The wind is just horrible. The humidity is around 35 percent. The wind feels like the sort you would expect to blow up a storm, but it hasn't and won't according to NOAA. Couple with this wind we went from the temperatures being so cold that leaving plantlings out overnight to harden off has been a trial as it has gotten below 30 degrees a couple nights in a row less than a week ago.
Now we have had two days here of 91 and 88 degrees. Spring has missed us completely. Moderation is not for us. Strawberries are in bloom and I do not have to look hard to find those blossoms with black eyes showing that it froze while they were in bloom. My 'Honeycrisp' apple went from not a single petal fallen, to completely denuded of petals in less than a day and yet that day and yesterday (and today as well) will have wind speeds of 30 mph with gusts as high as 50 mph-- much too windy to attempt my spraying with Malathion to prevent codling moth. This spraying was supposed to occur at 75 percent petal drop.
Gardening in central Wisconsin can be a trial.
I planted my luscious melons, cutting slits in black weed barrier. Half of these I also covered with the white fabric floating row covers. Did I mention we have had cold nights? I thought this might be a good things to give those peat potted transplants a bit of an extra boost. They went into compost-lined holes well watered. Yesterday, however, with the additional heat captured from the double blast of temperatures dinging the 90 marks and the winds being so extreme as to literally whip the row cover like wash on a line repeatedly across the melons, I have to say the unprotected plants looked better.
The fabric is supposedly water permeable, and it is, but it is more like a a filter. This effect allows spot watering to pool and run away from a plant.
I am not sure this possible innovation is all it is reputed to be. Now if it had gotten cold or we has a storm blow up with hail, I would probably be singing a different tune. I have left the white fabric row cover in place. If my melons bear more fruit because of the heat trapped under this cover, even with the indifferent start it might be worth it.
In other developments, the potager is allowing a large salad everyday. The 'French Breakfast' radishes are coming on and are deliciously mild. The best two radishes I have tried I think are 'Chery Belle' and that one.
In the family garden, most of the bare root berry plants have developed multiple leaves. The blueberries are developing very fast. There are many, tiny, thin asparagus showing in every hill in the asparagus bed.
The first of the cucumbers have popped up, parsnips are up, and the next sweet corn 'Country Gentleman' planted from two-year old seed have sprouted. I personally, thought that night be a fail. I know my dad will mix in the leftover seed from his field corn the next year, but I don't know if he knew for sure it actually sprouted. I know seed from the cucumber/melon family has good multiple year germination, as does radish seed; but some seed, like tomato and peppers, not so much.
The problem though, is with the winds, the top couple inches of soil is drying out pretty fast. I have yet to plant any of my beans, and have planted not all my carrots. With the drying winds, I did not feel it a particularly auspicious day to put out transplants. I did see a commercial farmer transplanting out peppers yesterday. Good luck to him!
Showing posts with label central Wisconsin garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label central Wisconsin garden. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Sunday, May 29, 2011
The Family Garden and Potager Update
Well, over in the family garden we had some frost. It nailed the tomatillos we had planted there. I'm pretty sure they are goners, but we'll wait and see as we do have some space. It also nipped the very top leaves of the basil, not a big deal. We have more basil, but only one tomatillo plant growing in the potager.
The asparagus bed is sending up its first tiny purple spears. That is pretty exciting. Where I see top growth, I know the roots are making themselves at home as well.
The 'Reliance' seedless table grapes are opening leaf buds. Pretty exciting to see growth on something that is just twisty dry sticks!
And my brother scared up the first rat snake, of what my sister-in-law informs me is an infestation, but so far I have not seen. Sister-in-law says the snake was four feet long and a bit bigger in diameter than a garden hose. That's a good sized snake! I hope it works on the rodent problem of which I have seen more than a bit of evidence.
The weeds are starting to come, mostly grassy weeds, as are the potatoes! The radishes are up, The 'Early Sunglow' sweetcorn has sprouted. This is a type that does well in cooler wetter ground. It looks like a good germination level. So far, with its reported early ripening it looks like the easy winner for our future plantings as well.
We planted the the blueberries in an area that will be enclosed from rodents and birds. We amended the bed with donkey dung, compost, shredded paper, and peat moss. My two-year-old nephews found the spreading of the bags of confetti-like paper definitely the garden chore they have excelled at to-date.
On each edge of what will be an enclosed area for the blueberries and hazelnuts, we laid down black landscape fabric. Sister-in-law cut holes into it and planted tomatoes. The plan is to use the blueberry caging to tie up our tomatoes, saving us the effort and expense of caging them.
In another 500 square foot area that has been covered by black landscape fabric, we planted the first of our peppers: sweet red 'Carmen', jalapeno, and some Cayenne.
Finally, the sweet potato 'Georgia Jet' slips arrived from Jung's. They looked wilted and dead on arrival. I got home at 8 P.M. last evening to be greeted by these dead things standing upright in a bowl of water. My son had gotten the mail and was intrigued by the the small box labeled 'Georgia Jet.' Not sure what he thought they were, he did do the right thing, I believe, by giving them plant CPR. I, in turn, potted them in 3" x 3" x 6" deep pots of compost and watered them and set them on my heat mat. Knowing they like completely warm soil, a week in nice, fluffy compost on my heat mats and under the lights will be like old home week, compared to the cool nights and indifferent daytime temps we have been blessed with here in central Wisconsin.
