Gardening threads (merged)

[luckytxn 2,264]

I thought I had the after pics when I transplanted the two rose bushes to fill the gaping hole but can't find them. I will when I return home take pics if possible. I did buy a new grill this year and wanted to show a pic of it.

Again I apologize.

[Shoot Em Straight 385]

Fire it up!!! Texas BBQ style

[luckytxn 2,264]

Fire it up!!! Texas BBQ style

Fired it up twice already. It is a nice grill.

[luckytxn 2,264]

The storm this last week hurt my roses a bit. All flower beds including the new one got beat up. I fixed them up and they look decent now. The rose bushes had to be trimmed a bit to trim off the broken branches. Almost every rose was knocked off or something like it. I will be back home this weekend to keep mending them. Will try to remember to take pictures.

[*Snowdrop* 604]

I'm still in the UK (hearing reports that the garden is "fine, stop bugging me about it" but won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes!)

In lieu of pictures from the actual garden I wondered if anyone else is using Pinterest. This is where I collect all my garden related TODOs and ideas: http://pinterest.com/lynnesusanne/garden/

[luckytxn 2,264]

I'm still in the UK (hearing reports that the garden is "fine, stop bugging me about it" but won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes!)

In lieu of pictures from the actual garden I wondered if anyone else is using Pinterest. This is where I collect all my garden related TODOs and ideas: http://pinterest.com...susanne/garden/

Keep bugging him. It works for me when my wife does it. I just do it to make her quiet. I am sure the garden will be fine. Looking forward to see pics. Hope the trip is going well.

I have heard of pinterest lately and mean to check it out. Love the pics you collected. Gave me a couple of ideas. Thanks.

I will be home this weekend and have plans to go get the flowers and start planting some. I am hoping the rose bushes have mended well. Hard to believe one storm can wreak so much havoc. I told my wife that the rose bed is off limits and of course she said she would follow the parameters I set but I know she will not so I see a future disagreeable episode or two

[Shoot Em Straight 385]

Past winter I laced this loquat tree and got a lot of flack from the family until we see the results...quality fruit over quantity.

[luckytxn 2,264]

Past winter I laced this loquat tree and got a lot of flack from the family until we see the results...quality fruit over quantity.

Beautiful picture. Thanks for posting it. I am not sure what you mean by lace the loquat but since the fruit looks great.

[Shoot Em Straight 385]

Beautiful picture. Thanks for posting it. I am not sure what you mean by lace the loquat but since the fruit looks great.

pruning and thinning of limbs so that the tree continues to thrive

The family thought I had bad intentions becasue I am not fond of the fruit but it worked wonders for the harvest! Next to ripen are apricots!! Yum.

[luckytxn 2,264]

pruning and thinning of limbs so that the tree continues to thrive

The family thought I had bad intentions becasue I am not fond of the fruit but it worked wonders for the harvest! Next to ripen are apricots!! Yum.

Oh OK. All trees need thinning. The more the sunlight can enter the interior the better. Dead limbs need to be taken out for sure. Any cross branches need taken out. The tree and plants then put more energy into producing fruit. If one wants bigger fruit then when the buds come out thin those out also. I am debating with myself on thinning the orange tree I have. The buds really came out big time this year after the pruning I did to it a month ago. My wife will hate it if I do but I just won't tell her.

[luckytxn 2,264]

I love planting i am very found of growing rose flowers.

Howdy and welcome to the Gardening section. As you can see from my pictures I love my roses also. You liking growing roses shows you are a good person. I do hope you come back and chat and tell us about your planting. If you have any pictures would be awesome but not needed.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Well, a heavy day in the garden today -delayed by 3 more weeks than I had expected due to all of the chaos that seems to be my life these days!

We got the lower garden terrace tilled and planted today - 4 Beefstake tomatoes, 4 Early Girl tomatoes, 1 basil plant and the whole surrounded by marigolds. Then in the next space an acorn squash and a melon. Next section over - 3 large mounds with 4 summer squash each facing the different directions; followed by two large mounds doing the same with cucumbers. In the smaller garden space right behind the house I planted 2 more tomato plants, a dill weed plant, a Poblano pepper, 2 jalapeno peppers, 1 cayenne pepper and 1 sweet banana pepper. I already have 3 other varieties of sweet peppers planted so hopefully they will all do well. The cabbages are ready to harvest so I planted a Spaghetti squash beside them and will harvest the cabbages this week. Two of the broccoli are almost ready to harvest and when they are done I'll put in more tomatoes there. I already have 2 eggplants in this garden along with a row of leeks, garlic and onions. The rosemary bush and the horse-radish are also in this garden along with more basil. We also planted more garlic along the front edges of the first terrace lawyer garden. I have to buy more mulch on Monday as with the baking heat of summer nothing will survive without lots of mulch.

In the flower beds I still have to finish the grass weeding on the new section we made when we rebuilt the garden layout with bricks, and put in some beebalm there next to the roses. There are 3 different types of mint that grow under the roses and that helps to keep down the weeds. Our pear trees have small pears - although it is a bad year here for fire blight and I need to trim off more obviously affected branches. They are Kieffer pears so are supposed to be somewhat immune so it is unlikely the trees will die. I did spray them during their blossoming period as well with the appropriate treatment but fireblight is so bad.

