Ace of Spades HQ

April 05, 2014

Saturday Gardening Thread: Cruelest Month Edition [Y-not]
— Open Blogger

Greetings gardening enthusiasts! Welcome to your Saturday Yard and Garden thread. I'm putting it up early because I'm still battling a cold and won't be around much today, I think.

My partner in crime is at some undisclosed location with his lovely bride. (I believe there may be coconut butter involved.) So you're stuck with me. In other words, I'm going solo today:

Clever, huh?

"Farm" report from Casa Y-not

Here at Casa Y-not in Utah, our raised beds are ready to go. Having the keen instincts of a true moron(ette), I planted some seeds of cold-hardy veggies about a week and a half ago, just before I had to leave town suddenly. Not to worry, it has snowed a couple of times since then. Awesome! It'll be interesting to see if I get anything to sprout.

We also did some transplanting. Not having a formal garden plan, we've been keeping a few shrubs (mostly lilacs) in large, attractive pots near our front porch. They spend the winter in our (windowed) garage and get rolled back out in the Spring. This Spring we moved them into larger pots to buy some more time. Meanwhile, an in-ground culinary rosemary plant that did NOT survive the winter (sadly, I don't know which variety it was thanks to my poor record-keeping and a puppy who likes to steal the plastic tags) was replaced with a lavender plant. The latter had been intended for a side strip of dirt that turned out to be unsuitable because of gravel, so I stuck it into a raised bed for the winter.

Finally, I've finished pruning the shrubs in our front yard, including the dreaded rose bushes, and the lowest branches of a very large cut leaf birch that is near our curbside mailbox. Which brings up a pet peeve of mine -- when did it become acceptable to allow your unkempt trees and shrubs to block the sidewalk? I feel like I'm the only person left who trims back her trees to keep the right of way clear. Grumble, grumble.

I decided to go with the Solo theme, so here's a short video showing how to make Solo Cup "greenhouses" and seedling starters:

Here's another way to use Solo Cups in your yard:

Not gardening-related, but this caught my eye: a simple way to entertain your artistically-inclined kids (or yourself) using clear Solo Cups:

I found this week's Blog of the Week while searching for Solo Cup uses. She briefly mentions them in this post on starting seeds, but to be honest I chose the blog because of the name: RIGHTEOUS BACON.

What's happening in your neck of the woods?

(Sorry the content is a bit sparse today. I caught a bad cold last week when I was traveling. Still on the mend.)

Posted by: Open Blogger at 05:32 AM | Comments (116)
Post contains 479 words, total size 4 kb.

1 *hack, hack, wheeze, wheeze*

Posted by: Y-not from her sick bed at April 05, 2014 05:34 AM (zDsvJ)

2 Goats. Ya hafta have goats to garden proper.

Posted by: Smith the Gardner at April 05, 2014 05:35 AM (aK1xA)

3 3-4 feet of snow still covering my beds, so nada very nice solo pict

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at April 05, 2014 05:43 AM (IXrOn)

4 We still have a tiny bit of snow on the front lawn....and a single shoot (I think it's a tulip).

Posted by: CBD at April 05, 2014 05:44 AM (xftov)

5 Three feet! Wow. Where?

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at April 05, 2014 05:46 AM (xftov)

6 Things are coming up in the greenhouse which is sporting a newly install vent fan thermostatically controlled $84 from Home Depot coupled with a louver $44 Home Depot set at 85 deg. Fan is sold as a gable mounted attic fan. We moved our experimental propagation chamber out to the greenhouse but it overheats so need to relocate to different place probably back porch. We are using jiffy pellets 40mm x40mm this year they are working well reduces watering chores The snow is finally melting will be a bit before we can till Waiting to see how new strawberry patch made out, goat broke out and trimmed them very hard before freeze up Will be train grapes on newly (last summer) built arbor. We have a lot of gardening planned for this summer can't wait

Posted by: NativeNH at April 05, 2014 05:48 AM (n4a2z)

7 While running errands yesterday I saw daffodils in bloom all over the place. Never been so happy to see the harbingers of spring.

