Gardens or containers

[gwynmarilyn]

I been reading of problems with CA farmers and lack of water. Seems there will be little to no food grown in some areas. I hope that all of you will think about set something up for yourself and families. I am doing Container gardening and growing sprouts as well. Also useing your local Farmers Market when they open up this spring. Many of you may feel there nothing to worry about but I am one of those who some might call chicken little. But after last fall and all the lay-offs I hope that all of you will look for ways to protect yourself.

I am sure our new President will do what he can. But God helps those who help themselfs. Please think about it. I not been around a lot. So some of you may not know me. Still I am a long time fan and convention goer. :cool:

[Sam]

:D *Sam waving at Gwynmarilyn!*
Hey Lady. Great to see you!
I agree with you it would be a great precautionary measure to take.
With the weird weather patterns and the economy being what it is....I certainly can't hurt. If nothing else it'll sure save on the grocery bill and the extra money will come in handy for other things.
Even President Obama has said on numerous occassions: "Things will definitely get worse before they get better.".

[Littledevil]

Come spring I am considering planting a small garden for some vegatables. Groceries are so expensive. I just went to walmart, bought nothing but food and spent $300. Feel like the food I bought will last two weeks if I am lucky. And I do the deals and clip coupons for everything I can.

[gwynmarilyn]

Planning is what winter for when comes to gardening. If you are planning to use containers find a donut shop and buy white food plastic buckets and drill holes in and you can grow any number food item in them. Carrots to berry bushes.
Also one can grow potatoes in plastic bags which can be dump later instead trying dig up potatoes.

Strawberry can be grown in hanging planters. If you do not have lots of ground for full garden.

Order seed catalogs to give you ideas. So many type of Tomatoes it hard to choose they even have one now that seedless but only Burpee's catalog has that. I have friend that need that so I was out look for it.

Cost of food is not the only reason to think of gardening but safety it seem like knowing where one food comes from is becoming important.

Gardening is not easy but then there something about eating a meal you grew. And it also take trail and error to do good job. We have gotten so far from what our grandparent did. Again I also add Do support your local Farmer Market.

[Sam]

:eek: Grandparents? Gosh do I feel old! We grew our own as kids and did the canning and freezing ourselves. Even made homemade jams, jellies, and wine.
But I have forgotten most of what I learned on that front. I hated farm life. Guess I didn't realize how good it was. We always got our seeds from Burpee's. Dad swore by their quality.
Any tips you have would be welcome.
Have you tried the strawberry trees that I have seen ads for? I wonder how well one would grow or taste.

[wisdom]

Hi all. I find this conversation very important, because I have noticed prices of food going up. I love gardening esp. for vegetables. I grew some carrots last year and although they were not as big as Burpee's promised, it was sweet and good. This year I got lazy and I have an empty garden. But you have inspired me to do something about this and I will have to plant some carrots, they survive through the cold season. But I am hoping for some other veges that do not require much watering... any ideas?:)

[Sam]

Hi Wisdom.
I think Gwynmarilyn had a great idea with the hanging baskets. That way they can be easily stored inside when it's cold weather and by spring you should have some nice sized plants to transplant into the garden.
Your Burpees catalogue should have a listing out by the seeds as to when the best time to grow them is and what climates they grow best in.

[gwynmarilyn]

Clearly one reason I hope others will start gardens is for safety of ones food.
Sad to say we have had to many scares these past years from pet food to the last-est Peanuts. We will never be able to stay as safe as we should be, but trying to take care of ourselves is a start.

What seeds one uses is important also not knowing how many of you know about the bee problems, I sud jest that you look into it. One need to plant flowers to make your space inviting to them. We seem to be killing off bees which should we lose them we will find ourselves die out not to many years after them.

Also I read some reports of death of bats in the Northeast of USA. We need them for eating bugs.

But back to gardens. We have large choice of catalogs for seeds. And so many types of plants more then we see in stores. Which is why I say one should support Farmer Markets to try some different type of food and talk to them about cooking and growing them. Till finding all the food you like to grow.

This year I will be using the upside down baskets for my Tomatoes. Also I have Argo-garden in my kitchen. To grow greens though the winter. And as I said I can and do grow sprouts. Just get the right seeds. Sprouts for salads and soups. I been lucky my one brother grew some chickens so I had birds that I knew where they came from. For the last year. Also he brings me chicken shit for my garden containers. But getting one hand dirty with all of it does make a connection with earth that we need to feel if we are to understand what happen around us.

