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Can I plant the garlic cloves from the garlic heads I buy in the grocery store?
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Nov 12, 2010 21:01
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El Bano posted:Can I plant the garlic cloves from the garlic heads I buy in the grocery store? I do. It has always worked well. You can also grow ginger that you buy at the grocery store.
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Nov 12, 2010 21:13
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El Bano posted:Can I plant the garlic cloves from the garlic heads I buy in the grocery store? Sometimes, sometimes not. Some garlic growers treat their garlic with something that reduces their ability to sprout (results in longer shelf life).
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Nov 13, 2010 17:07
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I've read that if you want to grow garlic in your garden, go to a farmer's market and buy some garlic heads from there and use that.
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Nov 14, 2010 03:45
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Zeta Taskforce posted:On another note, has anyone gotten weird looks yet by stealing the bags of leaves from the neighbors and dragging them back to your house? Most of my neighbors are bringing them to me and just leaving them by my back fence this year. There are a few curmudgeons still mad at me for stealing grass clippings but overall everybody is pretty supportive. If you give some of the excess produce back to your neighbors it opens all kinds of doors. I had some of the most amazing fried chicken I have ever eaten just for letting a neighbor borrow my lawn mower and then raking up the grass for compost. I have also completely shamelessly stolen bags of organic matter from the side of the street in other areas.
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Nov 14, 2010 08:07
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Hey goons, My wife and I started a garden in our front yard, we're growing Green Bells, Jalapenos, and Cucumbers. Today, while putting in some fresh soil, I noticed these grubs in the soft dirt where my faucet is (it leaks, and keeps the soil moist). It's pretty close to one of our Bells, and I'm worried these things are going to eat the plant or spawn evil things all over it. What are they, and what can I do to battle them?  EDit: Found out these are White Grubs. I see a lot of differentiating opinions on how to kill them. Nematodes, Milky Spore powder...any other remedies? TheKingPuuChuu fucked around with this message at 02:14 on Nov 20, 2010 |
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Nov 20, 2010 01:06
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I can tell you from experience that they make really awesome bait. Bass go bonkers for them if you can rig up something for topwater and make the retrieval nice and twitchy. \/\/\/ If you have a really bad infestation of them, they can wreak havoc on a lawn or garden but it's pretty hard for it to get to that point. They're a favorite food of too many animals. If you have armadillos in the area they'll gladly take them off of your hands the second they smell 'em. Kilersquirrel fucked around with this message at 06:06 on Nov 20, 2010 |
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Nov 20, 2010 02:35
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Looks like a beetle larva. I've found them in a garden (zone 9) before when digging through the soil. They feed on roots and organic matter and the like; I haven't noticed plant damage though. I'd leave them be, they're not likely to do any harm. That is, unless you have chickens; in that case dig em all up and ring the dinner bell, free food!
dwoloz fucked around with this message at 05:30 on Nov 20, 2010 |
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Nov 20, 2010 05:26
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On the dirt trail to my kids' school, we've seen what we thought were watermelons growing. We hoped all season long that the school kids wouldn't kick them like little balls or smash them, and to our luck, there was a SINGLE watermelon that survived -- it was fortunately hidden under some dense growth. Here it is:  However, I cut it open tonight to enjoy some tasty watermelon, and found this:   It looks and smells like a cucumber inside. What's going on? What is this crazy thing? I looked up "round cucumbers" online, and found this article: http://glitter-and-gutter.blogspot.com/2009/04/great-cucamelon-mystery.html But the writer doesn't appear to ever identify the plant. Any ideas?
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Nov 20, 2010 06:50
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Could be just an F2 watermelon seedling. Supermarket fruits are mostly F1 hybrids which don't cross true. Say a F1 supermarket watermelon was obtained by crossing a disease-resistant wild type with a vulnerable but productive heirloom. Its offspring (F2s) will vary in appearance between both parents, so yours may be just an under-watered runt going towards the wild type.
