Spring-2016 Gardening anyone? What do you plant? or not?

[segelkatt]

I read somewhere that Finland has the best tomatoes because of the endless sunshine during high summer. But I wonder if those tomatoes are grown under glass which is then opened during the day. That's what they do in Canada.

You can get used to any kind of weather, I have lived in Southern California for many years after having grown up in Northern Europe and I can't stand the cold. The conductor at the Los Angeles opera house, Esa-Pekka Salonen, is from Finland and I don't think he would like to return to Finland to live anymore after being used to the fine weather we have here where it never freezes and the usual temperature is in the 70s year round with dips into the low 40s in January and occasional highs in the high 90s but that's what we have air conditioning for..

 

[DreamerRose]

@segelkatt   - Yes, do post pictures. We love pictures, even when they are not of cats. I would love to see some of your gardens.

 

[segelkatt]

 these pics are from my first garden where I had more room, the soil was river bottom from a severe flood decades before (1936!) so it was really good soil  

beans, cucumbers & corn 2006.jpg

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

 grapes on the very left, cukes in the back and corn just coming up

grapes, corn, cukes.jpg

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

 this is from the other side, I'm standing next to the wooden trellis

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

 later the corn is high

all those tomatoes on one branch.jpg

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  so many tomatoes on just one little plant

apricot tree 1.jpg

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  I also had an apricot tree raised from a tiny "stick"

apricot tree 2.jpg

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  It was just loaded with fruit until somebody decided that no trees were allowed and cut it down one weekend without even telling me, I moved away 2 months later

1 this is going to be my garden bed along the fenc

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  this was all the space I was going to have for a veggie garden in Washington State, watch how much I grew there

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  corn, lettuce and tomatoes

070909 the corn is as high as the fence, ca 5 ft.j

• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  I planted green pole beans under the corn for the beans to climb up the corn stalks

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  staked he tomatoes, the fence was 6 ft high, the tomatoes grew even higher

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  the corn grew about 8 ft high

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

 the tomatoes were over 6 ft high

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  and loaded with tomatoes

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  that corn was just about ready to pick, it had two and sometimes three ears on each plant

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  I also grew things in pots because the garden was so small, here they are lined up in the parking lot outside the garden fence

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  those peppers came in really well

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  I also grew flowers I could not grow in California like these daffodils

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  and these tulips

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  but the irises I had brought from California and they did really well in Washington

then I moved back to California and started a new tiny garden, even smaller than the one in Washington, I just could not keep my hands out of the dirt

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• segelkatt
• Jul 12, 2016

  I was not supposed to dig up the dirt but it was just too bare and I got away with it for two years and then somebody turned me in to management and I had to get rid of it

then I got my garden plot in the community garden and I've been a happy gardener ever since.

More pics in my next post, you won't believe what I got and what I turned it into.

 

[DreamerRose]

Great pics! You are a terrific gardener!

 

[foxxycat]

Thank you for posting the pictures! I love them! My tomato plant that is grape tomato is already 4 feet high. Gonna get some fish and bury them around them. I have peat moss but I think the fish will work better. I still have a six pack of petunias to plant-they are hanging in there. 92 today so I know I need to water after my dentist appointment and try to pull up weeds. I should have worked some more on it but I just can't seem to get motivated. I have more pictures too.

 

[foxxycat]

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

Some of last weeks photos

 

[foxxycat]

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

More flowers-I left the hose on all day on this area last week or the week before-hate to see the water bill! GLUP!

 

[foxxycat]

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

This little beauty is called a red hot fire poker.

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

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• foxxycat
• Jul 17, 2016

 

[boney girl dad]

A couple photos from today.

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• boney girl dad
• Jul 17, 2016

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• boney girl dad
• Jul 17, 2016

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• boney girl dad
• Jul 17, 2016

Another fav wildflower----partridge pea

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• boney girl dad
• Jul 17, 2016

 

[segelkatt]

So many of you have all these gorgeous flowers, I cannot  compete with those. Living in a condo building one can put only a limited number of blooming plants into pots. 