[Littledevil]

Very true gwyn. Hubby always teases me that I have a black thumb and that plants and flowers fear me.:rolleyes: I did have one succesfull flower garden and want to get back into it. This winter has killed most of my flowers, So I have to start over. A veg. garden will take a lot of work. At least for me to not kill everything as my hubby tells me.

[Coolwater]

One thing to consider when deciding whether to use containers or your yard, is pesticides and other toxins. Don't plant close to your home if your house has ever been protected from termites or other pests. Don't plant where run-off water from your neighbors' grass and garden pesticides will flow. Find out what your neighborhood was before it was a community. Check to see what sort of industrial effluvia might be coming down out of the sky or flowing along the ditch in your yard. These last come to mind because of a neighborhood in our town in Texas that was that was poisoned by the crud left in the ground and in the water by Monsanto.

Oh, and never graft a tomato plant on to nightshade. The tomatoes will be hardy and gorgeous and deadly.

Just sayin'.

[Littledevil]

Oh, and never graft a tomato plant on to nightshade. The tomatoes will be hardy and gorgeous and deadly.
Just sayin'.

:eek:Didn't know that, good to know.

[Sam]

:( I lease and the owner doesn't allow an outdoor garden....or really anything much. But that is because he has an underground drain field for the septic tanks and water pipes to the wells and other pipes and cable underground.
But he will allow me to grow things in pots on the back deck.:)

[Coolwater]

There is a hotel in Greece where they have a big pot with a thick grape vine growing in it. It grows up beyond the second story balcony and covers a large trellis that makes shade for the balcony. It is big enough to climb, and was chock full of grapes when we stayed there. Made me rethink container gardens!

[JustBecause]

Sigh... I just wish I could grow anything. Maybe I'll try it again this year. I'm so bad at it, plants wilt when they see me coming. :rolleyes:

[EvanStar4506]

I finally have the room to grow plants. I want a vegetable garden and some dwarf fruit trees. Also lots of flowers. Right now the back yard is just dirt. :(
But picture it being filled with grass, plants, a patio, pavers! That's my dream!

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b263/evanstar/Tuberose/IMGP0740.jpg

[Coolwater]

It's a blank canvas for you, Evanstar. :) Are you along the Sonoran desert somewhere, or is that just the winter landscape?

[EvanStar4506]

It's a blank canvas for you, Evanstar. :) Are you along the Sonoran desert somewhere, or is that just the winter landscape?

No, with all the rain there are weeds and lots of grass growing. Just wish it was the right kind of soil. The minute it5 gets warm all the grass dies because the ground is mostly sand.
Not sure which desert area I live in I just know it's about an hour east of Plam Springs.

[Coolwater]

I'd xeriscape, you know, plant things that grow in the desert like ocotillo, and cacti. That sort of planting saves your water bill, and does well without any fussing. We had a desert garden when we lived in Arizona, and it was so beautiful! And no lawn mowing!

[EvanStar4506]

I'd xeriscape, you know, plant things that grow in the desert like ocotillo, and cacti. That sort of planting saves your water bill, and does well without any fussing. We had a desert garden when we lived in Arizona, and it was so beautiful! And no lawn mowing!

I don't know if we'll go with a desert landscape, but we do want a patio of some type and paver stones instead of concrete. And Charles wants some grass in the back and a little in the front.
That green monster of a bush at the far end of the yard?
That plant was a fly condo.
All around it were flies and on the ground around it too. We have a dairy farm just 3 blocks away so flies are a problem during the fall and summer.
The plant had to go.

[Coolwater]

Fair warning: lawns can be a pain in the desert. They drink up water like mad, and are brown half the year no matter what. In the hotsy totsy neighborhood we rented in in Tempe, there was a neighborhood covenant that said that if you had a lawn, you were obliged to re-sod twice a year so your grass was always green. One type of grass that looked good during the hot season, and another one that looked good during the hotter season.:rolleyes:

[wisdom]

I am actually taking notes as what each one of you mentioned and certainly made good points. Gywn, I forgot to consider about the bees, I wonder if marigold was one of the flowers that attracts bees but they didn't survive in my garden. My soil was too muddy and during summer time it got harder and my garden dried up. I mixed some type of soil but it didn't work, And how much does Argo-garden cost? Does it truly work? Coolwater - we bought an old house and I don't know if it was treated with termites but the water does run off into my garden when it rains. How many years does it take to settle down for this pestisides to do no harm in the soil, do you know? And march is coming, Sam - I am starting to grow seeds in the hanging basket, thanks for the tip. Happy planting everyone!!:D

[Coolwater]

I think termite treatments are usually in the dirt or along the bottom of the house. You might give your local anti-termite company (like Terminix, or whoever) and ask them how it works, and if they treated your house. :confused:

[Scarpetta]

I see you have had quite a discussion on gardens. If you have really clay soil, that becomes hard it is a bit of problem without really re-working the soil. It takes time to add various elements to the soil to make it a good growing medium. Your county extension agent can offer lots of help, and test soil too to see what you need to add.

