Saturday Gardening and Puttering Thread 3/28/20 [KT]

Hello, gardeners, putterers, and dreamers! How is everybody doing? Getting an opportunity to spend some time outdoors? Or maybe to bring something from outdoors indoors? Keena sent the following:

Visited a dear friend today and came back with some of her Protea. They're really quite striking and being from South Africa, they are perfect in SoCal. Why don't I have them in my garden? Next project is to add a few!

So exotic! And they last a long time cut.

Thinking about a road trip in the future?

Sorry for any goofs, I'm a first-timer at this. The picture is a Panamint Five-Spot I saw outside Room Canyon in Death Valley National Park earlier in March. There wasn't a super bloom this year, but there were still plenty of pretty flowers. Thanks for the great pictures and commentary you post every week! Call me anonymous for now.

No goofs! Beautiful!

The Edible Garden

Gordon in Minnesota sends the following:

Hey

Okay, I did start these guys a little early. But that is looking like a good decision as we are warm ending the winter.

These grow lights also are supposed to encourage budding. I would say they have. The tomato is a Garden Gem from Florida State U, and the pepper are arbol (taller) and Twilight, both from New Mexico State's Chile Pepper Institute.

I am dreaming of future meals. The light set-up sounds good.

Need a job? Openings for asparagus harvesting in Switzerland, until June. They love white asparagus there. They hill it up under sandy soil. Look at those tools. They say that the pay is pretty good.

Have you ever had white asparagus?

The Swiss will also eat it green. Recipe.

Critters

From Larro, some RV companions:

Later, he sent this:

I went to help brother out in the country down 65 miles southwest, and this had just happened early Sunday morning.

You can't tell by this pic, but calf had been up and nursing. I guess it was worn out.
It was 50's and drizzle, everything saturated from several inches of rain in previous days, and life goes on and on. Yep, it's spring here; notice the green. Most hayfields are past 6-7" and coming on quick! All the tanks are full!

And a return visitor this week:

Gardens of The Horde

AZ tries to grow a garden sent in some great photos and information:

I finally got my raised beds built and filled; small are 2x2x2 ft and the large are 6x4x2 ft. The city of Tempe collects 'green waste' and composts it, then they charge $20 (for residents) for a pickup load full. They filled the back of a Silverado with a dump truck and I had to flatten the load and 'distribute' some back to their yard so I didn't leave a trail to my house. The receipt said 1.8 ton and I believe it.

I added garden soil (Lowes and Home Depot were 1 cent different and I used more than I thought I would need (multiple trips to both).

The bags were heavy and I wish I had counted the number of wheel barrow trips.

Looks great!

Transplanted: 3 different tomatoes, Zucchini, straight yellow squash, basil, marigold, 2 artichokes, and swiss chard. Planted from seed: bunch onions, 5 different carrots (one seed pack with 5 different carrots), 4 and 10 ft sunflowers, and pickle bushes. I have since discovered that swiss chard turns bitter when temps get over 70; so, I'll be yanking 2 of the 4 plants and putting in some beets and spaghetti squash.

Do any of our other desert gardeners have tips on veggie choices? I think of the coast when I think of artichokes. And I'm thinking "baby beets" there, too.

Penstemon in the front yard:

Penstemon reseed them selves this year looks like a bumper crop.

Penstemon parryi at base of Organ Pipe Cactus --- I look forward to the Garden Thread each Saturday.

I love that photo.

If you would like to send information and/or photos for the Saturday Gardening Thread, the address is:

ktinthegarden
at g mail dot com

Include your nic unless you want to remain a lurker.

posted by Open Blogger at 12:59 PM

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