Official Gardening/Homesteading thread: Our back yards are our grocery stores

Discussion in 'The Mainboard' started by lhprop1, Apr 9, 2015.

  1. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Wife brought the lamb to the tailgate today



     
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  2. bigred77

    bigred77 Well-Known Member
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    no pics of it on the grill?
     
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  3. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Not big enough yet
     
  4. bigred77

    bigred77 Well-Known Member
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    boring
     
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  5. Doug

    Doug Skeptical Doug-o
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    Looking to get a compost tumbler for my mom for Christmas (and maybe for myself) - any tips, recommendations, things I need to look for or know?
     
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  6. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    From today's southern snow

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  7. thunderstruck

    thunderstruck I'm a Boss

    How much acreage do you have?

    Awesome set up, really jealous
     
  8. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    17 acres, all of it fenced pasture except for 1.5 acres around the house and less than a quarter acre of woods. We also have a stream start about halfway back and it t-bones into another stream that runs along the back of the property.
     
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  9. hawkeyeOUTeast

    hawkeyeOUTeast Well-Known Member
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    Where do you live man? Sweet setup.
     
  10. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Upstate SC near Clemson
     
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  11. BayouMafia

    BayouMafia Thought Leader in Posting
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    going to start everything from seeds this year and set up a grow light in my garage. Just realized I need to get started on it as late March is prime transplanting season in this area
     
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  12. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
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    depending on were you live .
    the on- slot of bugs is wild .
    you have any idea what the water bill is in Orlando to keep fruit and a garden going together in summer ?
    god bless let me know how u r doing ?
     
  13. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
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    Going to start gardening for the first time and looking at getting a pH reader to help me out. Thoughts on this one or recommendations would be appreciated:

     
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  14. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
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    try 2018 farmers almanac it will give u zone plants and compatability .
    it will also give u plant to zone compatability times .
     
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  15. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
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    thank you big red .
    hopefully we will not have political intervention only good helpful comments .
     
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  16. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Also look at your in state ag school extension website. They should have planting, fertilizing, and recommendations for your area. Clemson has it if you are in SC.
     
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  17. lhprop1

    lhprop1 Fullsterkur
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    A pH meter is a good start on finding out which plants will work best in your soil, but if you really want to see how fertile your soil is, you need to utilize your state ag extension like billdozer said and get a soil test. My soil tests are only $13 and they tell me everything from pH, to organic content, to nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium levels. All are important if you really want to have a good idea of the health of your soil. It will also tell you whether or not you need fertilizer and will give you fertilizer recommendations.
     
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  18. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
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    Thank you for the help. I will take my soil samples by to the Clemson county office when I can. Look forward to using y’all as a resource and gardening inspiration. I’m going to try and grow okra, cherry tomatoes, herbs, and radishes first. For the past few months I have been burying kitchen scraps in the raised garden beds to enrich the soil. And I will start composting them instead.

    I plan on asking around local cabinet makers to see if I can get some sawdust for my compost. Has anyone tried that before? Probably will do the same for grounded coffee beans at local coffee shops.
     
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  19. colonel_forbin

    colonel_forbin Well-Known Member
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    Doing a couple raised beds this year after doing potted stuff last year (first year growing). What's everyone doing this spring?
     
  20. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Made some mineral feeders for the sheep today. The horses like it too.

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  21. Ric Flair

    Ric Flair The Nature Boy

    This will be year 2 of using my raised beds to plant vegetables. I sprayed the entire beds for weeds this weekend, will spray again in two weeks, turn the soil in 3-4 weeks, and then plant my seedlings. Should I add any compost/manure and/or fertilizer before I plant? These two raised boxes are both 10'x10'.
     
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  22. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
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    what ya planting ?
     
  23. Ric Flair

    Ric Flair The Nature Boy

    I usually do tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, jalapeno, and okra. I'll throw something else in every now and then.
     
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  24. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
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    nice.
     