Don't forget to add stones. ''Ishi wo taten koto " they tell me that is the art of setting stones. I have an area that is reminiscent of an Oriental garden. Every element is not true to that form, but it is a tranquil, place in my garden to sit and read, listen to the birds and the bees! I have used a lot of rock, and stepping stones, a bench, arbor for vining things. Perhaps the desert south west doesn't allow the same plants as the coastal north west but remember to allow a place to sit and reflect if you can in your garden. You can talk to the plants and encourage them to grow. Hey, it might work! :)

[Coolwater]

Sounds very nice, Pet.

Say, does anyone here have any experience with wisteria? A lot of water killed several of our trees, and I'm not planting new ones until we know whether the water is a permanent problem or not. Meanwhile, I'm trying to get wisteria to cover the dead trees, because the dead arbor vitae (arbor morte!) roots are still holding the soil in place and I don't want to pull down them down. My mother's wisteria would cover a tree as fast as kudzu when she didn't keep it trimmed, but mine is just sitting there getting bushy at the base of the trees. Do you think it would help if I pruned it to encourage it to grow upwards?

[Scarpetta]

What I know about wisteria is they are generally prolific but your soil pH does have to be right.

As for the 'bushy' those I know who have grown it say you can't over prune it! I would think that if it doesn't do what usually comes naturally to it, like grow vines up to 12 feet in a season, you haven't got the right drainage and/or the pH is out of whack.

"Burpee: Complete Gardener", published in 1995 by Macmillan, Inc., says wisteria require a location that receives full sun with well-draining soil.

You mentioned a water problem killing the trees. Perhaps that is also preventing the wisteria to thrive.

[Coolwater]

Good drainage?? How did we miss that? One of my neighbors has wisteria growing well in soggier soil than mine, so I thought it was a good choice! Well, all three vines are bushy and a good dark green, so I'll prune the heck out of them, and see how they like that sort of mistreatment. Up, up! I'm coming with my secateurs! Reach for the sky, you sinuous vines!

[gwynmarilyn]

The Areogardens are costly. But yes they do work. I am growing tomatoes and lettus right now. Also it did great on growing herbs. I have bought three now. Once I bought the first one I look for sales on other models growers. And I bought one three hole one for flowers that one can eat. Just add them to salads. But you must grow the right ones for that.

For attract bees it seem sunflowers are suppost do well but any flower is good.
With news that the Whitehouse is planning a kitchen garden I think that many people will looking into what they might grow.
Remember it take time to learn how to garden. So do not give up if you fail this year. Also for those who have land nut trees are also good to grow.

[Coolwater]

We have walnut trees that produce bushels of very bitter walnuts. The squirrels love them, but no one else seems to be a fan. The concord grapes I put in were easy. They are going crazy on the fence... GRAPES! :eek: Maybe wild grapes will grow up over the dead trees? They grow in the woods near here. Anyone here ever transplant wild grapes?

[Lt.Mac]

I don't know about transplanting grapes but if you can wrangle them in the right direction they will grow like crazy-
around here we have grapes growing everywhere

[Coolwater]

(rattling granules of fertilizer in a can, tentatively followed by a vine) Here grapie, good grape! Cooome on. Come on, grapie, isn't this a nice tree? See? There's sunlight up there, and this tree will take you right to it...

[appeace]

Bwwwwaaaa:D
I seem to remember my great g-mum cutting vines, putting them in water in a glass jar outside (maybe digging them up???)
and digging a hole and putting them in around her arbor---they grew and produced for many years, but then everything grows bigger in Texas--:rolleyes:

[Lt.Mac]

You been drinking them grapes?

It is possible- I never said it would be easy

[appeace]

No, my very Southern Baptist gg-mum ???--are you kiddin:eek:
Sure did eat em though! Jelly and preserves--YUM!!!!!!!;)

[Valoise]

I've been looking at self-watering containers a lot for my tomatoes. Since I do like to travel a little, I wanted to find a way to be gone for a few days and not find my vegetables dead from lack of water. But the store-bought self waterers are too expensive.

