What did you do in the garden today?

[TJAnonymous]

When you get a rat in there video you opening the lid. We could use a good laugh.

Sure, glad to open it when it's FAR from my house...

 

[Smokerbill]

I found an interesting article that details how to treat garden seeds with hot water, chlorine, or both to remove bacterial pathogens. I might try it with some of the tomato seeds I save this fall.

https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/hyg-5818

 

[Nym]

Thanks! This fall I might put seed-filled sections of whole tomatoes in each of next year's tomato planting locations, lightly covering them with soil. That way they might grow as well as volunteers.

Maybe part of the reason volunteer plants do well is that the seeds are naturally cold stratified by being outdoors all winter.

I'm thinking the same way. The volunteer seedlings are perhaps so much tougher because the seeds are left to freely adapt - adapt or die. I've had self-seeding cherry tomatoes since the early '90s. A local grocer gave me the tomatoes from his own garden, claiming they were better than the produce he got from the markets. Everytime I put out compost I know they will pop up lol.

I also had a kitchen drawer clean out at the end of summer and found heritage Golden tomato seeds, best before 2017! I threw them in the front garden and have had golden cherries all winter long. They grew up a rose bush for support lol. I threw a few ripe ones in the back beds to get them ready for this autumn.

 

[Nym]

I found an interesting article that details how to treat garden seeds with hot water, chlorine, or both to remove bacterial pathogens. I might try it with some of the tomato seeds I save this fall.

https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/hyg-5818

View attachment 3944579

Umm, this doesn't fly with my logic. Serious disease issues are for Big Ag. mono-croppers to worry about, not the backyard grower. Just my opinion

 

[akroberts1085]

Umm, this doesn't fly with my logic. Serious disease issues are for Big Ag. mono-croppers to worry about, not the backyard grower. Just my opinion

I agree with you. The fact that I can't even use bleach because I will be having trouble breathing and I can feel the side effects and still smell it after 2-3 days doesn't work for me at all. All of the cleaners I use have to be bleach free.

 

[Minanora]

I am enjoying the humidity in Florida. Plus the almost nightly rain. I'm pretty stoked on life. I needed this vacation more than I knew.

 

[Sally PB]

Today will be more garden clean up, and I need to water what's still producing, ie, the chard and zucchini.

I planted two kinds of zucchini. One is doing REALLY well, the other not so much. Do I remember which is which?

 

[Sally PB]

The two kinds of zucchini are Fordhook and Black Beauty. I can't tell the difference between the squashes, but the leaves on the plants are different. One has a much more intricate leaf margin.

Looking up pictures for the plant, I think the gold star one is the Fordhook. I'll be letting a couple of the squash ripen and save the seed.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I'm going to see if any volunteers come up next spring where I grew tomatoes this year. A lot of what I grew fell to the ground so there should be opportunity for it to grow from seed next year.

Birds plant things, too. I've had interesting plants pop up in interesting places. Seed must have an interesting journey
In one end & out the other!

 

[Liz Birdlover]

Today will be more garden clean up, and I need to water what's still producing, ie, the chard and zucchini.

I planted two kinds of zucchini. One is doing REALLY well, the other not so much. Do I remember which is which?

Yup...when I 1st plant, the rows are neat, the cute little plant tags are there. 2 mos later...where the heck are those tags now?!
I find them, down in the soil, (barely legible despite using permanent marker) next spring when I prepare for the next garden planting.