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Post by mskrieger on Aug 21, 2019 13:25:18 GMT -5
so how'd everybody's melons do this year? It's been pretty cool this season at my place, so I don't have any ripe melons yet. But if summer sticks around another couple of weeks we will. Fingers crossed.
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Post by mskrieger on Aug 21, 2019 13:22:53 GMT -5
I think I may have some maximoss growing, too. I assume I planted it (maybe just one hill?) just to see how it would compare with the moschata. It looks like it and the lagenaria are setting by far the most fruit, though I do have three Long of Naples now and at least one Violino Rugosa. The Long of Naples are truly enormous squash. And I'm worried they won't mature. The relatively cool summer has slowed everything a bit, and even the first one to set is still variegated green, no sign of the yellow tan moschata color yet. Now I understand why Johnny's marks this one as 'ornamental'--apparently it tastes good but takes at least 125 days to maturity. But at the rate we're going I won't get any mature moschata. I am truly impressed that Joseph Lofthouse can do it with such a short season. Finally got a single zucchini. How's everybody else's sqaush doing?
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Post by mskrieger on Aug 5, 2019 15:51:56 GMT -5
Glad to hear your dry-farming tomato experiment is going well! I know exactly what you mean about watering tomatoes. Cowpeas are similarly productive dry gardened.
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Post by mskrieger on Aug 5, 2019 15:48:01 GMT -5
I use a similar method as reed. My garden area is 1,200 square feet, so fairly manageable. The hard work is breaking new ground. Once you kill the sod, a tiller isn't so handy.
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Post by mskrieger on Aug 5, 2019 15:44:27 GMT -5
I'm growing mostly moschata, with two hills of lagenaria and two of pepo. The lagenaria took off early and are setting lots of fruit; the pepo seems not to have set a one (no zucchini!!!!!). I suspect the pepo is drowning in moschata pollen. Perhaps I should have given it its own space. The moshata took off but are setting fruit slowly, though it may be that I simply cannot see them. There's one enormous Long Of Naples and a couple smaller round ones (not sure what the round could be, but perhaps they'll be clearer at the end of the season.) I was hoping for Violino Rugosa but last time I grew it, it took forever to set fruit and this year seems the same...may not be right for my garden. Squash are always an adventure.
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Post by mskrieger on Aug 5, 2019 15:40:44 GMT -5
Gorgeous clear dry day here. Tomorrow is supposed to get humid and thunderstormy evenings again. We've been having a great weather and garden year, all things considered. Haven't had to irrigate but once, and that was merely a "probably a good idea, the squash wilt in the middle of the day" irrgate, not a "OMG things are shriveling and turning brown" irrigate. But it's not been overly wet, either. The blackberries are taking over, though. Kiowa. Monsters. Been making lots of pie. When it's cool enough to bake.
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Post by mskrieger on Jul 31, 2019 11:44:58 GMT -5
So I did sow again, and this year I had better luck. A little less rain, and I put the lagenaria with moschata squash, instead of Joseph Lofthouse's crazy aggressive maximoss. From 10 seeds I got 5 plants, which are growing and doing well. Already one fruit set that I can see, probably a bunch more that I can't. But walt you might be right about the seed quality...the fruit does not have the shape I expected it to have. Interesting. I'll save seed from the gourds that please me and see how the germination is next year.
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Post by mskrieger on May 20, 2019 14:25:12 GMT -5
My tomatoes transplanted out on 17 May, too. Saw a couple volunteer cherry tomato seedlings this weekend, that slightly cold hardier species that I planted in my garden once years ago and now is a weed. The weather's been warming and looking to settle. Still plenty of rain, but switching over to nighttime/early morning, then breezy sunny days. We're having the first warm, humid day of the season (temps hit 80F) but the rest of the week looks dry and high of 70, nighttime lows in the 50s. Extremely pleasant. Everything growing well in the garden, albeit a few weeks behind last year due to the cold and wet. No turnips yet!
