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Post by oxbowfarm on Jun 28, 2012 5:13:49 GMT -5
Groundhog is pretty tasty, lots more meals on a groundhog than a gopher. They are easy to catch too.
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Post by circumspice on Jun 28, 2012 17:48:28 GMT -5
Mmm, pheasant. Beats the hell out of gopher, in a pinch. I saw a pheasant saunter slowly across my front yard 3 or 4 days ago. At least I think it was a pheasant... It was a rather large bird with a long neck & it had a white ring around its neck. It's not something that you see around these parts, usually. There are plenty of wild turkeys & even a bunch of roadrunners out here though. *MEEP-MEEP*
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Post by castanea on Jul 6, 2012 21:22:07 GMT -5
Pheasants are my major garden pest. I guess there must be at least a dozen of them that regularly parade through my back yard. They destroy all kinds of things in the process of nesting.
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Post by circumspice on Jul 7, 2012 8:43:34 GMT -5
I just returned home from spending a few days with my cousin's family for Independence Day. While I was there, we discussed this forum, gardening in general & stealth gardening in particular. What I found is that she has several good candidates for stealth gardening growing either wild or feral on her land. She told me I could avail myself of all the plant material I want. So my question is this: How would I best be able to propagate the following plants from a wild/feral population of plants?
1. Redbud - wild 2. Lantana - wild 3. Blackhaw - wild 4. Mustang Grape - wild 5. Agarita - wild 6. White Peach (aka/Stonewall Peach) - feral 7. Apricot - domesticated (never produced fruit) 8. Asparagus - domesticated (long neglected)
She also has a few different varieties of Prickly Pear, but I've never had any problems propagating them. ;D
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edwin
gardener
Posts: 141
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Post by edwin on Jul 7, 2012 8:54:01 GMT -5
We had a long neglected asparagus patch - serious amounts of twitch grass in particular. It looks like there were 8 plants surviving. Most are female.
We first re-set up the bed as it was no longer clear where the original beds were. We edged the bed. We weeded - the weeds were as tall as the asparagus. We dug the twitch grass and got maybe 80%. We put on compost.
The following year - we tasted 1 shoot. We had 1-3 shoots per plant. We weeded, watered, and manured, and got most of the rest of the twitch grass. It is possible we damaged roots doing this.
Repeat year 2 - this year some of the plants were beginning to form patches of ferns.
Year 3 we actually started a harvest for 2 weeks. It's looking good. Next year we will do a 4 week harvest.
At the same time, we have started a new asparagus bed, and expanded the old one. This year we will be filling in the spaces between the old plants.
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Post by circumspice on Jul 7, 2012 9:05:41 GMT -5
We had a long neglected asparagus patch - serious amounts of twitch grass in particular. It looks like there were 8 plants surviving. Most are female. We first re-set up the bed as it was no longer clear where the original beds were. We edged the bed. We weeded - the weeds were as tall as the asparagus. We dug the twitch grass and got maybe 80%. We put on compost. The following year - we tasted 1 shoot. We had 1-3 shoots per plant. We weeded, watered, and manured, and got most of the rest of the twitch grass. It is possible we damaged roots doing this. Repeat year 2 - this year some of the plants were beginning to form patches of ferns. Year 3 we actually started a harvest for 2 weeks. It's looking good. Next year we will do a 4 week harvest. At the same time, we have started a new asparagus bed, and expanded the old one. This year we will be filling in the spaces between the old plants. So, basically dig them up & divide them? (I'll be moving them from her land to my land.) Have a new bed prepared prior to dividing the old bed? When is the best time to do this? In the Fall?
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edwin
gardener
Posts: 141
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Post by edwin on Jul 7, 2012 17:52:38 GMT -5
No - we didn't divide them. Left them as is to recover - especially after removing the twitch grass. This was our first time dealing with asparagus, we've never been in a position where we needed to divide them. The asparagus patch was there when we bought the house four years ago.
