MsDDC
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Re: Applestar’s 2020 Garden

Spreading is really the problem, since I don't have a lot of space. There's plenty of unintentional milkweed nearby, including large stands just across the street from me, which will never be developed because it's a fairly narrow tree buffer from a light industrial site (Amtrak has a rail yard over there...it's not bad to live by since the trains are electric and they don't use the horns unless "absolutely necessary for safety"...it's too narrow to build homes on, and no one would want to live in them if they tried). I'm just feeding things. :) I actually saw a braconid wasp in my garden a little while ago, and I attribute that to leaving my spring greens in long enough to bolt and fully flower (but pulled before seeding). I will continue that, as well, since my garden plan has that particular row re-planted for summer last.

Nyan
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Good that you have so much milkweed! I had my first plant come up that came from the guy a couple of houses down who has grown a nice patch every year.
Growing up along the river, we had Tons of milkweed around us, and a regular Monarch migration route that would bring thousands through each fall. An amazing sight to see!

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applestar
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A collage of garden highlights :D ...and yes, the Monarch butterflies are HERE! :-()

- A Monarch butterfly on Summer Sweet

- my two garden gates ... Monarch butterfly at lower left
...I asked my DD’s to draw•duplicate wildlife habitat and monarch butterfly Waystation signs for the other gate...

- neglected overwintered peppers — Fish and Aji Dulce Amarillo
- Clivia Is blooming again -- after being completely neglected over the winter in somewhat dark and cool location in the Green Room
- close up of that Monarch
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applestar
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Oops, I meant to post THIS collage :oops:
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applestar
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A couple of days ago, I was peeking out of the Family Room window, and realized there were TWO fully ripe figs. I went out to pick them and found all these. :-() These are Chicago Hardy.
Chicago Hardy figs outside the family room SW wall.
Chicago Hardy figs outside the family room SW wall.
So yummy! And lots more

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TomatoNut95
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Fresh eating? Preserves? 😊

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applestar
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Fresh until everybody gets tired/bored, then preserves.

imafan26
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I love figs, I have to beat the birds to them. I can only eat one a day. Figs don't preserve well. They don't keep well once they are picked and they have to be picked ripe. Fig preserves have citrus in them. Figs, by themselves are not acidic enough to preserve well.

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applestar
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I’ll have to remember that if I end up with enough to preserve. I agree, I can’t eat too many fresh-picked figs — maybe the white latex affects me a bit? I tend to leave the freshly picked ones for Younger DD and hubby anyway, though I claim the first one — to make sure of ripeness, of course :wink:

In the past, I’ve wrapped un-split ones individually with paper napkin or towel and allowed them up to 2 days on the counter. Those last ones had been put in ramen take out bowl with lid and left out for a day to enjoy, then in the fridge— this works for split ones that can’t stay out... and have been enjoyed.

I picked more yesterday :D — at a little bit firmer stage than before because they were predicting heavy rain ... which we didn’t get.

Figs and a couple of peppers
Figs and a couple of peppers
...you can see something had been nibbling one. I will have to be more vigilant. That one was cut up into pieces and frozen to give to the guppies for snack. They seem to love all kinds of fruits.

— also, have been catching glimpses of BIG B — so happy to see it stretching fins and swimming all over the pond — seeing it explore the perimeters and depths

— hummingbirds are loving that I had not been able to tame the jewelweed And have also allowed every cardinal flower seedlings to spread in large swaths — Orange-yellow blossoms with red speckies and the scarlet flowers are being visited by multiple hummers ... and they STILL squabble over who they belong to ... :lol:

imafan26
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I pick mine when they are soft. I have to get to them early, because the birds have scooped up a lot of the ones that I was going to pick later. For me, the latex is not a problem. Figs are laxatives and I have a fussy stomach. I have kept them a couple of days in the frig, at most. Figs are dangerous in the ground here, they have very invasive roots. But they actually make a good pot plant as long as they never touch the ground and they are checked often for escaping roots. They don't air prune roots so any wayward root will find its way to the ground. Figs will fruit from cuttings in a one gallon pot. What I did learn is that it matters where you get your cutting from. A lateral branch will produce a bushier plant, a terminal branch will become a tree.

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applestar
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— yeah I have several cutting-grown new plants that are also fruiting.

I get a slight -very slight- swelling in the mouth. But once the fruits are day or two since picking and not oozing latex, they don’t seem to affect me.

Hopefully I won’t develop increased sensitivity.

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applestar
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I’ve mentioned this before, but things happen that make me happy that my garden seems to be “in tune” with me. :D

I went out a couple of days ago because we had been in drought and I knew they just had to be watered, but I woke up too late and I only had about 20 minutes before the 8am water restriction cut off. I ran the sprinkler for the 20 minutes (not nearly enough — should be 1 hr minimum recovery, 1.5 hrs to be Secure until next watering) I picked these peppers while getting hit by the sprinkler :roll:

Aji Dulce Amarillo, Bolivian Rainbow, Fish, and the large red one is probably Numex Sandia
AEE29D55-3A9A-4A33-9C05-884905725CCF.jpeg
...I scooped some duckweed from the pond and BigB was in the water right under where I cleared the first scoop :D

,,,I worried that the 20 minute watering wouldn’t be enough, but a short while after I went inside, we had a surprise pop-up shower that had not been anywhere on the radar map drift through — enough to give everybody in the garden some relief.

...Last night we caught the northern edge of a large storm system (Sally remnant?) which stayed far enough south not to be disruptive of some outdoor events I had been eager about, then skirted by just enough to kiss my garden. :D


Today, I was looking out of the window, worrying about the Monarch butterflies since we are expecting a sudden drop in the temperatures, thinking I really hadn’t seen any in the last couple of days ...and one freshly eclosed Monarch drifted by my window as if to reassure. :D :D

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Gary350
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I love the variety & multi colors. Did you plant those from seeds? Which 1 is the round yellow pepper & how spicy hot is it? Around here, garden center, Home Depot, Lowe's, don't have much variety I buy what I can get. Next year I want to plant a whole 60 ft row of peppers with lots of variety & colors I hope they look beautiful as flowers.

pepperhead212
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Nice peppers, Apple! All of my aji peppers, except dulce and colorado, are very late, and some not at all productive, so won't be grown again.

What are the water restrictions there?

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applestar
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@Gary350, Yellow one is the Aji Dulce Amarillo — it’s a mild pepper — supposed to have the fragrance of scotch bonnet-type without any of the heat. It’s really lovely. When fully ripe like this, it’s sweet with a wash of floral and no heat except a bit of “richness” on the tongue. It’s good for adding bursts of flavor In any dish, stuffed with cream cheese based filling, or grilled with a piece of melty cheese inside.

They were all grown from seeds.

@Pepperhead, here, we have water restriction from May1-Sept30, can water odd days only, from midnight to 8am and 6pm to midnight. (Other half of township has even days only). When using the sprinklers, I have to set-up/arrange during the daylight, to Tell how far the pattern reaches, etc. And depending on available water pressure. I sometimes set it up and test briefly at full pressure, then turn it in in the dark.

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applestar
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BigB
BigB

imafan26
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The weather has been drier than normal here too. I remember water and gas restrictions we had years ago. It seemed counter productive sometimes as people drove around to use up gas so they could fill up. Water restrictions were mainly aimed at things like not washing cars or sidewalks with water. Sewer fees are what controls how much water people use. The farmers are being hardest hit because while there are no strict watering days they do have water limits. At least your fish have enough water to swim in the pond.

My yard is so dry that even the plants, that live on rain are showing signs of drought stress.

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applestar
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Chance of rain tomorrow but my wilting garden couldn’t wait. Turned overhead sweep sprinkler on to give relief to backyard where the downspouts don’t drain and oak tree sucks up all the moisture, and was watching from the window —

Caught sight of a pair of unusual birds — rare to see migrant so I had trouble remembering ... they were Yellow-Rumped Warblers male and female — but had to look up the sub :

Yellow-rumped Warbler Identification, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Yel ... Warbler/id

These were ‘Myrtle’ (no gold throat) and they were darting from lower branch to branch As the sprinkler shower swept across from overhead. I was a bit surprised because I’ve seen hummingbirds enjoy the sprinkler showers this way but not any other birds. :D

Earlier in the day, I saw a Blue Jay picking up a bunch of peanuts — not sure how they got there ... could it have accidentally regurgitated it’s throat pouch? There was a titmouse trying to sneak some from the Blue Jay’s ‘stash’ :lol:

imafan26
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You have a lot more variety of birds. The Golden Plovers will migrate here from Alaska every year but they have not shown up yet.

Most birds I see in my yard are alien species. Most were brought in as pets and released. Most of them are fruit eaters and love pepper seeds, which is why I am not fond of birds in my yard. I like it even less when they nest in my roof and walls. Most of the native birds are specialists and hang out in what is left of the forests. I wake up every day to cocks crowing. I don't know if they are being kept or are feral. There are a lot of feral chickens here, most are released jungle fowl.

There are a pair of spotted ring necked doves that like to hang out on my air conditioner. I usually see one or both of them there in the morning.

Yesterday, I did see a cattle egret hunting anole in the front yard. They were imported by the plantation to eat insects and rodents in the fields. Now, they hang out in graveyards, golf courses and newly mowed lawns looking for a meal. They swoop down, take a look, grab and go off again.

The birds are responsible for bringing me the papaya that they are eating in my yard now, as well as the wild bitter melon and some of the weedy trees. They have also eaten my peppers and they spread that as well. One of the peppers in the ground in my front yard was either dropped by a bird or dropped naturally from one of my pepper plants. The wild red currant came from birds eating my tomato and dropping seeds elsewhere in the yard. So, I have wild currants popping up too.

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applestar
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I always have fun thinking about migrating wildlife that uses Hawai’ian islands as stopover or destination. I mean the islands are tiny in the midst of the Pacific Ocean.

NJ must be relatively easy since they can follow the Appalachians, Hudson River and Delaware River ...or the Atlantic Ocean coastline.... Some people have posited that they might be following the Interstate-95... ‘the other black river’

Of course there might be Ocean currents or some other not so obvious trail markers/ Or do the Ocean-crossing migrants just follow the stars?

imafan26
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We don't have a lot of migratory birds because the birds have to be long haulers that can fly thousands of miles. The Golden Plovers have been coming since ancient times. Platanthera holochila, one of three native orchids, nearest relative is in Alaska and probably the common ancestor came here on the feathers of a migrating bird. The native honeycreepers all descended from a single pair and over time evolved into distinct species with different beaks. The original pair were probably caught in a storm and somehow managed to survive the journey. The whales are the other snowbirds that migrate here every year from November- May with peak sightings Jan-March. Apparently they come here to breed and birth and don't eat much while they are here in the clear waters off Maui. You have falling leaves and snow to mark the seasons , we have migrating Golden Plover and whale sightings in the winter months and seasonal blooms (mostly of alien tree species).

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applestar
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When we had that cold dip in the 40’s threatening 30’s last weekend, I brought my orchids and the biggest pineapple inside so they wouldn’t be impacted. They got the premium spots in the family room Winter Wonderland and Cool Gang indoor garden areas. For a few days after, my family complained that I had brought a cricket inside with the plants while I asked them if they were sure it wasn’t a treefrog ...and they assured me it was a cricket so I didn’t consider the matter urgent....

Then on Wednesday, DD1 sent me this photo :lol:

Image
...she said she captured it and put it outside. ;)

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applestar
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...experiments continue...
C7652E64-2671-4A60-BEE0-49D7FBAA0E67.jpeg
— Pea and dill? seedlings, unID’d tomato, pepper, eggplant seedlings....
— More tomatoes and celery that grew Over the summer.

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applestar
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Figs have been quietly ripening. These are Petite Negra (Little Black) — dwarf variety — in containers that spent the entire year in front of the garage doors on the driveway, so we’ve been caring/harvesting them when taking care of deliveries.
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...as it turns out, it was a good thing these containers had never been moved to the backyard Like they usually are, because there have been significant Chicago Hardy fig harvest attrition due to chipmunks and even night-time raccoon raids :evil:

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TomatoNut95
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I hate and despite raccoons. Try soaking some rags, old socks or shirts in ammonia and hang them near your fig trees to see if that doesn't deter the pests.

