if that will work.
The joy of letting the garden go to the birds. I am not sure if it works as an analogy to our country or not. But I do hope to get strawberries once again.

Best of luck . . .

From SKB:

My 3 kid's boxes!

They're off to a good start!

Cooking and Picnics

Got zucchini blossoms? Peppers to stuff?

Have you ever tasted stuffed zucchini flowers? Very delicious! 😋 pic.twitter.com/CMLymtxHHv
— Agriviaggi (@agriviaggi) June 26, 2023

What happened to community picnics with 100 pound watermelons?

Adventure

Courtesy CBD:

Perhaps there are some people who should not travel with friends of CBD.

Gardens of The Horde

Red, white and blue flowers from an old friend of the blog:

Hope everyone has a nice weekend.

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? Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, June 24

I don't think that CBD was correct when he said about BeckoningChasm's butterfly:

That butterfly is a type of weasel.

I think that Pillage Idiot was right.

I believe that is a Question Mark butterfly.
Did it ever close its wings while posing? If so, it should have looked like an ugly dead leaf on the underside of the wings.
They have impressive camouflage!

Well, maybe not when first hatched. They have a little punctuation mark on the underside, like their relatives, the Comma Butterflies, but with a dot.

Adult punctuation butterflies typically prefer three types of food sources: tree sap, decaying fruit and carrion. As for luring these butterflies to your own garden, the most important thing to know is that this genus of butterflies is rarely found collecting nectar from flowers. You'll see these butterflies more frequently in wooded areas, as their caterpillars host almost exclusively on trees. To draw them to your yard, try leaving out very ripe or even rotting fruit like bananas or oranges. Place the fruit in a shallow dish of water to keep ants off. . .

I wouldn't be surprised if they liked dog poop, too.

You might spot both question mark and comma butterflies during any of the 12 months of the year. They overwinter as adults, tucked into safe spaces, but may come out on unseasonably warm days.

I closed the comments on last week's post so you wouldn't get banned for commenting on a week-old post, but don't try it anyway.

Posted by: K.T. at 01:25 PM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Good afternoon Greenthumbs

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 01:28 PM (xhxe8)

2 Smells lovely in here!

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 01:29 PM (Mzdiz)

3 Have had peppers starting for a couple weeks, don't expect much from first batch though, but also tomatoes and cucumbers are starting and had fresh chives in tomato soup for lunch.

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 01:32 PM (xhxe8)

4 I cut off the seed heads of the bolting lettuce and let them drop, then pulled the stalks and composted them.

A couple of weeks ago I was blessed to find a French lavender plant, a gardenia, and a pink mini-knockout rose all on close-out at Wal-Mart. I've left them in their pots for now and will plant them this fall if the heat doesn't get them first.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 01:34 PM (nC+QA)

5 And a mystery brought up from a comment on ONT, I bought a basil plant last Sunday at grocery store and it didn't make it home or at least no idea what happened to it

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 01:34 PM (xhxe8)

6 There's follow-up from last week at the end of the post. Flutterbys. Not weasels.

Posted by: KT at July 01, 2023 01:35 PM (rrtZS)

7 I've ask this question before: should I mulch my grass, or bag? My lawn is pretty much weeds, it suffers from benign neglect.
Thoughts?

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at July 01, 2023 01:36 PM (7Fj9P)

8 Weeds are the bane of my existence. With this huge garden, I need to use every trick in the book. Mulch cloth, straw, whatever it takes. But that's only a selective option. Nothing to do about the rows of corn, maybe 1500 row feet all in all.

But we did burn holes in mulch cloth for the melons and squash, which will be very useful.

Oh, and speaking of ground cover, I discovered the existence of a place called Chip Drop (getchipdrop dot come). You can sign up for free tree chips from arborists etc - they need a place to dump them. Read expectations so you know what you're getting.

If we were to get a 20 yard dump, we could put a thick layer under the electric fence so we don't have to mow. Fortunately we have space for a load that size.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 01:39 PM (Mzdiz)

9 Oh, mulch your grass! It's quick and easy, or you can just put it around vegetables.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 01:40 PM (Mzdiz)

10 I would avoid weedkiller, as the soil may well become inhospitable to every broad leaf plant.

You could till it and pull weeds by hand. Then lay down some mulch cloth between your strawberry rows. Adding straw to that would be good, too.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 01:44 PM (Mzdiz)

11 I've ask this question before: should I mulch my grass, or bag? My lawn is pretty much weeds, it suffers from benign neglect.
Thoughts?