  25. lhprop1

    lhprop1 Fullsterkur
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    I've always had trouble starting my pepper seeds in potting soil, so I'm trying this method this year. I have a few questions.

    1. I'm in Minnesota and we keep the thermostat in the 60s all winter, so the warmest place in the house is around 63 or 64 degrees. Because of this, I put my seeds on a heat mat. Is that ok? Once they sprout and I transplant them, should I keep them on the heat or remove them?

    2. Should I add water if the paper towel dries out? I'm guessing it's a yes, but you're the expert here.
     
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  26. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
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    first look at the farmers almanac find the times to plant and plant compatability .
    each years is new .
    1. no just a warm spot
    2.the grow light does the heat .
    use warm water on seeds . to germinate .
    be shure to plant next to compatable plants .
     
  27. Taques

    Taques sometimes maybe good sometimes maybe shit
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    The Real Movement

    i generally use a heat mat too so you should be good, and yes try to keep the towel moist
     
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  28. THE REAL GUBBERJK

    THE REAL GUBBERJK original ocean grown
    Donor

    it pops open due to moisture and heat makes shell expand and pop open .
    I will tell u this .
    generally plants are more successful starting outside - keeping outside .
    start inside keep inside , that way the plant can build a bark against elements faster .
    certain seeds perform different than others .
    inotherwards I buy certain things in clone form rather than seed .
     
    #1578 THE REAL GUBBERJK, Mar 5, 2018
    Last edited: Mar 5, 2018
  29. lhprop1

    lhprop1 Fullsterkur
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    One other thing: Once I've transplanted them, should I keep them on the heat mat? I've found with my tomatoes that keeping them on the heat mat once they're seedlings kills them. I'm just wondering if it's the same with peppers.
     
  30. Taques

    Taques sometimes maybe good sometimes maybe shit
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    ive personally never done it but chiles like it hotter than tomatoes so i wouldnt think that it would hurt them. if you experiment with it id be interested in your findings
     
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  31. colonel_forbin

    colonel_forbin Well-Known Member
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    Just got a pellet gun. About to fuck some squirrels up
     
  32. Duck70

    Duck70 Let's just do it and be legends, man
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    Any rec's on killing the fuck outta some crabgrass?
     
  33. bigred77

    bigred77 Well-Known Member
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    Just saw a nextdoor post of a woman near my hood asking if there are any local beekeepers willing to "trade" her some jars of honey for the mead the bees are collecting from her trees and flowers.
    Mentioned she isnt interested in "big local" honey shops.
     
    High Cotton likes this.
  34. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    I see that where I'm at. The "big local" here sells their local honey that is from North Catolina, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina. So not what people consider local but that's what they label it.
     
  35. bigred77

    bigred77 Well-Known Member
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    Heck the big grocery store in town here has 3 local honeys on the shelf that are all from within 50 miles
     
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  36. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Yeah, mine too. Those have to heat up the honey and severely strain it so that it won't sugar up in the store, so even those are "lower" quality than honey from smaller keepers.
     
  37. bigred77

    bigred77 Well-Known Member
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    :tmyk:
     
  38. lechnerd

    lechnerd They say Monaco is a sunny place for shady people
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    Any advice on eliminating the pill bugs that are eating my strawberries? I’ve got huge output already of ripe strawberries but the pill bugs devour them before they can be plucked. I’ve got a few lizards that hang out in the garden but they’re apparently worthless. Is there a way to kill these guys but not adversely affect my food?
     
  39. lechnerd

    lechnerd They say Monaco is a sunny place for shady people
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    [​IMG]
     
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  40. BayouMafia

    BayouMafia Thought Leader in Posting
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    Really kicking myself for waiting until late February to get my seeds started. Time just got away from me.

    Squash and zucchini are ready to go into the ground tomorrow but most of the tomatoes are still too small to even move from starter pods to solo cups, and out of probably 20 eggplant seeds I've had 2 germinate. Okra started late because I couldn't find my seeds from last year and had to re-order but they'll probably go into the ground next weekend.

