What did you do in the garden today?

[Sueby]

Haha! Too true. I said last night if we relocate the one, there are 50 more to take it's place & chew a new hole through the fence!

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Good morning gardeners. No rain today so should be able to make better progress on the baby coop. I did a little weeding yesterday. I do need to water the front flower garden today. My orange azalea bush is blooming now. Very pretty. The lilies of the valley are blooming as well. The temps are supposed to be around 84F today and climbing up to near 90F tomorrow, then drop back down to near normal temps. Thank goodness for that. I still have some starts that need to be planted outside but I think I'll wait until the temps go back to normal. My second planting of carrots are starting to come up. My tiny impatien seedlings are still hanging in there, so hopefully they make it. My chipmunks are getting bolder so I'm able to get better photos. I'm not sure if that's a good thing. Have a great day everyone.

 

[littledog]

I forgot I have a question regarding asparagus crowns. Most likely directed @karenerwin. How long after planting the crowns do you see any sprouts? I tried googling it and can't seem to find a good answer.

It takes two years before you see a crop, but the wait is worth it.

 

[Sueby]

What a beautiful color on that azalea!

 

[igorsMistress]

Good morning gardeners. Looks like you were all busy over the weekend. I laid on ice or the heating pad for most of it. Temps are going UP to 111 later this week. Ugh! Have a great day everyone!

 

[littledog]

Aloha @littledog , I am going to chime in on the loofah. My gal pal gave me some seeds quite a few years ago swearing by them. She is one of those awesome clean eating friend to the planet kind of gals and I love her info and input dearly. So, I plopped the seeds into the soil (I think winter here) where they were willing sprouters and quick growers. My yields were great and I gave away dozens and still have dozens left. I just dry, clean skin off, remove as much seeds as I can, then cut to size. They last forever, are great for dishes, chicken waters, coop cleaning. I hand to my DH for any dirty work he has and he loves them, they also rinse wonderfully. I highly recommend starting now with a few seeds, if you do not succeed... try again next year. I have left my extra sponges in a 5 gallon pot out in the elements and they are still fine. I just clean one off when I need. I even direct planted seeds after years with success (till a cutworm got so i will try again in a pot). The true sellers are yield and longevity of plant and sponge. They have loads of seeds inside- that can be a little bit of a pain to get out- but then you have plenty seeds for collecting and sharing. Plants can get big so you will only need 1 plant to fulfill your needs unless you plan to sell on ebay or etsy lol, so 3 seed in a pot in a warm spot, transplant when weather permits or 5" tall. They have aggressive tendrils and want to climb up, so trellis for sure or a sturdy chain link fence will do. Mine started climbing the mango tree so I had about 12 loofah's about 8' up, I had to repeatedly trim the ends. It was really out of control in a super awesome way, a very hardy and good looking vine. Also, like almost all vines, give plenty compost once established. It will love you for that.View attachment 2157795
Harvest fruit when 8-10+" let dry. A sponge will last for.... 6+ months.

Thank you, TropicalBabies, your info is exactly what I was looking for! Our growing conditions are very different, but I ordered seeds, I have a spare trellis, and I'm going to give loofahs a try.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

What a beautiful color on that azalea!

Thank you but I can't take any credit for it. It came with the house. Same with the chipmunks.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Thank you, TropicalBabies, your info is exactly what I was looking for! Our growing conditions are very different, but I ordered seeds, I have a spare trellis, and I'm going to give loofahs a try.

I have to tell you my wife "Chicken Facebooks" with me often and gave you a X2 on the loofa. @TropicalBabies

 

[B40chick]

My garden. I have picked and put up English peas. Pulled them up and planted blue lake green beans in their place. Picking them now. Dug up all my potatoes. Just planted butter beans. I have already been harvesting yellow squash. I have two tomato plants. Next, I will roto-till open space and plant heritage seed Lady finger peas. Seeds that have been passed down several generations in the family

 

[littledog]

Thanks, AllenK RGV, and Mrs. Allen RGV. It's a new experiment for me, I'll let everybody know if it's successful, or not.