When I had a lawn I mulched. The specific scenario was bermuda in the summer and fescue in the winter. Let either get long enough to go to seed and then mow so that it had the seeds in the mulch for when that grass' season came around.

Not sure it helped with the bermuda, but the fescue came back year after year.

Of course, that was in the same valley that Phoenix is in, so things like snow, freezes, etc, weren't really a problem and you had to have a special breed of bermuda to survive the summer heat.

Posted by: Blanco Basura - Z28.310 at July 01, 2023 01:44 PM (Bd6X8)

12 Is it wrong that I thought the first pic was a fish?

Posted by: Harvey Fierstein at July 01, 2023 01:45 PM (ssESX)

13 hiya

Posted by: JT at July 01, 2023 01:46 PM (T4tVD)

14 The guy came out and started mowing the grass before I got a chance to point out the elderberries. I doubt they recover.

Posted by: Notsothoreau at July 01, 2023 01:46 PM (ouTlx)

15 I miss the pick your own fruit farms and all the farmers markets that were in the Hudson Valley area when I lived there.

I’ve tried to explain to my friends here in the South the experience of trying your first Concord grape. They are no where to be found in Houston even during the fall harvest season.

Oh so that’s where grape flavor comes from for candy.

Posted by: polynikes at July 01, 2023 01:47 PM (MNhXM)

16 And a mystery brought up from a comment on ONT, I bought a basil plant last Sunday at grocery store and it didn't make it home or at least no idea what happened to it
Posted by: Skip

Under the car/truck seat, planning an escape ?

Posted by: JT at July 01, 2023 01:48 PM (T4tVD)

17 I once had a garden, or should I say it once had me...

As a child I remember a load of ripe cow manure. Huge!
And the churning in.

My step grandpa had spent covfefe looking soil. Amazing, really. And he was just osmosis to the Italian guy next door.

I've had it easy, I guess.

Posted by: micky at July 01, 2023 01:49 PM (3byMq)

18 Is it true that you can harm your plants and grass if you water them mid day in the heat?

Posted by: polynikes at July 01, 2023 01:50 PM (MNhXM)

19 @4
"a pink mini-knockout rose"

You sure know your flowers ma'am!

Posted by: The Beav' at July 01, 2023 01:50 PM (ssESX)

20 From Boise area: Lows 55-61, highs 79-88 but climbing rapidly to mid-90's this coming week; high summer is finally here.

We've been picking strawberries and shelling peas. The green beans and tomatoes have flowers. I've done a little carrot thinning, but I'm leaving most of them in hopes of having some gorgeous ones for the Western Idaho Fair in mid-August.

My 'Arp' rosemary died while we were on vacation, so I got another rosemary from Home Depot, unknown variety. I put it outdoors where sprayers will water it, in a pot that's decent-sized, but small enough I could bring it indoors and plop it in a kitty litter pan if I want to bring it in for the winter.

We installed a few pieces of gutter cover - that continues a project we started last year. We'll do a few more pieces tomorrow before it gets hot, and then...

I'm having knee replacement surgery on Thursday, so I don't know whether I'll be able to post next week. Husband will be covering all the garden work for a few weeks, then I'll see how mobile I am.

For the Glorious Fourth - remember, we are the Unconquerables! Stay strong, stay prepared, stay free!

Posted by: Pat* at July 01, 2023 01:51 PM (oYjGO)

21 Oh so that’s where grape flavor comes from for candy.

Posted by: polynikes at July 01, 2023 01:47 PM (MNhXM)

My grandma grew Concords in Colorado. Such intense flavor!

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 01:52 PM (nC+QA)

22 And a mystery brought up from a comment on ONT, I bought a basil plant last Sunday at grocery store and it didn't make it home or at least no idea what happened to it

You left it sitting on the little shelf by the register where the cashier put it so it wouldn't get crushed in a bag.

