The Great Soil Debate
jasonwipf
9 years ago
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kodom087 z9a
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agojasonwipf
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
The Great Debate
Comments (16)Another vote here one the side of the ants. Our native ants have been hit hard by competition with fire ants, and I hate to kill them if I can possibly avoid it. Also, the average person doesn't seem to know that there are lots of different kinds of ants with all sorts of different lifestyles. I've heard people talk like all ants are fire ants, which they're not, or like all ants farm aphids, which isn't true either (though it sounds like you've got the kind that do). So not only do native ants get killed by fire ants, but also by people who think they're fire ants or think they're harming their gardens when they're not. I must admit, the whole thing about the aphid farming seems really cool to me. I know it must be annoying if you've got an infestation, but still you gotta admit that's pretty amazing. Anyway, I would say you should treat the fungus and leave in insects alone. See if the ladybugs take care of the aphids for you. I would be afraid that any pesticides you put on to kill the aphids and ants would get the ladybugs too, and there's no denying that ladybugs are beneficial....See MoreThe great debate!
Comments (27)Posted by tishtoshnm 6/NM (My Page) on Wed, Apr 10, 13 at 14:34 "Another reason why a thread like this is important is it helps to understand that within North America there is a wide, wide range of conditions. When that fact is ignored or just casually tossed aside, it leads to people giving advice that often is not applicable or could lead to confusion of those seeking advice. Climate affects soil. Not all zone 6s have the same frost dates. Not all zone 6s have the same weather patterns for that matter. Some full-sun plants may actually benefit from shade in some climates, etc, etc. When people ignore the fact that gardening happens within the realm of multiple variables and just assume because something works for them, it must work for all or because they read it in an authoritative book, then those people are not likely to be as helpful as they hope to be." Definitely bears repeating! Unless a person has gardened in zone 3 they have no idea of the challenges. There are a lot of differences between it and zone 6. I realize from reading garden forums that the warmer zones also have their challenges but they are not the same as mine. There is no gardening possible between November and March here as the soil is completely covered with snow. Anyone up for tilling snow? I think not. Even now at almost the middle of April my perennial plants are only beginning to come up. We had almost 2" of snow yesterday which has melted and last week an inch which also melted quickly. Flurries forecast for this evening and overnight again. Spring garden clean-up has been done in between flurries but not much more will happen until the weather consistently stays warm. Even the weeds are not in a hurry to show. As far as tilling is concerned, when we began to make the garden here in this coniferous forest with heavy grey clay resembling concrete with perhaps an inch of topsoil we used many amendments. We bought topsoil (who knows what it was but it was locally made and many people used it without complaints) and spent mushroom manure and hauled free sawdust and cattle manure. This was spread and tilled in. I also grew a cover crop the first year. At the time I didn't know of any other way to improve soil. However since then the only time the tiller has been used was to make new beds. Now I just spread the compost and mulch and the worms do the tilling. I think the no-till method *could* work in a new garden but it would be much slower than an initial tilling in this type of soil. Have to say I don't grow many food crops any more, just herbs and garlic, so growing market garden plants with high nutritional demands will require different methods for increasing soil fertility....See MoreThe great fertilizer debate - part II
Comments (7)The little man on your shoulder has been ingesting some funny mushrooms, Japie. Zonation, like marmoration, concentric banding, etc. can wash out if the plant is over-fertilized. A lot does depend on the variety, though. I can't speak for Clarise since I don't have her, but Hannibal's zonation is pretty strong, and some will remain even under the influence of nitrogen. See the link below for HL grown under Tropiflora's juiced-up conditions. These are mine, grown somewhat harder: Not only is their plant greener, the form is more open. I don't know if that's all fertilizer or if some of it is lower light conditions, but either way their stuff always looks lusher and looser than mine. The one I always have the most trouble maintaining the zonation on is Blushing Tiger. I have to grow it really hard in a small pot to get it to look like the one on the right; if I fertilize even a little bit I get the one on the left: Frankly, I don't get why everybody else seems to be able to grow this thing better than me. Here is a link that might be useful:...See MoreThe Great Mulch Debate
Comments (30)Much of what will work depends upon your amount of rain. In Newhall and Encino, cardboard and newspaper under anything, didn't break down except where I watered heavily. Neither area received a lot of rain in those years. Another thing I've noticed when the rainfall has been lighter, weed cloth, newspaper and cardboard have all provided EXCELLENT habitat for enormous ant colonies. All three materials seemed to afford the colonies perfect "ceilings", under which to form their habitats. There is weed cloth in this yard (inherited in the hour purchase) and everywhere it's being exposed and I begin trying to remove it, I find massive ant colonies. Fortunately, there are several sources of rather inexpensive ammonia and I have been mixing it by the bucketful to pour into areas to kill the ants. The dogs aren't attracted to the ammonia; it kills the ants and should, eventually, hopefully, break down into some form of ammonia. It only requires about a tablespoon of it per gallon to do the job....See Morekodom087 z9a
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agojasonwipf
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agoPagan
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9 years agolast modified: 9 years agoPagan
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agojasonwipf
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agoPagan
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agoliliyflower
9 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreenclaws UK, Zone 8a
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8 years agoaddicted2plants Southern IL USA
8 years agoSinha
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