2022 Garden Thread

[Dan Freeman]

ThanksDG. Imagine if I broke my ribs in April. There would have been no dealing with me! At least it came towards the end of the season.

I am going to put together another collage of the Food Forest 2021-2022. I can't believe that was just an open field less than 2 years ago. It has changed so much. I like to take all the pictures after a project and put them together. This way if someone asks, I can just have them look at the collage. I have done several in the past of other projects: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKqGcAeyI14HOeu_JFNbRjQ/videos

Like you, we finally fired up the woodstove for the first time Tuesday morning. Last year we had started fires by November 1st. So glad we have the wood stove. We only use home heating oil for our hot water now. We got a delivery of 103 gallons yesterday and it was $5.99/gallon. Once you add in the Hazmat Fee and Fuel Recovery Fee, it came out to $6.22 a gallon. Outrageous! I want to top off our two propane tanks which we only use for cooking and the generator (if we need it). I can't wait to see what propane is going for. Last Fall, I paid $6 a gallon for it. There are going to be a lot of people suffering this winter.

I don't grow Kale. I have never been a fan of the taste. Those fried pumpkin pieces look scrumptious.

 

[Dan Freeman]

Spotted my first tomatoes on the two Tiny Tims I started from seeds in the beginning of October.



Indoor garden progress so far.



Basil & parsley in the middle that I saved from outside. Hoping it will make a comeback; two romaine heads on the left; can only make out one in this pic but spinach just starting to break ground on the right.

 

[clancey]

Sure looking beautiful..clancey

 

[begreen]

That's a rewarding sight.

 

[Dan Freeman]

I saw a few tomatoes on another Tiny Tim today. Lettuce is doing well. The parsley and basil I saved from death seems to be coming back. The lettuce is doing well, but I am a bit disappointed in the spinach seeds I planted. More should have come up by now. The seeds are a few years old. I don't know how long spinach seeds are viable for. I may have to buy a fresh packet.

I have to be careful with my indoor winter garden. I tend to water at the same rate I do during the summer, but these plants need less water since they are not subjected to strong sun, high temps, and strong winds.

 

[begreen]

Spinach can be touchy to grow and the germination rate in some packs is as weak as 50%. I would get new seeds. This year we tried perpetual spinach, which is actually a type of chard, but cooks and tastes like spinach. It was a big hit and not fussy to grow not affected by summer heat. We will definitely keep growing it. However, it may not be happy in a pot. Spinach and chard have deep tap roots.

 

[Dan Freeman]

Thanks for that input, begreen. I'll probably just order some new seeds. Never heard of perpetual spinach. I will have to look it up. Heat should not be a problem with it growing it indoors since this room stays between 65-70. I guess just the size of the pot may come into play.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

You all inspired me back in October to start some tomatoes in one of my Aerogardens, and recently you inspired me to pay more attention to them. I had my first blossom yesterday. It’s fun.

We had a bit of rain this morning. Not hard or long but enough actually to hear on the roof for a few minutes. I’m hoping for more.

I posted a thread over the gear forum about using a moisture meter to test the dryness of my homegrown popcorn. I debated putting it over here, but I was looking more for information on the functioning of the meter, so I put it there. I thought I’d link it here, though, for my fellow gardeners since it pertains to trying to get my homegrown popcorn actually to pop. (And, yes, I acknowledge that admitting to doing this makes me feel just a bit over the edge.)

Unusual Use of a Moisture Meter

I debated whether to put this question in the ongoing garden thread, but it pertains more to the function of a moisture meter, so I decided to go with the gear thread. Bear with me, please, folks. This summer I made an attempt to grow some fun-colored popcorn kernels for my children. The...

www.hearth.com

 

[Dan Freeman]

Congrats on your first indoor tomato blossom! What type did you plant? Are they Tiny Tim's or another variety?

I am getting some soft brown rot on my butter crunch lettuce. I think I am over watering. I tend to overwater plants. I'm going to water less, and I set up a small fan to keep the air moving over the plants.

Glad to hear you got some rain. We had an unexpected snow squall last night that left about an inch on the ground. I thought it would be melted by now (11 am), but it is still below freezing, and the sun keeps dipping behind clouds.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

it absolutely amazes me how fast these tiny tims suck up water! If they start drinking any more ill be refilling more than once a day! I hope I can get some red tomatoes soon, all these green tomatoes are a tease.

 

[clancey]

Now I have a sort of different question here about lettuce. I heard on the radio that lettuce has a chemical in it and "If it is bitter to the taste it has (I guess more of this chemical)--not sure only heard half of the story. Its suppose to act as a sleep enhancer or a calming agent or something and is anyone here knowledgeable about this aspect of lettuce since you all grow your own lettuce.? I think the lettuce has to be "neglected" or something--but not sure if I heard this right and was in the other room. Just thought that I would ask about this anyway..clancey

 

[Dan Freeman]

it absolutely amazes me how fast these tiny tims suck up water! If they start drinking any more ill be refilling more than once a day! I hope I can get some red tomatoes soon, all these green tomatoes are a tease.

It seems like they are never going to turn red, but when they do, watch out. You'll have a lot of them!

 

[Dan Freeman]

Now I have a sort of different question here about lettuce. I heard on the radio that lettuce has a chemical in it and "If it is bitter to the taste it has (I guess more of this chemical)--not sure only heard half of the story. Its suppose to act as a sleep enhancer or a calming agent or something and is anyone here knowledgeable about this aspect of lettuce since you all grow your own lettuce.? I think the lettuce has to be "neglected" or something--but not sure if I heard this right and was in the other room. Just thought that I would ask about this anyway..clancey

If you let spinach bolt, it gets bitter. I have never heard of the sleep enhancing or calming effect aspect.

 

[clancey]

Thanks--It would be lettuce not spinach..clancey
I did a little research and come up with this piece of information..

WILD LETTUCE: Overview, Uses, Side Effects, Precautions, Interactions, Dosing and Reviews

Learn more about WILD LETTUCE uses, effectiveness, possible side effects, interactions, dosage, user ratings and products that contain WILD LETTUCE.

www.webmd.com

I also found this:

Common Lettuce - Medicinal Herb Info

Contents: Common Names | Parts Usually Used | Plant(s) & Culture | Where Found | Medicinal Properties Uses | Formulas or Dosages | Nutrient Content | Bibliography Scientific Names Lactuca sativa L. Compositae Composite family Common Names Garden lettuce Back to Top Parts Usually Used Juice...

medicinalherbinfo.org

 

[Dan Freeman]

Thanks--It would be lettuce not spinach..clancey
I did a little research and come up with this piece of information..

WILD LETTUCE: Overview, Uses, Side Effects, Precautions, Interactions, Dosing and Reviews

Learn more about WILD LETTUCE uses, effectiveness, possible side effects, interactions, dosage, user ratings and products that contain WILD LETTUCE.

www.webmd.com

I also found this:

Common Lettuce - Medicinal Herb Info

Contents: Common Names | Parts Usually Used | Plant(s) & Culture | Where Found | Medicinal Properties Uses | Formulas or Dosages | Nutrient Content | Bibliography Scientific Names Lactuca sativa L. Compositae Composite family Common Names Garden lettuce Back to Top Parts Usually Used Juice...

medicinalherbinfo.org

OOPS! Sorry! However, lettuce does get bitter too when it bolts. Interesting links.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Ok, if you take a whole bunch of lettuce and mix with lots sugar and special varieties of yeast you can ferment it. Given enough fermentation it should have the same properties of whiskey.

I’ve heard from others that drinking enough whiskey causes naps. At least that’s what others say.



I was too busy sleeping to see what they were doing.

But I’m sure corn and potatoes and dandelions and grapes and peaches and apples and… can be fermented too!

 

[clancey]

Thanks I took a nap too after eating a salad--lol...I was wondering and I think the radio mentioned "wild lettuce" but not sure..Never knew you could ferment lettuce and that is interesting too. Yea maybe next year I will grown some lettuce just to see how it does once again for my lettuce I grew this year did not do so well and I took off a few leaves and just left it go not paying much attention to it for it looked so bad and I just pulled it out of the ground to get rid of it. clancey

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Over time, I’m thinking humankind has fermented and or smoked everything. I don’t particularly recommend either, lol.

I tried making sourkraut once. It didn’t go well. I made hard cider once too, but didn’t add enough sugar and it wasn’t very hard, lol.

 

[clancey]

LOL--I would leave it up to the "experts". Let them boil something and add sugar...clancey

 

[begreen]

it absolutely amazes me how fast these tiny tims suck up water! If they start drinking any more ill be refilling more than once a day! I hope I can get some red tomatoes soon, all these green tomatoes are a tease.

Yes, I am up to about a liter every other day now. Tomato blossoms are starting to open and I had to raise the light height again.

No rain here. Today we tied for the driest Nov. on record, tomorrow we set a new record. We are at 1/6th normal rainfall for this month which is usually our rainiest. Not good for the trees or recharging the aquifers. It looks like we may get some rain on Tues. We'll see.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

Congrats on your first indoor tomato blossom! What type did you plant? Are they Tiny Tim's or another variety?

I am getting some soft brown rot on my butter crunch lettuce. I think I am over watering. I tend to overwater plants. I'm going to water less, and I set up a small fan to keep the air moving over the plants.

Glad to hear you got some rain. We had an unexpected snow squall last night that left about an inch on the ground. I thought it would be melted by now (11 am), but it is still below freezing, and the sun keeps dipping behind clouds.

They aren’t Tiny Tims. I did look for seeds but couldn’t get any at the places where I was getting other seeds this summer. I had two seed pods that came in an Aerogarden kit that my daughter got as a gift some years back. I think one is just called something generic like “Red Heirloom Cherry” and the other is “Golden Harvest Cherry.” It was the rest one that bloomed first, though the golden one is not far behind.

@EatenByLimestone, just how many green tomatoes do you have? I think we may need a picture.

@begreen, I’m sorry that you’re having continued trouble with drought. We just got four tenths of much needed rain, but I think we’re still under ten inches for the entire year at this point. I hope you’ll get some nice rain on Tuesday.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

DG, here’s a pic of some of the tomatoes. The dead leaves are from branches that fell outside tge arc of light. The plants have been bumping up against the light for some time, it burnt some leaves.

 

[Dan Freeman]

Today marks 6 weeks since I broke my ribs, and I decided I was not going to sit in the house all afternoon. So, even though they weigh 74 lbs. each, I figured I would carefully open and unpack the two 4x8x32" raised beds that arrived last week that are in my workshop.

Two different brands (made in China) and distributed here in the US by two different companies, but I imagine made by the same factory since there are only minor differences.

I did not plan to start the assembly, but it felt good to be doing something, so I turned up the heat and put on the radio, and before I knew it, I had almost put one completely together.

You can see I did not attach the two sides. It will be easier to move them out the door where I can make the final connections on the lawn.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Nice! That'll take a while to fill!

 

[Dan Freeman]

Nice! That'll take a while to fill!

Going to use hugelkultur. Only the top 10" or so will be soil. https://vegogarden.com/blogs/academ...ds-and-save-money?_pos=1&_sid=29d2d0565&_ss=r