Then I found these instructions on how to make your own from plastic storage containers. I am SO going to do this for the tomatoes, and maybe for peppers and eggplant, too. This way I can devote my raised beds to the expanded herb garden I've been wanting to create.

http://earthtainer.tomatofest.com/

Valoise

[Coolwater]

That is VERY clever. I didn't download the pdf,I bookmarked the page; did you notice what the wicking basket is made of?

You know, I was wondering if those waterglobes that you find in Wal-Mart for house plants, could be duplicated in larger form by using two liter bottles and a piece of stiff hose?

[Valoise]

That is VERY clever. I didn't download the pdf,I bookmarked the page; did you notice what the wicking basket is made of?

You know, I was wondering if those waterglobes that you find in Wal-Mart for house plants, could be duplicated in larger form by using two liter bottles and a piece of stiff hose?

I didn't download the pdf but did watch the first video. The wicking basket was something used for water features, available at home improvement or garden supply stores.

In lieu of water globes you could take a 2 liter plastic bottle, punch a bunch of holes in the bottom and sink it down into a large pot or planter. Leave the top off the bottle, fill it with water and it should gradually seep down into the pot. Theoretically, that is. I've seen directions for that but haven't done it myself.

[Coolwater]

So the potting soil itself would be the wick? Makes sense. I'm thinking, too, that if you only have a single large pot of tomatoes, instead of a large number of them, you could leave the original neck of the bottle on for filling, and the decreased surface area would reduce the water lost to evaporation.

[Sam]

Bwwwwaaaa:D
I seem to remember my great g-mum cutting vines, putting them in water in a glass jar outside (maybe digging them up???)
and digging a hole and putting them in around her arbor---they grew and produced for many years, but then everything grows bigger in Texas--:rolleyes:

You are right Appeace. My Grandmother did that too. If you can pull up part of the root known as the vein with it then you can put it in a jar of water which will allow it to grow more roots. Then it can be transplanted.
You can do wisteria the same way.
You can also pick a gardenia from a bush and put it in water and it will make roots. But you have to break it off in a certain place.
I saw some planters for tomatoes, strawberries and peppers being advertised which I found interesting.
They worked on a similar scale to what Cool and Val were discussing.
It's a green plastic container with holes on the sides for you to stick the plants into. Then you add the soil and water and they hang on a plant stand.
The add also says you can plant herbs in it. The catch is they sell for about 50 bucks each.
:p But those strawberries looked very tasty!!

[appeace]

Yikes! Lotsa $$$$:(
My across the street neighbor grows her strawberries and some herbs in hanging baskets on her front and back porch!
I dont know how she started them but all she has to do is step out and water and pick fresh goods!!:eek:
Next time I see her out I will ask how she started them:D

[Littledevil]

Ok, I need some help. A few weeks ago I planted different types of flowers in my garden and in some containers. This happened before in the containers and never could figure out why or what was causing it. In one of my planters right now, I added two different colors of impatients to one of my containers. I water either every day or at least every other day. They were fine yesterday, but today they look like they are dying. The stems just break off, almost as if they were partially chewed to weaken them. The seeds I planted in the garden are doing fine, however one small group of the seedlings look like they are starting to whither. Do I have pests or am I doing something wrong? Help!

[appeace]

Are the stems mushy? If so, you have appeace over-watering syndrome!
Im the only one I know who can kill wandering jew ivy by over watering! Therefore, I have to mark on my calendar one day a week to water and then get out the measuring cup so I do not put but one cup per plant!--Ackkkkkk:cool:
I think they call it over-mothering???????:D

[Sam]

:( Sounds like Appeace could be right LD. I used to have a green thumb when I was younger but not anymore. That always happens to my plants too.

BTW I saw those hanging planters that were advertised on TV for about $50.00
at Walmart for $10.00. I'm debating on whether or not to buy one. :rolleyes: Maybe I'll just convince daughter to buy one and see how well it works. That is if Peanut does eat it and Gracie doesn't add it to her sand box.

[Coolwater]

$10??? Ooh, thanks, Sam; I was thinking of getting one for my dad and my mother-in-law. They're both not getting around too well (one has feedback troubles in his feet, and the other has arthritis), and that sort of container might let them keep gardening. I'm off to Wally World, then!

Isn't it odd to be spending more on postage than the product? Happens to me a lot these days, but many of the things that help out are cheap to buy, but expensive to ship.

[Littledevil]

It's a possibility, I am going to cut back on my watering. I also noticed tiny bugs that look similar to black ants but can't tell. I now see a orange sticky substance like sap on one of the stems. I also did some looking around and i am also going to try an organic pest control. I found a recipe that calls for water, garlic, veg. oil, and dish soap. Anyone know what kind of bug it could be. It looks smaller than a normal black ant.