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Nov 20, 2010 10:04
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TheKingPuuChuu posted:Hey goons, e: it's some of them \/\/\/\/ MeKeV fucked around with this message at 13:45 on Nov 20, 2010 |
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Nov 20, 2010 11:44
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Looks like Cockchafer grubs. We occasionally get these in our composts in France, but mostly another harmless species that looks like it ("Cétoine", lower 2 grubs of the 4 in the article picture).
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Nov 20, 2010 13:19
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puffin posted:Could be just an F2 watermelon seedling. Supermarket fruits are mostly F1 hybrids which don't cross true. Say a F1 supermarket watermelon was obtained by crossing a disease-resistant wild type with a vulnerable but productive heirloom. Its offspring (F2s) will vary in appearance between both parents, so yours may be just an under-watered runt going towards the wild type. aha! I googled up "wild watermelon" and searched on images, and it looks like you are correct. Thanks! This might also be a "citron melon," by the looks of it. From what I'm reading, it isn't really edible. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mv052 http://www.eattheweeds.com/www.EatTheWeeds.Com/EatTheWeeds.com/Entries/1947/5/22_Entry_1.html
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Nov 20, 2010 15:31
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My thought was that it is an under ripe regular watermelon that somehow managed to make a runt of a fruit in a marginal environment. The pacific northwest isn't exactly prime watermelon country.
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Nov 20, 2010 19:00
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Zeta Taskforce posted:My thought was that it is an under ripe regular watermelon that somehow managed to make a runt of a fruit in a marginal environment. The pacific northwest isn't exactly prime watermelon country. ... I'm not in the Pacific Northwest. Not anymore, anyway. I'm in California. Did I not update my profile? e: nope. It's updated.
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Nov 20, 2010 19:25
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This isn't exactly a veggie or herb, but I need help finding a reliable source online to buy Agave deserti. It has to be specifically that species, and I'm going to need 10-20 plants of about 8-10 inches in height. I'm in Las Vegas, if anyone knows of any decent nurseries here. If not, what sites online may work? I've checked dozens of sites, very few have any promise whatsoever.
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Nov 22, 2010 04:16
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I found one site in North Carolina of all places, but it looks like they're out of the deserti species and won't restock until January. By the way, for people looking to buy plants online, I always use the Garden Watchdog and PlantScout features at Dave's Garden for finding reputable online sources. Their site organization leaves something to be desired, but it's about the best way of finding what you're looking for and getting unbiased reviews of who's selling it.
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Nov 22, 2010 13:56
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Yay, first significant looking harvest (I have picked some onions and silverbeet in the previous week, but this is the first squash) Vegie garden as of a few days ago (is nighttime right now so can't get updated photo)  Silverbeet, spring onion, zucchini and yellow button squash. YUM!  Delicious stirfry I made using the vegetables.
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Nov 29, 2010 15:03
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Is it too late to plant seedlings in Brisbane? I've just moved in with my boyfriend here and discovered he's managed to kill all the plants I started last time I was up (they were covered in fuzzy white stuff that didn't really look like late blight so I don't know what happened there). I really miss my garden  I was thinking of at least planting tomatoes, a bunch of herbs, chillies and lettuce. Perhaps a bit too hot for lettuce but it will be on a covered balcony. I'm from Sydney so if anyone can advise me on good things to grow in Brisbane (on a balcony...) that'd be great too.
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Nov 30, 2010 14:59
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^^ Is it ever too late to start seedlings in Brisbane? I thought the point of doing things in a timely manner was to get a nice harvest before it freezes. Does the temp actually dip to freezing there? Someone posted earlier that zucchini grows well in large containers and I totally agree. Anyway, I just found this thread, on the first day of snow, and all these wonderful pictures are giving me a big ol' gardening boner! Thanks for identifying those weird grubs (lol- cockchafer). At my last house the dirt was lousy with them! I barely had a yard, and it was full of terribly sandy soil, but my poppies, lettuce, herbs, and zucchini all turned out great. Now I have a huge backyard...filled with trees. Booo. Can you guys offer some suggestions for shade friendly plants(zone 5 I believe)? The front yard gets adequate, but not full sun, and the driveway was just converted from pebbles into part of the yard, so I have a chance to have a nice weed-free patch (for a while). Any suggestions as to how to deal with all the drat rocks still in the "soil"? Should I start with a heavy layer of compost and topsoil? I think I'll spread a layer of leaves over the area before it gets too snowy.
