BlsdMama Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 You know what time it is!!(Never mind we're expecting six inches of snow this weekend.)Whatcha been up to? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted March 22, 2018 Author Share Posted March 22, 2018 For the THIRD year in a row - I am attempting to grow raspberries. This year a lovely thornless variety called Canby. I think they'll all die. I am death on raspberries. I even dug them a lovely Hugelkultur bed two years ago. (And I realize traditionally these are not dug, but frankly a giant mound of sticks n stuff in my front yard wasn't going to happen.)I bought a new grape and I have just the place for her.... (It may or not involve a fence, an arbor, and a trellis. My husband is going to shake his head.)Mostly I've started flowers so far. I want marigolds around the garden this year - started 150 of them. Started coleus in the basement - enough to give every human I know a few, lol. Yesterday Abigail started the peppers, the hyssop, and celery under grow lights in the basement.Started shade plants in pots in the mud room - ferns, some blue hostas, and astilbe. I was going to do a direct plant outdoors (Costco had these neat shade groupings in a bag) but when I opened the bag everything is growing! I'm afraid if I don't plant them, they'll suffer and if I do plant them, they'll freeze! I planted a lot of ferns last year (they were $1 on clearance) but they were Boston ferns and I doubt they'll come back. The Costco ones are Christmas ferns and can tolerate zone 4 as a perennial. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 (edited) The ground is still frozen here if you go down far. And we have a bit of a storm right now. I have crocus blooming though and keep wanting to get out and clean up the beds. My beds are really a mess, having a baby last summer meant a lot didn't get done. I've decided not to do anything really new this year and concentrate on some maintenance that has to happen. I have a holly bush that has really suffered and needs to move where there is more sun. I am half inclined to chuck it though, as too far gone. I won't make a final decision until i's possible to do the work - it may not have survived the winter. I also need to better dig in the arbour I was given last summer. If I can find a yellow climbing rose, I might break my rule and plant that. I'll buy starts for my veg bed, I think I am going to do all herbs this year. I'll also buy a few annuals for pots outside. But the big job I need to do is dig up my perennial border, the out the plants, dig out weeds, and replace the plants. The border was dug and just had being petunias when I moved in, and I mostly just plopped in perennials family members gave me. It suffers terribly from weeds though, which I suspect were just dug out every year when they put the petunias in. Some of th plants will also need to be divided and moved. My geranium and lavender are overgrown, and I have pinks that just don't do well there and need to be elsewhere. Edited March 22, 2018 by Bluegoat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMS83 Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 We need a new leach field and I have a suspicious feeling they're going to tear up one of my two plots. So I'm sort of waiting to see how that goes before making plans. We'll start some seeds indoors soon, though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandragood1 Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 I’ve got Romanesco Cauliflower seedlings under lights. Just a bit longer and I’ll begin to harden them off. I’ve also got Amish Paste tomato seedlings and Black Paste tomatoes going on. I’m considering a black raspberry for my garden plot. I did not really like red raspberries but these I do. I don’t know how finicky they are. Any raspberry advice would be appreciated. I don’t know what to start next. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aggie96 Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 (edited) Already have 7 varieties of tomatoes planted in the 36sqft raised bed. Planted those first week of March. We are finishing up the third new raised bed (18sqft ea) for this year. Have lots planned for those (beans, peanuts, pumpkins, watermelons, tons of peppers, carrots, and onions). After we finish building the boxes, we still have to dig out the grass in and around them, put down pebble, and fill them. Our goal is to be finished this weekend because we need to get the plants in the boxes ASAP, BUT we also have a baseball game and practice and TKD testing this weekend. :( Not sure how much we will accomplish. THEN, I need to prune, clean up, and fertilize the bamboo ASAP. That is a 2-3 day job minimum. I already pulled out the plants that were freeze damaged this year, and spring has definitely sprung in the landscape beds. Around the end of April, I'll call in my favorite landscape dude to replace mulch everywhere. We decided last year to hire this part out when possible because it is such back-breaking work. It takes 8-9 yards of mulch with at least 6 yards hauled to the back yard area, far-far-away from the street. Oh, and I need to mow. Grrrr. But everything is blooming, and the tomatoes are already growing so all is well. I LOVE spring! Edited March 22, 2018 by aggie96 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamanthaCarter Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 Six inches of snow this weekend for us too, some say a foot, but you know how people are...I’m going with Wunderground. I have Striped Roman tomatoes going, too many red bell peppers, a bunch of impatiens and many greens and herbs going in my glasses in back porch. Struggling to keep the peppers and tomatoes warm enough to keep growing. I have peas and garlic and various greens going in my raised beds, the snow shouldn’t do much damage. I am trying blueberries for the second year in a row. I killed them last year in a classic case of not testing the soil first. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunshineMom Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 I direct sowed peas, lettuce, radishes and spinach last week. I started tomatoes and flowers indoors which will be transplanted in about six-eight weeks and planted tons (100) of summer flower bulbs last weekend. I need to transplant some strawberries, about 40 plants to where we had our chicken coop last year. There is a lot of cleaning up to do in our garden areas. All the berries and grapes along with fruit trees need fertilizer. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maize Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 (edited) So far this year I have planted pistachio, pecan, almond, cherry, and plum trees. I am running out of places to plant trees. Oh, and I just picked up a pink lemonade blueberry bush because I thought my 3 year old would be tickled to have pink berries. Edited March 22, 2018 by maize 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 I have written "gardening" on my To Do list each day since St. Patrick's Day. then I have taken a rain check. :0 Does that count? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 So far the most productive thing I've done so far is shopping for a garden-themed raffle basket for a silent auction. While shopping I noticed all of the ferns for sale, and just looked up whether they are preferred deer food. Looks like not, so I'm going to give them a try. Currently about 45F and raining, and I should be planting radishes and lettuce. But, yeesh -- cold and rainy! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 Any gardening I do is of great interest to my chickens unfortunately. I seem to love my chickens more than the garden because they are still here! Dh has a lovely thriving orchard this year though. We've had cherries, apricots, figs and peaches and nectarines. The birds shredded the apples and quinces before we could net. It looks like we are going to have our first crop of persimmon (fuyu fruit) this year. He is a pretty good gardener and grower of things. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 I need to start tomatoes, pepper, and eggplant in trays this weekend. I also need to plant lettuce and radishes in one of the cold frames, and buy some onion sets because I never got around to starting onions from seed, and now it's too late. I've also mulched the and pruned the thornless blackberry patch, which is really looking good. We are leaf scavengers, having almost no trees ourselves, but we got 80 bags of leaves from neighbors and friends and mulched with them. I have started working on our very small raspberry patch. I planted Caroline because they are late summer bearing; pruning is easy because you just cut all of the canes down to the ground every march. Caroline berries are delicious. Dh's horseradish is in the same patch, but it looks bad. How can anyone not be able to grow horseradish? Comfrey is with them, too, and it's ok. We also have strawberries and gooseberries. We didn't manure the strawberries last fall but maybe we can do that this spring before they get going. The gooseberries are terrific! They're Hinnonmaki Red, a Norwegian variety. I layered the one bush we got three years ago to make 8 more bushes. The berries have tart skin and sweet flesh. I think it's going to be a rather minimal garden year. If we can do all of the above well, it will be a success. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 Ordinarily I should have planted my winter garden already, but it's still too hot for me to be willing to stick my hands in anywhere to clean things up. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 I refuse to buy or do anything until after Easter. And then it depends on what plants I find cheaply. My garden is entirely clearance and give aways. Except for the mulch. I hate mulch. I wish I could afford to replace the mulch with some rounded medium stones instead. I need to clean and get my itty "koi" pond filter and fountain going. I need to pull out a huge plant to make room for the expanding hydrangea next to it. I have two azaleas that are staying alive but have not grown or had a single flower in years. I think I'm going to try moving them. Some friends and I exchanged garden goods last year. I had an over abundance of butternut and she had tomatoes and he had cucumber going crazy. I dump all our seeds and veggie/fruit scraps in a garden bed reserved for "compost" and now I see some lovely buds of hopefully a decent crop budding from that. I'll use a different garden bed for "compost" now. It's a dirt cheap way to be surprised by whatever takes off each year. Some years are really confusing because I don't even remember eating what comes up. Like watermelon one year. I don't know what the perfect situation was, but a couple years ago is was nothing but little super sweet watermelons. And then another year it was a lot of cilantro. I'm going to plant a salad garden too. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 gardening is not yet a thing where I live My gardening DH is getting antsy.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aggie96 Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 Lol, reading everyone's responses reminded me that I ordered 50 daylilies for the front beds a couple of weeks ago, They'll be here in May. I had completely forgotten. Man, I have a problem... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mellifera33 Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 The spring bulbs that I planted last fall are waking up--lots of crocus, some squill, glory-of-the-snow, narcissus, tulips, hyacinths, grape hyacinth. I've been "winter sowing" and have lots of tiny plants. Most excited about clematis and hollyhocks. I've planted out some larkspur, baby blue eyes, and double daisies. Next will be some columbine, pansies, nigella, snapdragons. Planted some peas, sweet peas, kale, and broccoli directly. Need to plant nightshades inside under lights. Did some bare-root fruit trees--multi-graft pear in the front yard, columnar apples in pots on the back deck. Planted some euphorbias that I got cheap at a clearance sale at the local hardware store, and they're about to start blooming. The kids will be excited about those--we call them eyeball plants. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 Dh's horseradish is in the same patch, but it looks bad. How can anyone not be able to grow horseradish? Let's face it, dear: Sometimes those gardening books lie. There, I said it! Hopefully you can deal with that reality. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 I can’t grow onions. I have no idea why. A fellow gardener once laughed and said any idiot can grow onions not knowing I couldn’t and I just laughed and said it’s good to know I’m not just any idiot but a special idiot then. Seriously. Nothing. Doesn’t matter what kind. one way other another it either does nothing or dies. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamanthaCarter Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 More snow tomorrow.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted March 24, 2018 Share Posted March 24, 2018 Let's face it, dear: Sometimes those gardening books lie. There, I said it! Hopefully you can deal with that reality. NOOOOOOOOOO! You can't be serious! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted March 24, 2018 Share Posted March 24, 2018 Except for the mulch. I hate mulch. I wish I could afford to replace the mulch with some rounded medium stones instead. We have rocks in one area, and I hate them. Dirt falls or blows onto them, and weeds grow up between them, and the weeds are really hard to get out. Don't do it! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomsintheGarden Posted March 24, 2018 Share Posted March 24, 2018 I can’t grow onions. I have no idea why. A fellow gardener once laughed and said any idiot can grow onions not knowing I couldn’t and I just laughed and said it’s good to know I’m not just any idiot but a special idiot then. Seriously. Nothing. Doesn’t matter what kind. one way other another it either does nothing or dies. Actually, onions can be challenging. I mean growing nice sized onions that will keep longer than past August, or really sweet, large onions like Vidalias. Most people who grow onions plant sets, which don't produce onions that keep well. You also need to cure and store them properly. Most onions are also day-length sensitive, so you have to grow the right kind for your latitude. Long day onions grown in the south won't bulb, and short day onions grown in the north must be planted in the fall and wintered over in protective structures like low tunnels. And you can grow Walla Walla onions in other areas, but they won't taste the same as as those grown in Walla Walla, Washington, because of the soil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted March 24, 2018 Share Posted March 24, 2018 Actually, onions can be challenging.This from the lady whose red onions were so large and beautiful that they were photographed and featured in the county fair catalog the next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted March 24, 2018 Share Posted March 24, 2018 This from the lady whose red onions were so large and beautiful that they were photographed and featured in the county fair catalog the next year. Ohhh! Wow. Nothing I’ve ever grown has been worth photographing. Well. Except kids, but those don’t count most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Strawberry Posted April 4, 2018 Share Posted April 4, 2018 I'm growing in pots. That seems to work best for me. My pots were doing so well, but D doesn't like the pot on the kitchen counter, so I moved some out, which of course killed some. The sun is so powerful here and we have no shade. We grew oyster mushrooms successfully. The kit will grow one more batch. I did some microgreens. My garlic died :( Two pots of potatoes are doing well outside. Lettuce died. Onion is doing well, but i'm not sure what to expect from that. Lentils are sprouting outdoors with the onion and potatoes. tomatoes are chugging along inside. Daisies from the grocery store and 1 and 1. Our two fairy gardens are doing great :) Oh, we have grass! a little 4 x 2 patch for the dog. It's a bit of an accomplishment here. I'd love the wild bunnies to stop eating my baby mesquite tree and eat the grass instead, but I'm thinking the dog odor all over the grass is keeping them away. My future plan is to keep mounding the potatoes, not murder the tomatoes, and regrow the mushrooms in the heat of summer. Transplant the big aloes so that I can hang a hammock (!). I'm planning to build a stone spiral and order a succulent subscription box to plant cute little baby succulents in the spiral. We've been fighting with our mulberry tree, but it's regrown and I give up. It's already giving fruit. I'm going to prune it into a better shape and let it stay. Ya'll, my garden is starting to look like a garden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted April 4, 2018 Author Share Posted April 4, 2018 Oh for goodness sakes. It’s snowing here. Again. We really arent so far so far north that this could be reasonable and I am over the cold. The forecast calls for windchill of 0 this weekend. It’s April!! We did get the apples, pears, and peach trees pruned. By “we” I mean I found the YouTube videos and DH hacked at them. I didn’t cry. Planted tomatoes in the basement. Peppers are up. Planted marigolds in larger pots. I’d really love to see fifty degree weather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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