Re: Imafan's 2023 garden
I have different kinds of slugs. I have the small black slug, the blond slug, the black slug with the tan stripe down the middle, and the worst is the sticky grey slug. Mainly now, I am seeing more of the tan slugs. The birds around my house are mainly fruit and seed eaters. The society finches have a thing for Lacinato kale leaves. The mynah might eat insects and geckos and so does the cattle egret. The main slug eaters are chickens and I don't want them around, and toads. I need another toad. The toads are more effective than slug bait. I have some cut hair. That will help as a physical barrier if I can find it.
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applestar
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…I should have been more specific…
Roseslug or Rose Sawfly | NC State Extension Publications
Roseslug or Rose Sawfly | NC State Extension Publications
Roseslug caterpillars, Endelomyia aethiops, are also called common roseslugs and American roseslugs […] Roseslugs are the immature stage of a small, very dark, flylike insects […] Rose sawflies are actually thick-waisted, primitive wasps
Oh, I have never seen sawfly larvae. I have never really seen sawflies either. I don't know the names of the slugs I have. I only identify them by their color and markings. The only new thing I have been seeing in the last couple of months is a solitary gold colored wasp that was hanging out around the corn. It is not aggressive, so I don't bother it.
I don't know if we even have them here. We have a lot of pests, most of them were brought in as pets or hitchhiked on cargo. But it is actually hard for something to get here on its own. That is why the native population of everything from plants to animals to bugs are threatened. They evolved in an isolated environment often dependent on specific host plants or pollinators. There weren't any predators so most of the native plants don't have thorns or defenses, most of the birds and insects did not have natural enemies or competition. They do not compete well with alien species and things like dogs, cats, rats, pigs, and imported bugs can easily destroy the delicate balance of the ecosystem. It is why it is also hard to stop a pest once it gets here. Often they have no natural predators, lots of food sources, and no winter kill.
I don't know if we even have them here. We have a lot of pests, most of them were brought in as pets or hitchhiked on cargo. But it is actually hard for something to get here on its own. That is why the native population of everything from plants to animals to bugs are threatened. They evolved in an isolated environment often dependent on specific host plants or pollinators. There weren't any predators so most of the native plants don't have thorns or defenses, most of the birds and insects did not have natural enemies or competition. They do not compete well with alien species and things like dogs, cats, rats, pigs, and imported bugs can easily destroy the delicate balance of the ecosystem. It is why it is also hard to stop a pest once it gets here. Often they have no natural predators, lots of food sources, and no winter kill.
Yesterday I started more seeds. Some of the seedlings are being attacked by pests, so I had to cull them and start over. I put out slug bait and the last 3 days, I have only seen one snail but no slugs where I saw them before. I had sulfur bait, but I bought the iron bait for next time because the soil could actually use the iron more than the sulfur.
The peppers are also looking better now that I have treated them for the broad mites with orchard spray (sulfur + pyrethrin). One of the cascabella peppers had something strip all of the leaves off. The leaves were on the ground. I put out more slug bait and I am hoping it will grow back. Cascabella has been one of the peppers I have had problems growing to maturity and the seeds are hard to find.
I was going through my seeds and while I have a lot of peppers, I actually am short on the resistant bells. I must be a glutton for punishment because, bells are the hardest for me to grow. I still had Aristotle, Red Bull, Carolina Bell, Monster, Chinese Giant and a bell pepper from Baker Seeds. Of these Aristotle, Red Bull and Chinese Giant are the ones that did the best but Carolina Bell is nematode resistant but not disease resistant. Chinese Giant gives me the most peppers but it is also not resistant to bacterial spot or mildew. So, I got seeds of some peppers that I have grown before and some new ones specifically that have the best disease resistance to bacterial spot and phythophthora. Majestic Red, Carmen, Sweet Sunset, and Touchdown. Except for sweet sunset I have grown these before. Carmen and Majestic Red yielded the best, but still the plants were small. I think I needed to pot them up sooner and I probably need to work out the fertilizer because they started to bloom small and once they started blooming they did not grow much. It did not help that they are magnets for broad mites. Majestic Red and Red snapper were the best in regards to disease resistance.
Bell peppers supposedly like heat, but they don't do that well in my humidity and intense sun even if the temperatures are between 80-86 degrees. I get the best bell pepper yield in March-May, but they have the most problems with bacterial spot and mildew in the rainy season and then there are the broad mites. I need to try them at this time of the year. My temperatures will still be above 75 until January. El Nino usually means a drier winter, so the rains may not ramp up until January as well. Because any appreciable amount of rain, especially since most of my rain is overnight rain will increase humidity and mildew and bacterial spot, so I need to work with the peppers that are bred to resist disease. Seeds are even more expensive. These four seeds and shipping amounted to $26.00. The seed packets contained between 10-20 seeds so around 45-60 cents per seed, so I need to make it count.
The peppers are also looking better now that I have treated them for the broad mites with orchard spray (sulfur + pyrethrin). One of the cascabella peppers had something strip all of the leaves off. The leaves were on the ground. I put out more slug bait and I am hoping it will grow back. Cascabella has been one of the peppers I have had problems growing to maturity and the seeds are hard to find.
I was going through my seeds and while I have a lot of peppers, I actually am short on the resistant bells. I must be a glutton for punishment because, bells are the hardest for me to grow. I still had Aristotle, Red Bull, Carolina Bell, Monster, Chinese Giant and a bell pepper from Baker Seeds. Of these Aristotle, Red Bull and Chinese Giant are the ones that did the best but Carolina Bell is nematode resistant but not disease resistant. Chinese Giant gives me the most peppers but it is also not resistant to bacterial spot or mildew. So, I got seeds of some peppers that I have grown before and some new ones specifically that have the best disease resistance to bacterial spot and phythophthora. Majestic Red, Carmen, Sweet Sunset, and Touchdown. Except for sweet sunset I have grown these before. Carmen and Majestic Red yielded the best, but still the plants were small. I think I needed to pot them up sooner and I probably need to work out the fertilizer because they started to bloom small and once they started blooming they did not grow much. It did not help that they are magnets for broad mites. Majestic Red and Red snapper were the best in regards to disease resistance.
Bell peppers supposedly like heat, but they don't do that well in my humidity and intense sun even if the temperatures are between 80-86 degrees. I get the best bell pepper yield in March-May, but they have the most problems with bacterial spot and mildew in the rainy season and then there are the broad mites. I need to try them at this time of the year. My temperatures will still be above 75 until January. El Nino usually means a drier winter, so the rains may not ramp up until January as well. Because any appreciable amount of rain, especially since most of my rain is overnight rain will increase humidity and mildew and bacterial spot, so I need to work with the peppers that are bred to resist disease. Seeds are even more expensive. These four seeds and shipping amounted to $26.00. The seed packets contained between 10-20 seeds so around 45-60 cents per seed, so I need to make it count.
It is raining, a lot! The roads are wet and I can hear the rain hitting the ground. I did get a few things done this morning. I weed whacked the part of the front yard I cleared again. I raked up the dried grass and weeds yesterday and this morning, so I am just getting the stragglers. I pulled a couple of more pots out of the jungle. There are some pots that are grounded, so it will take some effort to yank them out.
There isn't anymore perlite at home depot, so I had to buy some MG potting soil. It is expensive this way, but I could carry the 50 qt bags. I need to go to the ag supplier to get Sunshine mix in 3.8 cu ft bale. I need to make more room in my car for it.
The peppers responded to the k-mag and nitrogen and are starting to grow except for the one cascabella that something ate. But it is alive and I am hoping it will make new leaves. I mixed some sulfate of ammonia and k-mag in a plastic watering can and fed the peppers and some of the seedlings. A gallon does not go that far.
I planted a pack of Provider beans on 9/26 11/20 sprouted yesterday and it is up to 16/20 now. I have the cage around the beans it will stop birds and the African snails, but not slugs, so I put slug bait around the container. I haven't seen many slugs since I put the bait out, but I probably have to look under more pots.
The corn ears are continuing to fill (most of them) and the silks are starting to dry. I don't expect much from the ears that came out late. Since it is getting harder to get seeds from UH. I think I will try to keep an ear for seed. I did find a local seed saver's group and ordered some of Dr Brewbakers Brewbaker Brittle II corn. Corn does not store well. UH doesn't carry this cultivar.
I have an orchid meeting tonight. If the rain stops, I have a couple of orchids I can take. One is Princess Mikasa a vanda and the other is a white catleya.
I am going to my first plant share this Saturday and it is not to far, a couple of miles. I am still figuring out what I am going to bring.
There isn't anymore perlite at home depot, so I had to buy some MG potting soil. It is expensive this way, but I could carry the 50 qt bags. I need to go to the ag supplier to get Sunshine mix in 3.8 cu ft bale. I need to make more room in my car for it.
The peppers responded to the k-mag and nitrogen and are starting to grow except for the one cascabella that something ate. But it is alive and I am hoping it will make new leaves. I mixed some sulfate of ammonia and k-mag in a plastic watering can and fed the peppers and some of the seedlings. A gallon does not go that far.
I planted a pack of Provider beans on 9/26 11/20 sprouted yesterday and it is up to 16/20 now. I have the cage around the beans it will stop birds and the African snails, but not slugs, so I put slug bait around the container. I haven't seen many slugs since I put the bait out, but I probably have to look under more pots.
The corn ears are continuing to fill (most of them) and the silks are starting to dry. I don't expect much from the ears that came out late. Since it is getting harder to get seeds from UH. I think I will try to keep an ear for seed. I did find a local seed saver's group and ordered some of Dr Brewbakers Brewbaker Brittle II corn. Corn does not store well. UH doesn't carry this cultivar.
I have an orchid meeting tonight. If the rain stops, I have a couple of orchids I can take. One is Princess Mikasa a vanda and the other is a white catleya.
I am going to my first plant share this Saturday and it is not to far, a couple of miles. I am still figuring out what I am going to bring.
Today I went to my first plant share, I brought spearmint, Ajaka basil, 3 divisions each of arrowroot and black bamboo, cuttings of bougainvillea, katuk , bay leaves, virea, and dragon fruit. I brought Thai peppers, valentine tomatoes, and super chili peppers ( whole for seed harvesting.) Tumeric and conditioned garlic for planting. In the end they took everything except an ajaka basil seedling, bougainvillea, virea cuttings. and there was one garlic left. There were still some tomatoes and super chili left.
I picked up some bromeliads I did not have those varieties, some potted succulents, tillandsia pink quill, long bean seeds, and an oncidium orchid. I took home the garlic, tomatoes and super chili. I seeded the peppers and tomatoes and I am drying the pepper seeds and fermenting the tomato seeds. There was a white pitaya I was interested in, but I can't keep more than one pitaya.
The things I brought home were easy to take care of. The succulents were potted up so I just put them on my succulent table. The bromeliads went where the rest of my bromeliads are, and I put the oncidium in a pot and put it on the orchid bench. I already had one tillandsia so I stuck the one I got today in the same basket as the other one.
Other things they had were aloe, marunguray, dracena marginata, potted plumeria, seeds, guppies, cookies even, more succulents I don't know the names of, edible fig (actually the lady came late and everyone grabbed the fig cutting from her before she came halfway across the parking lot, dendrobium orchids, pomelo, lemons ( I took home two of those too., Dragon fruit cuttings (different varieties), water lettuce, tomato seedlings, tillandsia, psiticara, Indonesian ginger, sweet potato cuttings, desert rose, seeds, avocado seedling, white ginger, and some cuttings I did not recognize. Someone even brought a jar of measuring spoons ( the kind you find in miracle grow). People went home happy. Many of the leftovers were taken by a lady who has a free store on her property. I met some nice people and got some tips on growing carnivorous plants and talking to others about other plant shares. There were a few people there who had sponsored plant shares in town and on the other side of the island and he told me that there were plant shares at Mari's Garden and that it was one of the other places where I live that has plant shares every few months. It was a very lovely morning. I spent the last week prepping the things I brought and this morning collecting the cuttings. Now, that I know there will be more shares, I am looking forward to the next one.
I picked up some bromeliads I did not have those varieties, some potted succulents, tillandsia pink quill, long bean seeds, and an oncidium orchid. I took home the garlic, tomatoes and super chili. I seeded the peppers and tomatoes and I am drying the pepper seeds and fermenting the tomato seeds. There was a white pitaya I was interested in, but I can't keep more than one pitaya.
The things I brought home were easy to take care of. The succulents were potted up so I just put them on my succulent table. The bromeliads went where the rest of my bromeliads are, and I put the oncidium in a pot and put it on the orchid bench. I already had one tillandsia so I stuck the one I got today in the same basket as the other one.
Other things they had were aloe, marunguray, dracena marginata, potted plumeria, seeds, guppies, cookies even, more succulents I don't know the names of, edible fig (actually the lady came late and everyone grabbed the fig cutting from her before she came halfway across the parking lot, dendrobium orchids, pomelo, lemons ( I took home two of those too., Dragon fruit cuttings (different varieties), water lettuce, tomato seedlings, tillandsia, psiticara, Indonesian ginger, sweet potato cuttings, desert rose, seeds, avocado seedling, white ginger, and some cuttings I did not recognize. Someone even brought a jar of measuring spoons ( the kind you find in miracle grow). People went home happy. Many of the leftovers were taken by a lady who has a free store on her property. I met some nice people and got some tips on growing carnivorous plants and talking to others about other plant shares. There were a few people there who had sponsored plant shares in town and on the other side of the island and he told me that there were plant shares at Mari's Garden and that it was one of the other places where I live that has plant shares every few months. It was a very lovely morning. I spent the last week prepping the things I brought and this morning collecting the cuttings. Now, that I know there will be more shares, I am looking forward to the next one.
I only brought a little of each. It did take me a couple of days to do the divisions of the plants and pot up the rooted cuttings and divide the mint. I got the cuttings that morning and collected the tomatoes and peppers for seeds. ( I gave them the whole fruit so they could get the seeds out themselves). The plant share was in my area about 2 miles from my house. I loaded it in my hod and on a folding cart so I would only have to make one trip. I got there 15 minutes early so I got a good parking spot not too far away. after I got home I fermented the tomato seeds and seeded the peppers and I am drying them now. It rained last night so I will check this afternoon if I need to water anything. The rain changed my garden plans, so I went shopping today instead. That is just as tiring for me.
This morning I tried my second test ear of corn. It was ready. So about 75 days from planting. It took about 4 days to germinate so this is a 65-75 day corn. I have picked 42 ears so far. I am saving an ear for seed. None of the ears were filled to the top but I did get 15-20 good sized ears. This is not tight husk and a couple of the ear husks were splitting. Some of the later corn won't have any developed ears so in the end I will have about 85% yield from the corn. Not great, but corn is not a high yielding crop for the space it takes up. But, at least it is not a harvest miss. During the summer, the only other thing I could plant would have been okra and I would not have needed that much okra, so it is better than having the garden be fallow June-September.
It does delay the winter garden, but I did start some seeds in September and if I can clear the garden and get the cover back on soon enough, it will catch up.
I have pulled out half the cornstalks and processed the ears. I am too tired now. I will try to go out again later today and pull more of the cornstalks and maybe I will find more ears.
The cornstalks are going in the green bin. I need to have a net loss in the garden of phosphorus and the corn will take some of that with it. The cornstalks are too heavy for the worms, and there are too many of them. The cornstalks cannot be used for mulch because of Coconut Rhinoceros beetles and slugs.
It does delay the winter garden, but I did start some seeds in September and if I can clear the garden and get the cover back on soon enough, it will catch up.
I have pulled out half the cornstalks and processed the ears. I am too tired now. I will try to go out again later today and pull more of the cornstalks and maybe I will find more ears.
The cornstalks are going in the green bin. I need to have a net loss in the garden of phosphorus and the corn will take some of that with it. The cornstalks are too heavy for the worms, and there are too many of them. The cornstalks cannot be used for mulch because of Coconut Rhinoceros beetles and slugs.
I am taking too long to plant my seedlings out. The partenon started flowering in the starter pot and one pot of daikon seedlings dried out. I need to hurry up and fill my pots.
I did plant some of the larger daikon seedlings in the pot with the cucumbers. They turned a little yellow, but I think most will survive. I was going to pot some of the other pots up, but when I went to divide the lemon grass it was infested with ground mealy bugs so I have spent a few hours treating pots of ground mealy bugs with hot water. It is a fine line between killing the bugs and killing the plant. The water has to be around 120 degrees, 150 will harm the plant. The first one looked o.k., but the second pot I did still had live bugs so I had to reheat the water and do it again.
I don't have time to look for more trouble. I have to see what else I can get done
today. I also have to fix the tear in the bird netting. It tore when I put the netting back over the frame.
I did plant some of the larger daikon seedlings in the pot with the cucumbers. They turned a little yellow, but I think most will survive. I was going to pot some of the other pots up, but when I went to divide the lemon grass it was infested with ground mealy bugs so I have spent a few hours treating pots of ground mealy bugs with hot water. It is a fine line between killing the bugs and killing the plant. The water has to be around 120 degrees, 150 will harm the plant. The first one looked o.k., but the second pot I did still had live bugs so I had to reheat the water and do it again.
I don't have time to look for more trouble. I have to see what else I can get done
today. I also have to fix the tear in the bird netting. It tore when I put the netting back over the frame.
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applestar
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Bummer! Can you put a little soap in the hot water? Would that help to get them to let go?
For small insect mesh tears/holes where appearance isn’t an issue OR where blocking a little airflow can be overlooked in favor of convenience, I’ve been using window screen repair tape (looks like duct tape except it has fiber mesh, OR clear greenhouse repair tape (clear duct tape) applied from both sides — better where strength and good adhesion is needed more.
For larger repair, I patch with either a scrap of UV treated long life insect mesh or where longevity is not as vital, a piece of organza or tulle, sometimes folded into multiple layers, and just baste or blanket stitch on with needle and nylon thread.
Bird netting I think I just did a running stitch (I think) with same color fishing line.
For small insect mesh tears/holes where appearance isn’t an issue OR where blocking a little airflow can be overlooked in favor of convenience, I’ve been using window screen repair tape (looks like duct tape except it has fiber mesh, OR clear greenhouse repair tape (clear duct tape) applied from both sides — better where strength and good adhesion is needed more.
For larger repair, I patch with either a scrap of UV treated long life insect mesh or where longevity is not as vital, a piece of organza or tulle, sometimes folded into multiple layers, and just baste or blanket stitch on with needle and nylon thread.
