Mumsy's Romantic Garden Advice

[BlueMouse]

I pulled up the Zukes and the nightshade and put them in the "disease" compost--where only squirrels, etc. have access...no chickens. Thank you for the ID. I googled eastern nightshade and they look just like mine. I'll keep those suckers pulled up from the get-go next year.

I'm so sorry you dug up the zucchinis! they can be saved from borer if you catch it before the plant is dead. In fact, I've had three plants that I've sucessfully operated on this year, and they're continuing to bear well. Here's what you do: If you notice that a squash plant is failing to thrive, specifically looking wilty or yellowing, look at the stem for those round entrance holes, surrounded by crumbly light brown rotted material. If you find them, you have squash borer. Do not despair! Take a sharp knife (I have a Hori Hori that I use for everything in the garden. Best tool I ever purchased) and starting at the bottom most entrance hole, slit up the stem until you come to helathy material. Scrape out the rotted innards. Doing this you should fine one or more large white grubs. Remove these and feed to the chickens (who are probably hanging about the garden hoping for treats anyway) I've found as many as three of these pests. After you've removed the pests and as much of the rotted material as possible, remove all leaves from the stem put to the point where healthy flesh begins angain and your cut ends. Cover the cut open part of the stem with several inches of dirt and a little mulch if you have it. The squash vine shoudl happily recover and continue to thrive, putting down roots from the part of the stem you covered.

Mumsy, your enchiladas look superb! We ate from the garden last night as well: Pan roasted baby potatoes, Home grown chicken with brown rice pilaf, and sauteed zucchini and carrots seasoned with dill and pepper. I always feel good feeding people food that I grew myself. (well, I love to feed people regardless... it's genetic....)

Midnightroo, that LOOKS a lot like a Rosa Rugosa, which is a great hardy cultivar known more for it's superb harvest of hips than for the flowers (which are also very pretty I think.) Blanc Double d'coubert is a fabulous double white cultivar of this species which my mother grows, although I think I prefer the Roseraie de L’Haÿ which is a pink double, and just lovely. But I'm not super crazy over truly single roses.

 

[armorfirelady]

Mumsy I am going to re pot those angel trumpets today. Do you think I should was the pots with a little bleach after I empty them to kill any left over critters in it also? Or might it cause more harm? My mom thinks it might kill the plant if there is any residue left. And can I dump the dirt in the hens runs? I know it has spider mites but they are the plant version so I wouldn't think they would harm the birds?

Soap and water and an old brush is what I use. I get those toilet bowl brushes at the dollar store and keep one in the greenhouse and one in the barn. 

They come in handy for scrubbing stuff out.

Now that's an ingenious idea for a toilet brush!! It sounds like it would work for my giant waterer as well.....need to add to shopping list.
I ended up taking the angel trumpets out of their pots, removing all the dirt from their roots then sprayed plant and roots down very well with non chemical spray I found online. It was working to keep the mites almost miminal from leaves so thought it would work on roots as well. I dumped the dirt from the pots at the back property line where I had a high root that needed burying. Figured I didn't want to chance it near the birds. I did put a small amount of bleach and lots of water and let's the pots sit then scrubbed them real well and rinsed well then let them dry in the sun.

I put them back in the pots with new dirt, watered well and fed them plant food. They apparently need to be fed often so they will bloom. My moms is twice the size of mine and is blooming now. I'm hopeful this will end the spider mites so mine will bloom instead of losing leaves constantly,

Midnight Roo thanks for posting the pics. That's an awesome idea I am going to try next year. I have all the fencing and poles already & it looks so much sturdier than the poles I keep mine tied to. They are all taller than the posts and hang over now,

 

[midnightroo]

I loved the huge rose hips and would grow it just for them, but I found this when I looked it up. Seems it is growing like a weed along coastlines in Europe. http://www.nobanis.org/files/factsheets/Rosa_rugosa.pdf

Nothing we try seem to work with the tomatoes, cages fall over or the branches bend because of the weight of the tomatoes or the trellising doesn't get done like this year so they just sprawl all over the place. Like you we have the supplies so it is and added bonus.