Posted by: Blanco Basura - Z28.310 at July 01, 2023 01:52 PM (Bd6X8)

23 You sure know your flowers ma'am!

Posted by: The Beav' at July 01, 2023 01:50 PM (ssESX)

It helps when they are clearly labeled. I do take credit for recognizing the lavender was French variety though, because of the square flower stalks and little single-blossom top knot.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 01:54 PM (nC+QA)

24 Is it true that you can harm your plants and grass if you water them mid day in the heat?
Posted by: polynikes

When you water, the roots turn up to get the water and the sun scorches them.

Posted by: JT at July 01, 2023 01:55 PM (T4tVD)

25 @22 That sounds like one of Shawn Spencer's visualizations from the show "Pysch."

Posted by: The Beav' at July 01, 2023 01:55 PM (ssESX)

26 I inherited three grow boxes like the ones above, from my dad. He wanted tomatoes, and the boxes sort of worked.
My wife planted strawberries in her two, and the third I put in taro, sweet potato and turmeric. It is against a sunny wall, and to my surprise the taro grew but nothing else.
Last fall when the frost killed everything I put in a sprig of rosemary to root, and I noticed the strawberries had sent out runners and colonized my box too. This Spring I planted ginger and a single sweet potato that I had rooted in a jar of water on the windowsill.
My sweet potato is sending up slips, the ginger is sending up shoots now, and the taro survived the winter freezes.
As I dig out the potato beds this month I will be trying to plant sweet potato slips in the turned over dirt. They don't grow here, but then again neither will Taro.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 01:56 PM (xhaym)

27 My thinking is left in cart, dropped it in parking lot.

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 01:56 PM (xhxe8)

28 Speaking of battling weeds, we are battling a bumper crop of burrs. Word around here is that last winter's ice storm is the cause, although I don't know why that's so. In previous years we had a handful of plants here and there but now they are over almost half of the yard.

Some are softer and are only annoying because they cling to any bit of the dog's fur that they can reach. The really aggravating ones have sharp stickers which are very painful in the dog's paws and ride into the house on the soles of your shoes. Keeping them mowed as short as possible is some help but we are now spraying as many of the plants as we can find to try to eradicate them. Not much fun in 100-degree weather, but we're determined.

Posted by: Art Rondelet of Malmsey at July 01, 2023 01:57 PM (fTtFy)

29 Is it true that you can harm your plants and grass if you water them mid day in the heat?

Posted by: polynikes at July 01, 2023 01:50 PM (MNhXM)

I believe the concern is that the water droplets will act like magnifying glasses for the sun and cause scorching. As long as there's shade the heat itself shouldn't be an issue, beyond increasing the amount that evaporates before soaking the soil.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 01:57 PM (nC+QA)

30 @24 I think misting outdoor hanging plants (and maybe some grasses?) during a scorcher helps though.

Posted by: Chairman LMAO at July 01, 2023 01:58 PM (ssESX)

31 Unsettled weather today, hasn't rained nor seems like it will but air gets heavy, then clears then humid again. Clear right now again

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 02:00 PM (xhxe8)

32 Your country will be over.

House to house disarming?

My opinion, worth nothing, is the disarming will not work. People will die while being policed. Done with you.

Trump has actually said the unspeakable.
Rove, Ryan, BBBush!

Posted by: micky at July 01, 2023 02:01 PM (3byMq)

33 I would avoid weedkiller, as the soil may well become inhospitable to every broad leaf plant.

You could till it and pull weeds by hand. Then lay down some mulch cloth between your strawberry rows. Adding straw to that would be good, too.
Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 01:44 PM (Mzdiz)
==
Ok, thanks, that makes some sense to me re. herbicides. Will the strawberry runners work through the mulch cloth?

Posted by: Black JEM at July 01, 2023 02:03 PM (UVyKP)

34 Pollilwog, I let some of the lettuce bolt and go to seed to have free seed for next year. A couple of plants will put out enough seed to scatter them into a wide area instead of trying to dole them out.
Also the songbirds will come and eat the remaining seed in the winter.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 02:05 PM (xhaym)

35 My wose is poison ivy, it's getting under the pine trees

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 02:07 PM (xhxe8)

36 I have Concords, but I live at 45 degrees north, and they do well here.

I am told that northern grapes do not do well in the South, the heat, long summers and dampness kill them. The one grape that does well is the native Muscadines, and there are some bred up ones that do better than the wild stock.
Which is probably a good trade off since it a good place to grow star fruit and guavas.