Bird netting I think I just did a running stitch (I think) with same color fishing line.
The hot water kills them but it needs to be about 120 degrees for 10 minutes. 150 degrees damages roots. It really is not about them letting go, they actually will wash out of the pots when they are watered and that's how they infest other plants. Besides hot water imidacloprid, malathion, and alcohol are the only other things that are effective. Malathion and alcohol are hard to kill everything because they don't kill eggs and it is hard to effectively cover everything with alcohol. Malathion would have to be repeated in a few days to kill any hatchlings. It can be used on most vegetables because of the short half life. The other choice is to toss the plants, which I have done in the past. The benches, the ground also needs to be disinfected. That is a little harder to do and again imidacloprid is the best option since it lasts longer and prevents reinfection.
The tear in the netting is a big one. I forgot I tied the netting to the frame to keep it from slipping backwards while I pulled it over. I do have fishing line and I have mended netting with it before. I may try that first. I have to see if I can lower the frame because where it is I can't reach it without getting on a ladder and I want to avoid that if I can help it, but it may still be an option. It would be the easiest fix to sew the hole closed with fishing line. That is the hardest part of the repair, the tear is on the top of the frame just out of my reach. My other option I am thinking of is to use my other bird netting and put another layer of netting over the hole. I haven't figured out how to do that yet. It's hard when I don't have anyone else to help me do it.
One of the good things about a slow rain is that a lot of the spider mites have been knocked off the plants. It is another weird thing. I am having a resurgence of pests I haven't seen in years: aphids, spidermites, thrips at this time of the year is unusual. And now, there are fewer predators because it is normal for their numbers to decline at this time of the year. I am also having problems with giant mealybugs on the hibiscus. The neighbors hedge is infested so this is now my problem too. They are host specific only infesting hibiscus, ilima (sida fallax), and lollipop plant (every pest likes pachystachys lutea). So I have been hosing them off with water almost every day. I can actually treat them with imidacloprid since they are in the front yard and they are ornamentals. It would keep the plants from being repeatedly attacked. The ilima and lollipop were also infested with aphids so I cut them both down. Lollipop will handle that better than the ilima.
I got an early start today. I rained last night so everything is still dripping and the road and ground is wet. It is 69 degrees at 8:17 a.m. I have already filled one green can and I pulled it from the back yard to the front this morning. I won't need to water till this afternoon. I have to move some soil from the garage to the back yard. it depends on how muddy it is. There a some peppers that need up potting and pots to fill so I can transplant the seedlings into them. There are seedlings to thin and transplant in the tower and the second tower needs to be reassembled and filled. I don't think the broccoli sprouted, so I may have to start more seeds. I have things to put in the main garden, but I need to get the hole fixed first. There are also ferns to trim that are trying to take over the side walk and of course weeds to pull or vermicast to harvest. There is always something to do and not all of them require that I be out in the rain and mud. I just gotta get out there. Sometimes that is the hardest part, getting started.
I still have to finish harvesting the sweet potatoes and the ginger has bloomed so it need to be harvested as well, the tops are starting to brown. Just in time, I am almost out of sherry ginger. At least these things can wait awhile.
The tear in the netting is a big one. I forgot I tied the netting to the frame to keep it from slipping backwards while I pulled it over. I do have fishing line and I have mended netting with it before. I may try that first. I have to see if I can lower the frame because where it is I can't reach it without getting on a ladder and I want to avoid that if I can help it, but it may still be an option. It would be the easiest fix to sew the hole closed with fishing line. That is the hardest part of the repair, the tear is on the top of the frame just out of my reach. My other option I am thinking of is to use my other bird netting and put another layer of netting over the hole. I haven't figured out how to do that yet. It's hard when I don't have anyone else to help me do it.
One of the good things about a slow rain is that a lot of the spider mites have been knocked off the plants. It is another weird thing. I am having a resurgence of pests I haven't seen in years: aphids, spidermites, thrips at this time of the year is unusual. And now, there are fewer predators because it is normal for their numbers to decline at this time of the year. I am also having problems with giant mealybugs on the hibiscus. The neighbors hedge is infested so this is now my problem too. They are host specific only infesting hibiscus, ilima (sida fallax), and lollipop plant (every pest likes pachystachys lutea). So I have been hosing them off with water almost every day. I can actually treat them with imidacloprid since they are in the front yard and they are ornamentals. It would keep the plants from being repeatedly attacked. The ilima and lollipop were also infested with aphids so I cut them both down. Lollipop will handle that better than the ilima.
I got an early start today. I rained last night so everything is still dripping and the road and ground is wet. It is 69 degrees at 8:17 a.m. I have already filled one green can and I pulled it from the back yard to the front this morning. I won't need to water till this afternoon. I have to move some soil from the garage to the back yard. it depends on how muddy it is. There a some peppers that need up potting and pots to fill so I can transplant the seedlings into them. There are seedlings to thin and transplant in the tower and the second tower needs to be reassembled and filled. I don't think the broccoli sprouted, so I may have to start more seeds. I have things to put in the main garden, but I need to get the hole fixed first. There are also ferns to trim that are trying to take over the side walk and of course weeds to pull or vermicast to harvest. There is always something to do and not all of them require that I be out in the rain and mud. I just gotta get out there. Sometimes that is the hardest part, getting started.
I still have to finish harvesting the sweet potatoes and the ginger has bloomed so it need to be harvested as well, the tops are starting to brown. Just in time, I am almost out of sherry ginger. At least these things can wait awhile.
I did manage to pull the frame on the garden bird netting down low enough for me to sew the broken sections with fishing line. Thanks for the tip Applestar.
I started filling more pots for the transplants and brought bags from the front to the back yard. I also am cleaning up more pots and labels. I didn't get that far on the list so I have to work on more of that today. I am making covers for some of the containers to help keep weeds down and it will also retain moisture. I put out more slug bait, they are going after the seedlings again.
I started filling more pots for the transplants and brought bags from the front to the back yard. I also am cleaning up more pots and labels. I didn't get that far on the list so I have to work on more of that today. I am making covers for some of the containers to help keep weeds down and it will also retain moisture. I put out more slug bait, they are going after the seedlings again.
I just got my computer back. I had to have it reset because of malware. I am able now to upload some of the pictures of what I have done in the last two weeks.
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- I used the potting soil bag and cut some circles out to use as mulch in the pepper pots. It will hold moisture and slow the weeds down. Actually, the pots are staying quite wet, I am watering about every three days or so. The same thing with the beans in the container. I have a 60/40 mix and it is staying wet longer. I have to think about what I need to water now. I usually watered everything everyday, but now I need to be more selective or things will rot.
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- The main garden is weeded and cleaned. I have left one cornstalk to save seeds. I don't know how long I should wait before harvesting the seeds. Some of the peppers in the foreground were potted up. I have been feeding them with sulfate of ammonia and sul po mag to get them to size up before they start to set fruit. I replanted the ajaka basil. I still have 3 back up ajaka, but it looks like this one will make it.
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- I fixed the two holes in the netting by pulling down the frame so I could reach it and sewing the tear with fishing line.
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applestar
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Looking good! I love that you are re-purposing those bags.
For mature corn, let the leaf the cob is growing from dry out (turn mostly tan) before harvesting, or thumbnail test kernels — should be slick and hard.
There is a factor to weigh if rainy — if you wait too long, some of the kernels or the cob itself will start to go moldy. Sometimes those are split kernels or immature kernels. Just be sure to shuck (cut off bad parts if necessary) and dry out — I leave the corn husk on and hang in warm ventilated area … for me under shop light for winter indoor plants works — to prevent the good seeds from also becoming affected.
For mature corn, let the leaf the cob is growing from dry out (turn mostly tan) before harvesting, or thumbnail test kernels — should be slick and hard.
There is a factor to weigh if rainy — if you wait too long, some of the kernels or the cob itself will start to go moldy. Sometimes those are split kernels or immature kernels. Just be sure to shuck (cut off bad parts if necessary) and dry out — I leave the corn husk on and hang in warm ventilated area … for me under shop light for winter indoor plants works — to prevent the good seeds from also becoming affected.
Thanks for the tip. The husk looks like it is drying and the leaves are slowly drying too. I was still watering the cornstalk, but decided to stop. It has rained but it has been very brief. I'll check the cob and see if it can be pulled and continue drying under cover. There is no where in my environment to keep anything from going moldy no matter where it is.
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applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 30551
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
OK, if there’s serious concern of mold developing (or you need to verify condition), peel the husks but don’t pull off, then tie together by husks and hang like fall decoration.
* Closer to ceiling is warmer. Above warm running appliances like TV, computer, fridge, etc.
* Pointing an oscillating fan at them might help.
* Closer to ceiling is warmer. Above warm running appliances like TV, computer, fridge, etc.
* Pointing an oscillating fan at them might help.
Today, I emptied 2 containers and harvested one container of ginger. I ended up with 3.75 lbs of ginger.
Yesterday a family of cardinals, about 7 of them were trapped inside the netting. So, I had to chase them out. This morning I closed up some of the openings. I still have the door open. I need to re weed what has sprouted again. It has been muggy today and it is overcast. The temperature is 77 degrees at 6:10 p.m. and it will be getting dark soon. The winds are only 7 mph so it seems hotter than it is.
I did manage to pot some tomato seedlings yesterday of New big dwarf. I will have to re home many of them. They are not tylcv resistant and while they are short, I don't have that many buckets or nets for 8 of them. I did prep another bucket and I do have a valentine seedling I can plant in it. Valentine is not that tall, but it is tylcv resistant, so I can put it on the main trellis.
The araimo is a little too happy, it is trying to crowd the other pots. I may have to move it. The opposite is true of Bun Long, it seems to be shrinking.
Yesterday a family of cardinals, about 7 of them were trapped inside the netting. So, I had to chase them out. This morning I closed up some of the openings. I still have the door open. I need to re weed what has sprouted again. It has been muggy today and it is overcast. The temperature is 77 degrees at 6:10 p.m. and it will be getting dark soon. The winds are only 7 mph so it seems hotter than it is.
I did manage to pot some tomato seedlings yesterday of New big dwarf. I will have to re home many of them. They are not tylcv resistant and while they are short, I don't have that many buckets or nets for 8 of them. I did prep another bucket and I do have a valentine seedling I can plant in it. Valentine is not that tall, but it is tylcv resistant, so I can put it on the main trellis.
The araimo is a little too happy, it is trying to crowd the other pots. I may have to move it. The opposite is true of Bun Long, it seems to be shrinking.
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- ginger from one bucket. One more to go. I will preserve some of the ginger in sherry. The larger ones will be stored for replanting. The rest I can eat fresh or share.
When the ginger is first picked the skin is very thin Within 24 hours the skin will turn brown. I usually start with three pieces of ginger. Ginger will actually keep well stored in slightly damp sand for months in a cool place. I have to keep it out of the monsoon rains because it won't sprout till April and while it is dormant it will rot if it gets too much water.
This is a very unusual year. I am having aphid and thrips and mealy bug problems. I usually don't have that this time of the year. I will have to treat some plants because they are very stressed and the leaves are turning black. There aren't many predators at this time of the year but a few bees are coming around. Unfortunately, I have to cut back the basil they are foraging on. It is November and except for a short light sprinkle. We haven't had rain. The fire in Mauka was 70% contained yesterday, but we have a red flag warning today because the trades will be gustier. Some special firefighters arrived from California yesterday to help build a firebreak around the Mauka subdivision in case the fire turns back. The fire has burned 1100 acres of native forest and was heading away from the subdivision about 4 miles from the homes. 7 helicopters are dropping water on the fire. The location is not accessible by land.
I am so behind. I still haven't planted the main garden and I have weeded it twice. There is a lot of spurge. It is hard to get every bit of it out. I may have to just put down newspaper and try to block it out.
I have most of the front inner courtyard cleaned up. I can only do a little at a time. I have most of the weeds pulled but I still have a small section to go.
I took down the dead tomato in the bucket. Even though it was under netting, it was infested with mealybugs. I guess that explains its' sudden demise.
The days temperatures are still in the mid 80's. I have started broccoli seeds twice, they came up and died, so maybe I won't be doing broccoli this year. I do need to get the kale and komatsuna planted and transplant the lettuce or maybe just eat the fingerlings.
Last week 7 cardinals got stuck inside the bird netting. The other day a juvenile cardinal was stuck and I chased to the ground and he squeezed under the netting. I put more U pins on the ground and I sealed up the leaks I found. The door is still open, but maybe the bird has learned its lesson and will stay out of it. The java rice birds are looking for a way to get into the roof again, but the vent caps are holding.
I fed some of the potted plants with sulfate of ammonia and k-mag. (cucumber, basil, taro, peppers, and eggplant. The plants take about a week to respond. I wish the side dressings would last longer, but I have to do it this way to avoid giving the plants any more phosphorus. If the phosphorus was not a problem, I would be able to use the citrus food only and I would not have to supplement so often. The taro and sweet potato are the only things that don't mind the high phosphorus in the containers.
The rain has taken care of some the bugs. I still see sooty mold but not as many aphids, mealybugs, or thrips now. But they have not totally gone away. The downside of having more rain with warm days, is that fungal disease is on the rise. The plumeria has rust and the hibiscus still has mealybugs, but now it also has fungal disease.
I was able to clean out the dead plants from my orchid bench, since I cleared the weeds in front of it.
I am harvesting Provider beans and two of the cucumbers are producing now. So, I will have cucumbers again next week.
I planted a Valentine tomato. The two other valentines I had are not doing well at all. I underplanted Valentine with garlic. I had some cloves sprouting in the frig and I was trying to figure out where to put them.
I moved some of the bougainvillea cuttings I made from my bonsai out to the open bench. They do much better in the sun than under shade cloth.
I have almost filled one green can. I thought this was green week, but its' next week. That gives me more time to fill the second can. I still have the roses to prune and the ti to cut back. That will fill a can easily. With the rain, I have to weed whack again.
The turmeric leaves are turning yellow. I will need to harvest that as well as the rest of the ginger.
I have an orchid club event tomorrow. I have spent the last two days baking and tonight was the set up for the sale tomorrow. I have to be there between 6-8 a.m. It is only a 6 hour sale from 8-2, but it is still going to be tiring. My body is already aching. I am barely getting out to water the yard. It is a good that the new planting mix I have does not dry out fast. Of course if it really starts raining like it should, that will be a detriment.
The murraya koenegii has not put out any new shoots. It may be dead. If it doesn't come back, it is o.k. I don't use curry leaf that much and that is a huge plant.
On my to do list is to harvest the vermicast. The worms are eating a lot and the vermicast is building too high.
I have most of the front inner courtyard cleaned up. I can only do a little at a time. I have most of the weeds pulled but I still have a small section to go.
I took down the dead tomato in the bucket. Even though it was under netting, it was infested with mealybugs. I guess that explains its' sudden demise.
The days temperatures are still in the mid 80's. I have started broccoli seeds twice, they came up and died, so maybe I won't be doing broccoli this year. I do need to get the kale and komatsuna planted and transplant the lettuce or maybe just eat the fingerlings.
Last week 7 cardinals got stuck inside the bird netting. The other day a juvenile cardinal was stuck and I chased to the ground and he squeezed under the netting. I put more U pins on the ground and I sealed up the leaks I found. The door is still open, but maybe the bird has learned its lesson and will stay out of it. The java rice birds are looking for a way to get into the roof again, but the vent caps are holding.
I fed some of the potted plants with sulfate of ammonia and k-mag. (cucumber, basil, taro, peppers, and eggplant. The plants take about a week to respond. I wish the side dressings would last longer, but I have to do it this way to avoid giving the plants any more phosphorus. If the phosphorus was not a problem, I would be able to use the citrus food only and I would not have to supplement so often. The taro and sweet potato are the only things that don't mind the high phosphorus in the containers.
The rain has taken care of some the bugs. I still see sooty mold but not as many aphids, mealybugs, or thrips now. But they have not totally gone away. The downside of having more rain with warm days, is that fungal disease is on the rise. The plumeria has rust and the hibiscus still has mealybugs, but now it also has fungal disease.
I was able to clean out the dead plants from my orchid bench, since I cleared the weeds in front of it.
I am harvesting Provider beans and two of the cucumbers are producing now. So, I will have cucumbers again next week.
I planted a Valentine tomato. The two other valentines I had are not doing well at all. I underplanted Valentine with garlic. I had some cloves sprouting in the frig and I was trying to figure out where to put them.
I moved some of the bougainvillea cuttings I made from my bonsai out to the open bench. They do much better in the sun than under shade cloth.
I have almost filled one green can. I thought this was green week, but its' next week. That gives me more time to fill the second can. I still have the roses to prune and the ti to cut back. That will fill a can easily. With the rain, I have to weed whack again.
The turmeric leaves are turning yellow. I will need to harvest that as well as the rest of the ginger.
I have an orchid club event tomorrow. I have spent the last two days baking and tonight was the set up for the sale tomorrow. I have to be there between 6-8 a.m. It is only a 6 hour sale from 8-2, but it is still going to be tiring. My body is already aching. I am barely getting out to water the yard. It is a good that the new planting mix I have does not dry out fast. Of course if it really starts raining like it should, that will be a detriment.
The murraya koenegii has not put out any new shoots. It may be dead. If it doesn't come back, it is o.k. I don't use curry leaf that much and that is a huge plant.
On my to do list is to harvest the vermicast. The worms are eating a lot and the vermicast is building too high.
I just got my water bill. I went down from 8K to 5K gallons last month. That's an improvement. But some plants died because they did not get watered in time. Even though it has been raining on most nights, it has been windy and the rain is light so it is not enough to really water anything. When the rain stops I will have to start the fungicides. Yesterday, I ended up watering in the rain because it decided to start drizzling halfway through watering, but it is just as well because it wasn't enough rain to water the plants. I did pot up so valentine seedlings and planted butter crunch lettuce under a valentine I transplanted to an 18 gallon pot. I have a couple of volunteer tomatoes, but I probably have to pull them out because of where they are. I have some extra seedlings I will be taking to the garden club meeting this morning. Luckily is it is like 2 blocks away so I won't have to go far in the rain.
I have a couple of cucumbers that are ready to pick and a second picking of Provider beans.
I transplanted some of the lettuce in the tower to empty pockets and seeded some of the remaining empty pockets with butter crunch lettuce. Because it has been raining and the seedlings in the tower look like they may have been eaten by slugs, I put out more slug bait as well.
