A cold start to March Week 4
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December 2017, Week 4, Christmas and Cold Weather
Comments (85)Nancy, Y'all have had quite a bit of cool weather already, and I think that helps the rosemary because the cooler weather has hardened off the rosemary to gradually cooler weather (or, at least, this is how it is supposed to work). The years in which I've lost rosemary were ones where the autumn stayed flat out hot forever, and then the first cold spell hit hard in December like a tornado flying across the plains, and the rosemary could not take the sudden change from very warm weather to intensely cold weather....like, 70 degrees one day and then 18 degrees the next night, with worse temperatures following after the 18 degree night. The only other time I've lost rosemary was in a winter that was very cold/very wet and the soil just stayed too wet for the rosemary for months. That's why I now have one rosemary plant in a bed raised 18" above grade level and the other one in a large urn that's a couple of feet tall---if the rosemary is not in well-drained soil now (the urn has a cactus soil blend to which I added extra decomposed granite), then I'll never have anything in well-drained soil because I don't think I can make anything drain better than that tall bed and that urn. I hope you have fun painting the furniture and making decorating decisions. I enjoy doing things like that so much. I don't know if 4 cold days will faze the bugs at all. It is so complicated. Some insects have anti-freeze type substance in them that helps them survive winter, so I think it just depends on what insect you're talking about. Time will tell. This morning Tim removed a very, very large leaf-footed bug from his car that we assume got into the car trunk at the police station. It was hideous-looking. I told him to not bring home ugly bugs like that. It was a good 50% bigger than any leaf-footed bug I've ever seen here, and maybe even more than 50% bigger. It possibly wasn't a leaf-footed bug (I didn't go over and observe it that closely) and might have been a kissing bug, which I don't think normally could take our cold weather up here. Regardless, except for that hideous thing, I haven't seen many insects lately and take that as a good sign. Possibly they all are just hibernating, as they tend to do, in mulch, beneath leaves, etc. We need a really cold, prolonged spell that lasts weeks to knock back the insect population significantly and I doubt we'll get that, but constant recurring cold spells, with warm days in between, could help kill insects. One thing to do is to rototill the garden soil in cold weather, so you stir up bugs underground and expose them to colder air surfaces at the ground level. That exposure helps them freeze to death. Rebecca, While they may prefer well-drained soil, I grew calendula in the ground in beds with barely amended clay for several years after we moved here and they did fine. Granted, it was one drought year after another, except for 2004, so they might have done better in the clay in dry weather than they would have in wet weather, but they also did well in 2004 when it was pretty wet in the spring. You can find southern peas dried, canned, frozen or (at some stores) freshly shelled and sold in plastic containers or bags in the fresh produce section, ready for cooking, usually with an expiration date of about 7 days. I don't know if you'll find any specifically labeled PEPH--but you might if your local stores carry one of the brands of vegetables produced in the south. Margaret Holmes' veggies include canned White Acre peas, but I'm pretty sure all their other southern peas are listed on the label as Field Peas or Blackeye Peas (either of which might/might not include PEPH types) and I think Glory Foods' peas also are only listed as Blackeyed Peas on the label. I'm pretty sure I've seen PEPH sold canned before, but don't remember where or which brand it was. Keep in mind that the average consumer calls all southern peas (whether they are PEPH, black eyed, green eyed, crowder, zipper, lady or cream peas) black-eyed peas and it generally is only gardeners or southern chefs who would refer to different kinds of southern peas, like PEPHs, with their proper name. If you want southern peas in what might be a more palatable dish, you can buy (or make) a traditional southern dish called Hoppin' John. Some Hoppin' John recipes are basically just peas, onions and peppers along with a few spices and others also include tomatoes or other ingredients. Here's one example: Margaret Holmes' Canned Hoppin' John When I make Hoppin' John, I usually use a lot of jalpenos so ours is pretty hot. Our PEPHs are shelled, frozen, and ready to cook along with our New Year's weekend ham, but when I want them fresh and have run out of frozen ones, Central Market has them freshly shelled, sold in plastic containers, for a very reasonable price almost year-round. I believe theirs generally are raised in far south Texas. Nancy, Canned southern peas are nowhere near as good as fresh or frozen, but they'll serve the purpose for observing the southern tradition of eating southern peas, preferably on New Year's Eve at midnight as the new year begins, for good luck. We just wait and have ours at noon and at dinner on New Year's Day since we aren't going to be awake and eating peas at midnight. Keep in mind I am anti-canned veggies because my taste buds prefer the flavor and texture of either fresh veggies or frozen veggies. That doesn't mean all canned veggies are bad, but just that I find the other forms preferable. They are people, I am sure, who hate the frozen version and prefer the canned one too. Kim, I'm sorry you're ill for the holiday weekend. Please stay put and take care of yourself and get well. Flu is running rampant right now. The linked map shows how widespread the flu is, as of last week: Weekly Flu Map for W/E 12/23/2017 It probably is wise to stay there in Denton until the weather settles down since all sorts of light winter precip are possible over the next few days. We're under a Winter Weather Advisory here through 6 a.m. tomorrow (and y'all are under one in Denton until midnight) but nothing really is happening here yet. I'm hoping nothing falls from the sky. We had drizzle before we reached freezing temperatures, but by the time the temperature dropped to freezing this afternoon, the drizzle had ended, so I think we're lucky so far. Jennifer, All southern peas count towards fulfilling the Good Luck requirement. I've lived in the south all my life, and it never has matter which southern peas you ate for good luck, as long as you ate southern peas. When we lived in Fort Worth, our next-door neighbor, a lovely woman in her 70s/80s got together with a bunch of people from her church every New Year's Eve and they ate southern peas right at midnight for good luck. They said if you weren't eating them at midnight to welcome the new year, you wouldn't have good luck. We've always just waited and had ours at noon on the 1st. It probably is a silly custom, but it doesn't hurt to eat the peas, so why not do it? Amy, Uggh. I wouldn't have been able to eat oyster stew again either after finding that big wad of hair...and I don't want to think about where the hair might have come from. Tim is outside making a shelter for a feral kitty who's been hanging around, and we've been feeding it this week and trying to tame it. Feral cats here usually will not survive all the predators wondering around in the winter, so I'd like to bring him or her indoors to stay safe from the predators and the cold weather, but most feral kitties won't let you pick them up and bring them in, so a big box with a fluffy old comforter on the covered patio will have to suffice. I might take a heated throw blanket out there, plug it into an outlet in the garage, and try to keep the kitty warmer on Sun and Mon nights if I cannot get it to come in tomorrow. (Most cats like me better, by far, but this one prefers Tim, so he might have better luck trying to pick it up and bring it in. We do always wear thick leather gloves when attempting a feral cat rescue.) It is cold and cloudy here, but otherwise quiet. Our VFD/PD/EMS GroupMe mermbers are giving us constant updates from all over the county and beyond (if they are traveling), and even though there's been drizzle and there's been freezing temperatures, there hasn't been freezing drizzle yet. We're keeping our fingers crossed. Dawn...See MoreFebruary 2019, Week 4.....Here Comes March!
Comments (50)Grrr. I am irritated. Have typed a long, rambling answer twice and lost it twice. So here's my final attempt for tonight. Tim is still very sick. I am beginning to understand what a violent stomach virus the norovirus is....it gives new meaning to the word projectile. If the rest of us manage to escape all the germs he is spewing into the universe, it will be an absolute miracle, and not a miracle I'm expecting will occur. The four year old granddaughter was lucky---she left for her dad's house and an out-of-state vacation the same day Tim came home sick, so she might be spared. The rest of us probably won't be. This weather.....this is what Oklahoma does. What is pretty much guaranteed is that the weather each year will find a way to be very different from the previous year's weather....so, after three relatively nice, warm Februaries, we are having a cold one....with March seeming like it will start out the same way. It is what it is and we just have to deal with it. Our erratic late winter and early spring weather is why Oklahoma isn't known for having a huge commercial fruit-growing industry---because such as industry would go broke here. Blueberries are extremely difficult to grow successfully. I grew them in Texas and was smart enough to never attempt them here as I have highly alkaline soil and highly alkaline water, slow-draining clay and frequent summer dry spells with tons of heat and little to no rainfall. What do blueberries need? A very specific acidic soil in a very specific pH range, and if you can create that, you also need to have neutral to acidic water that isn't working against you. If you have alkaline water, then each time you water (blueberries tend to need irrigation daily in our very hot and dry summers in southern OK), the water is making your acidic mix a bit more alkaline and it takes a toll on the plants after a couple of years. They need perfect drainage. Perfect. They are shallow-rooted and will die quickly if allowed to get too dry in the summer. They abhor wet feet and will die quickly if allowed to sit in waterlogged soil. How are you going to help them cope on one of those days when 5 or 8 or 12" of rain falls in one day? Have a plan for that! They are very prone to root rot diseases like phytopthera. People who have success with them tend to have perfect drainage and soil that is in the perfect pH range for them. When I grew them in Texas, I had them in a raised bed completely above grade so their roots never made it down into our slow-draining black gumbo clay. That bed was filled with a 50-50 mix of pine bark fines and peat moss. I watered with a soaker hose so the water went into the soil-less mix and not onto the plants. My plants got direct sun from about 8-10 a.m. and then were in dappled shade to heavy shade the rest of the day. If you grow them in containers, you may need to water with drip irrigation lines more than once a day in the hottest weather. It is hard to create a soil-less mix that drains well but also doesn't drain too well....good luck with that. Here's the OSU Fact Sheet on Growing Blueberries in the home garden. The people I know who have had the most success have lived in the NE quadrant of the state and had naturally well-draining and acidic soil. I don't know if any of them kept the plants alive for longer than maybe 5 years, and lost the plants about the time they really began to produce well. Sometimes they did get a year or two of good production from the plants before they died. Growing Blueberries in the Home Garden Megan, I'm glad your daughter is so much better and continue to pray for your uncle's continued recovery. He's had such a tough time the last few days. Your poor mom! Being sick is not fun and if you feel compelled to go into work anyway, that is just a miserable situation. Of course you are tired and low in energy today---your crazy week drained it all out of you. I hope you were able to rest and yet also to find the energy to cover up and move whatever plants needed it. I am afraid y'all are going to take a pretty hard hit from this weather up there. They have snow and/or sleet back in our forecast for tomorrow---it pops in and out of the forecast every few hours, but tonight our local TV weather guy seemed more convinced than previously that it is going to find us. I'll continue hoping it misses us. We're still going to be pretty cold for this far south. The wind chills for the whole state look horrible over the next couple of days. At least wind chills themselves do not affect plants, though cold temperatures and strong winds can be tough on our plants in these sorts of cold spells. I helped Jana and Lillie paint Lillie's room at the new house today. It looks really nice and two coats of her chosen paint color (one coat yesterday, another one today) covered up the previous paint color very well. There's a ton of prep work involved in painting these rooms because they have so much of the lovely Victoria style trim and woodwork that needs to be covered in blue painter's tape so that we don't get the wall paint on the trim. Really, by the time you can finally start painting, the painting goes much more quickly than all the prep work. After we finished that room, we worked on prepping the living room for painting...it has a total of 8 walls and I think 10 windows, 8 of which are the 84" tall windows....so lots of time was spent up on ladders, and we never even made it high enough today to cover the crown molding to protect it from the wall paint. I guess that's a project for tomorrow if we aren't iced in here at our house. My son works tomorrow, so we may take a day off and stay home unless we have to be up there at the house because an appliance is being delivered. One is scheduled, but the weather could interfere......and we all may be tired enough that we are sort of hoping it does. One thing that struck me about her room is that the only closet is the original one from 1932, and it is sort of wedge shaped in a corner, and very tiny, so it will not hold much....she is sort of in shock at the fact that her lovely room has so little built-in storage. We're looking for furniture that can store a lot of clothing.....maybe an old-fashioned armoire or wardrobe. For lunch we had a picnic sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor since no furniture has been moved into the house yet. We had our favorite Bar-B-Q from Caddo BBQ so it was the yummiest meal and was lots of fun. I spent a lot of time looking out windows at the landscape today. They have a lot of shade so that may present some landscaping challenges. Oh, and we met the lovely older couple next door....almost old enough, perhaps, to be my parents, but not quite. They are so kind and so friendly. We found some old wallpaper previously not seen when removing light switch plates and old cabinets and things. That was pretty fun...but it wasn't drastically old wallpaper....I think I remember very similar patterns from the 1980s. My tomato plants are outgrowing their light shelf and I have no desire to move them to the greenhouse yet, as that would mean setting up heaters in the greenhouse....and I just do not even want to go there.....so I'll bring in a bigger shelf tomorrow that has adjustable shelving which will allow the plants to stay under fluorescent lights for at least a couple more weeks. We still have nice weather out in the forecast around Thursday or so....knock on wood! Dawn...See MoreMarch 2021 Week 4
Comments (46)I've turned into a gardening Nazi. Came out onto the deck and there was smoke from 5 separate leaf-burning fires next door. Ticked me off. And then when they get out there with the weed sprays, that's fun, too. I asked them 3 years ago if they'd be careful not to spray when it's windy, and also to try and stay away from our back yard. And neighbor has been respectful of that. I like the neighbors a lot, just not their style of yard maintenance. The back of our property isn't yard--it's forest. It's that time of year when everything is turning green, but the yard is a mess with clover, dead nettle, hen bit, and others. What are those pretty little white ones? I know Dawn told us a couple years ago. I forgot. The Kerria japonica is in bloom and looks pretty--but I think we'll take it out once it quits blooming. It's not mentioned as an invasive here (yet), but is in other US places. I ordered and planted hairy mountain mint (pycnanthemum pilosum). I'm tickled to have it--but was laughing at Missouri Botanical Garden's description. Said most gardeners don't consider it to have "sufficient ornamental merit" to have a prominent position in the garden. Brutal. Paw paw saplings, American beauty berry, Vitex still don't show signs of life.Rosemary's toast and that's fine with me. I didn't like it taking up so much room in the veggie beds anyway. Must be an off year for you and me and "beef" tomatoes, Rebecca. I planted Beefsteak and had one lone seed germinate. "We" went shopping for make-up? AND--since it has been so long, will you be able to apply it by yourself? LOL We've been sitting outside all day. Me, purportedly to pot up stuff. Actually, to mostly just enjoy the 76-ish weather. Now, though, I am suddenly sleepy so have come back to the computer room. Garry will probably not find me and will think I've been raptured. He should know better than THAT!...See MoreMarch 2021 Week 5/ April week 1
Comments (71)Lynn, you know... I grew up C of C too. As did Rick (HU). I still attend one...and am actually employed by one. It's not accepted by other C of C really because we're not so...C of C'ish. The one I am at is very, very near where you live. (I remember you telling me your general area.) I had a similar experience growing up. Sort of. My parents and people near me were NOT so hardcore with the "we don't know the true date of Christ's birth and it is wrong to celebrate it on a date that is not in the scripture." Of course you're familiar with the whole "speak where the Bible speaks, be silent where the Bible is silent" thing they had going back then. Some still do. My family celebrated these holidays as mostly a fun, family time. However, our C of C celebrates it all now. (I could ramble on about this, but won't. SO much to say.) Rick (HU) is like you. He left that behind a long time ago. I think the difference is my family (and people near me) weren't so strict. Y'all's people were. And that will make thinking people run far away. And...to prove the point that I'm not strict C of C, I'm enjoying a glass of wine RIGHT now. And coming up with an Easter lesson for my littles tomorrow morning. Sorry. That had nothing to do with gardening. I was just checking in....but had to chime in. I'm late to post on the Saturday night, so it's doubtful Lynn will even see this before the next week's thread will be created....See More
slowpoke_gardener
last yearMy microclimate is so unstable here I would be afraid to plant tomatoes or peppers any time soon.
Amy, I could not get my tomato picture to transfer above, I will try again. I have about 200 tomatoes and peppers under the lights that I will up-pot soon. These plants were a little small, but they will soon go to the greenhouse.
hazelinok thanked slowpoke_gardenerHU-422368488
last yearlast modified: last yeari cover my early toms with milk jugs:
Peek a BooIf a bad freeze is really coming on I'll lay a row cover over the jugs.
a couple of years back we had a late Apr freeze after 50 toms were put out. We set 5 gal buckets over them and then a hoop tunnel over them. It was a lot of work but it got the toms through.Rick
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last yearI was a little worried this morning when I peeked at the plants in the hoop house before rushing off to work.
BUT, they all survived!
Rick came out and tilled in some Black Kow in the SG.
I didn't have time to do much. I did clean out half of my original herb bed. It was mostly henbit, but while cleaning it out, noticed that the cilantro has made a comeback. It usually does that in the fall....but, nope. I really think we were just too dry. Something was certainly off last year. In so many ways.I want to preserve it (freezer) this season in little cubes with oil. Has anyone done that?
I'm glad it came back. After removing the henbit, some of the spinach went it. The rest will go in tomorrow if I have time after work.There's not much left in that small herb garden. Just a struggling sage plant and two lavenders, which should perk up soon. By the time the sage and lavender perk up, it will be too hot for the spinach (and cilantro) so it should all be fine.
Rick brought over a few more strawberry plants, so hopefully I'll be able to plant them tomorrow too.
As well as the cabbage. Gotta find the time.And the kale. Gotta find the time and place. lol
Swiss chard. Same.
And, really, it's time to put in the carrot seed and bunching turnip seed and radish seed too.
My heart longs for sugar and snow peas....but, the aphids just won't allow it.(that was dramatic, I know.)
Speaking of aphids, Rick found a lot of ladybugs while pulling the fall turnips, etc. today. Apparently, they've been overwintering there. He threw them into the hoop house.
Everyone says....wait for the ladybugs and they'll take care of your aphid problems. We have lots and lots of ladybugs, but way too many aphids. The variety of aphids that get out-of-hand, is the kind that likes peas of all sorts.It's a sad thing. I love peas.
Sorta like the squash bugs and zucchini/all winter squash--I love the squash, but can't win against the squash pests.
I'm just super happy all the plants made it last night.
Here's a picture of the Dollar Tree waste baskets and giant ziplock bags placed over them to use as frost protection. Not my garden or plants.
Lynn Dollar
last yearIts raining here on the south side of OKC this early morning.
Living in OKC , never thought I'd complain about too much rain. But I really need to till the garden one more time and I can't get it dry enough. I've tilled it twice, to till in the rye grass I grew for a winter cover. But I've yet to make my raised rows. The soil rakes a lot better if its freshly tilled.
My tomatoes plants are right on schedule. I planted seed later this year and they're where I want them to be at this time. I'm thinking first week of April to go in the ground. So I gotta have several days here of no rain.
First time in many years, I've spent some money on my seed starting operation. I've gone to LED lights. I bought two that are 4 foot long that are fairly inexpensive.
I liked those so well I went with a larger, more intense light. They advertise it for the marijuana grower's inside greenhouses :) . I'm hanging it over my tomato plants. It has a dimmer, so as the plant grows I can keep dimming the light. It opens the door for possibly growing a tomato plant over the winter inside the house.
So I moved the long 4 ft lights under my top shelf on my plant table and made it usable space for the first time ever. And I've started pepper plants on that shelf.
I've also added fans to jiggle the plants. I'm thinking a reason my plants got so tall and leggy was not enough light and I read that fans moving the plants will cause them to thicken the stalk and grow more bushy. We will see.
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last yearI don't have much trouble with legginess, but I always use my grow lights.
I will try to post a picture of plants that were started at about the same time. Madge started some tomato seeds a little ahead of me, but only used the light at the window, I used light shelf.
Although Madge's plants (in the round pot) are a few days older, the plants in the flat are healthier. I am not sure what kind of tomato plants Madge planted, but I suggested that they be up-potted, and placed lower in the soil, then under the lights. I have approx 120 Golden Jubilee tomatoes in the flat.
I also have 70 + sweet peppers planted 3-7-23 coming along. In the flat above are Ash County, Calif. Wonder, and one that Is just listed a Large Red Sweet. All of these plants seem behind, but I think that they will be growing like weeds when the weather warms up, and, also I have tried to start my plants a little later because it turns in too much of a job carrying plants in and out when it get close to planting time and you don't have enough room on your grow shelves.
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