Gardens, Farming and all things of our great ecology

POSTED BY: Mangolo
UPDATED: Friday, August 21, 2009 04:28
VIEWED: 7124
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MANGOLO

Sunday, August 16, 2009 11:52 PM

Just thought I'd start a thread and see if there are any fellow hobbyist gardeners or famrers out there.

We have about 15 acres, mostly jungle, but a slowly taming it. We have planted scores of trees and have a small vegetable garden. We love having our fresh eggs from our chickens and our chickens love getting our table leftovers.

It is our favorite season right now- Avocado season!

We have about a dozen avo trees and many different varieties. We are working on getting enough different kinds so we can have avos year round.

Anybody else wanna talk about diggin' in the dirt? Share photos of your prized veggies?

BYTEMITE

Monday, August 17, 2009 12:02 AM

That's a big avocado.

...I'm hungry now. o.0

My grandfather used to have a big garden with squash, zucchinis, tomatoes, carrots, radishes, and corn. It was pretty amazing. And then he had fruit trees, like a big apple tree, a big pear tree, and a walnut tree. Raspberries, Strawberries, grapes... Man, that was a great garden.

I've been thinking of growing one, but it looks like my growing season is almost up. Maybe when I'm not paying rent somewhere.

NIKI2

Monday, August 17, 2009 12:09 AM

Me! Meeee! I became addicted to flowers a few years back, and now our garden is virtually LITTERED with them. No veggies, just color. But at least 50 hanging baskets, urns on the front steps, stuff in the ground, and on and on.

Oh, wait, this year I AM trying some veggies--did years ago, but criters got 'em. I tried those upside-down hanging tomato things this year, and man, are they going NUTS! Made my own from big old containers like small trees come in, and planted nasturtiums out the top to hide the containers.

I have a couple of physical disabilities, so I spend a lot of time in my recliner in front of the TV. I do my deadheading, pruning and planting of the hanging plants/urns/pots there...not very kosher, admittedly, but I sweep up every night and I thoroughly enjoy myself.

I'm NOTHING like your more serious endeavor (wow!) and that is SOME kind of avocado! I love 'em, especially guac on burritos, but 'cados all by themselves are shiny, too. Unfortunately, what we get in the store can't hold a CANDLE to home grown, and don't I know it!

Hope all your farming goes fantastic; you're lucky to have the space to do it, and I'm sure all the hard work will pay off in the end!

I'm still learning, just getting used to ripping up roots to air things out (ouch! HARD! I'm a woos)...I'm beginning to get the feeling I can go on doing this the rest of my life and still be learnin', y'know?

Some of my babies:

LOVE to mix and match colors, and thoroughly addicted to calobrachoa ("million bells) and nemesia (prolly 'cuz both come in so many colors!)

MANGOLO

Monday, August 17, 2009 12:35 AM

Nice pics. We love our flowers too!

The last one is called a Bat Plant - been really into propagating them!

What kind of critters you having problems with?

NIKI2

Monday, August 17, 2009 5:04 PM

Wow,you've got me beat by a MILE! That Bat Plant is spectacular, I'm deeply impressed!! So is that huge blue ??iris?? ??lilly?? Magnificent! Virtually all my stuff is done in pots or window boxes of one kind or another--I like to replace the annuals with others each year to match the perennials in the pot--so I can't grow the "big guys" like you.

Critter? RATS! I have bird feeder, squirrel feeder, hummer feeder and suet out, as do neighbors, redwood "grove" and lots of ivy in the back yard and surrounded by forest and redwoods, we all get 'em. Only problem I ever had was them eating my plants (which is quite bad enough!!) until the bird feeders, now it's WAR!

I started by putting flypaper on the beginnings of the chains that hold up all the hanging plants. Caught a fledgling bird (he was okay, I got him off right away). Tried chicken wire bent backwards at the same places...the went right over it of course. Then "deer netting"--one hung himself, the rest walked over THAT as well.

So I got a Havahart...not into killing. Caught a few over the past couple of years and relocated them up away from civilization. Then I caught a Stellar Jay (they're everywhere)...I released him but we found him dead the next day. Broke my heart, it's obvious from disappearance that he was one I'd known for years who "talked" to me and I talked back. Haven't forgiven myself.

But last year they started NESTING here, and I couldn't catch them; once one dies, others avoid it. So I got desperate and gave up my principles for poison. Got a number of them, but the day I found one dying, asked hubby to off it (also a woos), picked it up and found its mate and babies, dead, under it, I gave up poison.

The whole thing is sickening. I got a bebe gun in hopes of scaring them off (hahahahaha), ended up killing on this year who got too close--didn't actually mean to, forgot what the salesman said about it being the "highet velocity" one they had. Ooops.

Went the regular trap route, caught a few more. Been shooting at them--figure my aim is bad enough I'll probably have no luck (husband shoots to kill) but also more afraid of wounding one than killing it outright.

I swept up everything under the feeders several times a day and took everything in at night. Now they're back to munching on my flowers...sigh.

Put out more regular traps and caught a couple more, but then one morning I caught a Stellar and another beautiful bird I've never seen before, so now the traps are inside boxes.

I THINK we've got all but one or two by now, but Winter approaches, so I assume it'll start all over. I just put together a flat, square board with edging which I attached to the hanging bird feeder, hanging squirrel feeder, and the squirrel feeder attached to the bridge from our kitchen door to the back yard, to catch droppings. It seems to be working fairly well so far, tho' I still see evidence of rat poop, so there's at least one still out there...sigh...

Had some mole or gopher or something (maybe even the rats) destroy my lovely huge cuke, a bell pepper plant and some other stuff the only other time we tried to grow veggies...number of years ago. Haven't tried since, but the upside-down tomatoes are doing great, and so are the bell pepper plants I'm growing in a huge pot on an old bridge table.

Have the usual "pests" and diseases I battle on the flowers, but if I could just get rid of the rats...I'd be SUCH a happy camper! Hey, I can dream!

MANGOLO

Monday, August 17, 2009 5:55 PM

Lilies to answer your question.

We don't have a problem with rats (we have three cats), but we do trap our share of mongoose!

Never had a bird problem so can't help you with that.

Pests on the plants- try a light soapy solution- simple green soap.

Also, cayenne in a solution works for other kinds of pests.

Slugs and snails- you can make a beer garden. A tray or dish with beer in it. The slugs love that smell and drown themselves.

Hope this helps- happy gardening!

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=86085840444

NIKI2

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 7:08 PM

Never thought of it, but maybe it's that the lsat of our cats died that brought the rats. In fact it makes perfect sense, because although they started showing up when I got into flowers, that was about the time the last cat left us, too. Hmmmm...

Got no problem with the birds, they're the reason for the feeders in the first place! We LOVE it now they come around so much...and I forgot also a finch sock, which is COVERED with finches especially in Winter. It's the bird feeders bringing the rats, which eat my plants as well.

Yeah, not much problem with snails and slugs. Sluggo...and this year, few at all; think it's the drought.

What's "plain green soap"? I hate using insecticides, but my beloved calobrachoa seems to always get mites, so I just said to heck with it. Would like something more organic, if it works.

MANGOLO

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 7:32 PM

http://www.simplegreen.com/

Any soap will do, but Simple Green is still relatively cheap and an "all-Purpose Cleaner is the leader of non-toxic, biodegradable, environmentally safer cleaning products used for household cleaning"

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=86085840444

NIKI2

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 7:35 PM

Thanx! I'm going there and will give it a try. Like I said, I hate using pesticides, for many reasons!

Does Simple Green (didn't realize that was the NAME of a product) harm ladybugs and stuff, too? I stopped putting them in when I started using pesticides, obviously, but I'd rather...

MANGOLO

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 7:41 PM

I don't think so- putting soap on your plants keep the leaf eating bugs (aphids mostly and to a lesser extent caterpillars) from being able to munch on your leaves. You have to reapply every time it rains.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=86085840444

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