Posted by: Retread at April 05, 2014 05:51 AM (cHwk5)

8 Gardening? It is 30 degrees here in Michigan. There isn't any gardening.

Posted by: Mikey NTH - Stay Ragey. My Friends at April 05, 2014 05:51 AM (gmoEG)

9 So the new rose is down. I'm "sweating it" with a wet paper bag as the directions for this one insisted. The 1 surviving rose from last year sent up tons of shoots, so I'm hopeful. Sadly, (as I've bemoaned he the last few days) the 4.85 inches of rain we got between Wednesday and Thursday have wreaked havoc everywhere. That's actually a misleading number because although the rain fell over 48 hours, most of that time actually had no rain. So I had quit the stream running through my yard, which washed away all the topsoil that had just been laid to correct a drainage problem, and did damage to the new drainage system I had put in not two weeks prior. Thankfully the landscaper seems to be an honest man, he's going to come out and fix it and just charge me for the new soil and maybe a bit of labor.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 05:55 AM (HDwDg)

10 I have beautiful garden pictures to share! And my phone has been trying to upload the first one to Twitter for 2 days now. Restart time... We ate peas, lettuce and celery from the garden this week! The cabbage is starting to look head-y. My husband put in gravel and paving stone walk-ways between the raised beds. He and my son put in tomato cages and planted some tomatoes. I'll eventually get a few pics up to my Twitter account (MamaAJ123) Oh, and the potatoes are growing like crazy. And I sprouted several more...that I'd actually planned on cooking. My pansies, petunias and snap dragons haven't died yet, but the snap dragons aren't looking so good. I should only take pics of the plants my husband is in charge of...sigh...I kill stuff! Yea, the first pic is actually on Twitter.

Posted by: Mama AJ at April 05, 2014 06:00 AM (SUKHu)

11 >> Y-not from her sick bed Is it...a raised bed?? Hope you feel better soon. Travel and illness are so not lovely together.

Posted by: Mama AJ at April 05, 2014 06:03 AM (SUKHu)

12 Dang it Mama AJ. Where you be? Way ahead NH that's for sure. I hope every one gets feeling better we had a nasty cold sweep through the grooming dept this winter we share machines. One guy gets sick we all get sick. We Lysol hard but to no avail

Posted by: NativeNH at April 05, 2014 06:08 AM (n4a2z)

13 Thanks Mama. In bed-bed watching Victory Garden. Boy, has it changed. Very hipster.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:10 AM (zDsvJ)

14 Posted a couple more pics. To the right of the blackberry bush(es), you can sort of see the grape plant that might actually produce a grape some year. I'm totally in the north...the northwest part of Louisiana, that is. Spring will come to you, y'all! Hang in there. And maybe I come come visit in August when it's 105 degrees here (and just a tiny bit humid), mkay?

Posted by: Mama AJ at April 05, 2014 06:13 AM (SUKHu)

15 Going solo sounds dirty. Is there a film of this?

Posted by: Herr Morgenholz at April 05, 2014 06:14 AM (BcLvk)

16 And for the record, I haven't planted a damn thing yet. This weather just plain ass sucks.

Posted by: Herr Morgenholz at April 05, 2014 06:16 AM (BcLvk)

17 Apparently, red Solo cups are A Thing in other countries: http://tinyurl.com/mhysudd

Posted by: rickl at April 05, 2014 06:20 AM (sdi6R)

18 2 Goats. Ya hafta have goats to garden proper. Posted by: Smith the Gardner at April 05, 2014 09:35 AM (aK1xA) luv luv luv goats. loaded with moron personality I tell ya.

Posted by: Guido at April 05, 2014 06:21 AM (15qFH)

19 How is your father doing, Y-not? If you prefer not to share, that's okay too.

Posted by: grammie winger at April 05, 2014 06:21 AM (oMKp3)

20 Here in south MS, the azaleas in my yard are now in bloom but just barely; gotta wonder if they will on time for the Masters this year since it is next week. Still waiting to see if the lemon and tangerine tree will survive; they lost all their leaves thanks to global warming.

My teensy tiny project to grow shallots in the window is working; though the amount of light there isn't so hot, after 1.5 weeks I could already dice up some fresh greens from them.

I took two bunches of shallots (2 for $1 special), cut the bulb ends off about 1.5 inches up, and placed those ends in a shallow bowl with 3/4" of water. I change the water every 2-3 days. Supposedly you can keep harvesting them forever, but it seems to me I'll need to add a few grains of MiracleGro every so often.

Posted by: GnuBreed at April 05, 2014 06:23 AM (cHZB7)

21 Dad is in a rehab center, grammie. Future uncertain owing to his Evil second wife.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:24 AM (zDsvJ)

22 I would support the death penalty for that woman, btw.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:24 AM (zDsvJ)

23 Ooh that shallot thing is great. I use them a lot and tge are pricey. Why is the cut needed? Are you stickin the root end in the water? Does it work for garlic?

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:27 AM (zDsvJ)

24 Great Pics MamaAJ. We' love to do a garden at some point, but the only part of the yard that gets enough sun in the part that just flooded. It's also, incidentally the only part of the yard that has grass in it (Zoysia) so it seems odd to tear it up (when the zoysia creeps to the rest of the yard, maybe then I'll consider it.)