Our fig tree also has small figs starting and the rhubarb plant will probably be harvested in a few days as well as it is really full. The various herbs are all beginning to do really well - it is just going to be a matter now of keeping up with the weeding. We are still replacing the landscape timbers we used to terrace the hill originally, but most of that project will now wait until cooler weather.

As soon as I can I'll try to post some photos. The hillside still needs a lot more taming but at least we're getting there. Next year we hope to raise the asparagus bed so it isn't so much on a tilt, which will make it easier to keep the weeds out as well. For so many years nothing would grow in this hill - in some places not even weeds. It is undergoing a transformation and even though it is definitely a multi-year project, it will look good when it is all done. This year I definitely have to divide the iris and thin hem out so that they can continue to thrive. I'll need to find a place for the divisions so, will probably work on further up the hillside.

Right now at the side of the house the buttercup hydrangea is in bloom along with the clematis and the wisteria at our corner of the neighbour's fence. The roses are going into their summer straggles as the heat continues with little rain. They were lovely earlier this Spring and will be lovely again in the Fall. In the summer, they just kind of 'endure' where they are.

Edited May 20, 2012 by Kathryn41

[Shoot Em Straight 385]

Wow Kathryn...you have eliminated a grocery shopping list! It all must look lovely!

....how's one's back after all that????

[luckytxn 2,264]

Well, a heavy day in the garden today -delayed by 3 more weeks than I had expected due to all of the chaos that seems to be my life these days!

We got the lower garden terrace tilled and planted today - 4 Beefstake tomatoes, 4 Early Girl tomatoes, 1 basil plant and the whole surrounded by marigolds. Then in the next space an acorn squash and a melon. Next section over - 3 large mounds with 4 summer squash each facing the different directions; followed by two large mounds doing the same with cucumbers. In the smaller garden space right behind the house I planted 2 more tomato plants, a dill weed plant, a Poblano pepper, 2 jalapeno peppers, 1 cayenne pepper and 1 sweet banana pepper. I already have 3 other varieties of sweet peppers planted so hopefully they will all do well. The cabbages are ready to harvest so I planted a Spaghetti squash beside them and will harvest the cabbages this week. Two of the broccoli are almost ready to harvest and when they are done I'll put in more tomatoes there. I already have 2 eggplants in this garden along with a row of leeks, garlic and onions. The rosemary bush and the horse-radish are also in this garden along with more basil. We also planted more garlic along the front edges of the first terrace lawyer garden. I have to buy more mulch on Monday as with the baking heat of summer nothing will survive without lots of mulch.

In the flower beds I still have to finish the grass weeding on the new section we made when we rebuilt the garden layout with bricks, and put in some beebalm there next to the roses. There are 3 different types of mint that grow under the roses and that helps to keep down the weeds. Our pear trees have small pears - although it is a bad year here for fire blight and I need to trim off more obviously affected branches. They are Kieffer pears so are supposed to be somewhat immune so it is unlikely the trees will die. I did spray them during their blossoming period as well with the appropriate treatment but fireblight is so bad.

Our fig tree also has small figs starting and the rhubarb plant will probably be harvested in a few days as well as it is really full. The various herbs are all beginning to do really well - it is just going to be a matter now of keeping up with the weeding. We are still replacing the landscape timbers we used to terrace the hill originally, but most of that project will now wait until cooler weather.

As soon as I can I'll try to post some photos. The hillside still needs a lot more taming but at least we're getting there. Next year we hope to raise the asparagus bed so it isn't so much on a tilt, which will make it easier to keep the weeds out as well. For so many years nothing would grow in this hill - in some places not even weeds. It is undergoing a transformation and even though it is definitely a multi-year project, it will look good when it is all done. This year I definitely have to divide the iris and thin hem out so that they can continue to thrive. I'll need to find a place for the divisions so, will probably work on further up the hillside.

Right now at the side of the house the buttercup hydrangea is in bloom along with the clematis and the wisteria at our corner of the neighbour's fence. The roses are going into their summer straggles as the heat continues with little rain. They were lovely earlier this Spring and will be lovely again in the Fall. In the summer, they just kind of 'endure' where they are.

Wow. That is a lot of work there. I will be looking forward to the pics for sure. Since we are buying a house soon my veggie garden will have to wait but I see a lot of work next year for me. I am wondering though since you are doing so much terracing about the soil. What mixture of soil to sand you have? Lot of clay? I guess I can see for myself when the pics come. I also know about the weeding. I am constantly weeding.

Today is massacre the trees day here. I have hit every tree around the business and there was piles of limbs all over the place. The trees look great now though. Just taking a break and now I am going to go feed the trees and water them well. They will forgive me soon enough.

I am about to go and find what flowers to plant in a couple of beds today. Not too sure what but will try to remember to take pics of before and after. The rose bushes look better. Some roses are coming out again and can tell they will survive but one may be a loss. I like that bush though and decided this morning to try and save it and tend it more and hope for a come back.

[*Snowdrop* 604]

Back home and the garden is absolutely blooming. We've crossed that point in the Spring here in Virginia where the sun and the rain create the perfect conditions to just make everything grow like crazy. The grass and the weeds too unfortunately.

Here's a pic from just over a month ago:

And here is what it looks like now: