1st time gardener zone6a help!
Becca Sieling
4 years ago
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floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoBecca Sieling thanked floral_uk z.8/9 SW UKRelated Discussions
Zone 6A, potager garden
Comments (7)I posted the photos in the "Gallery" part of this forum, otherwise it would clog up the loading time on this post. They are listed under "Potager ideas." I love this style of garden but pretty much had to give it up in my small urban yard as the local vermin trash almost anything I plant. The bunnies even decimated my small blueberry bush. I am relegated to pots around the house that I can keep an eye on. Herbs are ok though, they don't mess with those. The squirrels bury nuts in the far away pots and throw dirt all over the paths, so I have even given up those! I envy you with the awesome fence! Check out information on companion planting, that will give you some ideas of what herbs and flowers and vegetables go together. There is lots about it on the Web and in books. There's little scientific evidence behind it, but it is the result of lots of people sharing some tried and true combinations that have worked for them. I have two books that I like on the garden design subject, one is "The Edible Garden" which is a Sunset book. The other is "Theme Gardens" by Barbara Damrosch. It has a layout for a children's garden in it that looks similar to what you have. But I am sure there are gads of cool picture books you could check out at the library or bookstore to give you ideas. In zone 6 you have a LOT of options!...See MoreIdeal time to transplant roses from Zone 6a garden to Zone7 garde
Comments (5)Sorry to be so granular but I am clueless...Would I dig them up, shake off most of the soil, transport them in a moist medium (say wet newspapers around the roots in a plastic bag) get them to my sister and she would then soak the roots in a bucket until she can plant them? It's quite hot in NYC these days. Although I gather from everyone's posts, we all are having an early, hot spring. Thank you for all your help!...See MoreTiming for zone 6a - newbie
Comments (20)Freshdesign, when camellias are grown from seed, they develop this long tap root, I've dug some young plants out on occasion and that root can be 18-24 inches long, maybe even longer. Kind of like oak trees. But you can't possibly sell camellias with this long tap root winding around and around the bottom of the pot, gets pot bound and more transplanting problems. So, the industry clips that tap root when its quite short, so that it is forced to develop a fibrous root system, so you can sell it. Kind of like rhodo root system. But the good thing about growing camellias from seeds is that perhaps when the soil freezes more deeply like in my cold Canadian climate, that long root can still take up water, chances are the root will still be below frost line. You can imagine with a flat, fibrous root system the frost will freeze the roots more likely and the plant is more prone to winters dehydration effects. I can't comment on you growing camellias on the balcony but I think you might be able to get away with it if you grow the hardier Ackerman winter series. Maybe insulate the pot with styrofoam like we do here for hardier shrubs like hicks yews....See More1st time doing SFG and a very newbie gardener...
Comments (48)I understand this. Certain crops do well with direct sowing but I've had contrary to the norm experiences to date. Carrots and onions and beets---eh, not as great as I hoped despite over seeding. Radishes all sprouted though using same method. Same with zuch, watermelon and winter squash---the seedlings I have had to pull that I hate because they weren't cheap and frankly, I'd love lots of all three---and both marigolds and nasturtiums too. My comment context is on several fronts. I did all transplants last year from mail order and a nursery. It was not cost effective but only one seedling of 15-20 didn't make it. This year was all direct sowing in contrast minus the yarrow left from last year. So yes, seed is cheap overall but I have empty space where I over seeded and not enough space where I counted each individual seed---100% germination with those seeds to be exact so I moved what I could to empty pots with crap soil to see how they do. It was a simple observation that others might find useful/intriguing because there is no right or wrong way to garden and why not share? But thanks for the information....See MoreDillybeansown (6b in the Ozarks)
4 years agodaninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoBecca Sieling
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoBecca Sieling
4 years agowar garden
4 years ago- Becca Sieling thanked daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
jenn a
4 years agokitasei
4 years agodaninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoJohn D Zn6a PIT Pa
4 years ago
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