What did you do in the garden today?

[pennyJo1960]

Ahhh gosh Karen .. Sunny here just now still pretty wet but the sun felt good

 

[CyndieRauls]

31F today with light snow, 39F and clear tomorrow and 57F and clear Sunday. That means I will be working in the garden on Sunday only. I need to get the last two fence posts in the ground if I can, build the garden gates, and brush some wood sealer on the entire new fence and gates.

We share this weather pattern with you! I cannot be too far from you. Our ground is still so stinkin’ frozen tho. Sunday’s going to feel tropical!!!

 

[cavemanrich]

There are some cases apparently in Illinois, but perhaps that's because it's spreading from Chicago's O'Hare airport.

I'm right here in Chicago. On the news every night there is always an update,,, There are I think 3 cases, or so . Some others are in voluntary quarantine. There was a doctor on TV and spoke about it. He would not elaborate where the source of the virus came from. Patient privacy laws. He also did not mention who the patients were. The virus is most common in China, but also somewhat spread in Italy. That may be from cruise ships that port there. Mediterranean Cruises attract world travelers, including those from China.

We got it out of a vegetarian Times magazine (we are not vegetarians though),

We are not vegetarians ether, but have no quarrel eating any vegetarian recipes

 

[CyndieRauls]

So I have to admit... even though we’re in a solid zone 4 (because we’re in a valley) I start my plants kind of early I just get so excited. By the time daytime temps get tolerable, I transfer everything to clear plastic totes... ala little traveling greenhouses. They’re outside in the sun, lids off... and if nighttime temps get below 40, I pop the lids on and bring the totes back inside... and repeat this dance the next day. Eventually they’re staying outside for longer and longer periods of time until planting in late May.

Also... does anyone else plant a garden just for their chickens... or is it just me?

 

[cavemanrich]

Also... does anyone else plant a garden just for their chickens... or is it just me?

My chickens are happy enough with the greens/insects they find in the LAWN when they free-range. I do not use pesticides on my lawn for my chicken's and grandchildren's sake, throw the dogzzz and cats in as additional reason. I do fertilize. I do not use( WEED and FEED )

 

[pennyJo1960]

We are the same there Cavey no chemicals used here either

 

[BReeder!]

We share this weather pattern with you! I cannot be too far from you. Our ground is still so stinkin’ frozen tho. Sunday’s going to feel tropical!!!

It looks like you are in sw WI. I'm just sw of Chicago in Plainfield. Not too far.

 

[BReeder!]

Good morning gardeners. Yesterday was a really nice day. It reached to low 60's for a little while. I got so much done, taxes, voted, grocery shopping and got the frame for the new garden bed put together. Of course my old rechargeable drill died before I was completely finished. But I'm charging it now and hopefully can finish off the last few screws later. Today is supposed to be in mid 40's but wicked windy. So I'm not planning on much outdoor work. I made green tomato salsa verde last summer @cavemanrich. It turned out quite tasty. I've used it to make green chile chicken enchiladas and you really can't tell it was made with tomatoes. Just a thought. I've noticed with the corona virus cases in the US, they are primarily on the coasts (east & west) and none that I've heard of in the mid west. There are some cases apparently in Illinois, but perhaps that's because it's spreading from Chicago's O'Hare airport. We have a few cases here in Massachusetts, two or three in New Hampshire and a couple in Rhode Island. It's just a little disturbing although my health has been pretty good this year thanks to my many medical professionals. But I know I'm in the high risk category for severity of the illness so I like to be proactive. I'm excited to get started with the garden soon. I'll wait another week before testing the soil, then determine what needs to be done to amend the soil. Wishing for the best for your mother @karenerwin. And @WthrLady, OMG, thank you for the dryer sheet tip. I use the scent free, gentle sheets ordinarily. So I guess I should buy a small pack of the cheap, generic ones. Right? I learn so much from this thread. Thank you all for your contributions. Have a great day everyone.

I'm in Chicago. 4 cases here, 2 of which have recovered and the other two are still being treated. There was also a case in Madison, WI but they recovered already.

COVID-19 is spreading aggressively. There was over 94,000 cases reported as of this afternoon when I checked around 4pm CST. A majority of those cases are in mainland China, but it's spread across the globe already. Europe is hot pretty hard and major cities in the US have a growing toll, especially along the coastal travel hubs as you mentioned.

 

[BReeder!]

So I have to admit... even though we’re in a solid zone 4 (because we’re in a valley) I start my plants kind of early I just get so excited. By the time daytime temps get tolerable, I transfer everything to clear plastic totes... ala little traveling greenhouses. They’re outside in the sun, lids off... and if nighttime temps get below 40, I pop the lids on and bring the totes back inside... and repeat this dance the next day. Eventually they’re staying outside for longer and longer periods of time until planting in late May.

Also... does anyone else plant a garden just for their chickens... or is it just me?

I started a thread on garden for poultry. In forgot what I called it now... It's in my threads though and under the gardening forum. There's interesting bits of info people added to help me (and each other).

 

[Farmdog267]

It was in the upper 50's today. I was in Lancaster pa for a work seminar for Stihl power equipment. I was able to stop at a couple garden centers on the way home and those greenhouses looked and smelled awesome!
I'm quite envious of how large and healthy some of those annuals were. Even geraniums with some buds and they don't tolerate chilly weather let alone cold weather.

In the past the only thin I grew for my chicken was green kale. If the leaves were crunchy they loved it.