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Nov 30, 2010 23:03
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The Iron Fury posted:^^ Is it ever too late to start seedlings in Brisbane? I thought the point of doing things in a timely manner was to get a nice harvest before it freezes. Does the temp actually dip to freezing there? Someone posted earlier that zucchini grows well in large containers and I totally agree. I have a lot of shade too. Some of it is due to my neighbors house, so of course I can’t do much about that. Some of it is due to a tree that is in the corner of my property that I hate, my neighbors hate, and want to cut down once I have more money. Some things do well in the shade. Leafy things like kale and lettuce are probably the best. I planted potatoes in the shadiest corner of my garden and the plants were very viney and leafy, the yields were probably below average and formed late in the season, but I still got something and the potatoes themselves were full size. Bush beans did surprisingly well in the same location last year. I thought root crops like carrots and beets would do better, but I think I had them too close together. Next year I’m going to give them way more room and see if that helps. If you have trees, your bigger enemy will be the roots. I had good soil texture, but I find that trees take a lot of nutrients out of the soil and return only a portion of it back in leaves. Most of the nutrients are probably locked up in their trunks, roots and branches. You will need a lot of leaves to add fertility to the soil. They do improve the soil, its texture, they are good mulch, but are not that high in nutrients. You don't need to get down to zero rocks, but if the soil is bony, you will need to get rid of most of them. Don't add topsoil and compost until you remove the roots and put bariers so they don't return.
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Nov 30, 2010 23:56
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The Iron Fury posted:^^ Is it ever too late to start seedlings in Brisbane? I thought the point of doing things in a timely manner was to get a nice harvest before it freezes. Does the temp actually dip to freezing there? Anywho, I guess I can only give it a try!
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Dec 2, 2010 15:33
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Eden posted:Yeah that's what I thought too but it gets ridiculously hot here and I wondered if stuff would just die off or if it wouldn't last through the cooler months anyway (and no, it doesn't dip to freezing). Down here in Adelaide people grow stuff through summer and it's alright so long as you keep it well watered (in fact better than alright, with good watering plants go absolutely crazy during summer) so you should be fine in Brisbane.
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Dec 2, 2010 16:18
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Eden posted:Yeah that's what I thought too but it gets ridiculously hot here and I wondered if stuff would just die off or if it wouldn't last through the cooler months anyway (and no, it doesn't dip to freezing). Lucky! Oh the things I would grow if I lived in such a place. Pineapple might be fun to try and wouldn't be too big. Too bad trees like mango and plumeria are out of the question. One of the (less informative) links I found noted that temperate plants are often grown in the subtropics, but they just don't really flourish. Here's a link I found, didn't seem to be too many fruit/veggie options though: http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s2220132.htm PS: Thanks to Zeta Taskforce for being incredibly helpful!
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Dec 5, 2010 01:32
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The Iron Fury posted:Lucky! Oh the things I would grow if I lived in such a place. Pineapple might be fun to try and wouldn't be too big. Too bad trees like mango and plumeria are out of the question. One of the (less informative) links I found noted that temperate plants are often grown in the subtropics, but they just don't really flourish. Just call me Zeta, we are among friends here.  The other thing you can try, and this is something I’m going to start next year so I don’t have direct experience yet, are small fruits and brambles. I am thinking of raspberries, blackberries, currants, gooseberries. They are tough plants. Especially if you have a front yard and want bushes with some ornamental value, currants and gooseberries form small attractive bushes. All of these plants evolved under trees and thrive in hedgerows and the margins of fields and forests.
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Dec 6, 2010 15:11
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Favas and garlic are coming up
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Dec 8, 2010 21:17
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I just got a copy of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds catalog for '11 and was flabbergasted. So many fruits, veggies I'd never heard of and delicious looking varieties of more usual stuff. White belgian carrots, red okras, flat onions, asian melons, long beans, and all sort of oddities that looked and sounded delicious. I wanted to eat it all so much. Is there any reason not to grow unusual varieties of most veggies? The few gardeners I know grow stuff that looks more or less identical to the stuff in the grocery store. Are heirlooms just finicky and hard to grow?