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 06:27 AM (HDwDg)

25 Aww. Sorry to hear that, Y-not. I'll see you all later. Gotta go do the stuff with the people...

Posted by: Mama AJ at April 05, 2014 06:28 AM (SUKHu)

26 Fertilized the heck out of everything after work last week before a rain front. The weeds are going crazy in the grass before they DIE. Hydrangeas and roses putting out lots of new growth. The rain front also had tornadic activity to the northwest so I get to pick up a million sticks that blew out of the trees. And I got a new quieter blower for my birthday so I will blow the dried mud out of the garage.

Posted by: Lester at April 05, 2014 06:29 AM (2UPXV)

27 Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 10:24 AM (zDsvJ)

Posted by: grammie winger at April 05, 2014 06:32 AM (oMKp3)

28 GnuBreed Just reread your comment. Do you mean scallions, not shallots?

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:33 AM (zDsvJ)

29 23 Why is the cut needed? Are you stickin the root end in the water?

Does it work for garlic?

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 10:27 AM (zDsvJ)

I posted the link last week Y-not; 10 things you can buy once and grow forever --

http://tinyurl.com/ob69vud

Garlic is on that list. And yes, you put the root end in the water for the shallots.

Posted by: GnuBreed at April 05, 2014 06:34 AM (cHZB7)

30 28 Yes I meant scallions. Old habit; I've miscalled them shallots forever it seems.

Posted by: GnuBreed at April 05, 2014 06:36 AM (cHZB7)

31 Interesting link, rickl. Never would have guessed that "American" would be a popular party theme.

Posted by: lurker_above at April 05, 2014 06:36 AM (27Pfs)

32 I finally got my jane's magnolia planted and it is blooming away.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 05, 2014 06:37 AM (T2V/1)

33 My partner in crime is at some undisclosed location with his lovely bride. (I believe there may be coconut butter involved.) PiÃ±a colada flavored monkey sex gel.

Posted by: Insomniac at April 05, 2014 06:39 AM (M6dlS)

34 Everything here is in full bloom but my apple trees. They are just starting to bud out now.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 05, 2014 06:39 AM (T2V/1)

35 The weeds in my yard are thriving. That's about it.

Posted by: Insomniac at April 05, 2014 06:40 AM (M6dlS)

36 @Vic Lucky you the Japanese maple hasn't started to even bud yet. Granted it seems we can't stay above 50 as a high for more than a few days.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 06:40 AM (HDwDg)

37 36 Lucky you the Japanese maple hasn't started to even bud yet. Granted it seems we can't stay above 50 as a high for more than a few days.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 10:40 AM (HDwDg)

It made it to 88F here this week, but has cooled back down now. This is going to be another one of those "no spring" years where we have 1 week of Spring going immediately into hot summer.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 05, 2014 06:42 AM (T2V/1)

38 Thx Gnu! Me, too. My worst example of this from childhood was "unthaw" for "defrost". Lol

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:44 AM (zDsvJ)

39 Posted by: Vic at April 05, 2014 10:42 AM (T2V/1) The wife thinks we're in for a flood year. After this week, I'm inclined to agree! I'm also wondering if we're going to be rocking another extended early spring into a cool summer.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 06:48 AM (HDwDg)

40 Pears have bloomed and the apples are just starting to break bud. All the berries are starting growing and I have flowers starting on the strawberries, just not the ones that had been under an inch of water in the low spot of the yard in the last three storms. I will have fruit if it warms up, right now the bees need parkas to get around.

Posted by: Kindletot at April 05, 2014 06:50 AM (fYG1U)

41 Is the Masters next week? Will the azaleas be ready?

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 06:50 AM (zDsvJ)

42 The Masters is Apr 10 through 13th. And of course they will be ready if they have to replant them they will.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 05, 2014 06:53 AM (T2V/1)

43 In a condo on Phoenix, and wife misses the incredible growing season in Boise, with veggies up the yin yang. However, believe or not cactus now are starting to produce some beautiful blooms.

Posted by: Guido at April 05, 2014 06:53 AM (15qFH)

44 We planted a grape vine seven years ago, it grew like crazy, took over an entire fence, but produced no grapes for the first 3 or 4 years, then one year we had literally one grape, last year it was like strolling through Napa in my backyard. Literally thousands of grapes. The birds and critters got most of them, but I enjoyed a few handfuls. This year our travel plans are a little different, so I'm hoping I'll be home when most of the grapes are ripening.

Posted by: Lincolntf at April 05, 2014 06:55 AM (ZshNr)

45 Ah, why do Americans use Solo cups? 'Cause drunken fools break glasses and other drunken fools roll in the broken glass. ---- Now, me, I use them to freeze stuff in. 2 cup volume, tapered shape to allow blocks of frozen stuff to slide out with minimal warming, and you get 100 for the price of a four-pack of tupperware.