 

[BlueMouse]

From what I can read Rugosa is only a problem in coastal areas, because it can become invasive on dunes, where it creates large stands. In my area it doesn't seem to "escape," pop up random places, or choke out beneficial natives. It will grow very large and it will send up a million suckers, but it's not spreading out of control. Now that you guys have gotten me thinking I'm trying to decide what roses I want for next year.... I think I'm going to get one of the white rugosas, maybt Sir Thomas Lipton? I was going to get reliable blanche double de coubert, but Sir Thomas lipton seems to be more double and taller.... hmmmm... I also discovered one of the fabulous canadian cultivars is a repeating red that blooms all summer long. I think Cuthbert Grant will be coming to my garden. I have a Morden Centenial and it's bombproof. And I think I need to find a home for the Gallica "cardinal de richelieu" which although it does not repeat is a gorgous purple (I have a weakness for purple roses) and supposed to have knocke dead fragrance..... So many roses, so little time.... I'm also pre ordering either pear or cherry trees and blueberries.... and perusing the much beloved Fedco Seeds catalog for Perennials... Garden planning early this year!

 

[MumsyII]

Rugosas have been growing in my garden for decades. They have barely spread further than the spots I planted them. They do sucker but that is the beauty of rugosa roses. I love the singles and doubles. The singles are hardier. They are excellent as thick impenetrable hedges. The blooms smell of clove. Delightful. In my garden they grow to about eight feet tall and as wide. Not invasive at all. I love the white species Alba Rugosa best. So beautiful. Like a white cloud in June. I love Magnifica for the double and deep red. And I love Rubra. Never met a rugosa I didn't like.


Rugosa Rubra

Few things will munch on rugosa leaves. Deer and insects even tend to ignore them.


Edited to add another image:


Rugosa Magnifica.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote: Thank you for the zucchini recovery lesson! Ours were doing well but all fell earlier than they needed to. I'll have to tell my hubby about this!

 

[mlowen]

I'm so sorry you dug up the zucchinis! they can be saved from borer if you catch it before the plant is dead. In fact, I've had three plants that I've sucessfully operated on this year, and they're continuing to bear well. Here's what you do: If you notice that a squash plant is failing to thrive, specifically looking wilty or yellowing, look at the stem for those round entrance holes, surrounded by crumbly light brown rotted material. If you find them, you have squash borer. Do not despair! Take a sharp knife (I have a Hori Hori that I use for everything in the garden. Best tool I ever purchased) and starting at the bottom most entrance hole, slit up the stem until you come to helathy material. Scrape out the rotted innards. Doing this you should fine one or more large white grubs. Remove these and feed to the chickens (who are probably hanging about the garden hoping for treats anyway) I've found as many as three of these pests. After you've removed the pests and as much of the rotted material as possible, remove all leaves from the stem put to the point where healthy flesh begins angain and your cut ends. Cover the cut open part of the stem with several inches of dirt and a little mulch if you have it. The squash vine shoudl happily recover and continue to thrive, putting down roots from the part of the stem you covered.

Thank you for this! I will be on watch for my pumpkins & butternut and will doctor rather than undertaker them. Next year, my zucchinis will not have to "go."

 

[midnightroo]

It did seem that the plants were worse on the coasts. I feel more comfortable now knowing others first hand experiences. Thanks.

 

[MumsyII]

The cucumbers are ripening faster than my husband and I can eat them, give them a way and feed the chickens. On another thread someone mentioned giving them a whirl in the food processor and freezing them for the chickens in the winter when fresh green produce is scarce. So that's what I did with quite a few of them this morning. They are still coming on in the garden. Now I have a way to save them before they rot. The chickens have such a glut of stuff in the compost pile, they were leaving a lot left un-touched.


I just use ziplock sandwich bags for chicken food stuffs. Maybe I can mix this frozen cucumber chop into the FF bucket this winter? Seeds, pulp, skin. It's mostly liquid. Cucumber and squash are related so I imagine it will be a winter treat for them.

 

[armorfirelady]

The cucumbers are ripening faster than my husband and I can eat them, give them a way and feed the chickens. On another thread someone mentioned giving them a whirl in the food processor and freezing them for the chickens in the winter when fresh green produce is scarce. So that's what I did with quite a few of them this morning. They are still coming on in the garden. Now I have a way to save them before they rot. The chickens have such a glut of stuff in the compost pile, they were leaving a lot left un-touched.


I just use ziplock sandwich bags for chicken food stuffs. Maybe I can mix this frozen cucumber chop into the FF bucket this winter? Seeds, pulp, skin. It's mostly liquid. Cucumber and squash are related so I imagine it will be a winter treat for them.

Winter treat they will love. I know last winter the big girls looked forward to a bowl of veggies all winter long.