My low maintenance scallions are loving the warmer than usual spell. I’ll have to think of a way to use these up the next few weeks.
Started seedlings early this year, and so far have little spindley babies of watermelon radish (newbie here), a Russian purple tomato (freebie seeds that were thrown in an order), and a "space master"cucumber plant (also newbie). I was looking for the small Lebanese cuke variety. The seeds were surprisingly large, so I hope these are the right kind.
Sadly my shishito are not germinating this year. I just restarted with the new pots with fresh seeds. Fingers crossed that these will grow. I also sowed some cilantro, and bought a random blueberry bush that I found super cheap from a discount store. I’ll be lucky if this even grows, and there’s will most definitely be no fruit for years. I always wanted a blueberry bush though, so I couldn’t resist when I found it for $7.
I don’t consider it paradise for growing things. Especially in the summer. The dirt is light beige from lack of organic material, my house’s soil is so clayish I think you could make pottery with it. I’m close enoough to a wash for the very top stuff from floods ends up in my yard, aka clay, while people a bit closer have so much sand that water just whooshes on past the roots so fast they barely have a chance to absorb it. Gardening is challenging here. BUT- saguaros grow here. If you water them 3-4 times a year they grow WAY faster- just don’t water them if you’ve had rain in the last several months. But I live in a part of town with bad soil. Downtown the soil is better. And we can grow pansies all winter. And I have some three year old potted patchouli plants that are about to bloom!
True story- a friend had a neighbor with a peach tree that overhung his shed, so he liked that and some of the little peaches. He realized at one point that his kids had been really good about picking up after the dog. He had to get something out of the shed at some point (not a gardener, he was a medical electronics/music genius). He opened up the shed and discovered it was full of peach pits and dog turds.
Packrats.
We have Packrats here, too, theEastern Bushy-tailed Wood Rat". They’re really cute, like a miniature Chinchilla. But, they’re destructive and steal whatever strikes their fancy, and pile it up. We’re missing a LOT of white plastic labels in the nursery and I’m wondering what beastie removed them.
Kobuta, you might want to save seeds from the Watermelon Radish (Beauty Heart/Red Meat). That one usually does not form a big root if spring planted; it goes to seed. It’s a fall radish, making large roots when the days are getting shorter and cooler. One of the best multi-season radishes is Shunkyo, a semi long radish which seems to tolerate more hot weather than most.
Shrinkrap, those aerogarden seedlings look amazing!
My garden looked like this last fall from planting all the leftover scallion ends from the grocery store; what a good problem to have! Scallion oil would use up a ton of them; it’s so delicious on noodle Shanghainese style, or poached chicken, or scallion pancake…I could go on. But chopping it up and freezing it in a flat ziplock bag also makes for easier use in the future.
Good to know! I still have some seeds from my radish packet. I’ll have to remember to plant them later next year.
@sunnyday - I do have to remember to freeze some of the scallion. I also give some away to my sisters and my mom when they visit. One of my favorite condiments is also ginger-scallion oil for poached chicken, noodles, etc. I have to remember to make a big batch if I’m out of ideas for using them up.
Those Aji were definitely not planted too late! Do you still have last year’s plants, and, if so, are they blooming? These cooler days are perfect for pollination.
I may have gone overboard with allium seedlings this year, a bit over 280: 72 Rossa di Milano red onion (improved), 72 evergreen bunching onion (Japanese), 72 Red Beard onion-another big, bunching onion with a red base, and 72 leeks-Broad London and Tadorna. It sounds like a lot, but the two flats of bunching onions get planted closely together. Plus, they’re cut and come again types.
My garlic in buckets is not doing as well as last year. Some plants are leaning, which doesn’t bode well. I’m sure its a problem at the roots, shallots seem to be doing well though.
The two or three year old Aji Amarillo is not blooming but has new leaves. I have taken it out of the greenhouse, but am not confident about feeding it.
It’s probably worth a shot to give it a higher phosphorous fertilizer, something with a larger middle number, to increase blooming. That is, unless you’re planning on pitching the plant. If not, you might add a little calcium to the soil if your water is low mineral. About a teaspoon of powdered dolomitic limestone, swirled into a gallon of water and stirred constantly so it doesn’t settle, should do it. Potting media often goes acid and loses calcium, which peppers and tomatoes need.
Ugh, found out that my two raised beds that holds the garlic were water logged. Grrrrr, I don’t think the garlic will survive this. They were already stunted prior to yesterday’s rain storm and I thought they were just developing slowly. I didn’t think they might have had excessive water trapped in the beds (we’ve been quite dry otherwise). Sigh another year of no good garlic yield.
Oh, @kobuta, I’m sorry. Not looking good for my garlic either.
Here are a few pepper (I think rocatillo and “seasoning”), and some of my tomato seedlings. Almost all are “Dwarf Project” and destined for Earthbox containers.
I’m not liking that.
shallots seem to be doing well though.
