Gardening 2023

Spent this lovely spring day in my garden. 10 tomato plants, 2 jalapenos, 26 lilies, some alyssum…gorgeous day outside. Warm, blue sky not a cloud to be seen.

More to plant tomorrow.

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Envy. Still at least six weeks ‘til I can do that here.

dittos

I am going to try one of these, I have a verry sunny spot for it. :sun_with_face:

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That is a while isn’t it.

Actually, it’s pretty okay for most home gardeners, but for farming, the ground is too wet is some places to start planting yet. It’s going to be a slow roll out, hopefully it isn’t too difficult on farming.

How did that go?

It went well okay. I ran out of containers. Where I live isn’t conducive to direct in-ground planting. I’m doing container planting. I ordered these synthetic fabric pots off of Amazon, that are about $2.25 per pot and are supposed to last a couple of seasons. Since most of what I’m planting in them are annual veggies, I thought they were a good idea. I basically ran out of pots and just got them last night.

I’m going to plant a few more jalapeño plants (I have 4) and some tomatillos. Those are called gooseberries if I recall correctly. They are commonly used in green sauces in Mexican cuisine. They are tart and have a delicious flavor, imo. You have to plant them in pairs for purposes of pollination, so I have four of those.

I also have these beautiful double impatiens and some gorgeously colored double petunias to plant.

The only downside are these neighborhood cats that are jumping into my containers and trying to use them as litter boxes. I was reading how sticking plastic forks upside down into the soil discourages cats.

I may be fighting these cats the way Duke used to battle the squirrels. :grinning:

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I have to battle deer. :roll_eyes:

Containers will be a partial solution for me too, I have been checking on line. Your ground isn’t condusive for gardening? Would manure help? You could get 30 bags worth for $100 or so and get you partner to turn the ground. :grin:
Would that work?

Just make sure that manure is well composted: if it’s still manure, it’s got parasites and toxic concentrations of urine, both bad for plants and soil.

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It’s very thick clay soil. Been fighting it for years, compost, peat, redwood compost, etc…

I think containers are straightforward.

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Gypsum? That’s supposed to be good for breaking down clay…

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I haven’t tried it. I suppose I could give that a whirl. Thanks.

Good points. When I think of manure I usually think of those nice bags you can get from Lowe’s. lol

That would be good. What do you use for fertilizer?

I have a composter and use the material for the garden.

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The garden is just beautiful. I am pleased as punch. I won the battle over the cats wanting to poop in my plants.

I read that inserting plastic forks (tines facing up) should deter the cats from trying to poop in them. Works like a charm. I recommend this for anyone else that runs afoul of our feline friends.

My herb garden is just doing terrifically. I have parsley, sage, chives, spearmint, basil and rosemary. All growing well. I enjoy using the herbs in my recipes.

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I have oregano, sage and mint that grew back from last year. I just planted some basil, thyme, and cilantro last week. I will probably go get a parsley plant down the street, not really crazy about rosemary. I like the fresh herbs for cooking.

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Rosemary is strong, it has to be used sparingly, imo. I like it a lot myself.

Herbs add so much freshness and flavor to dishes. I think I’m going to plant some garlic cloves as well.

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Plant garlic in the fall I believe and harvest in the spring. Yeah I can’t really do much of a garden here but at least I have some fresh herbs.

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I figured you couldn’t plant as much as you used to before. Herbs are practical gardening.

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