The first time I had guavas off the trees was an eye opening experience. I love those things and they will not grow here.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 02:10 PM (xhaym)

37 Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 02:05 PM (xhaym)

Being in Houston, I'm hoping for lettuce from the seeds this fall when the stores won't have any seeds.

I really need to get some more mulch and add it to all the beds to keep the soil from drying out so fast. Unfortunately, it's been too hot to do any work at a time I'm willing to be awake.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 02:11 PM (nC+QA)

38 My thinking is left in cart, dropped it in parking lot.
Posted by: Skip

Well that's pretty boring.

Posted by: JT at July 01, 2023 02:11 PM (T4tVD)

39 https://tinyurl.com/m8esx3r9
Just took this inside my mini greenhouse
Mild hot peppers and the patch on right sid red is 1 of two growing dill

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 02:12 PM (xhxe8)

40 Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 02:10 PM (xhaym)

I got a few Muscadines off one of my vines, the other never produced anything but leaves. The flavor is very similar to Concord, and so is the vast amount of seeds in each grape.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 02:14 PM (nC+QA)

41 Is there anyth___ sucks the blood out of mosquitoes?

Posted by: Eromero at July 01, 2023 02:15 PM (z3WCn)

42 My garden is doing great, though I am thinking of never planting pepper seeds again since it is a pain to get them out of the seedling trays, into the dirt and mature.

I am about to dig my March planted potatoes, the corn nearly shoulder high, and the beans are climbing. I have great hopes for the tomatoes and the squash and melons are putting up blossoms.

One of my plum trees broke a branch under the heavy load of green plums, so I picked them and tried pickling one batch in vinegar and salt, and the other in salt brine to make ersatz green olives. So far, the salt brined ones are the better tasting batch
This fall I am planning on trying a recipe for brined apples.

Don't judge me.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 02:18 PM (xhaym)

43 And we have been in a drought for quite a bit and finally got some substantial rain. Which will slow down the strawberry patch rescue operations. I was doing some more investigation - pine needles as mulch for strawberries is coming up as a good option as well.

Thanks Miley.

Posted by: Black JEM at July 01, 2023 02:19 PM (UVyKP)

44 So, this morning I was staring at our veggie garden and noticed a blue jay pulling up the summer squash seedlings. I think there are 3 left that might make it.

Not a fan of blue jays.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 01, 2023 02:19 PM (Q4IgG)

45 Howdy green thumbs in gray boxes! Got the lawn mowed and edged in fronts swept the driveway and curbs and then came inside for some lunch. I think my outside work for today is done.

Posted by: CrotchetyOldJarhead at July 01, 2023 02:19 PM (YRsIm)

46 41 Is there anyth___ sucks the blood out of mosquitoes?
Posted by: Eromero at July 01, 2023 02:15 PM (z3WCn)
----
Well bats eat them, that's about as close as you'll get.

Posted by: Chairman LMAO at July 01, 2023 02:22 PM (ssESX)

47 25 @22 That sounds like one of Shawn Spencer's visualizations from the show "Pysch."
Posted by: The Beav' at July 01, 2023 01:55 PM (ssESX)

touch your index fingers to your temples and stare intently while you say it.

Posted by: Tom Servo at July 01, 2023 02:22 PM (i9ffA)

48 Off topic. My A/C quit last night. The blower fan motor I think as all I hear is a loud hum just like a stalled motor. Storm came through and there was a half-second power interruption and I think that may have done the damage, although the fan failed a while later. The original fan lasted from 1994 to 2014 and all the years before 1994 (when we moved in). It was replaced with an original and identical fan, surprised that the tech found one.
I have AHS insurance but it's the weekend and then the 4th.! Currently 94 outside and 85 inside. My dryer is also covered and a tech will come Friday. My RA is really bad lately, I can barely lift a cup of coffee into/from the microwave, otherwise I probably would have tackled the dryer myself.
I hope the kitties manage in the heat.

Posted by: Ciampino - The Summer of our discontent at July 01, 2023 02:26 PM (qfLjt)

49 They had a bunch of boxed bush fruits marked down to 50 cents. They are likely all dead but I thought I'd gamble on a few. I'm soaking them in water for now.

Posted by: Notsothoreau at July 01, 2023 02:27 PM (ouTlx)

50 Kitties should be okay. I've actually wet mine down a bit if it's really hot. I would worry about the kittens of course.

Posted by: Notsothoreau at July 01, 2023 02:35 PM (ouTlx)

51 And I do hope you are okay too and can get it fixed soon!

Posted by: Notsothoreau at July 01, 2023 02:37 PM (ouTlx)

52 Spent four days in Albuquerque this past week. It was 102 degrees one day. A number of locals gave me the old "but it's a dry heat." I replied, "So is a blast furnace."

Posted by: Indiana Lurker at July 01, 2023 02:37 PM (3ZVqj)

53 Happy Independence Day, K.T.!

Posted by: Little Larry Sellers at July 01, 2023 02:41 PM (zdYK9)

54 I really need to get some more mulch and add it to all the beds to keep the soil from drying out so fast. Unfortunately, it's been too hot to do any work at a time I'm willing to be awake.
Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 02:11 PM (nC+QA)

I get out at first light and use a garden rake to scuffle up the dirt, it makes enough of a blanket of dirt and air to slow down evaporation from the dirt. We have clay soil here that will crack when it dries out, so this is important to slow down evaporation. Weeds steal the moisture, and any compaction helps wick water to the surface to evaporate as well, and fluffing the top half inch or so slows that all down.
I admit, this is Oregon where we whine when it gets to 90 and complain of the humidity, but they also did this sort of thing up in Central Washington

If you are doing a lot of mulch, that also seems to work and it is probably better for the dirt.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 02:47 PM (xhaym)

55 Still 40 some years later remember the day got off a C-141 in Las Vegas, it was 120, dry heat they said. Like sticking a fan on oven door and turning it on

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 02:48 PM (xhxe8)

56 52 Spent four days in Albuquerque this past week. It was 102 degrees one day. A number of locals gave me the old "but it's a dry heat." I replied, "So is a blast furnace."
Posted by: Indiana Lurker at July 01, 2023 02:37 PM (3ZVqj)

Dry heat will put you in the hospital a lot faster. Dehydrate in the blink of an eye without feeling all sweaty as a warning to tell you to get some shade and drink some water.

Posted by: Knock it off, Hudson! at July 01, 2023 02:53 PM (dE+9W)

57 I just got done felling a dead palm tree on my property. I hired an arborist because it was a 2 person job. Got the hardhats and goggles on. I lassoed the top part of the snag and applied torque so it would fall where I wanted it to. Meanwhile the arborist did the cut.
It's now on the ground and in 4 pieces and I still have all my bodily parts intact.
I'm going to be clearing out dead stuff for months, I predict.

Posted by: gourmand du jour at July 01, 2023 02:54 PM (MeG8a)

58 My tomatoes have spider mites. I'm trying to decide whether to try pyrethrum or neem.

Posted by: Emmie -- July 15 ArkanOklaMoMe RSVP email link in nic at July 01, 2023 02:56 PM (Emce2)

59 used to work the Dallas Farmers market with my grampa in the 60's

sold 1000's of cantaloupes in a weekend, along with beans and other products

Posted by: REDACTED at July 01, 2023 02:57 PM (us2H3)

60 Is it true that you can harm your plants and grass if you water them mid day in the heat?
Posted by: polynikes

If you have soft water, not so much.

Hard water, yes. The water evaporates quickly leaving salt/minerals on the plant.

Best option, water the soil, not the plant.

My opinion and $1.50 might buy you a can of soda.

Posted by: Adriane the Bad Poetry Critic . . . at July 01, 2023 02:58 PM (jonTH)

61 This week (central Iowa) I've started seeing the Japanese beetles on my plants and trees. They get out of control and do tons of damage, so time to start the multi-layered defense! Pick 'em, spray 'em, trap 'em.

Posted by: Grimmy at July 01, 2023 03:00 PM (NCgXW)

62 How old is too old to post?

Posted by: Goatweed at July 01, 2023 03:00 PM (0Q/6W)

63 I spent some time at NAF Fallon in July, ya know standing on the runway with a (hot) breeze won' t bad. Was fifty mumble mumble years ago.

