Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, Jan. 13

We've had enough frost here to worry the citrus growers and maybe damage citrus in some places. How is your weather?

Well, this is almost the middle of January - a time not well-know for flowering plants. But even in Central California, the Euryops pectinatus, like the one above, generally makes it through a few mild frosts. AKA "wolly resin bush" The green-leaved variant (the most common one sold) is pictured above, though the species is generally grey-leaved.

Golden Euryops is a vigorous grower, but you can prune it back after flowering to a desired shape. Cut off dead flowerheads after flowering. There are 96 other species of Euryops that occur in southern and tropical Africa as well as in Saudi Arabia.

I prefer the silvery grey original color. There is a dwarf.

In California, Euryops is pruned in spring, after its winter bloom. It has a very long bloom season.

Pruning, Pest Control and Tools

The guy who took the Euryops photo above provides some nice guidance on tools and garden gifts.

Garden tools are generally a hit. On my second birthday I was given a child-sized wheelbarrow, a watering can and a shovel, all of which helped form me as a life-time gardener. Most garden centers sell good quality tools for kids made of metal, not plastic. See what you can find for a small person in your life.

Adults like tools, too. For 20 years now I've had a Smart Cart, a well balanced two-wheel cart. The frame is made of airplane-grade tubular aluminum and the 7-cubic ft body of heavy-duty plastic. It comes either with bike-type wheels or smaller, fatter wheels capable of traversing wet areas more easily and carrying heavier loads. I chose the wide wheels, which make the cart rated for 600 pounds. The narrower wheels are rated for 400 lbs. I've never had a flat tire and the cart has served me well. The bin pops out if you want to wash a dog in it, or carry home manure in your Subaru. It is not inexpensive, but worth the investment.

Also, a "root slayer" spade, deer and rabbit repellents, seed starting supplies and other stuff.

Other helpful items to consider below:

Insect control:

"Work smarter, not harder," says this western cattle egret.

Cattle egrets have learned to follow large equipment like tractors and mowing machinery to eat prey stirred up from the ground by the machinery.

Photo of a western cattle egret riding a tractor at San Luis NWR by USFWS pic.twitter.com/JKfg2E7Ror

— U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (@USFWS) December 14, 2023

Weed control

Our recent implementation of Tripod Farmers' LaserWeeder has been incredibly smooth. Straight into the fields, and destroying weeds. Here are some clips in #romaine (Cos) and Butter #lettuce where you can really see how efficiently the machine eliminates weeds #agtech #farming pic.twitter.com/8pzryjwMAB

— Carbon Robotics (@carbon_robotics) January 12, 2024

Italian hedge trimmers

Well, my day’s off to an interesting start… pic.twitter.com/T5wVSHoSNP

— Rewire the West (@RewiretheWest) January 10, 2024

Edible Gardening/Putting Things By

Seeds 'n Such is a nice little catalog:

Habanada:

Impossible you say? A habanero with absolutely no heat, but keeps all its tropical, fruity flavor that habaneros are known for! Robust plants produce enormous yields of fruits that start lime green and ripen to bright fluorescent orange. Eat them at any stage. Perfect when sauteed, roasted or eaten fresh.

They carry lots of veggies, some fruits and also flowers. Prices aren't too bad.

Are you shopping or working in the garden?

Puttering

Got a little remodeling in mind?

Excellent 1950s craftsmanship pic.twitter.com/o5lNdLMpCf

— Fascinating (@fasc1nate) January 9, 2024

Puttering leads to history (thread)

Here’s one of my favorite discoveries… Imagine you’re at a flea market in West Virginia and you see this chair, that nobody wants because it’s sort of impressively ugly. But something about it says buy this thing, because it’s just so unusual. So you buy it for a couple hundred… pic.twitter.com/NgTS7V5kf8

— The Civil Rights Lawyer (@johnbryanesq) January 10, 2024

Gardens of The Horde

Dream time for you, or are you working in the yard?

Hope everyone has a nice weekend.

If you would like to send photos, stories, links, etc. for the Saturday Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, the address is:

Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.

Week in Review

What has changed since last week's thread? Gardening, Puttering and Adventure Thread, Jan. 6

Any thoughts or questions?

I closed the comments on this post so you wouldn't get banned for commenting on a week-old post, but don't try it anyway.

posted by K.T. at 01:23 PM

| Access Comments