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  poinsettia the second year, it has finally died

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  geraniums

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  all those pots,  management made me get rid of half of them, said it was too cluttered

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  Angels' Trumpets

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  Nightblooming Cereus when it was small

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  a year later it was blooming, the branches were starting to hang down, the plant is easily started from cuttings

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  the flower is huge, has no scent and lasts only 3 days

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

the plant itself is now huge and had many flowers on it this year, that is Capucchino snoozing on the chair on the pato

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  cactus collection

and then there are those that come inside when they bloom, otherwise they hang out on the patio

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  Christmas cactus in bloom

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  butterfly amaryllis

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

  white amaryllis

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

 orchids on the patio between blooming

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

 this is the most unusual colored orchid I have

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 17, 2016

these are phalaenopsis orchids, also known as moth orchids which come in many colors, they are said to be the easiest to grow orchids and they bloom several times a year

more garden pics next time, I don't want to hog this site

 

[jtbo]

I have noticed yellow leaves on yard already, first signs of beginning autumn, last night temperature was just 4C (39.2F), next month it is freezing temps during the night again:

syksy_2016_alkaa.jpg

• jtbo
• Jul 19, 2016

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• jtbo
• Jul 19, 2016

So I guess you have something like 2 months summer left? Mine is ridiculously short it seems, potatoes have not grown quite yet. :lol3:

 

[DreamerRose]

Lack of rain can also cause leaves to yellow. Some in your picture have brown edges, which would indicate the same thing. I know you are far north, but two months of summer seems way too short.

 

[segelkatt]

Here are pics from the garden plot I now have had for 4 years. It started out with one huge artichoke plant in a 20 by 20 foot plot full of junk and covered with 4 inches of  gravel. 

020212 035 gravel.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

I don't like artichokes so that had to go and so did the gravel. I tried to shovel it out of there but after 1 wheelbarrow load I gave up, it's just too hard. I hired someone to get it out of there and then to have someone else to roto-till it. Surprise! What looked like very dark rich soil turned out to be black clay. Yikes, nothing is going to grow in there. In one corner somebody had set up a few small raised beds, I used those to grow a few things but also knew this had to go once I had the garden set up properly.

022012 031 so much gravel.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  here you can see the little corner with stuff growing and the rest is just gravel

.

022612 55 hurray, the gravel is gone.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  the gravel is gone, now to set up the beds

Forget about trying to grow anything in that clay, just put the beds on top of it

022812 053 2nd expanded bed.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  this I grew in the existing beds which had too narrow dimensions and sides that were too low, I had green onions, lettuce, beets, at least something was growing. I had until about April 1 to get the garden set up for the summer crops.

030312 002 waiting for mulch & compost.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  I set up the beds with boards and stakes from Home Depot and filled them with composted horse manure and stable sweepings I got from a place where they stable and exercise horses. I top up the beds at least once a year with more of the same and I don't have to use any fertilizer or dig at all, just plant right into the compost. Because it's all composted there are no live weed seeds and thus I have no weeds to pull unless a seed gets blown in by the wind and I will see those when they are small and I pull them right away.

030812 1 put up a fence against the neighbors.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  I set up a fence so my neighbors would stay out and not use my tools or hose which they had a habit of not bringing back, I also did not want them to make themselves at home in my produce.

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  planted my grape stakes

and various other things like corn, tomatoes, peppers etc

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

I was definitely on my way to a real garden again

Let's see if it is going to grow enough so I can eat out of it

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  One zucchini plant is enough for a whole family, the plant is huge but considering how much it gives it's not so big after all, you have to pick just about every day, those suckers you can just about watch them grow and before you know it you have one the size of a large watermelon which is only fit for baking and then what are you going to do with all of that? Better just to make zucchini bread out of it .

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  the corn is growing well and there's a giant sunflower growing which I did not plant, probably some bird dropped the seed, it grew to be 13 feet high, I measured!

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  peppers

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

tomatoes

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

green beans going up the trellis with lettuce and beets under it

DSCF0478.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  corn is growing well 

DSCF0481.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  those tomatoes are getting tall too

Yep, I'll be eating well this summer and after I freeze some of it I will eat well in the winter also.

And so it goes.

Fast forward to 2016

I have green beans, pepper strips, green onions, corn, tomato sauce, carrots, and leeks in the freezer. I have canned tomatoes, red cabbage, home made fresh salsa, grape jelly and jam, canned cherries I bought at the farmers' market as well as canned apricots, also from the farmers' market, soused cherries and soused apricots plus the cordials that are made from those (if you ask I will PM the recipe to you) and I just now have the new harvest coming in for 2016. So far I have frozen some tomato sauce and some of the corn. The corn was not good this year, neither were the cukes but that was my own fault as I had planted the cukes in the shadow of the corn

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

I don't know what I am going to do with them all and there is usually a second, smaller harvest come November. Anybody have any suggestions? I've looked into wine-making but I don't have the equipment for that.

