GotGarlic
Chef Extraordinaire
Here's an article from the UK on How To Grow Strawberries In A Planter. Hope it helps.
Garden 2024
- Thread starter pepperhead212
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Thanks very much GG. This is an in-depth article. I now feel there is very little chance of me producing any strawberries at all however! I am going to plant my strawberry plants in a trough on legs. It was interesting to read about "copper tape" so I will look into that in a bid to stop the slugs and snails climbing up the legs of the trough. I also need to get some ericaceous compost to give them as good an environment as I can. However, providing 6 - 8 hours of sun "daily" is going to be a bit of challenge in the UK this year I suspect! One can but try though, so I will report back on progress (if any).
Stayed at a "B and B" on our way to Land's End (I HAD to see Arthur's birth place). Landlord and lady were telling us the problem they had with slugs and that small dishes of beer strategically place in the garden resulted in a plethora of gag inducing loads of dead slugs in the mornings. You might try that!
Recruit Ollie to remove them come mornings.
Who has the stronger stomach?
Recruit Ollie to remove them come mornings.
Who has the stronger stomach?
Companion planting:-
Is there anything I cannot plant with the garlic? It is well on its way but far from harvest. Plants are defined and happy in their places. I know they are 'heavy feeders' and so do not want to put them at risk.
I have some seeds to put in and was wondering where I could spread them around....
for example: radish or spinach?
I also have bush beans that I usually plant in their own bed - but would they interfere with the garlic?
What about seed onions (although neither my son nor I can remember where the heck we put them!.... argh!!!!!)
How about a row of giant sunflowers down the middle? By the time they get big enough the garlic should be ready. That particular bed receives the most sun.
I have sugar peas and mange tout but they are very... 'viney' and I use trellises for them.
Bought some Brussels, leeks and broccoli. (only 4 ea. of the B 'n B, leeks will need to be split up - lots of little fingers per pkg.) Brussels I've done before but never broccoli nor leeks. I imagine they are also 'heavy feeders' and perhaps a no to them?
Speak to me all ye guru's of gardens! pretty please?
Is there anything I cannot plant with the garlic? It is well on its way but far from harvest. Plants are defined and happy in their places. I know they are 'heavy feeders' and so do not want to put them at risk.
I have some seeds to put in and was wondering where I could spread them around....
for example: radish or spinach?
I also have bush beans that I usually plant in their own bed - but would they interfere with the garlic?
What about seed onions (although neither my son nor I can remember where the heck we put them!.... argh!!!!!)
How about a row of giant sunflowers down the middle? By the time they get big enough the garlic should be ready. That particular bed receives the most sun.
I have sugar peas and mange tout but they are very... 'viney' and I use trellises for them.
Bought some Brussels, leeks and broccoli. (only 4 ea. of the B 'n B, leeks will need to be split up - lots of little fingers per pkg.) Brussels I've done before but never broccoli nor leeks. I imagine they are also 'heavy feeders' and perhaps a no to them?
Speak to me all ye guru's of gardens! pretty please?
OP
OP
pepperhead212
Executive Chef
I have seen onions listed in the "enemy plants" for sunflowers, so I'd be leary of planting them with my garlic! In fact, many of the vegetables I grow are not compatible with them, which is why I have never grown them.
In the "empty" spaces in my garlic rows, I always plant onion sets, for scallions. Definitely not incompatible.
In the "empty" spaces in my garlic rows, I always plant onion sets, for scallions. Definitely not incompatible.
My tiny herb garden is doing well.
I potted my basil this year, so I could move it in and out of the sun during the scorching heat of summer in North Texas. Oregano that I pulled up from years past is popping up all over.
My rosemary is doing great.
"Thyme is on my side," too.
Whoa, I just had a flashback to 1998...
CD
I potted my basil this year, so I could move it in and out of the sun during the scorching heat of summer in North Texas. Oregano that I pulled up from years past is popping up all over.
My rosemary is doing great.
"Thyme is on my side," too.
Whoa, I just had a flashback to 1998...
CD
I took mom's dog out at 8AM, and spotted a rat in my herb garden. Then the dog saw it. She's been obsessed with that $%@# rat all day. She was hyper focused on this one place on the fence line, and even started to dig under the fence, tearing up my herb garden. So I finally went next door. Her husband was out of town, so I asked her to open her driveway gate so I could do a bit of searching.
Well, sure enough, under some old, decaying firewood was a sleeping rat. Being nocturnal, they sleep very soundly all day. It was moving, but half asleep -- very common for rats. Anyway, she asked if it was dead, and I told her no. Then told her she might want to go inside for a few minutes. She understood.
To paraphrase John Cleese from the Monty Python "Dead Parrot" skit, "this is an ex-rat." For any PETA members out there, its life ended instantly, so it did not feel any pain.
It is supposed to rain tomorrow, which will hopefully wash away any scent of the recently departed, so the stupid dog will stop driving me nuts.