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Dec 10, 2010 15:24
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The_Angry_Turtle posted:I just got a copy of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds catalog for '11 and was flabbergasted. So many fruits, veggies I'd never heard of and delicious looking varieties of more usual stuff. White belgian carrots, red okras, flat onions, asian melons, long beans, and all sort of oddities that looked and sounded delicious. I wanted to eat it all so much. No, they are not especially hard to grow, and many are adapted for specific climates and thrive there. Some newer varieties have increased disease resistance or other nice traits, but I think the real reason that people don't grow them more is because the average gardener goes to the garden center, or Home Depot, and they decide the 3 kinds of tomatoes, 1 kind of cherry tomato and the one kind of broccoli that they want to sell 10 million of to the entire country.
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Dec 12, 2010 21:13
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I have a lot of roof space.. I think this year finally Im going to create an awesome garden space up there. I think as well I will just use stuff that I find on craigslist for planters and architecture.. I see plenty of planters and clay pots, the occasional topsoil or compost. I guess one day I need to get up there and do some measurements.
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Dec 15, 2010 10:17
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Turkeybone posted:I have a lot of roof space.. I think this year finally Im going to create an awesome garden space up there. I think as well I will just use stuff that I find on craigslist for planters and architecture.. I see plenty of planters and clay pots, the occasional topsoil or compost. I guess one day I need to get up there and do some measurements. I'm not familiar with the kind of roof you have, but insurance companies generally aren't to keen on DIY roof gardening, on account of the potential for damage, leaks, etc. Just something to keep in mind.
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Dec 15, 2010 15:03
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jovial_cynic posted:I'm not familiar with the kind of roof you have, but insurance companies generally aren't to keen on DIY roof gardening, on account of the potential for damage, leaks, etc. Just something to keep in mind. Im a renter, and previous tenants have had pretty extensive stuff up there, so between that and careful research and planning (one of the owners of my restaurant has another location with a rooftop garden so I will consult him for all the gritty details), I think I will be all set.
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Dec 15, 2010 16:32
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Hey, New poster in this neck of the woods, and recent veggie gardening enthusiast. I started growing a veggie and herb garden at home during the summer, and from what I hear it's doing pretty well. My home is in the north of England and we live opposite a farm that grows oilseed rape, so the soil can't be too awful. I found a plot at the back of the garden that was overrun with weeds and strays, took a while but managed to clear an area:  Click here for the full 604x453 image. Here we have Runner beans, Strawberries (not wild) , Potatoes , a very ill looking courgette (which I stood on ) and a bunch of Sprouts (at my mother's request - I can't stand them). Since the photo was taken everything has survived and is doing pretty well + pest free.. except the courgette - which never really recovered  Further down though I found :  This is fennel gone completely apeshit. Since then I've dried the seeds and eaten them in things worked great, the seeds are also a lot bigger when dried compared to the ones you buy in a shop. On top of that I dried out some Marjoram (basically variegated oregano) Sage (also goes apeshit in the garden) and Rosemary. I've cooked with all of these and have to say doing your own dried herbs works a treat.
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Dec 17, 2010 03:13
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One critical point, make sure you have a proper scarecrow to safeguard your basil, arugula, and squash... http://www.frequency.com/video/ultimate/598402?embed=true
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Dec 17, 2010 05:37
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Last summer, I found a clause in my rental agreement that said I had to maintain the bushes, weeds, etc. Long story short, I ripped out some vines that my neighbor assured me were lilac but turned out to be poison ivy. This area, though, looks like great territory for a garden. Can I go ahead and just turn the ground and start planting? Or should I worry about poison ivy contaminating/overgrowing my crops? Also, what's a great way to keep squirrels off of crops? Because the ones that live in my neighborhood are absolutely fearless.
