Gardening Thread- Show me your gardens!

My peppers are still going strong. I missed the fall planting of broccoli.

 

That is a sweet garden there! And Monarchs! When we moved to Lockhart in 1985, it was on the migratory path, but that changed after only a few years. This year, is the first in SEVERAL years I have seen even one. I caught one on the Mexican Bird of Paradise plant at the mailbox a few weeks back, and have seen maybe 2 or 3 out back with the Hibiscus, Turks Cap, Passion Flowers, etc. But did not get a shot except for this first one. Still 3 or 4 are better than none. I'm encouraged.



Also, a few Swallowtail - that I can never catch.



Last year, we had HUNDREDS of the "Passion Flower Butterfly" around the back where the Passions are. I guess it's cyclical. I shot a couple vids of the Hummers, but I cannot make them appear, so I will leave it at that for now.

Your local is "Indian Country" = South Eastern OKLA?

 

Nice pics. We get a lot of Swallowtails too. State butterfly actually. Im in Tulsa.

 

Gardening, not garden, but all the same to me. Went to a new friends shop @Texoma in the TTC group, and one of the trades with his wife was a couple of my Hibiscus cuttings for some of the Purple Sage they were clearing out. Well, the landscapers chopped one, and my wife isn't sure she wants me to put them where I want, but I took this poor guy anyway, and potted him up to see if I could keep him going, and what it might look like. I will cut it way back once leaves stop falling off. Not much for roots, but, I've made worse live - we shall see. And, because the stupid black and orange bugs are back eating the peppers, despite my spray, I bought in some peppers - here are a couple Purple Bells @T4Rgurl!



Here's the sage. As many leaves on it as in the back of the truck - despite the rain!



Cleaned off some of the low growth. You can see it was pretty much chopped out, but it was in tough terrain.



Some root stimulator for what is there.



Some more root stimulator, and a pot for this guy!



All potted up and some stakes and ties, and ready to go.....somewhere!



I'll just keep it by Little Big Red for now! If it recovers, I will trim it back short, and see if I can get it to spread out a bit.

 

I'll say it again. All true gardeners are optimists. Keep us posted.

 

wow thats pretty cool about the sage. Hope it keeps going.

 

Awww Supercute!!!!!

 

well not garden but 2 of the apple trees did good this year. only the second year/summer in the ground...Some were starting to split at the top only because I waited a little too long. I prob should have pulled them 1 Oct.

 

Garden -not garden, here's a little fun for fall. Two years ago, when I was putting up the greenhouse, lovely wife gave me the top of a pineapple. Put it is some soil in the green house over winter. Spring - it deserved a pot! Was surprised. What I have on the computer now doesn't go back all the way, but here is a Dole, grown in my back yard, which still flips me out. There was a little gecko that lived in it until the repot. Sorry, bud.....Here it goes. These are all from this year. Apparently, I wasn't amazed until I was....

Is that what we think it is?




Uh, hello!





The wife says it's time to harvest!





And I thought I had a picture of the cutting, but any, it went on the grill



And the cut top, is now making another. As is the mother plant, which I will trim up before greenhouse duty. Hope you enjoyed!

 

@T4Rgurl - aimed at you! You can do this for fun too!

 

I have one of those! Doesn't look that good, though...
But, it's also in a much more northerly climate, and it basically spends 6 months out of the year asleep. No growth during the winter, unfortunately.

 

For cereals, I think I am about to equate to the last 1.5 years of being a horrid farmer....to distilled water. Don't give it to living things.

@scottalot

 

Very cool

 

No doubt lol distilled water is antithetical to cultivating quality produce

Instead of trying to suppress the microbes you should be developing and encouraging the beneficial herd

 

Uh. Yeah. Lol.

Lots of intended misinformation, IMO, in regards to my type of farming. This was a big one. Plenty of rec's on that type of water, even from another person I know/talk to about farming.

It seems to explain a lot of what has happened, and why, as to why I have struggled. I typically try 2 at a time, I NEVER have grown 2 together however, 1 always ends up dead, barely makes it past the seedling stage. My last try, 1 sprouted, opened the 1st set of round tip leafs...then plunged into a death spiral. The ones that do make it, they will get to 3/4 weeks, mostly ok. Then they as well will begin taking a death spiral that I have, until now, been stumped as to why. They would go downhill, and nothing made a difference, they only got worse honestly. But if the distilled caused the problems, pumping more distilled in, was only going to quicken the bad things.

