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Post by tod2 on Jun 13, 2017 15:00:00 GMT
Very pretty Mick - I think I'll mosey down to the garden shop and see if they have any seed potatoes available....usually only in December, why then I don't know as its wet and the spuds rot quickly.
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Post by mickthecactus on Jun 14, 2017 7:24:06 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Jun 14, 2017 16:28:41 GMT
You not going to break that terracotta pot to get the spuds out will you? How?
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Post by mickthecactus on Jun 14, 2017 16:51:30 GMT
Plastic. Just put my hand in and pull them out. Eventually jus tip it out for the last ones.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 14, 2017 17:29:53 GMT
Tod has a potato pot confused with a piggy bank!
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Post by tod2 on Jun 15, 2017 16:43:11 GMT
Oh hardy har har! I've seen a sort of potato bag sold in garden shops of magazines, and of course that becomes easy when the harvest is near. The big ones are at the bottom not so?
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Post by amboseli on Jun 18, 2017 15:23:41 GMT
We came home from Portugal and it looked as if our garden had exploded. Our roses are in full bloom and the hollyhocks made a good start.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 18, 2017 16:38:17 GMT
Oooooo ~ beautiful!!! I know what you mean about coming home and finding everything all beautiful. It always makes me wonder if my garden is better off without me.
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Post by amboseli on Jun 18, 2017 18:42:38 GMT
My best friend looked after our garden while we were away. I'm very thankful because it has been really hot in Belgium. There would have been nothing left of our plants and flowers hadn't she come watering every few days.
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Post by cheerypeabrain on Jul 12, 2017 18:18:14 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 13, 2017 17:39:57 GMT
My hibiscus finally bloomed today for the first time in two years, even though I had accidentally cut off the first buds. There is a second bud on the way. Not much, I know, but it makes me happy.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2017 22:39:07 GMT
Wow, Cheery ~ your garden fairly exploded! Are those all things you planted from seed? However you did it, it's a paradise. I've always loved your plant combinations.
That's nice, Kerouac, and a lovely remembrance.
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Post by tod2 on Aug 2, 2017 7:36:31 GMT
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Post by amboseli on Aug 2, 2017 7:41:14 GMT
Oh boy, those are beautiful. And they look so healthy. I must remember the seaweed fertilizer!
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 2, 2017 9:05:03 GMT
That certainly is a lovely show. I'm using seaweed feed on the tomatoes this year but we really need some warm weather. Summer seems to have completely disappeared.
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 2, 2017 14:26:41 GMT
So pretty and healthy, Tod! I've never used seaweed fertilizer, only fish emulsion. Would love to get my hands on some, but the only organic fertilizers available for sale around here are worm castings.
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Post by tod2 on Aug 2, 2017 16:53:54 GMT
Do you ever put a tablespoon of Epsom salts on any of your plants? That is highly suggested for roses - I am still using the Rose Food from the Nurseryman.
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Post by amboseli on Aug 3, 2017 10:13:01 GMT
I'm using seaweed feed on the tomatoes this year but we really need some warm weather. Summer seems to have completely disappeared. My husband was just wondering what he could do to turn the tomatoes red, or at least reddish. We have lots of them, but they remain as green as grass. Sunshine and warmth is what we need! Onions, beans, eggplant and zucchini are doing great, though.
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 3, 2017 11:07:38 GMT
I'm with you Amboseli. Everything else is doing fine but tomatoes have come to a full stop. I'm worrying about tomato blight now.
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Post by tod2 on Aug 3, 2017 12:42:41 GMT
Luckily we don't have a ripening problem here but believe it or not, the climate is too wet to produce good quality tomatoes - even with all this sun. Greece or Spain do so much better in taste. I found this: tinyurl.com/y9c4ph2q
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 3, 2017 15:32:24 GMT
Tod, in Louisiana it is common to plant tomatoes on raised berms -- in other words, on top of the furrow shoulders, rather than in the furrows. Is that how you plant them in your area?
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Post by tod2 on Aug 3, 2017 17:39:11 GMT
Bixa, I plant tomatoes as a last resort because they invariably get 'blight' and the monkeys take a chunk out of the ones turning red. Sometimes the crop has been good, lately very poor. I watched an interesting program on YouTube about how to manually pollinate your tomatoes.
When we do plant a dozens or so plants we stick them in the ground totally level. The only raised earth in my veg patch would be around potatoes. Maybe I will give that method a try next time.
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Post by kerouac2 on Aug 6, 2017 6:25:27 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Aug 7, 2017 16:55:49 GMT
Oh crikey! What a sight for sore eyes Kerouac - I have never seen the gardens Jardin du Luxembourg as magnificent as this! Absolutely fantastic. Was this a chance wander over there or did you receive a tip-off?
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 7, 2017 17:30:22 GMT
Wow -- they really went all out! Impressive mixed planting. When I left on my trip, the moonflowers were just starting to flower. When I returned, at midnight of July 10, I entered my completely dark patio, except for masses and masses of moonflowers glowing in the moonlight ~
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Post by amboseli on Aug 7, 2017 18:40:57 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Aug 10, 2017 14:03:43 GMT
Bixa you described a magical scene with the moonflowers! It made me remember my mom describing the moon shining down on pockets of glistening snow around midnight on the road through the Alps and into Italy. Your photos are just lovely - there seems to be a purity and elegance about the flowers.
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 15, 2017 12:18:51 GMT
Those moonflowers are so beautiful.
K2, those flowers are stunning - you need sunglasses to look at them!
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 15, 2017 12:20:25 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Aug 15, 2017 17:29:30 GMT
I'm with you Amboseli. Everything else is doing fine but tomatoes have come to a full stop. I'm worrying about tomato blight now. I cant tell you how many "tomato" programmes I've had to watch with Mr. Tod on YouTube and all offer some different advice, but the key I thought was taking off all the lower leaves leaving nice bare stems which in turn let aire circulate freely - thus thwarting blight. If tomato plants are in a 'double row' make sure no leaves crowd onto each other down the middle - so remove or cut back all those leaves too.
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