They are Concords, the native American grape which is good for jam and jellies, but hey have large seeds and a "foxy" taste that not everybody likes. They are the ones that Welch's grape juice is made from. I usually prune them to a stump and they always grow really high every year like this:

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  

I also finally found rhubarb plants that will grow in SoCal.

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

 here they are. Some kind soul had left  three pots with rooted berries at my gate, I planted them and they are growing like  weeds, you can see them on the fence, I should have berries next spring, oh goody!

I had not known until recently that the whole Los Angels Basin used to be not only growing oranges and other citrus but also walnuts and Orange County was almost named Walnut County, but that rhubarb was grown all over. There are still people in Long Beach who have an old rhubarb patch growing in their backyards. I had brought one back with me in a pot from Washington State, but it did not do well here. Then I found that you have to grow the strain called "Victoria" here and it will do fine here. Does it ever! I got a dozen plants from Burpee, expecting them to die in the heat but they are doing great, I have harvested twice already and will have at least one more harvest before they succumb to the heat for this year. They will come back up around January. I have made a few friends happy with rhubarb/strawberry sauce and a slice of rhubarb pie. The stalks are mostly green with just a little red at the bottom, most other rhubarb has more red on the stalk, but that's ok, a few strawberries take care of that.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This is my garden this year

061116 007.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  in the left background you can see the grapes, right front is the corn which is now all pulled up and the berry vines on the fence.

Now for something more exotic: dragon fruit, also known as pitaya, and papaya.

Dragon Fruit is a kind of cactus and native to Mexico but it is mainly grown in Asia now, particularly Thailand. Even here in SoCal where it will grow really well it is very expensive, $10.00 per pound and one fruit can weigh that much. There are white, pink and red fleshed varieties, and I grow one that is white. It is a ferocious looking plant and it does have spines on it just like any cactus. It has a beautiful yellow and white flower that looks like the one on the night blooming cereus that I showed in a previous post and also lasts just 3 days and is pollinated by moths and bats

061116 008.JPG

• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  it grows really fast. From a cutting just a foot long 5 years ago it grew up to be this big, had 10 fruit on it last year and looks like it will have at least that many more this year.

This is what it looks like from bud to fruit:

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  here is my hand next to it so you can see how big this bud is

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  even bigger just 2 days later

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

 the flower is opening

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  such a pretty flower and such a ferocious looking fruit, at first it is green

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  but soon it turns red while it is still getting bigger

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

  at this point you can see the "dragon scales"

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

the fruit is slightly sweet with the consistency of custard and high in antioxidants

the papaya I grew from seed in a pot as I am not allowed to grow trees in the garden plots although papaya is actually considered to be an herb. This is the first year that I am trying this and the plant is about 3 feet high with a woody stem. I don't know if I will get fruit from it this year but I can hope, we are just now getting into the really hot part of the summer which will last into October at least.

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• segelkatt
• Jul 19, 2016

So much for what my gravel patch turned into, and yes, I am eating from my garden. I buy very few veggies elsewhere and then mostly from the farmers' market which we have year round..

 

[DreamerRose]

Wow, that is some garden! Your garden plots are different from ours. You can't put any permanent structures or perennial plants in ours because the park district plows it in the fall and spring. Yours looks like you have done very well with it. The raised beds are perfect.

 

[jtbo]

Lack of rain can also cause leaves to yellow. Some in your picture have brown edges, which would indicate the same thing. I know you are far north, but two months of summer seems way too short.

Lack of rain is not the thing we have had this summer, but even some locals claim it being lack of rain, until I remind that we have had one of the wettest summers. This yellow leaves does happen every year and on my yard it starts usually before most of the other places.

Yellow leaves will now progress slowly about a month and are sign that autumn is coming. Last night it was just 35 degrees. That is another sign, when at clear nights real temperature starts to be lot less than forecasted temperature.

Now it depends where winds come from during next month, it can be that August is very warm and summer like, but sometimes autumn begins at early August, average temperatures for August are between 16C to 9C (60F to 48F) varies from year to year.