[appeace]

If they are gnats--that might confirm the "appeace over-watering syndrome":D
I always heard that dish soap would damage plants?????????
any one else know???

[Coolwater]

My mother used a dilute mix of warm water and dishsoap to kill aphids and other critters, but the ones that live in the potting soil, like the gnats and white flies, she said could only be killed by repotting the plant in clean dirt. You have to rinse the plants roots well, before you put them in the new dirt. She had a green thumb; I'd probably kill 'em doing that.

OK, stupid thing for the day: I've lost a bag with four tomato plants in it. Hey, presto! >>poof!<< Gone! The darn thing doesn't seem to be anywhere.

The planters were all gone from Wal-Mart, too, but I might still be able to order them on-line.

[Sam]

Cool you might have better luck checking at another Walmart in a nearby town.

I was always told NEVER to remove the dirt from around the root of a plant. I Know that any type of oil will kill plants and most detergents will.
I don't know how organic it is but I've always used Sevin Dust for garden pest control.
I do think it is a good idea to repot them and see how that works.

[Coolwater]

I used to swear by Sevin, but then the wicked fleas grew immune to the stuff. Thank goodness for new and better forms of flea control! Does Sevin still work well for other bugs?

[Sam]

;) Yep Cool it does.
We used it for flea control too. Every time we moved into a new house Coco would get blasted with fleas and it was really bad for her. But what we found we could do was to treat the carpet, floors and lawn with sevin dust 7 days before moving in. We also made sure to treat her fur with Frontline. That way the fleas would have died and so would any eggs that hatched out.

[Littledevil]

Well I am pretty sure that I have a pest control problem. I didn't water the plants for the last few days and they have gotten worse. Last night I sprayed this stuff called Spectracide on my garden and my potted plants and I have seen a reduction of insect life, but it says takes about 24 hours to kill above and below soil. I am going to treat again tonight and try to eradicate the little buggers. Then this weekend I am going to buy some really good soil and start from scratch on the potted plant. I may even repot some of my other plants with the better soil. I have a suspician my problem started with the cheap potting soil I bought. Going to use Miracle Grow instead.

I am tired of listening to my husband tell me I have a black thumb than a green thumb. I had this problem last year too. Which is why he tells me I kill all plant life. He forgets I had a great Garden for over a year at our other house before we moved. Everything grew and was beautiful. I also think there may be a PH problem as well because some of our zeroscape plants in the front have not done well at all and they require little water. So Frsutrating!!!!!!!!!:confused::mad::confused::mad:

[Sam]

LD this might explain your problem and help you out.;)
http://en.allexperts.com/q/House-Plants-721/Little-black-flies.htm

[Coolwater]

You've heard me complaining about the pond that develops in our back yard when it rains. It's very bad for the trees. Well, it has been raining very hard here in America's breadbasket of late, and the pond is now so stable that we have ducks. Seriously. A handsome pair of mallards. I've even seen them driving off other ducks, which suggests that they may want to lay eggs. There is a fence running halfway across the pond, but even without it, the water is too cold for the dogs to swim over and harass the ducks. Dachshunds don't swim well, and I had to wade out and rescue one who tried, and got stranded on a big rock.

Someone on the HLbb pointed out that the ducks are migratory, and may be protected by law! Oh no! My backyard is a riparian wetland!!!

Ridiculous.

[appeace]

I dont think Mallards are protected unless they have been recently. However, I know how you feel as when the wheat comes up in our fields we have Snow Geese move in and stay about 4 or 5 weeks! They eat bare patches in the wheat and we cant do anything since you have to buy stamps to hunt just one.
It is hilarious to watch traffic stop on the highway and folks get out to take pics and watch the flock! :D All the honking noise spooks our cattle but its something to see:eek:

[Sam]

:eek: Cool run to Wally World Quick!! They just got a new supply of those hanging basket/bags we were discussing!!;)

[Coolwater]

Oh, Sam!! Thanks!!

[Sam]

;) You are Welcome Cool.
AND if it keeps raining here....you can just ship your ducks to my daughter's house. The two ponds on their property overflowed last month to her back door.
They were just beginning to dry out so they could haul some fill dirt in when it started raining Thursday. We have had rain every day since and the forecast for the next seven days is 50 to 60 percent rain.:rolleyes:

BUT...ON THE BRIGHT SIDE....:p I can get a rowboat to her house and sit on her porch and fish. I'll just need Grace to hold the reel for me.;) and teach Peanut to use the net.