Eastern Tennessee Thread

[tnchickenut]

Heated waterers would be great, but I have 13 in the winter and the furthest one is 200ft from the house (and the electricity). I just break ice and rotate waterers... frozen ones come into the basement and a fresh one out... keep that up until Feb or March. lol!

As for the ornamental herbs... it's a idea, but I like to plant my herbs intertwined with the veggies. Like dill keeps bugs off tomatoes. I also do my corn and pumpkins in circles like the natives did. The pumpkins use the corn stalks... AND it saves space!

I was thinking of doing white tomatoes or maybe some type of peppers. I think this year I'll be doing blue popcorn. I did red last year and failed, but that was my fault. I got too busy to tend the garden by the time the corn was being attacked by bugs. Plus it was really dry and they didn't develope well. I don't give up, though!!!

 

[4PrettyLadies]

Have you tried the Seed Savers Catalog or the Sow True Seeds Catalog from Asheville, NC? Neat stuff.

 

[laughingdog]

what about just running heat tape like for plumbing, like reptile breeders use, for water bowls, hooked up to battery?

 

[grawg]

No Frozen water here. I made a cookie Tin heater. It's Awesome!!! This will be the first year I've ever attempted a garden. I too wanted to find something different. Found at burpee online. http://www.burpee.com/fruit-plants/strawberry-plants/strawberry-pineberry-white-pine-prod002672.html They have a Pineberry.... It looks like a white strawberry but it taste like a pineapple. I don't think it is a hybrid. But they are a high price. I hope I can keep my garden going. Plan is to make raised garden bed. I thought it would be nice to grow things that I had not seen at our local farmers market. I had such a great time setting up at the market last year. I almost cried the first time I sold eggs there. LOL it was to other vendors. But still made me happy.

Before you order from burpee try here: http://www.noursefarms.com/ they have some of the best prices and quality/service of any small fruit site on the web. I think daves garden rates them top 5. I ordered some currants and elderberry from them last year and should be getting my first crop in this year. Also got 25 strawberries and they all did great.

As far as different goes, you ever try purple green beans? My favorite variety is "royal burgandy" great little bush plant that will produce for a long season. A nice benefit of purple beans is that they are easy to see for picking, and they turn green while cooking so sometimes works to get kids excited

Oh forgot to mention I made an asparagus bed last year and planted a purple variety I ordered from nourse farms, should be able to pick for two weeks this spring. I'll let you know how they taste.

Two other seed sites I look at besides burpee are johnnys select seeds and park seeds.

 

[stanglover2001]

@tnchickenut - Try www.rareseeds.com I ordered their catalog, they have heirloom seeds.. my grandmother recommended them after she read an article about them in the Knoxville Newspaper last year.. they had a lot of different types of stuff...

I have frozen water every morning, so I go out and crush it up dump it out and pour fresh in (I use the 1 gallon mott's apple juice containers because they remind me of milk jugs from when I was a kid with the plastic rings around the top and a little handle... which is hard to explain!) I also keep an extra water bottle per rabbit at the moment so every morning just take 5 bottles out each morning and replace bottles for the bunnies..

@bairo - Frederick has a new coop to call home, I moved him over to the small 12'x12' run since he's still alone and has been pooping on my poor bunny cage with Turbo in it...

Bought 2 more rabbit cages, going to redo the way I have it set up... will have the whole wall of nothing but 24"x24" cages, also won't be buying cage wire - after researching the costs etc will not come out on top, the TSC cages are just as good as others on some websites but still cheaper, the only thing I will change is I can't stand doors to open in so will be fixing that!

@Nella - if you still have the cochinXleghorn pullet by payday may be interested, Frederick is so lonely and need one that'll match his size!

@tennesseeckn - I love Frederick, will you raise all my roosters from now on? He's so easy to handle! Spoiled rotten too! He won't eat the chicken food I bought from TSC he'll only eat the Rooster Booster I got from LC... haha!

Whoo... almost done!

@laughingdog - hope you get some baby rollers soon! Or did you say homers... oh well... brain dead! My classes are both pretty much online courses with no handholding (teachers words not mine!), they're getting us ready to face the real world of working for employers! GAH!

 

[NellaBean]

Looks like both cochinX are sold and leaving at Newnan GA show, mid February.

Selling out of my bantam mottled cochins (or mostly). Have some people going to buy at Newnan show. If anyone wants some show or breeder quality bantam mottleds, lemme know now. Won't be cheap but not horrendous

 

[NellaBean]

 

[TNChick82]

OMG!! Their so Fluffy!! oh oh can I just hug one! Gotta show these to my hubby!!

Why do they have to be so darn cute!!

 

[NellaBean]

Hold on, here is another cute batch. Guinea pigs! They are furry but carry the hairless gene (so if bred to hairless female, would produce half carriers like them and half hairless).

All males (also a female but I am keeping her). They are for sale if anyone is interested.

 

[TNBarnQueen]

Hope everyone is doing will in spite of the weather yo-yo.
Hearing all of you talk about gardens really makes me wish for spring A LOT! Pinetree Seeds is a great company to get unusual seeds and plants from. I had a greenhouse business for several years before I got sick and I do miss it. I specialized in the unusual..especially herbs. I did not grow things that anyone could go to Lowes or WalMart and get the same thing. I did wholesale to several larger greenhouses. It is a lot of work but now when you love doing it. Now that I have my knees replaced I had considered working part of my greenhouse this year.
There is a wonderful garden show up near Kingsport. It last the whole weekend. I use to set up there each year. When I find out the info will post it here. There is also another smaller one in Morristown sponsored by the Herb Society there. I am going to go through my seed bins to see what I have. If I find some extras I will post them here and who ever wants so I will mail to them.

**Tennesseeckn ...there is a white cucumber that is really nice and the Cherokee black tomato is a very nice slicking tomato. I grew blue corn last year (the small ones). If I can find where my husband has put them I can send some to you. I am just not receiving my yearly catalogs....will let you know the name of some of them as they come. Most that I get carry uncommon seeds and heirlooms.

As a side line....am having so much fun with the chicks. Talk about staggered hatching!!! I have chicks hatching every other day up til first of Feb. Finally got an egg from my D'Uccles Lori!! And it is in the bator.