    On another note, Baker Creek send me their big catalog since I ordered from them this year and I brought it to work to leaf through during conference calls. Makes me want to quit my job and buy acres of land to grow rare melons and heirloom greens. Really easy to get carried away.
     
  41. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Some recent swarms caught

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  42. One Two

    One Two Hot Dog Vibes
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    I've got a couple of young peach trees on my deck (5-6ft tall) that I'm planting this weekend. Chance of a light frost (32-35 degrees) tonight. Do I need to bring them inside? Not planning on getting any fruit off them, already picked off the little baby peaches
     
  43. pockets

    pockets Lesser-Known Member
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    Depends on the variety regarding temperature, but peaches can handle a lot. 32 shouldnt do anything to them.
     
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  44. Arliden

    Arliden Well-Known Member
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    As long as they havent bloomed yet 32 should be fine, depending on variety they need a certain amount of chill hours below 45.
     
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  45. Arliden

    Arliden Well-Known Member
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    Added a new box this year to bring it up to 2, last year the tomatoes went crazy and the box was crowded. The wood in the tomato cages is to distribute the weight across all 3, last season a few of the tomato cages started sagging from the weight.
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    Added 4 fruit trees:
    Santa Rosa Plum, Southern Bartlett Pear, Panamint Nectarine, and Eva's Pride Peach. Brings us up to 9 trees total, including the avocado and citrus. Id like to add two more to make it look more like a mini orchard at this spot with 6 trees instead of 4.
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    Threw out some wildflower seed and rye grass a couple weeks back before our storm, this photo is a week or so old but its coming in just in the lines where it got flattened from the tractor bucket.

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  46. BayouMafia

    BayouMafia Thought Leader in Posting
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    9C63862A-D27F-4D8D-9EC7-1AC4132D6214.jpeg Thunderstorm came through last night and one of my burgundy okra seedlings looks like a casualty. If I snip it at the break point will it come back or is it a goner? I only planted three of them so if it doesn’t make it I’ll replace it. I have some backup seeds germinating now but they’re a good 2-3 weeks from planting ready.
     
  47. pockets

    pockets Lesser-Known Member
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    It will be alive but it will grow oddly since it will be topped so low. Id just get a new one, though you can put that one in a pot just to experiment and see.
     
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  48. cutig

    cutig My name is Rod, and I like to party
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    I got some of those Jiffy peat pellet kits to start my veggies from seed this year rather than spend a fucking fortune on live plants.

    My house is ~60F and probably going to get warmer as the weather changes. Am I going to run into any issues with germination? I need to probably start it soon and hope that I can start putting shit in the ground by June.
     
  49. lhprop1

    lhprop1 Fullsterkur
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    I'm really against the peat pellets as seed starters. They're too compressed/compact. You'll have much better results to go buy a tray and fill the individual cells with a seed starter mix like Black Gold. Make sure you water the tray at the bottom and not water the individual cells from the top. Watering from the bottom encourages the roots to grow down and creates a much healthier root system.

    As far as the temps go, 60F is a bit chilly for things like tomatoes. Some of them will germinate, but it will take longer (creating a higher potential for seed rot and failed germination). Your best bet is to spend a few bucks on a seedling heat mat. If you calculate what you'd spend on live plants and compare it with the cost of a heat mat, the cell tray, the seeds, and the starting mix, you'll probably spend the same amount this year. The heat mat is a one-time purchase, so it will just get cheaper from year to year.

    Also, make sure you store the seedlings in an area with good air circulation. Not doing so will increase your risk of damping off. Having good air flow also promotes thicker, stronger stem development.
     
    cutig likes this.
  50. cutig

    cutig My name is Rod, and I like to party
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    Good call on the heat mats, I checked today and my beans and squashes have all sprouted. Most of them are ~1-2" tall. How long do I wait before I pull them and put them in another tray in the sunlight?