Posted by: Kindletot at April 05, 2014 06:55 AM (fYG1U)

46 I have three apple trees and I have never got a single apple that had not been partially eaten by birds and bugs.

Posted by: Vic[/i] at April 05, 2014 06:57 AM (T2V/1)

47 10 I have beautiful garden pictures to share!

And my phone has been trying to upload the first one to Twitter for 2 days now.

Restart time...

=====
Is that an Obama phone?

Posted by: Miley's Tongue at April 05, 2014 07:00 AM (R+h7Q)

48 Any suggestions on how to stop/kill crabgrass in a flower bed? I'm sick of pulling them but afraid of using roundup.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 07:02 AM (zDsvJ)

49 Yeah, it's been floody here all week. I grin when I see ducks swimming in corn fields when I drive home from work because they're so damn cute, but I know the farmers don't, and ultimately nothing good is going to come of this. Mostly I think they're going to build nests/lay eggs somewhere that's going to get plowed up in a few weeks.

Speaking of floody, there was water pooled up outside my front door most of the week on the right, where the mud is.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/10297889@N08/13645094224/

It's in shade all but about three hours of the day (the developer really packed the houses close together here). Nothing except dandelions has grown here for two years; I like dandelions but the bare patches depress me every morning. I was thinking of just digging it all up and putting down some 12-18" round pavers, surrounded with rock, then setting flower pots on them. I don't know if I want to go all the way down the sidewalk, though. And I'd have to put down some sort of edging to keep the rock out of the neighbor's strip of grass.

I should go out browsing materials but I've been having too much fun watching the birdfeeders.

Posted by: HR at April 05, 2014 07:02 AM (hO8IJ)

50 My peach and plum trees are in almost full flower, the apple tree, which might as well be dead but isn't, hasn't done much yet.

Posted by: Lincolntf at April 05, 2014 07:03 AM (ZshNr)

51 Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 11:02 AM (zDsvJ) Roundup is actually only absorbed through the laves, so if you're careful you should be able use it. Alternatively you could put down a pre-emergent in your bed in the early spring (it's too late for that.) Pre-emergent stop germination, so they shouldn't affect any non seed plants.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:10 AM (HDwDg)

52 @HR Pff, flooding? This is flooding: http://1drv.ms/1fMsGW3 The worst part is that's just what I got from my home office window, it actually got worse farther down the yard, but I didn't get a picture of it.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:12 AM (HDwDg)

53 Posted by: HR at April 05, 2014 11:02 AM (hO8IJ) Also I should note they sell an "Elite shade blend" of grass seed here, that I'm getting to grow underneath the trees. (So pure shade.) It's taking a bit to get it to fill in to full grass, it may never do that, the shade blends are fairly week and so spots die each year. But it's certainly better than it was (and I'm only on year 2 of the reseeding cycle.)

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:14 AM (HDwDg)

54 We plant in raised beds and have trouble keeping them irrigated because they drain too fast, so we dumped in a bunch of compost this week and are hoping this helps. Been busy planting tomatoes and beans in the Spring beds and are harvesting carrots ,peas, onions, beets lettuce and spinach from the Fall/Winter garden. Last November I planted a giant leaf spinach from Renee's garden and it has gone crazy. We are eating spinach with everything and freezing some too. My husband finally drew the line at spinach on his scrambled eggs.

Posted by: dreadpirateroberta at April 05, 2014 07:17 AM (2d8bF)

55 Pff, flooding? This is flooding:

Yuck. Yeah, that sucks. And looks a lot like what I was driving by between work and home this week.

I'm just tired of this mud patch, and there's no point putting down seed to get washed away, you know?

Posted by: HR at April 05, 2014 07:18 AM (hO8IJ)

56 HR, have you considered putting in Hydrangeas or one of the Salals as a short hedge? They are tolerant of partial and mostly shade.

Posted by: Kindletot at April 05, 2014 07:19 AM (fYG1U)

57 Posted by: HR at April 05, 2014 11:18 AM (hO8IJ) Yeah that's what I always struggle with. Mostly I'm looking for a dry week to two to get the seed in, water it gently into the ground and hope it sprouts before the rains come. The other option maybe to see if you can find "Arch Blend." It's a seed they engineered for the arch grounds (which are shady and hilly) so it's sprouts fast to avoid washing way. Or Hostas, I like Hostas, good shade ground cover, easy to grow.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:23 AM (HDwDg)

58 Thx tsr!

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 07:25 AM (zDsvJ)

59 Feed oats also will sprout on mud and hold the ground. A friend used to seed lawns with a combination of oats and rye grass, the oats would sprout first and shade the rye grass, and then then die at the end of the summer leaving established rye-grass.

Posted by: Kindletot at April 05, 2014 07:25 AM (fYG1U)

60 From the cold frame I am making salads of baby spinach & arugula combined with dandelion greens. Planted more spinach, lettuce, & arugula in a bed. Planted leek and onion transplants. Hope to plant brussel sprouts & cabbage within the next few days. Spring in NE IA is an off and on affair. There will be more hard freezes so everything must be protected at night. The lambs are looking tasty and in late May we'll have the neighbors over for a roast.

Posted by: Angel with a sword at April 05, 2014 07:26 AM (hpgw1)

61 HR if it's a fairly small area how about Astro turf? http://tinyurl.com/lb2g38v

Posted by: The Hickster at April 05, 2014 07:30 AM (TI3xG)

62 Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 11:25 AM (zDsvJ) YMMV. Also I have no idea how extended roundup works, so you may want to avoid that. However, I use regular roundup as edge control in my beds now. (I try to avoid using it for more than that because you can't avoid splashing so close to plants I hand weed.) We had some luck when we killed the grass to put down the mulch using a piece of cardboard to stop splashing and define our line (but they key is we were able to define a pretty good line, except for where we missed the cardboard backing.)

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:32 AM (HDwDg)

63 I have a mini-forest about 'midships on the property, where my late uncle thought he'd grow a few Christmas trees to harvest, and let them go. Balsam firs about 60 feet high. God damn pretty. Then other uncle, the one in charge of mowing, let them lay on the ground and spread boughs because, less mowing. That will kill grass pretty dead, and it did.

I fought the bare patches under them for a decade, convinced that the acid from the needles, or an avoidance circle from the roots, or the heavy shade was keeping several well-known ground covers, and several specialty grasses, from starting. I cut the branches back higher and higher, turned the soil and limed it and mulched it and composted.

Finally, the ill-placed small ornamental maple at the east end of the row died of its own volition. Suddenly the grass was fine. It was the thirsty maple, efficiently sucking all the shallow water out of the clayey topsoil, that left it all bare.

I still make a point of vacuuming up the needles and cones, fall and spring, but the unsolvable aspect is gone. Ground will really fool you that way.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at April 05, 2014 07:35 AM (xq1UY)

64 Posted by: Stringer Davis at April 05, 2014 11:35 AM (xq1UY) When we moved in here we had a mulberry tree in our side yard. Crazy lady who lived here before us wouldn't have it removed. But it was damaging the roof, so we had to take it down (plus those things are a mess.) Anyway, couldn't get shit to grow there before, it was all mud. Now that the tree's gone clover grows like crazy (we're still working on a flooding problem that has made grass loath to grow.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:37 AM (HDwDg)

65 My first spring in Texas. No garden yet, but there really are. Blue bonnets everywhere. Gorgeous .

Posted by: LASue at April 05, 2014 07:37 AM (S/lBi)

66 heather if it's pooling there, it's a grading/draining issue....might be a cheap fix

Posted by: phoenixgirl @phxazgrl at April 05, 2014 07:40 AM (u8GsB)

67 Posted by: phoenixgirl @phxazgrl at April 05, 2014 11:40 AM (u8GsB) We solved a bunch of our pooling draining issues by just making mulch beds.

Posted by: tsrblke, PhD(c) (No Really!) at April 05, 2014 07:41 AM (HDwDg)

68 61?

Astro turf? My Mom was obsessed with that stuff- put it everywhere. Thanks for kicking in old memories

Posted by: backhoe at April 05, 2014 07:42 AM (ULH4o)

69 Anybody been able to get to breitbart.com this morning? Been down a while it seems.

Posted by: Costanza Defense at April 05, 2014 07:43 AM (ZPrif)

70 dreadpirateroberta, If your raised beds are drying out too fast the compost will help. In Australia they mix bentonite clay (in dried powered form) in well with their sandy soil to help it retain moisture. You have to make sure every thing is dry when you do this and mix well. There is a guy in Oklahoma you can pick up the clay from really cheap, www.bestbentonite.com. I did this with my three 4x8 raised beds this year. If you don't mix it well you'll wind up with clumps of clay that will dry into hard formations. If you distribute it evenly it will hold the moisture in the soil evenly without clumping in hard masses.

Posted by: lindafell at April 05, 2014 07:46 AM (PGO8C)

71 Astro turf? My Mom was obsessed with that stuff

So was ah. Heh.

Posted by: Bubba Clinton at April 05, 2014 07:50 AM (Dwehj)

72 I started planting stuff in my raised beds this week. I have one tomato plant, a cherry, with about a dozen tomatoes almost ripe. I planted a Meyer Lemon and Sweet Kumquat in the ground and a Satsuma and Calamondin Orange in containers.

Posted by: lindafell at April 05, 2014 07:52 AM (PGO8C)

73 I would think you lavender would have enjoyed the gravel Y-not. Lots of Mediterranean plants (and any others that like good drainage) do well with a nice gravel mulch. I have been told that all my jonquils and hyacinths are blooming well and that the pears and apricots are flowering, too.

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 07:53 AM (dFLsP)

74 Kudos to both Red Solo Cup videos, slitting the inside cup is genius. And everything Toby Keith does with them is great. And Craig Ferguson and the dang foreigners who just want to be Americans. The real American Party is right here in America, after all. Renato Carasone says it best: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vYcQaWdhm4

Posted by: scottst at April 05, 2014 07:56 AM (Fp9Vt)

75 Solo Edition

Napoleon or Han?

Posted by: TheQuietMan at April 05, 2014 08:01 AM (FE/sZ)

76 There are two problems with clayey soil. First is that it is slow to absorb water and it gets muddy and sodden and pools. The second is when it dries it cracks and creates these deep fissures. The fissures open up damp soil to the air and speeds evaporation, so the clay dries out very deeply and turns into an adobe brick. So if you have clay soil, and it starts cracking, try to hoe up some crumbled or dusty ground and spread over top of the cracks to hold in the moisture.

Posted by: Kindletot at April 05, 2014 08:07 AM (fYG1U)

77 Yeah, i was impressed by that slitting idea.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 08:14 AM (zDsvJ)

78 Angel Do you raise sheep? Awesome! If so, do you have recipes for kidneys, heart, and/or liver? I am hooked in with a shepherd so I have tons of lamb in my freezer.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 08:17 AM (zDsvJ)

79 Headed to the farm, Gonna take a stroll through the woods, see what the creek looks like. We had a very heavy winter, I expect I'll be clambering over fallen tree limbs the whole way.

Posted by: Lincolntf at April 05, 2014 08:22 AM (ZshNr)

80 Tammy Yeah. The problem was digging more than soil quality. Plus we found some cable (tv I think) under the gravel. Gonna leave it to pros when we can afford it. I'm trying clover in my trouble spot slope that has tree roots and erosion. But i may have spread seed too soon.

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 08:30 AM (zDsvJ)

81 Kindle tot, I know clayey soil is a PIA. But soil that won't hold any moisture is usually too sandy and doesn't have any clay in it at all. Bentonite clay is not what you would typically find in your average soil. If you add it to a sandy soil along with compost and mix it very well you won't have the typical problems of naturally occurring clayey/compact soil. In that type of soil you typically have to do the opposite and add sand/decomposed granite to loosen it up. I would have to do that if I used the ground.

Posted by: lindafell at April 05, 2014 08:33 AM (PGO8C)

82 Posted by: dreadpirateroberta at April 05, 2014 11:17 AM (2d8bF) Don't know if this would help, but once upon a time I threaded a soaker hose through my garden plants. It seemed to create a cheap mini-irrigation system that kept the soil from drying out too fast or too much. Ran it for about 30 minutes or so every couple of days and things thrived.

Posted by: Hrothgar at April 05, 2014 08:47 AM (o3MSL)

83 We have one red mulberry on the fence between the back lawn and the pasture. Great tree,fruits very heavy distracts the birds from eating other things. Bleeds forever when pruned or broken. We enjoy it, so I guess to each his own. As for messy hmmm I'll go with the black walnut

Posted by: NativeNH at April 05, 2014 08:51 AM (n4a2z)

84 Y-not, is it shady or sunny? Sweet Woodruff looks really nice in shade and will grow under just about any conditions. It does get invasive, so if it's near another bed you might not want to risk it. I definitely wouldn't mess with anything that had cables or wire under it, that's for sure.

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 08:52 AM (dFLsP)

85 We had snow overnight Thursday after freezing rain. The snow drifts and snow piles are still in place, but only the north slopes in the woods are still snow covered. Have seen a few flying insects here and there, but I am somewhat insect-attuned. No new vegetation thus far, although the sap is running. The corn planter is getting a going-over in the shop. Humane: our family tradition is that we owe the critters our best efforts to ensure they only have one bad day in their lives. Hoof-trimming, inoculations, tail-docking, castration notwithstanding.

Posted by: Really cranky ag nerd in The Driftless Area at April 05, 2014 08:53 AM (1/4XQ)

86 Oh, sorry. You are right. Clay holds water wonderfully until it starts to dry and contract and crack. Then the top part starts drying and your plant roots can't reach the lower down, moist soil. If you can avoid the drying you have decent soil moisture for your garden far past when sandy soil would keep it. And yes, compost helps enormously. I Am not so sold on mixing in sand.

Posted by: Kindletot at April 05, 2014 08:56 AM (fYG1U)

87 @81 Lindafell, couldn't agree more. The subsoil here is blue. Long ago it was used to make pottery. But mixed in with organic elements, it's the richest in the world. You can't have good garden soil without some clay in it, both for hydrological properties and mineral content.

Certain soil experimenters turn up their noses at it, and suffer on and on as they gamely re-balance sand and loam and manures and composts without this one essential element.

My dad was in the dirt business, and one test he'd do was to wrap a "turd" of hard clay in foil and put it in the freezer. This would show what happened after an exposed winter. If it would break easily after freezing hard, he'd buy whatever was available, knowing that when mixed with topsoil it would powder and mix well.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at April 05, 2014 08:58 AM (xq1UY)

88 I'll take clay over sandy soil any day. True sandy soil is a never ending battle; you have to keep the compost coming year after year. Clay you can get stable eventually, and in fact I don't ever get it to pure loam, because clay is usually nutrient rich and helps a lot with moisture retention. Which is not to say I don't topdress my beds with compost every, but that's just for general purpose. With sandy soil, you have to add a lot, every year, and it never really amends it much. I don't think sand really ever changes, whereas the clay will break down. I don't need it, but that betonite clay site looks really cool.

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 08:58 AM (dFLsP)

89 @78 Sure-fire winning recipe for lamb's kidneys: Boil the piss out of them.

Posted by: Really cranky ag nerd in The Driftless Area at April 05, 2014 09:01 AM (1/4XQ)

90 I will happily disclose where Weirddave and his lovely bride are. There is even gardening happening! Of course, it's a bunch of the resort staff doing landscaping off my patio, but there is still gardening. We are in Cancun, at a fancy-schmancy resort with margaritas and naps.

Posted by: Gingy @GingyNorth at April 05, 2014 09:01 AM (aHI2+)

91 Gingy! Don't forget the sunscreen, my fellow Copper Top. Sunburned nipples are the WORST.

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 09:03 AM (dFLsP)

92 Tammy! My nipples aren't gonna see the sun!

Posted by: Gingy @GingyNorth at April 05, 2014 09:07 AM (aHI2+)

93 Before we get too far down the nipple road, here's a Gangnam Parody, "Farmer Style". http://preview.tinyurl.com/c8c7r8j

Posted by: Really cranky ag nerd in The Driftless Area at April 05, 2014 09:11 AM (1/4XQ)

94 33Â My partner in crime is at some undisclosed location with his lovely bride. (I believe there may be coconut butter involved.)Â Cancun. Gingy drank too much pina colada flavored monkey sex gel last night and jumped in the pool fully clothed, so fun is being had. Saw some really cool, really big epiphytes in the trees at Chichen Itza Wednesday. I'll be back next week.

Posted by: Weirddave at April 05, 2014 09:11 AM (aHI2+)

95 Looks like AOSHQ is more exciting than Dave's meeting.

Posted by: Gingy @GingyNorth at April 05, 2014 09:16 AM (aHI2+)

96 Thanks Lindafell and Hrothgar! I will try both suggestions for sure. I am tired of standing out there with the hose. We always seem to be just a few days away from strict water rationing here in Sunny South Texas.

Posted by: dreadpirateroberta at April 05, 2014 09:18 AM (2d8bF)

97 Has anyone tried a night flower garden? I seem to recall that at one time Thompson and Morgan listed a collection like that, and I suckered for it. The Nicotiana were really nice, but the Night-scented Stocks (Matthiola longipetala) had an absolutely ethereal perfume. And moths! You wanna talk moths? And, of course, you got moths, you got toads.

Posted by: Really cranky ag nerd in The Driftless Area at April 05, 2014 09:19 AM (1/4XQ)

98 I've planted a few things so far - pansies for the front porch planters, my wilted scallions went into a pot to regenerate, and today, I planted my ass in a chair in the backyard with a cold beer.

Posted by: shredded chi at April 05, 2014 09:20 AM (xnkrD)

99 I don't want moths. I have a dreaded fear of moths getting into my fiber stash. Getting rid of them is damned near impossible once they're in.

Posted by: Gingy @GingyNorth at April 05, 2014 09:23 AM (e9Tw7)

100 Girl, you ain't had enough tequila yet. Give it time. Dave will have you talked in to it before you know it.

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 09:25 AM (dFLsP)

101 @99 I feel you. These ones won't eat your wool: http://preview.tinyurl.com/6hsujlu

Posted by: Really cranky ag nerd in The Driftless Area at April 05, 2014 09:26 AM (1/4XQ)

102 Nood car thread

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 09:27 AM (zDsvJ)

103 Have a bountiful and rewarding garden season, all!

Posted by: Really cranky ag nerd in The Driftless Area at April 05, 2014 09:28 AM (1/4XQ)

104 Night scented stock is my DREAM flower for perfume. Unbelievable. Weird thing is, the last several batches of seed I have gotten were NOT night scented stock. I am putting in a moonlight garden this fall, anchoring it with Iceberg roses. I highly recommend including pale lavender colored flowers, not just white ones...some shades really glow at night.