Posted by: Eromero at July 01, 2023 03:06 PM (z3WCn)

64 First big harvest. A couple of radishes and some onion tops to chop and add to cottage cheese.

Posted by: Ronster at July 01, 2023 03:08 PM (sKOh1)

65 62 How old is too old to post?
Posted by: Goatweed at July 01, 2023 03:00 PM

You're never too old to ~~rock and roll~~ post on AoS.

Posted by: Jethro Tull at July 01, 2023 03:10 PM (NCgXW)

66 How old is too old to post?
Posted by: Goatweed

Depends on whether or not you’re a turtle …

Posted by: Adriane the Bad Poetry Critic . . . at July 01, 2023 03:12 PM (jonTH)

67 Ok, thanks, that makes some sense to me re. herbicides. Will the strawberry runners work through the mulch cloth?

Posted by: Black JEM at July 01, 2023 02:03 PM (UVyKP)

Sorry, was out checking my okra. There will be harvesting this evening for some boiled okra at supper. Yum!

Now, what I would do is put a layer of dirt on top of the mulch cloth, underneath your runners. If that sounds a little fucked up, it's how I roll.

There will be a place for roots to develop. At that point I put them in pots and place where there's shade during the worst of the sun. Transplant them where you want them, once they've developed enough at the end of summer. I always wanted rows. Longer and longer rows.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:14 PM (Mzdiz)

68 Posted by: Ciampino - The Summer of our discontent at July 01, 2023 02:26 PM (qfLjt)

Might just be your capacitor. AHS vendors don’t have emergency calls where the repair may be covered but you Amy be responsible for the emergency call charge?

Posted by: polynikes at July 01, 2023 03:14 PM (MNhXM)

69 Hot out thar....

Posted by: JT at July 01, 2023 03:15 PM (T4tVD)

70 My wose is poison ivy, it's getting under the pine trees

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 02:07 PM (xhxe

PI killer works well. We used to spray it around our favorite campsite during the first weekend, and continue to keep it at bay throughout the summer (yes, we camped at least 3 or 4 times every year at the same place).

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:16 PM (Mzdiz)

71 Been out most of day, it's fine to me. Just had to again fix garage door spring

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 03:17 PM (xhxe8)

72 Watering plants...

We have hard water and swear off watering during the day. If watering is needed we typically do it right after the sun sets. I've actually seen the mineral spots on leaves if the water evaporates in the sun on them.

Of course, lately it has rained every. friggin. day.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 01, 2023 03:18 PM (Q4IgG)

73 Being in Houston, I'm hoping for lettuce from the seeds this fall when the stores won't have any seeds.

I really need to get some more mulch and add it to all the beds to keep the soil from drying out so fast. Unfortunately, it's been too hot to do any work at a time I'm willing to be awake.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 02:11 PM (nC+QA)

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 02:11 PM (nC+QA)

rareseeds dotcom, and botanicalinterests dotcom.

It's hot as blazes out there.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:19 PM (Mzdiz)

74 Just took this inside my mini greenhouse
Mild hot peppers and the patch on right sid red is 1 of two growing dill

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 02:12 PM (xhxe

Nice!

My dill is forming seed heads, just in time for pickle season. We've got almost a dozen baby cukes out there.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:20 PM (Mzdiz)

75 I planted my lettuce in an area that then had sunflowers pop up from seed, and I have noticed that the lettuce has not bolted as fast as it normally does in the summer, it is just starting. I think it is because it is living in the shade of the sunflowers.
No idea if this is a valid option for anyone, but it might be a thing to toss lettuce in as an understory if you are growing sunflowers, just for the heck of it.

I planted an area three times early this spring and it turned out that it wasn't the old seed, it was just the cold weather, so I have a jungle of potatoes, lettuce, radishes and volunteer sunflowers.

Posted by: Kindltot at July 01, 2023 03:24 PM (xhaym)

76 It is getting to chemicals, did see a couple you can make at home with vinegar and other benign things but it won't kill roots, and know they travel feet underground

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 03:24 PM (xhxe8)

77 So, this morning I was staring at our veggie garden and noticed a blue jay pulling up the summer squash seedlings. I think there are 3 left that might make it.

Not a fan of blue jays.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 01, 2023 02:19 PM (Q4IgG)

You could get a roll of hardware cloth and make arches above the seedlings to protect them until they get bigger. Has to be low enough so the jay doesn't go under.

We did this to keep the cats from using a particular spot as a litter box.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:24 PM (Mzdiz)

78 I missed watering the fig tree for two days, and it dropped 75% of it's leaves. Still alive, but stressed out on me. Everything else survived through June in Texas without near death, which is more than I've managed in past years. I chalk that up to all the rain, not to me.

Major gardening victory achieved, though. My Calmer Half has started spending time out on the back porch, enjoying the sound of the wind in the tree, the green growing things, and the fresh air. Thursday, he said to me out of the blue, "I would like to get a bird bath. I saw the birds playing in a puddle, and we should have one so they can enjoy it all the time."

So today, we got a birdbath. Because if he's enjoying the garden enough to have opinions about it, this is something I want to encourage!

Posted by: Not From Around Here at July 01, 2023 03:25 PM (wrzAm)

79 My RA is really bad lately, I can barely lift a cup of coffee into/from the microwave, otherwise I probably would have tackled the dryer myself.
I hope the kitties manage in the heat.

Posted by: Ciampino - The Summer of our discontent at July 01, 2023 02:26 PM (qfLjt)

I feel for you - Publius finds humidity really oppressive with his RA.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:26 PM (Mzdiz)

80 68 Posted by: Ciampino - The Summer of our discontent at July 01, 2023 02:26 PM (qfLjt)

Might just be your capacitor. AHS vendors don’t have emergency calls where the repair may be covered but you Amy be responsible for the emergency call charge?

Posted by: polynikes at July 01, 2023 03:14 PM (MNhXM)
----
Yes, service charge is $75 but worth it. That would include a brand new A/C if the old one is beyond repair or no spare parts.

Posted by: Ciampino - The Summer of our discontent at July 01, 2023 03:26 PM (qfLjt)

81 So today, we got a birdbath. Because if he's enjoying the garden enough to have opinions about it, this is something I want to encourage!

Posted by: Not From Around Here at July 01, 2023 03:25 PM (wrzAm)

Awesome! It's a great feeling to create a place that others enjoy being in.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 01, 2023 03:27 PM (nC+QA)

82 Re: strawberries and Preen.
Don't It will stop (or stunt) the runners, which are the lifeblood of the strawberry patch.
Mulch, hand weeding. Good Japanese Hoe (cue snickers).
Miley, look at a hot knife for cutting the fabric. We figured we'd never orient the cloth the same way twice, so it made more sense to slit most into 30" swaths.
We did have to wheel a generator out to the garden to do it, but was worth it.

Posted by: Porky at July 01, 2023 03:27 PM (cPGH3)

83 PET NOOD IS UP

Posted by: Skip at July 01, 2023 03:28 PM (xhxe8)

84 (Sorry about the old sock)
Also, earlier this week, we did an experiment. We used an overhead sprinkler at around 4:00 pm. 100 degrees.
Knocked the air temp down to 90, and dropped the soil temps 4 degrees.
Gold courses call it "syringing". You're not watering as much as cooling.

Posted by: MkY at July 01, 2023 03:30 PM (cPGH3)

85 I really want a birdbath. I saw one 4 years ago that was beautiful glass, but it was too spendy.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:41 PM (Mzdiz)

86 Porky, we have 6 ft wide cloth between the tomato fences, and 3 ft wide on either side. I do love mulch cloth. We got a lot of sturdy pins, too. I'll leave tomato fences as is over the winter, but the rest will be pulled up so he can plow it with the tractor next spring.

Posted by: Miley, okravangelist at July 01, 2023 03:52 PM (Mzdiz)

87 Make your own bird bath. Find an old farm disc, weld it to a pipe and stick it in the ground.

Posted by: Ronster at July 01, 2023 03:56 PM (sKOh1)

88 Looks like a corona virus to me.

Posted by: GWB at July 01, 2023 04:39 PM (vQrdQ)

89 20 yards is a frigging mountain of chips.

My basil plant was the only thing to survive summer 2022. It handles 115 degrees with no problems. Since it blooms continuously there are seeds. One sprouted a few feet away in the gravel. It is perfectly positioned to be an ornamental.

Posted by: Gordon at July 01, 2023 07:15 PM (AsopM)

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