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Gary350
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TomatoNut95 wrote:
Mon Oct 12, 2020 10:17 pm
I hate and despite raccoons. Try soaking some rags, old socks or shirts in ammonia and hang them near your fig trees to see if that doesn't deter the pests.
Connect motion detector light to, very loud radio, horn, bell or water sprinkler.

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TomatoNut95
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If Applestar has neighbors, they may not appreciate hearing a loud radio, horn or bell go off in the night. But a motion activated water squirted would be great! Or solar powered motion activated ultrasonic critter boxes. My neighbor has a couple of those, they're very sensitive.

imafan26
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No racoons here. Just gotta get to the figs before the bulbuls do. They are after all, rats with wings.

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applestar
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My DD2 peered out of a window last night while the scrabbling sound was going on outside the family room wall where the fig is planted — and found herself face-to-face with a masked bandit. :shock:

She sounded excited and happy, actually..... :roll:

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applestar
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Random Gardening report — too lazy to figure out if this belongs here or not —

I was examining the airlift pump for the guppies — not paying attention to them at all. Now, if I were anywhere above the reservoir totes, they would be clamoring for food .... BUT what I was basically doing was leaning across the front to look at the airlift pump. I then casually turned my head to glance at the reservoir to see if the guppies are swimming normally ..... they were not.

...this is what I saw...
AC1723B3-452E-4390-B276-188BCEE300EE.jpeg
...yeah, these half dozen or so where looking straight at me while frantically flapping their side fins to hover in place.... :shock: :roll:

Let me tell you : It was hysterically WEIRD.

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applestar
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It’s here. Overnight low is expected to be about 30°F here, with “feels like” down in upper 20’s and as low as 26.

We had nice soaking rain yesterday and overnight through morning hours. My DD1 got the Great Fall Migration started by moving all the container plants onto the patio yesterday (in the rain), and, today, DD1 and DD2 did most of the work bringing all the (thoroughly watered and rinsed off) plants into the house while I organized the spaces inside and supervised.

I love my girls. :D

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applestar
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...not feeling well today, so just hanging out :>

I think I’ll add photos to this post later ... possibly start a new thread for the *now* “Winter" indoor gardening since I’m not really planning to do much outside at this point — just clean up the clutter, and I’m mostly focused to organizing all the wintering indoors container plants, and fiddling around with growing some winter green and other edibles.

I do have a ripening cherry tomato (unID’d) with another cluster of green fruits, several lush and over-growing celery held over from this spring — never planted out but very happy where they are in what is basically an aquaponic NFT setup, etc. The celery stalks (redventure, tango) are being trimmed as necessary when they grow too tall, chopped and dried or frozen, and eaten as appropriate. :wink:

A couple of experiments and "just because" have been started, too.

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applestar
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TomatoNut95
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Aww, I hope you feel better!

Love that setup and the fisheys!

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applestar
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My 2020 outdoor garden continues to be “abandoned” — I did go outside on Tuesday to pick up/clean up some messes/clutter ahead of the snowstorm on Wed. We had a heavy fluffy snow that turned to blizzardy frozen stuff that made lots of noise against the house and slushy frozen rain overnight. Temps didn’t warm enough to melt the accumulated snow completely and the ground and things are still covered with snow which will no doubt freeze overnight.

I put saved kitchen scraps out in the big plastic compost bin — this is the one with vented solid sides and slide up side-panel access doors with tight locking vented top lid. During the winter months I may or may not do much beyond dumping & spreading the contents out of the filled paper grocery bag out of the plastic grocery bag and then arranging the soiled paper bag on top. The lid hides the mess and keep critters out.

On Tuesday, that’s all I did, and didn’t get the chance to turn the pile over. So -no surprise- the snow covering the compost bin lid didn’t melt Like it might have if the pile was "cooking" even a little bit. Too bad, because one of the fun garden sights in cold winter days is to see the compost bin melting ice and snow, and steaming....

Hopefully we will have some of those unseasonably warm days during the days/months ahead during which I will feel ambitious and energetic enough to do some real post-season cleanup and pre-season prep work.



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