CD
Well, sure enough, under some old, decaying firewood was a sleeping rat. Being nocturnal, they sleep very soundly all day. It was moving, but half asleep -- very common for rats. Anyway, she asked if it was dead, and I told her no. Then told her she might want to go inside for a few minutes. She understood.
To paraphrase John Cleese from the Monty Python "Dead Parrot" skit, "this is an ex-rat." For any PETA members out there, its life ended instantly, so it did not feel any pain.
It is supposed to rain tomorrow, which will hopefully wash away any scent of the recently departed, so the stupid dog will stop driving me nuts.
CD
Good on her, your mom's dog! Hope you gave her a treat. I never really wish harm on wild animals, just not in my home nor garden.
If the puppy can't give up the scent - try using a Lysol spray where she is most focused. A lot of dog show people use it to remove the smell of an accidental 'pee' on the grounds to keep other dogs from adding to the scent.
Worth a try!
If the puppy can't give up the scent - try using a Lysol spray where she is most focused. A lot of dog show people use it to remove the smell of an accidental 'pee' on the grounds to keep other dogs from adding to the scent.
Worth a try!
The rain will do the trick. She'' forget about the rat in a day or two. She'll go back to chasing squirrels (that she will never catch).
If she deserves a treat, then I should get one, too. She sniffed it out, but I was the one who dispatched it.
Like you, I have no problem with wildlife, including rats... as long as they stay away from my house!!! Since I live a few hundred yards/meters from a 3,000 acre cattle and horse ranch, we get all kind of things wandering into the neighborhood. Rats, coyotes, bobcats, raccoons... all kinds of animals. We also have feral cats, and they deal with most of the rats. In the hottest months of summer, a few of us in the neighborhood put big bowls of water out for them. No food! They will lose their hunting instincts.
BTW, I live in a city with 250,000 people, an IKEA and a Hyatt Regency hotel, and yes, a 3,000 acre ranch. Only in Texas.
CD
LOL.... com'on Texas, eat your heart out - check Australia's Cattle Stations. LOL
rodentraiser
Head Chef
Going back to the hardware store tomorrow. By tomorrow afternoon I will have 7 hoses and 7 sprinklers across my yard.
I got one of my garden beds weeded and tomorrow I plan to do the other one. Then I have to weed around the irises I planted last year.
Speaking of which, after all that work the kid did with the soil and the bark in the area next to my driveway, one of the trucks delivering soil to my yard drove right through it, probably crushing most of the 40 irises I planted last month. So far I can only see three of them coming up.
I got one of my garden beds weeded and tomorrow I plan to do the other one. Then I have to weed around the irises I planted last year.
Speaking of which, after all that work the kid did with the soil and the bark in the area next to my driveway, one of the trucks delivering soil to my yard drove right through it, probably crushing most of the 40 irises I planted last month. So far I can only see three of them coming up.
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Care for a wild boar?
Just a few yards from my yard, they shouldn't have been there at that time of the morning, in the sun. They usually only come out at sunset!
I agree, I'm ok with wildlife but if only they'd stop invading us! They have become real pests all over the country, gigantic pests
, ruining crops and digging up all our land. Only very large cultivated areas are reasonably safe as they are fenced well,so the boars can't pass through.Attachments
OP
OP
pepperhead212
Executive Chef
I actually bit the bullet and bought a pepper plant yesterday - imagine that!
I did not have a single chocolate habanero germinate, and after about 3 weeks, I tried all of the old seeds, a few more of the new seeds, plus some older white bullet seeds, trying to sprout them in that warm mode of the Instant Pot, but not a single one sprouted. By that time, about May 10th, I finally gave up, and yesterday, on that gloomy day, I went to a nursery I went to several years ago, when some eggplants didn't germinate, and I knew they had a lot of good choices in veggies. I got a Red Habanero - probably just a generic type, but it will hopefully have the flavor. They had more superhots than the habaneros, which surprised me! While I was there, I thought about looking for Thai basil - the thai basil in the hydro didn't have any useable stems for rooting (all had flowers!), so I had planted some seeds. But this would have been faster; unfortunately, they didn't have any. But, while searching for it I found something that surprised me - Vietnamese coriander! This is something that I usually have to get in an Asian market, and root it. That was a nice "find", though all I really went there for was the habanero.
Today, I planted all of my pepper plants, as well as the okra, bottle gourds, winter melon, and zinnia plants - started in pellets about 2-2½ weeks ago. Surprisingly, I only have 18 peppers this year! I had 2 more varieties, besides those chocolate habaneros, that did not get a single sprout. However, one I got 2 recent sprouts, about 6 weeks after I planted everything! I have a feeling that they may have been triggered by moving the pots around when I took them outside to harden off earlier in the week, though it didn't trigger the others to germinate. Tomorrow I'll take all of my extra plants over to my gardening friend, who already got the tomatoes planted.
Today, I planted all of my pepper plants, as well as the okra, bottle gourds, winter melon, and zinnia plants - started in pellets about 2-2½ weeks ago. Surprisingly, I only have 18 peppers this year! I had 2 more varieties, besides those chocolate habaneros, that did not get a single sprout. However, one I got 2 recent sprouts, about 6 weeks after I planted everything! I have a feeling that they may have been triggered by moving the pots around when I took them outside to harden off earlier in the week, though it didn't trigger the others to germinate. Tomorrow I'll take all of my extra plants over to my gardening friend, who already got the tomatoes planted.
larry_stewart
Master Chef
I don't think there has ever been a day that I go into a nursery and don't come out with something else that I stumbled upon. There's a nursery near me that is in a town that is very ethnically diverse. I alsways find new, unique ( to me) things that I can't resist buying.
OP
OP
pepperhead212
Executive Chef
Found the first flower opening up -sunsugar, as usual. Was out there picking off the suckers, and saw it.
Most of the tomatoes have buds on them now, even the larger varieties. I was surprised to see buds on the Green Giant and Pruden's Purple, but of course, this doesn't mean I'll get earlier ripe tomatoes, just that the tomatoes might start forming earlier than I expected. And that Oaxacan Jewel has some buds, which are larger than any others - the largest over ½", but not open yet. I'll see if they are the earliest again (besides the cherries).
All the things I planted yesterday look great! The okra and zinnia - with only the first set of true leaves when planted - already have new growth on most of them, and the peppers have perked up, and none are drooping, like they were yesterday (forcing me to stake almost all of them).
I'm starting to see my garlic forming scapes - the Music and Estonian Red the first ones. I also snipped the scapes off of all those scallions I have growing, that are getting large, as well as on some of the shallots - probably some I started from seed, as I haven't seen this before. I considered leaving them to harvest larger, like garlic scapes, but I figured I'd just snip them very small, to help the plant get larger.
While in that bed with all the scallions and shallots (and a few greens still), I noticed a bunch of volunteer dill and parsley plants; the dill was expected, but the parsley was not grown in that bed, and I haven't seen it spread like that before - only fairly close to the flowering plant.
Most of the tomatoes have buds on them now, even the larger varieties. I was surprised to see buds on the Green Giant and Pruden's Purple, but of course, this doesn't mean I'll get earlier ripe tomatoes, just that the tomatoes might start forming earlier than I expected. And that Oaxacan Jewel has some buds, which are larger than any others - the largest over ½", but not open yet. I'll see if they are the earliest again (besides the cherries).
All the things I planted yesterday look great! The okra and zinnia - with only the first set of true leaves when planted - already have new growth on most of them, and the peppers have perked up, and none are drooping, like they were yesterday (forcing me to stake almost all of them).
I'm starting to see my garlic forming scapes - the Music and Estonian Red the first ones. I also snipped the scapes off of all those scallions I have growing, that are getting large, as well as on some of the shallots - probably some I started from seed, as I haven't seen this before. I considered leaving them to harvest larger, like garlic scapes, but I figured I'd just snip them very small, to help the plant get larger.
While in that bed with all the scallions and shallots (and a few greens still), I noticed a bunch of volunteer dill and parsley plants; the dill was expected, but the parsley was not grown in that bed, and I haven't seen it spread like that before - only fairly close to the flowering plant.
Care for a wild boar?
Just a few yards from my yard, they shouldn't have been there at that time of the morning, in the sun. They usually only come out at sunset!
I agree, I'm ok with wildlife but if only they'd stop invading us! They have become real pests all over the country, gigantic pests
Those wild boars/feral pigs are a HUGE problem in Texas. The state actually pays hunters to shoot them. It is a certain amount per head. They are devastating the ecological balance here.
CD
My brother kindly suggests I move to the kitchen for no reason whatsoever. A small thump on the wall later, I am informed it is now safe to go back to the lounge. If the situation was with rats, I, too, would appreciate the gesture! Your neighbour is lucky!
I was given some Ladies Mantel about 3 years ago. I duly planted it in a bare spot in the back garden. This year, I am finding it growing in all sorts of places in the garden! Even in a pot! I don't dislike it, but I am at a complete loss to know how it spreads so randomly! The original plant is no bigger.
In only one region, up in the North, a new law last year proclaimed that hunters would be paid to shoot them but that's just a little corner of the country. Also, there are many demonstrators and political parties against this and will do all they can to quickly abolish that law. However, that region is very small, won't make much of a difference if the regulation is not extended in all the other regions (20,in all) but this will never happen due to the excessive "animal rights" and "wildlife protection" campaigns going on. So we'll just have to sit back and watch as our beautiful lands are destroyed just because of "ignorance".
Ignorance always leads to disaster.
Meryl, but are they still allowed to hunt them in other districts?