The birds so far have stayed out of the bird netting, but the weeds are coming up with the rain. The neighbors' hibiscus is coming through the fence so I have to cut it back again. I am seeing fewer pests on the plants now that it has been raining more, but more fungal disease which is the case when it is over 80 degrees when the rain stops and everything starts to steam off.
I ordered more net pots from amazon for the orchids. The ones I have are too big and the baskets are too expensive in either wood or plastic. I used to be able to go to the dollar store and find plastic baskets, but they don't exist anymore. Don QIote used to have a section of these types of small items like trays, baskets, stationary, and household items, but they eliminated it. I have a lot of pots. I have to dig through them to see if I can find something I can use. The wind is shaking my orchid benches loose so I have to keep putting them back together.
I have a couple of cucumbers that are ready to pick and a second picking of Provider beans.
I transplanted some of the lettuce in the tower to empty pockets and seeded some of the remaining empty pockets with butter crunch lettuce. Because it has been raining and the seedlings in the tower look like they may have been eaten by slugs, I put out more slug bait as well.
The birds so far have stayed out of the bird netting, but the weeds are coming up with the rain. The neighbors' hibiscus is coming through the fence so I have to cut it back again. I am seeing fewer pests on the plants now that it has been raining more, but more fungal disease which is the case when it is over 80 degrees when the rain stops and everything starts to steam off.
I ordered more net pots from amazon for the orchids. The ones I have are too big and the baskets are too expensive in either wood or plastic. I used to be able to go to the dollar store and find plastic baskets, but they don't exist anymore. Don QIote used to have a section of these types of small items like trays, baskets, stationary, and household items, but they eliminated it. I have a lot of pots. I have to dig through them to see if I can find something I can use. The wind is shaking my orchid benches loose so I have to keep putting them back together.
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applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 30551
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
I used to ask my BIL to save the larger clear clamshell containers with ventilation slits in them that fruits and sometimes tomatoes come in. He would only get the larger sizes for family get-togethers. They are sturdy and great for planting in (with lid cut off), as well as for using as fruit protectors that are growing in the garden (apples, berries).
…I wanted to ask you about those towers — How many hours of sun do they get? Do you rotate them for even sun exposure?
…I wanted to ask you about those towers — How many hours of sun do they get? Do you rotate them for even sun exposure?
I use the clam shell containers for seed starting and for some cuttings. They do work great for seeds that are slow to germinate or slow to grow.
One tower is in full sun. The other tower is in the shade of the house so it gets full sun after 11 am so for about 6-7 hours.
The first tower was a deluxe model so it had plant supports which I used once. It is actually just as easy to use bamboo stakes and I don't grow a lot of plants that need the supports. It also came with a mover or wheels.
The tower was originally on the ground, but it fell 3 times in the rain because the tower must weigh 150 lbs soaking wet and the wheels sunk into the mud. I later put a large paver under the tower and leveled it but it is 2 inches off the ground so the wheels are not useful. I changed the wheels to a spinner (turntable) since I really don't have to move it.
This works better for turning the tower to get more sunlight and also for watering and planting the pockets. There is a reservoir on top, but when I plant the pockets with seeds, I water the pockets too. It has a patented watering system to evenly water the tiers in the tower. So, I don't have the same problem I had with other tower planters where the top was dry and the bottom was soggy. It does need to be supplemented with water soluble fertilizer.
The five tier tower holds 5 cubic feet of soil and the 6 tier holds 6.25 cubic feet of soil ( The 6 tier is a hybrid of of 10 inch deep and 7 inch deep tiers). It saves a lot of space. The 6 tier has 36 pockets and the 5 tier has 30 pockets. It is good for leafy and root crops. 1-3 plants can grow in each pocket depending on the size of the plant.
You do have to set it up properly. The base needs to be level. The pockets need to be filled to the top and the trays need to have the holes aligned with the pockets to water properly. The tiers must be set up so they are level and the locks are in place. If it is not level the error will magnify and the tower will lean and be unstable. The wheels are useful if you move the planter like on a deck or balcony or if you need to move it in case of a freeze. You can stack all of the tiers or just make a short stack of three tiers if that is all you need. The reservoir is marked to the level you need to fill the water for the number of tiers you have. In order to waste less water. The plug should be on the center when you fill the reservoir. You can also mix the shallow and deep tiers on the same tower. However, the tower should not be more than 5 ft tall. The company sells parts and accessories.
One tower is in full sun. The other tower is in the shade of the house so it gets full sun after 11 am so for about 6-7 hours.
The first tower was a deluxe model so it had plant supports which I used once. It is actually just as easy to use bamboo stakes and I don't grow a lot of plants that need the supports. It also came with a mover or wheels.
The tower was originally on the ground, but it fell 3 times in the rain because the tower must weigh 150 lbs soaking wet and the wheels sunk into the mud. I later put a large paver under the tower and leveled it but it is 2 inches off the ground so the wheels are not useful. I changed the wheels to a spinner (turntable) since I really don't have to move it.
This works better for turning the tower to get more sunlight and also for watering and planting the pockets. There is a reservoir on top, but when I plant the pockets with seeds, I water the pockets too. It has a patented watering system to evenly water the tiers in the tower. So, I don't have the same problem I had with other tower planters where the top was dry and the bottom was soggy. It does need to be supplemented with water soluble fertilizer.
The five tier tower holds 5 cubic feet of soil and the 6 tier holds 6.25 cubic feet of soil ( The 6 tier is a hybrid of of 10 inch deep and 7 inch deep tiers). It saves a lot of space. The 6 tier has 36 pockets and the 5 tier has 30 pockets. It is good for leafy and root crops. 1-3 plants can grow in each pocket depending on the size of the plant.
You do have to set it up properly. The base needs to be level. The pockets need to be filled to the top and the trays need to have the holes aligned with the pockets to water properly. The tiers must be set up so they are level and the locks are in place. If it is not level the error will magnify and the tower will lean and be unstable. The wheels are useful if you move the planter like on a deck or balcony or if you need to move it in case of a freeze. You can stack all of the tiers or just make a short stack of three tiers if that is all you need. The reservoir is marked to the level you need to fill the water for the number of tiers you have. In order to waste less water. The plug should be on the center when you fill the reservoir. You can also mix the shallow and deep tiers on the same tower. However, the tower should not be more than 5 ft tall. The company sells parts and accessories.
I got out yesterday and weeded the main garden again. This time there was an adult red cardinal trapped inside the netting. I chased it out. There was also a lone bee wandering around trying to find a way out.
I did get around to weed whacking the front yard yesterday as well. I needed to do the weeding before the rain comes while everything is dry.
There were aphids on my bok choy which I washed off with water. I am having a resurgence of pests that is unusual for this time of the year. I usually only use water or alcohol, but I may have to use other things if the pest pressure keeps up.
I also got two snails yesterday. I need to bait the front yard.
I harvested 4 cucumber. I had one for dinner. I forgot to weigh it again. I am forgetting to do that a lot lately, I have gotten out of the habit. I still have a few more Provider beans to pick. This will be the third harvest from the same beans. It is only a small patch of about 10 plants, but it is producing well and I don't need a lot of beans.
I gave some of the extra seedlings of New Big Dwarf tomato, Valentine tomato, and solo papaya to my garden club. I have a few more plants to find homes for. Some of them are small so they have time. I have to find a place for the larger ones though. I may plant another New Big Dwarf. that will give me two New Big Dwarf and Three Valentines. Actually one of the Valentines is near the end of its life, it is still producing but the vines are dying. The third bucket of Soarer cucumbers is flowering now and should move into production. Jibai Shimashizaru is surprising me. the vine is drying but it still puts out new shoots and is still trying to produce fruit and it is over two months old.
I got around to pruning most of the roses in containers on Thursday. I will try again to make cuttings from some of the canes. I have never successfully been able to propagate a hybrid tea rose from cuttings. The shrub and ramblers are easier to propagate.
My bougainvillea bonsai is moving into full bloom after it was reshaped. So, it is looking good now. I just have to keep after the weeds in the pot. I potted up the trimmings from the bonsai and most of them have started to put out leaves. A couple look like goners. Still a good survival rate for a 33 year old plant. I found a few of my training bonsai pots when I cleaned up and a couple of my training bonsai can use it.
While I was shopping at Walmart, I was looking for more miniature roses. I did not find any , but I did find Nishii juniper. So I got one as a starter bonsai. It is only 4 inches tall so it has to grow out a bit to see if it can be shaped.
My garden club Christmas potluck has a plant exchange. There isn't a lot of time to get a plant ready in a month.
I did get around to weed whacking the front yard yesterday as well. I needed to do the weeding before the rain comes while everything is dry.
There were aphids on my bok choy which I washed off with water. I am having a resurgence of pests that is unusual for this time of the year. I usually only use water or alcohol, but I may have to use other things if the pest pressure keeps up.
I also got two snails yesterday. I need to bait the front yard.
I harvested 4 cucumber. I had one for dinner. I forgot to weigh it again. I am forgetting to do that a lot lately, I have gotten out of the habit. I still have a few more Provider beans to pick. This will be the third harvest from the same beans. It is only a small patch of about 10 plants, but it is producing well and I don't need a lot of beans.
I gave some of the extra seedlings of New Big Dwarf tomato, Valentine tomato, and solo papaya to my garden club. I have a few more plants to find homes for. Some of them are small so they have time. I have to find a place for the larger ones though. I may plant another New Big Dwarf. that will give me two New Big Dwarf and Three Valentines. Actually one of the Valentines is near the end of its life, it is still producing but the vines are dying. The third bucket of Soarer cucumbers is flowering now and should move into production. Jibai Shimashizaru is surprising me. the vine is drying but it still puts out new shoots and is still trying to produce fruit and it is over two months old.
I got around to pruning most of the roses in containers on Thursday. I will try again to make cuttings from some of the canes. I have never successfully been able to propagate a hybrid tea rose from cuttings. The shrub and ramblers are easier to propagate.
My bougainvillea bonsai is moving into full bloom after it was reshaped. So, it is looking good now. I just have to keep after the weeds in the pot. I potted up the trimmings from the bonsai and most of them have started to put out leaves. A couple look like goners. Still a good survival rate for a 33 year old plant. I found a few of my training bonsai pots when I cleaned up and a couple of my training bonsai can use it.
While I was shopping at Walmart, I was looking for more miniature roses. I did not find any , but I did find Nishii juniper. So I got one as a starter bonsai. It is only 4 inches tall so it has to grow out a bit to see if it can be shaped.
My garden club Christmas potluck has a plant exchange. There isn't a lot of time to get a plant ready in a month.
I went out in the drizzling rain and watered the garden. The rain gauge shows only 0.10 inch of rain, so while the pots are drying slowly, they are not really getting that much water. I did not see any snails. Usually on cold wet days they are out, or maybe I was late. I washed the bok choy again to get more aphids off and I harvested more ginger from my second tub. The ginger in this tub is much younger and there are not many big pieces, a lot of small pieces. Usually, I don't plant small pieces, but I may do that this time. My ginger does not have disease so I would rather plant the small pieces than possibly introduce bacterial wilt. That is the biggest issue with ginger farming. The lack of disease resistance of ginger. Farms need to keep their farms very clean. If they get disease, they have no choice but to move the farm. I usually throw away the seed pieces but my friend said they are older, but fine to eat.
I am still treating th pak choy for aphids. Hopefully the rain will knock them off. The kale looks like it is clean now. I don't see flying bugs anymore. I fertilized containers with Miracle grow. I need to go back and do slow release fertilizer on the perennial plants citrus, peppers, eggplant, bonsai, roses, etc. I am going to wait until the cold front passes.
I did finish harvesting the last bucket of ginger. There were a lot of small pieces. I have all the pieces now in a single pot. I can still use the ginger as needed and I will transfer some of the ginger to the second pot once they start growing again which won't be until April.
I have couple of dendrobiums in spike and one of the oncidiums looks like it will bloom really early. The plumeria has lost most of the leaves so it is time to rake them up ( after the rain) and prune the tree.
The rain is making the grass grow. I just mowed last week and it looks like I will need to mow again soon. I pulled out some weedy tree and fern seedlings and picked up pods from the African tulip.
The catalogs are coming in the mail and I started ordering seeds. Some seeds are already sold out. I have to check with my friends if they want to order as well so I can make the shipping worthwhile. Most of the mainland seed companies only ship free to contiguous states. Only MI gardener seeds and Baker seeds will ship to Hawaii without additional shipping charges. I noticed now that some seed companies are limiting their range. Harris seeds used to ship here but not anymore and another company does not ship beyond zone 5. Park seeds adds a $20 surcharge for the phyto certificate to send even one packet of seeds to Hawaii. I have been saving more of my seeds, but some seeds cannot be saved so I always have to order some seeds.
I did finish harvesting the last bucket of ginger. There were a lot of small pieces. I have all the pieces now in a single pot. I can still use the ginger as needed and I will transfer some of the ginger to the second pot once they start growing again which won't be until April.
I have couple of dendrobiums in spike and one of the oncidiums looks like it will bloom really early. The plumeria has lost most of the leaves so it is time to rake them up ( after the rain) and prune the tree.
The rain is making the grass grow. I just mowed last week and it looks like I will need to mow again soon. I pulled out some weedy tree and fern seedlings and picked up pods from the African tulip.
The catalogs are coming in the mail and I started ordering seeds. Some seeds are already sold out. I have to check with my friends if they want to order as well so I can make the shipping worthwhile. Most of the mainland seed companies only ship free to contiguous states. Only MI gardener seeds and Baker seeds will ship to Hawaii without additional shipping charges. I noticed now that some seed companies are limiting their range. Harris seeds used to ship here but not anymore and another company does not ship beyond zone 5. Park seeds adds a $20 surcharge for the phyto certificate to send even one packet of seeds to Hawaii. I have been saving more of my seeds, but some seeds cannot be saved so I always have to order some seeds.
I did some little things between the rain showers this morning. I fed the worms and also did the first sifting through the vermicast. I have to remember to go through it again in a few days. I may need to get more worms. I have large worms, but not many young ones. There were some roaches in the bin.
I found one more cucumber and I removed the old valentine vines ( Now I have 2 more valentine containers) and the Jibai shimoshirazu cucumber vine. It had aphids and it was still producing cucumbers but it was time to go. I found more Fukien tea seedlings under the vines so I pulled them and the grass growing on top of the weed block.
Things always grow better in the rain. The alyssum in the front yard was looking shabby, but with all the rain, it has started to bloom again. I may not have to pull it out now.
I brought some seedlings to pot up into the lanai so I could pot them up even if it starts raining again.
Even though I only did little things that only took a few minutes. I actually have done more than I have in weeks. Maybe doing a few minutes is better than trying to get an hour in at a time. At least it is less tiring and I don't have to have such long breaks.
I found one more cucumber and I removed the old valentine vines ( Now I have 2 more valentine containers) and the Jibai shimoshirazu cucumber vine. It had aphids and it was still producing cucumbers but it was time to go. I found more Fukien tea seedlings under the vines so I pulled them and the grass growing on top of the weed block.
Things always grow better in the rain. The alyssum in the front yard was looking shabby, but with all the rain, it has started to bloom again. I may not have to pull it out now.
I brought some seedlings to pot up into the lanai so I could pot them up even if it starts raining again.
Even though I only did little things that only took a few minutes. I actually have done more than I have in weeks. Maybe doing a few minutes is better than trying to get an hour in at a time. At least it is less tiring and I don't have to have such long breaks.
Potted up some seedlings of Lacinato kale, cubanelle, 7 pot hot pepper, komatsuna, Thai basil, perpetual spinach, mucho nacho, and valentine tomatoes.
Some of these seedlings are a bit stunted and over a month old, so I don't know how they will do. It is still overcast and intermittently raining, so tomorrow I may go look for more plants and cuttings to bring into the lanai to pot up or just cull. There are a couple of more wet days ahead in the forecast.
Some of these seedlings are a bit stunted and over a month old, so I don't know how they will do. It is still overcast and intermittently raining, so tomorrow I may go look for more plants and cuttings to bring into the lanai to pot up or just cull. There are a couple of more wet days ahead in the forecast.
It dried out a bit, so I got the weed whacking done in the front yard. I have nasturtiums popping up all over the place. I also have a couple of volunteer tomatoes but they have to be pulled because they are in the front yard.
I finally got out to take a good look at the yard. Most things are happier after the rain. The alyssum is thriving again and the bees are back foraging. The old seedlings I transplanted are doing well except for one that did not make it. I need to do something with the tomato seedlings they are getting very big and may already have started rooting in the pot.
Some of the peppers Thai, and Aconcaqua are turning red.
The weeds are starting to grow in the garden so I hoed them out again Spurge and bindweed are persistent.
I finally got out to take a good look at the yard. Most things are happier after the rain. The alyssum is thriving again and the bees are back foraging. The old seedlings I transplanted are doing well except for one that did not make it. I need to do something with the tomato seedlings they are getting very big and may already have started rooting in the pot.
Some of the peppers Thai, and Aconcaqua are turning red.
The weeds are starting to grow in the garden so I hoed them out again Spurge and bindweed are persistent.
Most of my seed orders came in. I have purchased from True Leaf Market/Kitagawa mostly Soarer cucumbers since I can't really get them anywhere else. They also had Southern Delight which I can't find anywhere else either.
Tomato Growers Supply Company seeds:
Carmen Pepper
Touchdown Hybrid pepper
Revolution Hybrid pepper
Majestic Red Hybrid pepper
All of these I have grown before. Carmen does get bacterial spot, and so does Chinese Giant. Touchdown, Majestic Red, and Revolution have better disease resistance. Majestic Red, Chinese Giant, Monster, and Aristotle are the bell peppers I have had the most success with. Although even those don't come close to their potential. Carmen does the best because it is a bull horn pepper.
I ordered seeds a couple of times from Baker and MI gardener. I just put in another order for MI gardener. MI gardener now requires $20 in purchases or about 10 seed packets to qualify for free shipping. I only had 7 so I paid $3.75 for shipping which isn't that bad. I should have read the shipping information first. I really did not need any other seeds, but I also forgot to apply my points, my bad.
I am getting Cumin, Calendula Pacific Mix, Picotee Cosmos, Maxibel bush beans, Floradade tomato, Oregon sugar pea, and Wherokowhai tomato ( I can't pronounce it. It is a new dwarf tomato for me. Hopefully, it will make the rotation this year.) MI gardener was already sold out of some of the seeds I wanted.
I have already gotten more catalogs. They are tempting, but I always order more seeds than I can plant and I still have seeds in the frig that take up a shelf and a drawer after culling. I have been saving some seeds like for lettuce and I saved corn seeds for the first time. Peppers and tomatoes seed themselves. But some of those seeds have lost disease resistance so sometimes they are good and sometimes not. I saved papaya seed, but I did not really like the hardness of the flesh, it was more like a cantauloupe and papaya should not be that hard, so I may not plant the seeds from that plant. I can't save seeds from the parthenocarpic varieties because they don't have any unless they cross with a non-parthenocarpic plant, so it won't be the same.
So far, I am under $75 for my seed orders, but the year isn't over yet.
I discovered plant shares and free stores on facebook. I have participated in one, and plan to do more. This way, I will have a place to take my extra seedlings so the seeds don't get wasted and I can trade what I have for other plants. I got a couple of bromeliads and a tillandsia pink quill at the last plant share. I have to check out the free stores, but I haven't done that yet. This would be a good way to get different plants and give back the ones I don't need rather than have to throw them away. For instance, I have to divide mint every couple of months and I usually toss out 3/4 of the plant, but now I can bring the divisions to a share or to a free store instead. At the last plant share there was a lot of aloe and succulents, dragon fruit, dracena, accessories ( measuring cups and spoons), seeds, cuttings, potted landscape plants, orchid divisions, and even cookies. I brought black bamboo divisions, mini roses, katuk cuttings, virea cuttings, and some extra tomato starts. There is another share next week, but my other meeting was switched to that week, so I may not be able to get to that one. I will have to wait for the next one. In the meantime, I can start more plants, I just can't go overboard, I don't have enough room. I need to do seed germination tests on the older seeds, it would also be a way to distribute any leftover seeds and seedlings that pass the test that I don't need. I am going to take some of the seedling starts to my other clubs and the other garden to see if I can rehome some there.
Tomato Growers Supply Company seeds:
Carmen Pepper
Touchdown Hybrid pepper
Revolution Hybrid pepper
Majestic Red Hybrid pepper
All of these I have grown before. Carmen does get bacterial spot, and so does Chinese Giant. Touchdown, Majestic Red, and Revolution have better disease resistance. Majestic Red, Chinese Giant, Monster, and Aristotle are the bell peppers I have had the most success with. Although even those don't come close to their potential. Carmen does the best because it is a bull horn pepper.
I ordered seeds a couple of times from Baker and MI gardener. I just put in another order for MI gardener. MI gardener now requires $20 in purchases or about 10 seed packets to qualify for free shipping. I only had 7 so I paid $3.75 for shipping which isn't that bad. I should have read the shipping information first. I really did not need any other seeds, but I also forgot to apply my points, my bad.
I am getting Cumin, Calendula Pacific Mix, Picotee Cosmos, Maxibel bush beans, Floradade tomato, Oregon sugar pea, and Wherokowhai tomato ( I can't pronounce it. It is a new dwarf tomato for me. Hopefully, it will make the rotation this year.) MI gardener was already sold out of some of the seeds I wanted.
I have already gotten more catalogs. They are tempting, but I always order more seeds than I can plant and I still have seeds in the frig that take up a shelf and a drawer after culling. I have been saving some seeds like for lettuce and I saved corn seeds for the first time. Peppers and tomatoes seed themselves. But some of those seeds have lost disease resistance so sometimes they are good and sometimes not. I saved papaya seed, but I did not really like the hardness of the flesh, it was more like a cantauloupe and papaya should not be that hard, so I may not plant the seeds from that plant. I can't save seeds from the parthenocarpic varieties because they don't have any unless they cross with a non-parthenocarpic plant, so it won't be the same.
So far, I am under $75 for my seed orders, but the year isn't over yet.
I discovered plant shares and free stores on facebook. I have participated in one, and plan to do more. This way, I will have a place to take my extra seedlings so the seeds don't get wasted and I can trade what I have for other plants. I got a couple of bromeliads and a tillandsia pink quill at the last plant share. I have to check out the free stores, but I haven't done that yet. This would be a good way to get different plants and give back the ones I don't need rather than have to throw them away. For instance, I have to divide mint every couple of months and I usually toss out 3/4 of the plant, but now I can bring the divisions to a share or to a free store instead. At the last plant share there was a lot of aloe and succulents, dragon fruit, dracena, accessories ( measuring cups and spoons), seeds, cuttings, potted landscape plants, orchid divisions, and even cookies. I brought black bamboo divisions, mini roses, katuk cuttings, virea cuttings, and some extra tomato starts. There is another share next week, but my other meeting was switched to that week, so I may not be able to get to that one. I will have to wait for the next one. In the meantime, I can start more plants, I just can't go overboard, I don't have enough room. I need to do seed germination tests on the older seeds, it would also be a way to distribute any leftover seeds and seedlings that pass the test that I don't need. I am going to take some of the seedling starts to my other clubs and the other garden to see if I can rehome some there.
I just picked up more seeds in the mail from Southern Seed Exchange. They changed their packaging. The seeds came in a box that resembles a McDonalds box and the seeds were in 2x2 small zip bags. The kind that is usually used for small jewelry or crafts. This may get lost in my seed bag. I'll probably have to put the seeds in sandwich zip bags.
I got cutting celery, Ambrosia corn, Ashley cucumber, Black Beauty Eggplant, Italian parsley, Oregon sugar peas ( I also ordered from MI gardener), Bird eye chili, and Green Shiso. I only need one cutting celery and Italian parsley so I will have hundreds of extra seeds. I got extra Ashley cucumbers. They are heat tolerant. My friends like Black Beauty eggplant. I don't but they are good for trade. I could not find the bulk packages of snow peas so I am only getting home grower packets. I don't know why that particular variety is either sold out or they are not selling it this year. I have a couple of packets of Green Shiso. I won't plant that until March at the earliest. It doesn't like cold weather. Hopefully I can get the bird eye chilies to behave. Some of the wild chilies need potassium nitrate to germinate or a bird. There are only a few temperate corn that will grow here. I am hoping ambrosia will be one of them. I could not find out if it is nematode or maize mozaic virus resistant, which is what it needs to be. It is listed for zone 9-10, so it should grow here. I can grow most zone 9 plants in zone 12. I cannot grow northern varieties of corn. I don't have the day length. It may still be too tall for the bird cage. The cage is 7 ft tall and I had to take the netting off for the 8 ft corn. The corn will grow smaller if I use organic fertilizer, but it would cost a lot more for blood meal and the ears will also be smaller. It is actually the same as Peaches and Cream which I did grow a long time ago. Peaches and Cream is an Heirloom variety.
I got cutting celery, Ambrosia corn, Ashley cucumber, Black Beauty Eggplant, Italian parsley, Oregon sugar peas ( I also ordered from MI gardener), Bird eye chili, and Green Shiso. I only need one cutting celery and Italian parsley so I will have hundreds of extra seeds. I got extra Ashley cucumbers. They are heat tolerant. My friends like Black Beauty eggplant. I don't but they are good for trade. I could not find the bulk packages of snow peas so I am only getting home grower packets. I don't know why that particular variety is either sold out or they are not selling it this year. I have a couple of packets of Green Shiso. I won't plant that until March at the earliest. It doesn't like cold weather. Hopefully I can get the bird eye chilies to behave. Some of the wild chilies need potassium nitrate to germinate or a bird. There are only a few temperate corn that will grow here. I am hoping ambrosia will be one of them. I could not find out if it is nematode or maize mozaic virus resistant, which is what it needs to be. It is listed for zone 9-10, so it should grow here. I can grow most zone 9 plants in zone 12. I cannot grow northern varieties of corn. I don't have the day length. It may still be too tall for the bird cage. The cage is 7 ft tall and I had to take the netting off for the 8 ft corn. The corn will grow smaller if I use organic fertilizer, but it would cost a lot more for blood meal and the ears will also be smaller. It is actually the same as Peaches and Cream which I did grow a long time ago. Peaches and Cream is an Heirloom variety.
I finally planted the main garden yesterday. A very late start for me. I hope the transplants do well they had been in the pots much longer than they should have been. I planted Oregon Giant peas ( I couldn't find Oregon Sugar and other varieties were already sold out). I'll see how this one works out. I planted cilantro in the ground this time. I usually plant them in containers. I planted some free Amarillo Carrot seeds I had in the pot I grow the ginger in. I planted the old starts of lacinato kale, komatsuna, and a young start of cutting celery I just bought ( but it did not take long for the snails to start snacking on it.), I also broadcast seeds of Shanghai bok choy, Ruby Swiss Chard, perpetual spinach, Hiramatsu Kai Choy cabbage ( white rust resistant). Now, I have to keep the door to the garden closed. Especially since the birds were watching me planting the seeds.
I can squeeze a few more things in there, but it is probably too late for me to plant broccoli again. I have to have paths in the garden because of its oval shape. So to maximize the space. I am going to put small containers in the pathways rather than leaving them for the weeds to take over. I put newspaper on the ground and planted the brassicas through it. They require a lot of space. I don't have any mulch where I broadcast the seeds, so I will see what the weeds do. I have weeded 5 times. I will also put paper mulch or plastic under the pots that I am placing in the paths. I haven't figured out what I am going to put there yet. It is a warm winter and I am considering trying to start some peppers. Peppers grow very slowly at this time of the year, so it might take longer to germinate. I have a few peppers that need up potting and some herbs so those are possibilities.
The peppers are ripening and some are starting to dry on the plant.
Both cucumbers are showing nutritional deficiencies and one is in new potting soil, but I did not add extra fertilizer. I still have to figure out the fertilizer and the timing. Using Kmag and sulfate of ammonia requires frequent applications and I haven't got the timing right. I have already gotten some very large cucumbers from the plants so they were productive. I am just not getting the most out of them because they should have lasted longer than this.
I harvested the turmeric and I have already replanted some of the rhizomes. Turmeric comes up much faster than zingiber.
The araimo in the half barrel is huge compared to what they usually are. I guess they needed a bigger pot after all. The root of a couple of them are getting larger but I don't know if it will be big enough by New Year's eve. I can still harvest the small ones. I also have Bun long taro that needs to be harvested and the sweet potatoes have already bloomed.
Today, I pruned the plumeria and raked up the leaves. I also pulled out a few weedy tree seedlings ( Fukien Tea, African Tulip, allspice, and fiddlewood)
I have at least one green can filled. I still have a few more things to cut, mainly fern and ti leaves and I will usually Round Up weeds in the paths and only pull weeds near the plantings. I need to use Image on the grass for the broadleaf weeds and nutsedge. I actually had lettuce and cilantro growing in the lawn from the tubs of potting soil I emptied out. But also weeds like purslane which is edible but not an easy weed to control.
I took cuttings from Goodwin Creek Lavender, rosemary and very thin cuttings from the bay leaf. I am not sure how that will work out. I usually take thick stems from the bay. I also made cuttings from Katuk ( I haven't had luck with that. I have to figure out whether to take the stem or the tip. I have a healthy bush to play with).
This was a lot for me to do. I am going to try to go out one more time, but I may not make it. I did water what needed to be watered, the rest were watered yesterday and are still wet. There was a time when I could spend 6 hours in the yard, but now I can barely stay out for an hour and I need long breaks to recover.
I can squeeze a few more things in there, but it is probably too late for me to plant broccoli again. I have to have paths in the garden because of its oval shape. So to maximize the space. I am going to put small containers in the pathways rather than leaving them for the weeds to take over. I put newspaper on the ground and planted the brassicas through it. They require a lot of space. I don't have any mulch where I broadcast the seeds, so I will see what the weeds do. I have weeded 5 times. I will also put paper mulch or plastic under the pots that I am placing in the paths. I haven't figured out what I am going to put there yet. It is a warm winter and I am considering trying to start some peppers. Peppers grow very slowly at this time of the year, so it might take longer to germinate. I have a few peppers that need up potting and some herbs so those are possibilities.
The peppers are ripening and some are starting to dry on the plant.
Both cucumbers are showing nutritional deficiencies and one is in new potting soil, but I did not add extra fertilizer. I still have to figure out the fertilizer and the timing. Using Kmag and sulfate of ammonia requires frequent applications and I haven't got the timing right. I have already gotten some very large cucumbers from the plants so they were productive. I am just not getting the most out of them because they should have lasted longer than this.
I harvested the turmeric and I have already replanted some of the rhizomes. Turmeric comes up much faster than zingiber.
The araimo in the half barrel is huge compared to what they usually are. I guess they needed a bigger pot after all. The root of a couple of them are getting larger but I don't know if it will be big enough by New Year's eve. I can still harvest the small ones. I also have Bun long taro that needs to be harvested and the sweet potatoes have already bloomed.
Today, I pruned the plumeria and raked up the leaves. I also pulled out a few weedy tree seedlings ( Fukien Tea, African Tulip, allspice, and fiddlewood)
I have at least one green can filled. I still have a few more things to cut, mainly fern and ti leaves and I will usually Round Up weeds in the paths and only pull weeds near the plantings. I need to use Image on the grass for the broadleaf weeds and nutsedge. I actually had lettuce and cilantro growing in the lawn from the tubs of potting soil I emptied out. But also weeds like purslane which is edible but not an easy weed to control.
I took cuttings from Goodwin Creek Lavender, rosemary and very thin cuttings from the bay leaf. I am not sure how that will work out. I usually take thick stems from the bay. I also made cuttings from Katuk ( I haven't had luck with that. I have to figure out whether to take the stem or the tip. I have a healthy bush to play with).
This was a lot for me to do. I am going to try to go out one more time, but I may not make it. I did water what needed to be watered, the rest were watered yesterday and are still wet. There was a time when I could spend 6 hours in the yard, but now I can barely stay out for an hour and I need long breaks to recover.
I found a broccoli seedling. I thought I lost all of them. I will have to find a space for it in the main garden. I also found the fennel is still alive, so I will have to set up a pot for that too.
I have a couple of wild tomatoes growing. They are actually doing better than the ones in the containers.
I have a couple of peppers that can be potted up into larger containers.
It is 65 degrees at 9 a.m. with a lot of cloud cover but there is also gaps with blue skies.
It is so cold the green onions are blooming again.
I have a couple of wild tomatoes growing. They are actually doing better than the ones in the containers.
I have a couple of peppers that can be potted up into larger containers.
It is 65 degrees at 9 a.m. with a lot of cloud cover but there is also gaps with blue skies.
It is so cold the green onions are blooming again.
I couldn't save the broccoli or semposai. They had ground mealy bugs in the pots so I threw them away.
I decided yesterday to make nishime for New Year and harvested the larger araimo and daikon (the only one I have) from the garden.
It was really hard to dig it out of the pot. I had to dig some other ones as well just to get to the mother corm. The radish was transplanted so the root was not straight but is was good enough to eat.
I have Bun Long taro to get out of another pot. I am not looking forward to that either.
I decided yesterday to make nishime for New Year and harvested the larger araimo and daikon (the only one I have) from the garden.
It was really hard to dig it out of the pot. I had to dig some other ones as well just to get to the mother corm. The radish was transplanted so the root was not straight but is was good enough to eat.
I have Bun Long taro to get out of another pot. I am not looking forward to that either.
- Attachments
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- This is the araimo and daikon when I pulled it out of the gardnen and before I prepped them. The tops did not get wasted. I fed them to the worms along with all the vegetable peels
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- I had 4 araimo. One was really small but the others were above average. The largest one is about the size of a baseball. It was hard to dig out and hard to cut, but it was quite sweet.
I twisted my knee and now I have a cold. It is 62 degrees and I don't want to get out of my blanket. As much as I love gardening, I am finding that I am not being disciplined enough to go out there on a regular schedule. I have to get back to that.
I saw some green coming up in the main garden and thought it was weeds, but it looks like it may be the bok choy. The carrots and cilantro have not stirred, but I am hopeful.
Right now, I can't really lug things around easily, but there are little things I can do like repot the mint and I might be able to pot up some of the smaller pots and do some light pruning and some hand weeding if I can do it standing up. Getting up from a sitting position might be challenging now especially from my garden seat.
So far the cuttings look good, everything is still alive.
I fed the worms for the week and I took the citrossa out of the cutting box and potted them up. If I can make more space on the cutting bench, I can make cuttings of a few more things. I'll try the roses again. I saved a bottle to make a mini greenhouse. I have to cut the roses back anyway, so it is worth a try. I can also take more cuttings from the calamondin.
The seeds I ordered have come in. I planted some of them. Some won't be planted until it is warmer. Some seeds like the oregon sugar was already sold out. I got Oregon Giant instead. I am still waiting for it to sprout.
The psittacorum ( Parrot beak heliconia) I repotted looks good now. It was infested with ground mealy bugs so I repotted and treated it with imidacloprid. I will check the roots and see if it is still good. The ground mealy bugs are spreading and at least for the ornamentals imidacloprid seems to be a good alternative to treat them. I don't like to resort to chemicals, but I am running out of options, they are so hard to keep from spreading.
I saw some green coming up in the main garden and thought it was weeds, but it looks like it may be the bok choy. The carrots and cilantro have not stirred, but I am hopeful.
Right now, I can't really lug things around easily, but there are little things I can do like repot the mint and I might be able to pot up some of the smaller pots and do some light pruning and some hand weeding if I can do it standing up. Getting up from a sitting position might be challenging now especially from my garden seat.
So far the cuttings look good, everything is still alive.
I fed the worms for the week and I took the citrossa out of the cutting box and potted them up. If I can make more space on the cutting bench, I can make cuttings of a few more things. I'll try the roses again. I saved a bottle to make a mini greenhouse. I have to cut the roses back anyway, so it is worth a try. I can also take more cuttings from the calamondin.
The seeds I ordered have come in. I planted some of them. Some won't be planted until it is warmer. Some seeds like the oregon sugar was already sold out. I got Oregon Giant instead. I am still waiting for it to sprout.
The psittacorum ( Parrot beak heliconia) I repotted looks good now. It was infested with ground mealy bugs so I repotted and treated it with imidacloprid. I will check the roots and see if it is still good. The ground mealy bugs are spreading and at least for the ornamentals imidacloprid seems to be a good alternative to treat them. I don't like to resort to chemicals, but I am running out of options, they are so hard to keep from spreading.