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Dec 20, 2010 18:44
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ItalicSquirrels posted:Last summer, I found a clause in my rental agreement that said I had to maintain the bushes, weeds, etc. Long story short, I ripped out some vines that my neighbor assured me were lilac but turned out to be poison ivy. This area, though, looks like great territory for a garden. Can I go ahead and just turn the ground and start planting? Or should I worry about poison ivy contaminating/overgrowing my crops? I was curious after reading your question, and didn’t find any good answers. I googled “composting poison ivy” and it seemed that there is a lot more speculation than hard facts. The toxin in question is called Urushiol. It is soluble in oil, and like all oils, it does not degrade or decompose that fast. But it is a biological compound, so it will not last forever. Factors that would be in your favor would be if the soil was very rich and high in organic matter, and you lived in a hot, humid climate. All would speed decomposition. However if you live in an area where the ground freezes solid, especially if it tends to be dry the rest of the year, that will slow decomposition. I didn’t find anything firm, but if I were you, I would plant a cover crop like buckwheat or field peas there for the first year, or flowers if you want something pretty, and at the same time monitor the area to make sure none of it grows back. If you find anything on squirrels, let me know and I will pass it on to my boyfriend. He hates them.
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Dec 20, 2010 19:15
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Zeta Taskforce posted:Factors that would be in your favor would be if the soil was very rich and high in organic matter, and you lived in a hot, humid climate. All would speed decomposition. However if you live in an area where the ground freezes solid, especially if it tends to be dry the rest of the year, that will slow decomposition. Oddly enough, I live in Maryland, so I can answer a qualified "yes" to both of those. Ground's frozen solid now, and it's frozen solid because the rest of the year 'damp' is a poor adjective to use when 'sodden' is much more appropriate. But yeah, I'll see if planting a cover crop for a year works well. I don't think that area has ever been much more than a 20' by 5' section of weeds anyways, so getting something in to break up the ground and provide some compost would probably work well. Much obliged!
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Dec 20, 2010 19:29
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Hope the OP doesn't mind, but I may be able to help answer questions. I used to work in university Extension (think Hank Kimball from Green Acres), and worked with a ton of backyard gardeners and big agriculture alike. I've got BS/MS degrees in crop science and a Ph.D. in soil fertility. I am more than happy to help; ask away here or in PM. Edit: I also grew up on a farm, and have been gardening a long time, just so you don't think I'm a clueless academic! CropGuru fucked around with this message at 20:06 on Dec 21, 2010 |
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Dec 21, 2010 19:34
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ItalicSquirrels posted:Last summer, I found a clause in my rental agreement that said I had to maintain the bushes, weeds, etc. Long story short, I ripped out some vines that my neighbor assured me were lilac but turned out to be poison ivy. This area, though, looks like great territory for a garden. Can I go ahead and just turn the ground and start planting? Or should I worry about poison ivy contaminating/overgrowing my crops? Poison ivy is a perennial, it's got the potential to come back and haunt you. Tilling up the soil will help and be vigilant on looking for weeds (poison ivy) throughout the season, and that will help. Fences help with wildlife, I will look to see if there's anything specific for squirrels.
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Dec 21, 2010 23:51
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ItalicSquirrels posted:Also, what's a great way to keep squirrels off of crops? Because the ones that live in my neighborhood are absolutely fearless. A couple of cats that you don't feed very well.
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Dec 23, 2010 16:37
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El Bano posted:A couple of cats that you don't feed very well. Seconding. Though if they really are aggressive and numerous, it won't help. I am extremely worried about that in my new woodsy neighborhood. I was ravaged by squirrels last summer, in my old neighborhood, with a ferocious roommate's cat on the prowl (who'd been very helpful previous years, in less evil ballsy squirrel-ridden areas; once one even charged ME at that house). Now our new roommate has an indoor kitty, but at least the squirrels seem less vicious. Gerrins posted:My home is in the north of England and we live opposite a farm that grows oilseed rape, so the soil can't be too awful. I was curious about why you grow sprouts in the ground for your mom? It's really easy and quick to do in a jar- does your mom know this? Or is it better to grow it normally?
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Dec 24, 2010 11:37
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