It is an anomaly in this location that makes early autumn, just few miles to west and growth season is actually lot longer. This mornings temperature is another example, few miles west and it was nearly three times the temperature what I had, according to weather service I had nations coldest temperature once again. I'm sure there are other even colder spots, but weather service builds their measuring stations on top of the hills so they won't get too cold.

Anyway, I'm quite confident that yellow leaves are because end of season is coming as it has been many years here. One tree that gets leaves first at spring has lost around 50% of leaves already, that tree is good indicator so I know to start preparing for autumn and cold nights.

Usually my potatoes get frost bitten, can't plant them much before 3rd week of June and can't keep them on ground much longer than 1st or 2nd week of August if trying to avoid them getting frost bitten, bit too short time for potato to grow, but I try. I guess that makes it almost 2 months of summer if we decide summer is time where there are no temps below freezing? :lol3:

 

[segelkatt]

As you can see there is a fence around each plot with a gate and a lock. Once you pay your yearly fee it is up to you what you do with it. Nothing is furnished although there are sheds with tools and wheel barrows for anyone to use. I have my own tools and I don't need a wheel barrow. There happens to be a dumpster which is parked close to my plot for weeds, corn stalks and other gardening debris.

Next to the sheds are mounds of mulch for the taking but I don't use that anywhere but on my walkways between the beds. Some people put gravel between their beds, others put stepping stones. I like the mulch because it is soft on the feet, gives you traction and does not turn muddy. Gravel and stepping stones just blast the heat back at you in the summer and can be slick. I'd rather fall on mulch than on gravel or stepping stones.

You are not supposed to put any permanent structures in the plots besides trellises but over the years (this one started in 1965) people have put up all kinds of things, mainly they have enclosed their whole plot with wire net, even on top like a cage, so nothing is supposed to be able to get in there unless it is small enough to get through the chicken wire that is on most fences including mine. But some have gone overboard and have put little gazebos in there with flagstones and chairs and tables so they can just sit and enjoy the gardens. Only half or so of their garden is used for growing things which defeats the purpose of a community garden. What's next? A BBQ pit and battery-powered coffee pots? For  water allowance the gardens are actually under "agricultural" which allows more water than if it were covered with houses!!!

We have new management for the gardens and while they got rid of the cats ( a bad move I think because they kept the rodent population down which is eating my tomatoes and has devastated my corn! ) they are also planning on getting some gardens cleaned up that are neglected or not worked at all with weeds covering them which then spread all over, or having unsightly "improvements" removed, falling-down fences repaired or replaced etc. Let's hope this is not just talk. Some of the gardeners just work their plots until the weeds take over, harvest what is there and then leave it for the rest of the year. These folks don't want to put any work into their gardens and should not have a plot. The management is planning on getting rid of them and make room for others who will do a good job, the waiting list is very long.

If and when you give up your plot you are supposed to leave it in a state where the next gardener can just start gardening right away,. As you saw that was not what happened with mine which was full of gravel and junk. Berry vines, grapes etc can be left and if the next one does not want them he or she can pull them out themselves. Same goes for the boards of the raised beds, most people would be happy to find a plot that already has raised beds in it that they would only have to fill or amend with whatever one wants to use. Most people would also be happy to already have established berry vines, grapes or other edibles that keep coming back every year.

Where you are gardens are obviously not meant to be worked year round, ours are, but that may  depend on the weather. Where it snows you can't put much in to overwinter besides maybe potatoes and other root crops and I don't know about that. Here we grow stuff in the winter that you would grow in early spring and into summer. I would love to have lettuce to go with my tomatoes but by the time the tomatoes are ripe the lettuce has bolted, it can't take the heat. We plant onion seeds in October to harvest in June, plant all the cabbages, spinach, beets, carrots, leeks, garlic,  greens of every kind in September to harvest a few months later, herbs like parsley and cilantro have to be planted over and over because they bolt and turn to seed. But basil will thrive in the dead heat of summer as long as you keep pinching it off.

This is why so much produce in other places comes from California's Central Valley which runs from  Sacramento to Bakersfield and then into the desert called Coachella Valley, just East and South of Los Angeles some 100 miles. People from Northern California complain that the Southern part is "stealing" all their water, but where would they be without all the veggies and fruit the South grows and that they cannot grow there no matter how much water they have? Ok, off my.