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Post by mskrieger on May 20, 2019 14:18:03 GMT -5
Thanks for that, philagardener. Tokyo has a similar climate to Washington, DC. Many of us might be able to grow Tokyo-hardy citrus varieties.
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plums!
May 1, 2019 10:45:11 GMT -5
Post by mskrieger on May 1, 2019 10:45:11 GMT -5
The A. prunus seedling is flowering enthusiastically. The Toka right next to it has a few flowers, so perhaps there's enough pollen for the seedling to set some fruit, so we can taste them. I won't let the other little plums set fruit (not like they look so inclined this year) because I want them make good roots and branch structure, but the unnamed seedling is so vigorous I'm not worried. Also I'm expecting its fruits to be closer to cherry-sized, and so not as stressful for the plant. blueadzuki I'll let you know how the fruit is...it might be worth your while to plant some A. prunus seedlings from Fedco if they're all as vigorous as this one. I don't think the critters can stop it.
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Post by mskrieger on Apr 23, 2019 10:01:09 GMT -5
interesting, khoomeizhi, I had heard that about daffodils in more temperate climes. Someone in TN (who claims she's in Zone 7a, same as me--boggles my mind, but that just goes to show how imprecise climate zones are) told me that daffodils typically start blooming for her in early February and go until early May. Spring is more compressed here. February is always winter (and usually the worst, snowiest, iciest, 'we're all so over it' part of winter--unless March takes that cake, which happens as often as not). I just planted some mystery daffodils last fall and they turned out to be pheasant's eye. Adorable and fragrant! They bloom just a week or 10 days later than the classic yellows, here. And glad to hear your tree blooms are here! The trees here are just thinking about it, for the most part. Today was the first day was had that pastel glaze of young green and red leaves over the landscape. Beautiful. walt, what are poncirus?
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Post by mskrieger on Apr 22, 2019 12:25:46 GMT -5
I'm agreeing with diane here--seems to me trees would compete too hard with the veggies. Trees get what they need first. And cast way too much shade. The only person I know who successfully does what you suggest is someone with a very small yard who keeps dwarfed fruit trees (peach, fig, apple) in pots pruned to 7' or shorter and grows vining vegetables along the border fence which faces the street and gets full light exposure on three sides. I don't suggest pitch pines in particular. I had one---quite beautiful, trained like a giant bonsai--shading my greenhouse on the south side and only orchids and other shade-accustomed plants grew well in the greenhouse and only rhododendrons and pachysandra grew in the understory. Pitch pines also shed pitch and needles like nobody's business, it's a huge mess. They do well in poor, acidic soils and they do grow by the beach but I don't know if they actively bioremediate or just tolerate it.
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Post by mskrieger on Apr 22, 2019 12:18:46 GMT -5
Heya steev, watch out--the numerous tiny sprouts on the Carnival potatoes could be a sign of disease that you don't want in your patch. Ask someone who's grown them before if you can.
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Post by mskrieger on Apr 22, 2019 12:16:07 GMT -5
We've been having rainy days in the 40sF mixed with sunny days in the 60sF. Hasn't gone much below freezing in almost two weeks. The peas and favas and lettuce are up and growing, and fruit trees are blooming.
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Post by mskrieger on Apr 22, 2019 12:09:47 GMT -5
Hello there fruit+nutty friends,
Looks like bloom in my yard is a touch late (or perhaps I ought to say in line with historical norms pre-1990s) this year. Peach trees finishing up, sour cherries just starting, crab apple has pink buds but none yet open. For what it's worth, I find fruit tree bloom always correlates nicely with daffodils around here. Peaches bloom with the daffys, apples bloom when the daffodils are finishing up. Blackberries and raspberries are just unfurling leaves. No harsh frosts the past two weeks, fingers crossed I think it'll be a good year unless we have a frozen May.
How's everyone else's bloom going?
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