What's in the Garden?

[kadesma]

I think you will love container gardening, Katie. We're surrounded on 3 sides here by timber, so I have to run around and find the sunniest places, or be content with hostas and ferns! Been using containers for years, and the yields can be really good, especially for bush beans, toms, peppers, and cukes for us.

I've had no luck with container gardening til last year...Now it's part of the way to go because I had a hard time getting out back to pick and water plants. I can do it now but I fell in love with the half barrels I put jalapeno's in one sweet Italian peppers for frying in an other, one has gladiolas another tomatoes a black krim, trees you name it my s-i-l has potted it, Calif poppies, strawberries, a blackberry, , plus all types of fruit trees. but out back there is corn, grapes,cucumber, melons but I love the half wine barrels best...
ma

 

[Savannahsmoker]

Here is the start of our small humble trellis garden.

Today

 

[taxlady]

Are those tomatoes growing upside down, the ones in the last pic?

 

[Savannahsmoker]

Are those tomatoes growing upside down, the ones in the last pic?

Yes they are just as the cherry tomatoes.

Eliminates bracing up the tomatoes like when grown in the ground.

 

[CWS4322]

I tried on of those at the farm, the brandyvines did their darnedest to grow upright--and succeeded. I got rid of it after that.

 

[taxlady]

One of the herbs I bought in a small pot is winter thyme. Should I plant it in a pot or in the ground? Would it be likely to survive the winter in the ground? I live on Montreal Island, which is zone 5.

 

[Dawgluver]

One of the herbs I bought in a small pot is winter thyme. Should I plant it in a pot or in the ground? Would it be likely to survive the winter in the ground? I live on Montreal Island, which is zone 5.

Thyme doesn't overwinter well for me here, also zone 5. I've been planting it in the ground, then digging it up and bringing it inside to overwinter. I do have some groundcover creeping thyme, which does well outside year-round, but it doesn't have the good flavor of the cooking thymes.

I do like to have thyme in the house during winter, as I can snip and use it "anythyme"!

 

[Addie]

One of the herbs I bought in a small pot is winter thyme. Should I plant it in a pot or in the ground? Would it be likely to survive the winter in the ground? I live on Montreal Island, which is zone 5.

German winter thyme is a perennial and like most perennials, they come back in the spring. If you place a lot of mulch around it I would think it should do all right to winter it outside. My daughter has thyme and every year it comes back better and better. She started out mulching it and putting a plastic bag over it the first year. After that she just lets it do it own thing. The yard smells so nice though in the spring and summer from the thyme and other herbs she has growing.

 

[Savannahsmoker]

I tried on of those at the farm, the brandyvines did their darnedest to grow upright--and succeeded. I got rid of it after that.

That's to bad because we have been using the up side down method for five years with great results.

 

[Dawgluver]

Is your daughter in Boston, Addie? You're in zone 6. A lot of thymes are marginally hardy in zone 5. I've used mulch on mine, and they've croaked anyway! Used to replace them every year, now I just dig 'em up and bring 'em in, replant in the spring.

The creeping thyme is hardy to zone 4, but mine has little to no flavor.

 

[Dawgluver]

That's to bad because we have been using the up side down method for five years with great results.

A friend who lives in Mexico uses the upside down method with great success too.

 

[Harry Cobean]

Garlic & onions

just got back from a couple of days with bolas & madge.last november we planted overwintering japanese white onions,reds & thermidor garlic.madge lifted them this week & they are now in the shed drying ready for storage.i guess you don't know what an onion or garlic tastes like 'til you've had fresh.... they are sweet,sweet,sweet!!
the garlics are damn near the same size as the onions so maybe there are some pluses for the lousy weather with all the rain we've had this year!!

 

[Kylie1969]

They look great Harry

The garlic looks huge...that is really good and I bet they taste lovely...nothing like homegrown

 

[Harry Cobean]

They look great Harry

The garlic looks huge...that is really good and I bet they taste lovely...nothing like homegrown

g'day mate
they are sweeeeeet,i was eating chunks of raw onion like an apple & the garlic is sweet enough to finely chop & sprinkle on food raw.nice kick of heat from the garlic too!
never grown thermidor garlic before but will be planting twice as many this autumn!

 

[Alix]

Things are just starting to take off now. Here are a few of my pix. Tomatoes, peppers and strawberries. These are on the deck and patio, our other garden is at my MIL's house. We have potatoes, beans, carrots and onions over there.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Vegetables and a whole lot of mud!!

 

[taxlady]

It's great seeing everyone's garden pix.

 

[FrankZ]

I can tell you what's not there...

Onions... I pulled them today.

 

[Addie]

Is your daughter in Boston, Addie? You're in zone 6. A lot of thymes are marginally hardy in zone 5. I've used mulch on mine, and they've croaked anyway! Used to replace them every year, now I just dig 'em up and bring 'em in, replant in the spring.

The creeping thyme is hardy to zone 4, but mine has little to no flavor.

Yes, she is right around the corner from me. I think one of the reasons folks in this area are so successful in growing gardens, is because the ocean is only a block from us. Every morning in the summer there is fog covering the plant life. So even in a drought, the plants seem to be very happy. Go inland a mile or two and you have to put more effort into caring for the garden.

I have a theory of my own why this is. Folks who raise roses know that Epsom salts are very good for the flower. And I think the salt air does the same for the plant life close to the ocean. We have one of the last salt water marshes in this area Belle Isle Marsh. It is loaded with natural plant life that comes up through the salt sea water. In the summer you see folks there cutting down Cat O Nine Tails, and other plant life. Then next year that patch comes back even better. Cape Cod is a peninsular. When you get to Truro and Provincetown, you can walk from Cape Cod Bay to the Atlantic Ocean in less than five minutes. The land mass is very narrow. The sand dunes are covered with salt marsh grass. It holds the dunes in place. I don't kow the chemistry, but I think the salt air is good for plant life.

 

[Kylie1969]

Things are just starting to take off now. Here are a few of my pix. Tomatoes, peppers and strawberries. These are on the deck and patio, our other garden is at my MIL's house. We have potatoes, beans, carrots and onions over there.

Wonderful lot you have there Alix

I really like the idea of growing strawberries...are they difficult to grow?