 

 

[segelkatt]

Lack of rain is not the thing we have had this summer, but even some locals claim it being lack of rain, until I remind that we have had one of the wettest summers. This yellow leaves does happen every year and on my yard it starts usually before most of the other places.

Yellow leaves will now progress slowly about a month and are sign that autumn is coming. Last night it was just 35 degrees. That is another sign, when at clear nights real temperature starts to be lot less than forecasted temperature.

Now it depends where winds come from during next month, it can be that August is very warm and summer like, but sometimes autumn begins at early August, average temperatures for August are between 16C to 9C (60F to 48F) varies from year to year.

It is an anomaly in this location that makes early autumn, just few miles to west and growth season is actually lot longer. This mornings temperature is another example, few miles west and it was nearly three times the temperature what I had, according to weather service I had nations coldest temperature once again. I'm sure there are other even colder spots, but weather service builds their measuring stations on top of the hills so they won't get too cold.

Anyway, I'm quite confident that yellow leaves are because end of season is coming as it has been many years here. One tree that gets leaves first at spring has lost around 50% of leaves already, that tree is good indicator so I know to start preparing for autumn and cold nights.

Usually my potatoes get frost bitten, can't plant them much before 3rd week of June and can't keep them on ground much longer than 1st or 2nd week of August if trying to avoid them getting frost bitten, bit too short time for potato to grow, but I try. I guess that makes it almost 2 months of summer if we decide summer is time where there are no temps below freezing?

Ever try growing potatoes in a garbage can?  I did. It worked really well too, I did this when I lived in Washington State where it does not get as cold as in Finland but still. Take plastic garbage can and drill a few holes in the bottom for drainage. Put in some potting mix, maybe 6 inches. Put a few seed potatoes on top and cover with more potting soil. Wait until green leaves appear and look healthy. Don't forget to water. Put more potting soil in, enough to cover almost all green leaves. Wait for leaves to poke out of soil again. Repeat until green leaves come out of top of can. Don't forget to water. When leaves show flowers stop watering until leaves turn yellow, wait another week or two. Now dig up potatoes. In your climate you will need to keep the garbage can from getting too cold, put it in heated garage during the night, if temps stay above freezing you can put it outside, perhaps wrap in straw. Main thing is to keep soil from freezing and to give enough light for the leaves. This is a good project for elementary school kids. Yes, I know, there is no such thing as homework for children in Finland but this fun.

 

[jtbo]

Ever try growing potatoes in a garbage can?  I did. It worked really well too, I did this when I lived in Washington State where it does not get as cold as in Finland but still. Take plastic garbage can and drill a few holes in the bottom for drainage. Put in some potting mix, maybe 6 inches. Put a few seed potatoes on top and cover with more potting soil. Wait until green leaves appear and look healthy. Don't forget to water. Put more potting soil in, enough to cover almost all green leaves. Wait for leaves to poke out of soil again. Repeat until green leaves come out of top of can. Don't forget to water. When leaves show flowers stop watering until leaves turn yellow, wait another week or two. Now dig up potatoes. In your climate you will need to keep the garbage can from getting too cold, put it in heated garage during the night, if temps stay above freezing you can put it outside, perhaps wrap in straw. Main thing is to keep soil from freezing and to give enough light for the leaves. This is a good project for elementary school kids. Yes, I know, there is no such thing as homework for children in Finland but this fun.

I wish someone would of told me we don't have homeworks, I remember spending most of the time after school doing homeworks, but I guess times have changed from that

Bucket method is something I need to do, but I hope to get some kind of porch done some day in future, that would give me bit more of solar heated space where I could get few extra weeks for growing stuff. I just don't know if that will happen for next summer yet.

 

[rubysmama]

@JTbo  your temperatures/short summer makes this Canadian feel like I live in the tropics!  Do you at least get really long days and the midnight sun?

 

[jtbo]

@JTbo
 your temperatures/short summer makes this Canadian feel like I live in the tropics!  Do you at least get really long days and the midnight sun?

Oh yes, about month ago there was no dark during the night, it starts to be bit darker now already, but still we get long day. At longest I think day was over 20 hours long.

I think that Alaska has some areas pretty much same as where I live.

200 miles southwest and summer is about 2 months longer, it is not that all of Finland would be so cold, I'm just in cold spot :lol3: