What did you do in the garden today?

[Acre4Me]

Great day with warm weather!!

Planted lentils to try again. Tried them about 2-3 years ago and it was complete failure. I read that they should get started earlier, so trying one more time.

 

[Minanora]

Funny, I hate starting seeds. I only do it because some things the nurseries just don't carry, like all the stupid hot peppers & patio eggplant & weird stuff. I just don't have the room to want to do it nor do I enjoy hardening off & up potting. If I had a real greenhouse or something....maybe. But probably maybe not. I do love things like green beans, squash & cukes that I can direct sow, however.

Beautiful outside, brought the laptop out on the deck to work. Before long it will be too hot for this.

I hate starting the seeds as well... I don't have room, no grow lights, no seed mat, just my chafing trays and cow pots. I literally cover the kitchen table, under the table, and carry them outside to get warm during the day. Some day I'll have the space and tools. I hate transplanting as well... The whole deal is really just cow crap to me but it's gotta get done somehow. Especially since I got root knot nematodes from garden center tomatoes a few years ago, and the lack of variety available where I am.... then for some reason random people ask me for advice when I'm shopping... I'm not wearing a sign, leave me alone please.

 

[Minanora]

Our big box stores get all the food type starts at the right time, but the ornamentals and flowers they don’t. It’s easier to transplant trees and shrubs here in fall before it gets cold and overwinter them outside than it is to do this in spring when our temps warm up quick. We literally went from mid 70’s to mid 90’s with only a few days in the 80’s and now we’re flirting with triple digits. Our winter is like spring for most people. We can direct sow in fall and most of the winter, but our non growing season is primarily summer when it’s too hot.

Wow, that's nice, but the short spring sucks. It heats up here pretty quickly. But not that fast.

I put up shade cloth over all of my beds in the summer or I get no tomatoes... Too hot. Then we get a surge of crop as it threatens to frost/freeze. I usually end up with a bunch of green tomatoes for relish, salsa, etc., as we go into weird freeze then heat wave October. Every season is a crap shoot here. I just do my best and keep rolling the dice.

 

[Minanora]

Today I sprayed bt on my chard, broccoli, and kale, oh and neem oil... I sprayed everything today.... The aphids, leaf miners, earwigs, and cabbage moths.... I don't know why they're so bad this year but dang. I need to get some spinosad in the mix, can't find my container of it. Bleh

I also turned the soil in a space that will home a small block of popping corn. And the melons. I will dress the soil tomorrow and plant on Friday.

 

[cj2024]

I found something that interest me on Youtube. I am going to try this orange candy recipe, but I am going to use my jumbo home-grown lemons, instead of oranges. Someone on the YouTube chat suggested 50% water and 50% lemon juice.

My Tycoon tomatoes in 5-gallon fabric pots are just starting to ripen and my hanging sticky fly traps with a wine and vinegar-soaked cloth hanging on the bottom of it are keeping the fruit flies off my tomatoes.

 

[chickengr]

Do you mean a paper towel, when you say a kitchen towel? That's what I'm envisioning.

yes, paper towel.

 

[jerryse]

Rant. I have had it with inaccurate weather reports. Our severe weather turned out to be wind and no rain. 90 some percent chance and nothing. They get you concerned over nothing. Yet I can look before working outside and nothing forecast. An hour later rain runs me inside. Really they can not see it a hour ahead.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I watered the garden for the first time this year. All the peas are up out of the ground now. The old carrot seeds haven't sprouted, but the ones from a new pack of carrot seeds I bought ARE coming up. Maybe carrot seeds have to be fresh.

Love that 1st watering, checking out the sprouts!

 

[Liz Birdlover]

Rant. I have had it with inaccurate weather reports. Our severe weather turned out to be wind and no rain. 90 some percent chance and nothing. They get you concerned over nothing. Yet I can look before working outside and nothing forecast. An hour later rain runs me inside. Really they can not see it a hour ahead.

I hear ya! Sometimes I wonder if they try to create drama . Every time they give a tornado warning I go into high weather anxiety mode, too. You know the actual times we had tornadoes...there were no warnings! Get with the program weather dudes!!! Please?

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I feel your pain @jerryse. The last two nights the weather forecast reported the overnight lows of 37F. So why has there been frost on the garden and a thin layer of ice in the bird bath both mornings? Yesterday was productive. The grandkids planted a 16 foot row of potatoes. Then we mixed garden soil, coir and perlite to fill one of the big grow bags. Then we carried it over to the kids garden where they planted chard, carrots and radish seeds. Back where they planted the potatoes we found a carrot leftover from last season. It was in great shape so I cut it up along with some celery to go with their lunch.

I’ve been working on filling the raised bed. I put 5 cubic feet of soil in there already. DD is delivering another 5 or 6 this weekend. I may add some coir. Just not sure yet. My daffodils in the front yard are blooming nicely now. The tulips are up but not blooming yet. The Daylilies are emerging and my purple azalea is blooming now. All three of my apple trees are putting out leaves now. I need to check on the blueberry bushes, the pear tree and grapevines. I need to work on tilling and cleaning the big pea patch today. At least I’m making progress. Have a great day all.