Gardening Gardening

So their shipping information says this:



Their catelog

But yesterday I got a status update that my order was shipped. GRRR, I don't have anyplace inside to put plants and the two youngest cats will eat them anyway. I can't even think about setting up one of those mini greenhouses with the massive wind, not to mention the snow pack we still have left (although not a lot, still mostly covered and the ground is still frozen). Even if I could get a greenhouse set up, I don't have a way to get heat out to it (no electrical outlets outside of the house) and the nights are supposed to be in single digits to low teens.

I'm hoping the notification means they just shipped the one seed pack I ordered, but somehow I doubt that.

 

Use a bathroom. Door can be closed to keep cat out. You have a light source. Always can put a heater in there for more heat.

 

We have them as pretty regular visitors. I saw this one a few weeks ago upside down on the feeder for a few minutes. Wasn't sure what was wrong with it. No other birds were visiting the feeder. I then saw a sharp-shinned hawk in a nearby trees. Nuthatch was just hiding motionless until the danger passed.

 

I have only 1 bathroom and it is very small The only room in there is the bathtub or the 2.5' wide path to the toilet. Plus, have to keep the door open since all of my heating is done via pellet stove. And the only place darker is the basement.

For some that would be a great suggestion, for my circumstances, won't work.

 

I went slightly overboard last summer with growing hot peppers. I’ve had several one gallon bags of them in my freezer for months now. Today I decided to do something about it. I pulled out 2 bags, chopped the peppers, and put them in mason jars with brine to ferment them for the next 3 weeks. I more or less separated them by types, but I did throw some Tabasco peppers in each one. When the time comes, I’ll pull the peppers out, send them through the blender, and mix in some of the brine and I should have some seriously hot sauce. In one of the jars I mixed in some pineapple chunks so that one should produce some interesting flavors. I still have 4 more one gallon bags in the freezer...

 

Ooh, I love pineapple salsa! It's always interesting to play with the flavors, although I've never brined peppers.

 

Me too, that stuff goes great on almost everything. This is my first go around at fermenting peppers. In 2019 I had pickled a couple jars of Tabascos, and they made a good (very hot) snack/sandwich topper. I couldn’t really do that this time around with the ghost peppers, Carolina Reapers, and Sugar Rush Peach. Too many Scovilles for this guy!

 

Got the package today, which surprised me. Since Totally Tomatoes charges a flat, one-time shipping fee of under $5, I figured the package was coming USPS on a slow boat. But it came thru Fed Ex.

Great news, there were no live plants in there and the packing sip said they would be shipped later . I had forgotten that I also ordered some Tomato Trays and that is what came in along with the cuke seeds I had ordered, and the freebie seeds; Tasty Pink Beefsteak tomato and Big Red pepper.

 

Glad to hear one problem solved.

 

Our church group started a gardening zoom meeting group last night. It is obvious we all want to start planting but the snow on the ground brought us all up short. The farmer leading out said that the mistake all new gardeners make is starting too early with indoor seedlings and putting everything out early. It takes quite a while for the ground to warm up here. I said it isn't just new gardeners that make that mistake - we all get impatient to start.

 

Spring has finally come to East Texas, the trees are starting to get their leaves and the pasture is turning green. These are the three tomato plants I planted last week...I placed left over field fencing around the outside of the blue tubs and secured them with tie-ties, then ran cane poles horizontally to help support the plants during high winds. (I hope the pictures come thru this time)

 

Love it. Those are the best mater baskets you can have. I made 100 when I lived in Ky. I honestly believe tying maters impedes them. Every day or so just walk by and stroke the limbs up above the next wire. My friend tried it after he saw mine. The windows in his wire were too small and he couldn’t pick them. Bring out the wire cutters.

 

I agree Brandon Scott....they are quick to make, cheap and very functional!

 

Finished the last tilling and leveling of my main vegetable garden today, I'm hoping for good weather to plant my sets and seeds on Good Friday April 2. (rose bushes are leafed out in the foreground)

 

What kind of rose is that?

 

I'm not for sure what the name of the rose bush is.... it's from a cutting of a rose bush from my parents house. I'm sure it's a red floribunda of some type the original rose bush at my parents house is about 70 years old. When it blooms out this year I will post a picture.

 

I just kicked off the 2021 season today by starting my seeds.
For tomatoes: Roma, Mortgage Lifter, Big Boy, Brandywine, Yellow Pear, Black Cherry, Black Beauty
For peppers: Red Bell, Lunchbox (orange), Habanero, Carolina Reaper, Ghost, Tabasco, Sugar Rush Peach, Aji Charapita
Also started my broccoli, eggplant, and some marigolds.
Looking forward to direct sowing small batches of various things in the coming weeks.

 

Good start. Was are the dimensions of your shed?

 

Hey Chazsbetterhalf...its a 24' X 24' woodworking shed, it started out many years ago as a greenhouse but due to very little use I decided to repurpose it. That's why it has the hybrid roof....where the metal is today use to be polycarbonate panels to get light into the greenhouse, also all four sides were clear polycarbonate. With the greenhouse what started out as a fun hobby soon turned into a full time job. With the woodworking shed I can pick when to (or not to) work.

 

My garlic is up about about 5 inches and I think it is warm enough down in my garden bed that I could plant peas. I got out yesterday and weeded the rhubarb and top dressed it with steer manure. I am thinking of starting marigolds inside but everything else will have to wait a couple more weeks. I don't have enough resources to start lots of stuff inside. It would be rushing our season.