If you want to move them, I think I'd treat it as a new planting - and not divide them if they have had a hard time in their old location. I'd add some fertilizer and bone meal when transplanting and not let them get too dry - even though they are drought tolerant. I have heard that one year old roots are the best to transplant because older roots suffer more shock, but I am no expert. I would assume someone else knows more about this than me.
If you plan on dividing them, you may wish to track which are males before dividing. There are advantages to male asparagus over female asparagus.
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Post by circumspice on Jul 7, 2012 18:17:41 GMT -5
No - we didn't divide them. Left them as is to recover - especially after removing the twitch grass. This was our first time dealing with asparagus, we've never been in a position where we needed to divide them. The asparagus patch was there when we bought the house four years ago. If you want to move them, I think I'd treat it as a new planting - and not divide them if they have had a hard time in their old location. I'd add some fertilizer and bone meal when transplanting and not let them get too dry - even though they are drought tolerant. I have heard that one year old roots are the best to transplant because older roots suffer more shock, but I am no expert. I would assume someone else knows more about this than me. If you plan on dividing them, you may wish to track which are males before dividing. There are advantages to male asparagus over female asparagus.
[/b][/u] I would assume that the advantage would be no bolting to seed, all the plant's energy would go to growing larger, more tender stalks, right? I don't believe I would know the difference unless the females look quite different from the males.
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edwin
gardener
Posts: 141
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Post by edwin on Jul 7, 2012 18:47:54 GMT -5
Advantages of male asparagus: higher yields, no crowding out of your asparagus field with volunteer asparagus plants, longer productive life, insect control - one type of asparagus beetle lays eggs inside the seeds. The female asparagus plants have round seeds that look like green peas then turn red. If you see male and female asparagus plants it is obvious which is which. female asparagus plant
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edwin
gardener
Posts: 141
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Post by edwin on Jul 7, 2012 18:51:40 GMT -5
Oh - you're in Texas - keep in mind I am completely in a different climate than you are - 4 zones different.
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Post by Drahkk on Jul 7, 2012 18:55:32 GMT -5
The main advantage is no seeds, and therefore no volunteer plants that have to be weeded out later. Asparagus doesn't like competition, including from other asparagus plants, and it self seeds very easily. Therefore you get the strongest most continuous production with the least thinning from an all male planting.
The genders are easily distinguished only after they flower, as female plants will develop little red berries containing the seeds. So to intentionally transplant males only, you'd need to flag male ferns now, then dig up their associated crowns when they're dormant. Or just weed out the females.
MB
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Post by Drahkk on Feb 18, 2013 17:32:15 GMT -5
I get that reaction picking Cornelian cherries from the three in the landscaping behind our store. Invariably someone sees me and I have to explain that yes, they really are edible, and in fact quite sweet. Only one person has been brave enough to try them, even when they see me munching. MB I would love seed of a sweet cornelian cherry. I have two named varieties that are not sweet and a few seedlings that haven't fruited yet. Arbutus unedo (strawberry tree) also has fruit that most people do not know is edible. I like it. It's a small tree/large bush that grows in zones 8 and 9. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbutus_unedoThe ones I was picking are in season again, but before I start picking and cleaning to share I'd like experienced eyes to confirm my ID on them. I'm still mostly sure they're Cornelian cherries, but they don't look exactly like the pics I've seen. Whatever they are they're sweeter than I remember from last year, and juicy, though with less than 1/4" of flesh over the seed, and almost maraschino red under the skin, which will ripen furthur to almost maroon when overripe. Whether they are or aren't, they're obviously nontoxic, at least in the quantities I've been picking. Have a look: If someone can confirm the ID I'll be happy to collect and share. MB
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 18, 2013 19:35:14 GMT -5
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Post by MikeH on Feb 18, 2013 19:51:47 GMT -5
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Post by oxbowfarm on Feb 18, 2013 20:23:42 GMT -5
Everyone goes off on Eleagnus as invasive but I really like them. They taste good, the fruits are super healthy, and they fix nitrogen. Besides the fact that they are clearly here to stay, might as well make friends. I've got a bunch of Autumn Olive babies coming on.
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