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 09:28 AM (dFLsP)

105 Thank you, ag nerd! (Love your nic!)

Posted by: Tammy al-Thor at April 05, 2014 09:28 AM (dFLsP)

106 *waves to WeirdDave and Gingy*

Posted by: Y-not at April 05, 2014 09:29 AM (zDsvJ)

107 @93 "Farmer Style", I love all The Peterson Farm Brothers videos. They are an adorable family with such talent in farming and singing. They seem like a great family.

Posted by: SnowyBits at April 05, 2014 09:36 AM (QlUk9)

108 http://www.smartgardener.com/ this is an awesome home gardening site

Posted by: Jeffrey Carter (@pointsnfigures) at April 05, 2014 11:08 AM (LnE5F)

109 Good afternoon, Horde! I'm on the edge of the floodplain and much of what I deal with is just a "wildscape", so I'm taking advantage of every little cool front to go whack the nastiest of the spring weeds, the exotic ones that produce seeds that stick to you. That's what I'm doing today. I know electric implements are for pussies, but gas string trimmers hate me, and I hate them right back. I got a new 7 amp B&D corded trimmer that's working great on the weeds and tree seedlings. I also have a cordless one for zipping through the weeds in the patio area. I need the exercise anyway-- a couple of weeks ago while shooting sporting clays my arms and shoulders had gotten super wimpy over the winter. We had such a late spring (thanks global warming!) that a couple of esperanzas and other perennials still have shown no signs of life.

Posted by: stace at April 05, 2014 11:13 AM (9PXzx)

110 dreadpirateroberta, Where are you in South Texas? I'm in Austin myself. I used about 5llbs. of bentonite in my 8x4x7inch deep raised bed. We will see how that goes this year. The soil mix that I got is ok but has too much granite and sand so I amended with the clay and some homemade compost. Much better now.

Posted by: lindafell at April 05, 2014 11:17 AM (Bllk5)

111 My golden currants survived the winter, despite my neglecting them horribly! Super hardy plants, pretty yellow spring blossoms.still need to prep my beds but we are still getting snow here, makes me lazy gardener. Y-Not, sorry for your sick woes and your other woes, never got to tell you earlier how I am how sorry I am you are going through them. Thoughts and prayers your way. Thanks for your always great posts. *hugs*

Posted by: LizLem at April 05, 2014 11:30 AM (izCt9)

112 It snowed two days ago. I'm in New Mexico, wtf? I bought tomatoes at Costco but they can't go out yet. My dwarf sweet cherries have buds and I haven't killed them yet, so maybe in a year or two, if I still haven't killed them, I'll have cherries. The tulips are starting and there are a few daffodils thinking about it. The roses made it through the winter since I have realized that I need to water them when they're not growing or they die... and I'm determined to water them enough this year so that they flower. I sat down here and saw this thread and remembered that I'm supposed to be outside watering those dwarf cherry trees some more. So I'm going to go do that.

Posted by: Synova at April 05, 2014 03:44 PM (7/PU+)

113 Hi Lindafell, hope you come back to the thread and see this. I am in San Antonio, I don't know any other Morons here. I went to a great Moron Meet-up in Austin once and met some really nice people. You have some great nurseries up there!

Posted by: dreadpirateroberta at April 05, 2014 05:26 PM (2d8bF)

114 I see you DPR😄 it's so nice to find more and more 'ettes so close. Stace is in SA too. I just met Lauren IRL Wednesday.

Posted by: lindafell at April 05, 2014 05:47 PM (PGO8C)

115 Our neighbor's rooster had been spending his days at our house, but disappeared just before I started putting tomato plants in the ground where he liked to hang out. Suspicious, no? Beautiful bird. Intimidated the cats. In other animal news, our long-haired calico came back home after being missing for two weeks. She's been spayed. Maybe the rooster will come back, too.

Posted by: KT at April 06, 2014 11:45 AM (qahv/)

116 Self-watering "Global Buckets" made with Solo Cups: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lE8OrdUZQKk Best to use white buckets and white or silver "toppers" in our climate. Nice idea for a pepper plant or dwarf eggplant. Container gardening is a challenge in our hot-summer climate. But remember mosquito control.

Posted by: KT at April 06, 2014 11:59 AM (qahv/)

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