I started a new last week. 2 again. No distilled this time. No trust in the local tap, so I have been using Spring Water. They took just a bit longer for the taproots to starting emerging, now however, they are taller than anything that I have previously done at this early stage. And both appear to be making it. If each could get even a couple nodes this next week, I would be like

I saw something in here about "Farmers are optimistic folks". I think it applies here. 1.5 years of killing plants. Still haven't given up. Maybe a little more "rage filled persistence" than "optimism" though, lol.

 

Sounds like u may be killing em with kindness lol
Some plants respond better to inattentiveness
And never forget some people just have green thumbs and some kill every plant they get near. I’m usually amongst the latter lol.
If ur still running commercial premixed organic soil u might try something else, google moonshine man mix for a good place to start. Add some blackstrap molasses (I forget how much it’s been a very long time lol) to ur water to feed the herd
And don’t overwater. Let those suckers dry out almost too much before u give em more, they’ll thank you for it

 

Killing em' with something, lol.

Looked up the MSMM, that's pretty solid. Might give something like it a little try on my next one, after this newest one, that is going to turn out well, for once, I feelz it! The 2 I started are coming along so far. Watered last night, picked up my buckets and they felt really light, went ahead and watered. Today would be day 9.

 

Removed Photenias and planted Nellie Stevens Hollies to block the view of the car lots behind me. Bonus is the birds and bees love my NSH in the front yard.



Rose Creek Abelias are georgeous in the fall. Love these shrubs.



Harvesting spinach and Swiss Chard.

 

Sorry man, I missed this. I planted the top of the home grown so that the remainder of the shell was in potting soil, and the leaves above. I got slow, and haven't harvested the shoots of the mother plant - but the new pineapple from the original is doing well!

 

It's that time of year where the screenhouse gets emptied of the veggies, and the screens come off, and the greenhouse shell comes on, to protect the potted plants from Central Texas winter. So here is a Tale of Two Greenhouses. That's right, not just one. I knew I had too many plants now, so I bought a second greenhouse this summer at a great price. Instead of just a one day swap out, this one took place over 4 days. Mediocre weather, and I just didn't work as long. Supposed to get a freeze of some sort Monday or Tuesday night, so staying warm. So here goes.

That time again. Should have started a week earlier, but what the hey. The screen frame has to come off, and the veggies have to go.


To make room for #2, I have to cut back a bunch of Bougainvillea off the fence.


After the door is gone.


About half removed. there are no more than a dozen screws, and eight pieces of pipe strap that hold all that on.


And it's all off.


Stashed and strapped, out of the way. Screen lasted 2 years, so will be replaced in the spring.


The Hibiscus cuttings will get to stay, along with the good herbs.


Everything on top has to go. Got the last 6 jalapeno.


I sat down for some water, and this was cool.


My table friends out of the way.


I decided to just cut back all the plants first, before dumping the soil out back.


After an overnight storm, look who decided to test the waters for a swim! One big, one small Hibiscus. I rescued them anyway, even though they looked really happy down there.


So, empty and stripped down. I will be raising the left shelf up for taller bottom plants.


Cover up and over


Secured with all those bungie straps. Going to have to make some new ones again - the elastic does rot. I have plenty of those little balls to work with though, from all the covers.


OK, every one from the table gets to go back in.


We are closed for the evening!


Everything starts in a box.


OOOH! An Erector Set!


Roof frame. New frame not as well built as my original - mostly the tack welds that hold the tie bolts. Pretty Chinese, even for made in China.


Side legs on. Actually, took one side back off., rocked it upright, then replaced the legs.


Assembled, bottom connectors on, little orange dots are camping tent anchors. Gave all the screws another final torque.


The wife came out and helped me with the new shell. Thanks, Dear!


The bottom shelves from #1 will let me keep the plants off the grass. So, instead of lots of dead circles, I will just that the brick marks. Yes, it is a little crooked - the left side jogs in a little so we didn't have to dig up the garden to the left.


So, there we go. A tale of two greenhouses. Will I really fill up both?


Sunday morning supervisor, at the drinking fountain of course.


This is #2. Yes, crowded. Rubber plants, Hibiscus, Palm, and more...


#2 left look.


#2 right look.


And this is #1. I STILL am short room, and have to use some of the middle floor. But I can get to everything to water. Not as easily as I hoped, but I can. The wife is right.


#1 left look.


#1 right look


And all the Aloe, small Sago, and Snake plants DID NOT FIT! Cuda is telling me that the wife is right. At least succulents are pretty hardy, and I will only have to cover them for hard freezes. That's it for this year.