On the fruit tree scene in my potager, the apricot 'Moorpark' has several half a dime size apricots. I did not hand pollinate this year. The tree was loaded with buds, but I would guess at this time less than a quarter were polinated. That will probably save me thinning fruit. My 'Seckl' pear is boasting handfuls of rust-colored pre-pears at this point, all the petals having dropped last week. My 'Honeycrisp' is in full bloom, or I should say 1/3 bloom; as it appears that cold snap got some of my buds on the north side where it was not protected as it was on the south side by my massive 'Diablo' ninebark. When 75% of its petals have dropped I will spray both it and the pear with Malathion to deter coddling moth. There is literature out there stating a dormant oil in the winter and two well-timed application of Malathion might be a preferred method of preventing the pests most apt to get my apples.
The asparagus bed is sending up its first tiny purple spears. That is pretty exciting. Where I see top growth, I know the roots are making themselves at home as well.
The 'Reliance' seedless table grapes are opening leaf buds. Pretty exciting to see growth on something that is just twisty dry sticks!
And my brother scared up the first rat snake, of what my sister-in-law informs me is an infestation, but so far I have not seen. Sister-in-law says the snake was four feet long and a bit bigger in diameter than a garden hose. That's a good sized snake! I hope it works on the rodent problem of which I have seen more than a bit of evidence.
The weeds are starting to come, mostly grassy weeds, as are the potatoes! The radishes are up, The 'Early Sunglow' sweetcorn has sprouted. This is a type that does well in cooler wetter ground. It looks like a good germination level. So far, with its reported early ripening it looks like the easy winner for our future plantings as well.
We planted the the blueberries in an area that will be enclosed from rodents and birds. We amended the bed with donkey dung, compost, shredded paper, and peat moss. My two-year-old nephews found the spreading of the bags of confetti-like paper definitely the garden chore they have excelled at to-date.
On each edge of what will be an enclosed area for the blueberries and hazelnuts, we laid down black landscape fabric. Sister-in-law cut holes into it and planted tomatoes. The plan is to use the blueberry caging to tie up our tomatoes, saving us the effort and expense of caging them.
In another 500 square foot area that has been covered by black landscape fabric, we planted the first of our peppers: sweet red 'Carmen', jalapeno, and some Cayenne.
Finally, the sweet potato 'Georgia Jet' slips arrived from Jung's. They looked wilted and dead on arrival. I got home at 8 P.M. last evening to be greeted by these dead things standing upright in a bowl of water. My son had gotten the mail and was intrigued by the the small box labeled 'Georgia Jet.' Not sure what he thought they were, he did do the right thing, I believe, by giving them plant CPR. I, in turn, potted them in 3" x 3" x 6" deep pots of compost and watered them and set them on my heat mat. Knowing they like completely warm soil, a week in nice, fluffy compost on my heat mats and under the lights will be like old home week, compared to the cool nights and indifferent daytime temps we have been blessed with here in central Wisconsin.
On the fruit tree scene in my potager, the apricot 'Moorpark' has several half a dime size apricots. I did not hand pollinate this year. The tree was loaded with buds, but I would guess at this time less than a quarter were polinated. That will probably save me thinning fruit. My 'Seckl' pear is boasting handfuls of rust-colored pre-pears at this point, all the petals having dropped last week. My 'Honeycrisp' is in full bloom, or I should say 1/3 bloom; as it appears that cold snap got some of my buds on the north side where it was not protected as it was on the south side by my massive 'Diablo' ninebark. When 75% of its petals have dropped I will spray both it and the pear with Malathion to deter coddling moth. There is literature out there stating a dormant oil in the winter and two well-timed application of Malathion might be a preferred method of preventing the pests most apt to get my apples.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Seed Germinating Tip for Beets, Chard, and Spinach
I read this about this seed germinating tip in "From Seed to Skillet".
I know that stratification is needed by some seeds, but never thought to apply this particular technique to this group of plants. Last summer, I direct seeded some beets and had particularly poor germination. Spring has been particularly cold here and any jump I can get on germination so my seeds are not rotting in the dirt seems like a good thing to me. What Williams does with these lumpy, bumpy seeds is roll them with a rolling pin to crush the outer seed coat. I felt I would surely damage the gymnosperm within, but no.
Upon seeing them crack, I dusted them into a cup of warm water for an hour. Then I strained them through paper towel, folded up the seeds in the paper toweling, and placed them in a Ziploc bag.
Two days later, I could easily see the root panicle emerge and quickly sowed them in the ground in my potager. I also did spinach and placed them in individual cells for planting in the family garden. The spinach on my light rack have emerged from the soil in one day.
With the difficult spring we have had here in central Wisconsin anything a gardener can do to save growing time will be rewarded in your harvest.
I know that stratification is needed by some seeds, but never thought to apply this particular technique to this group of plants. Last summer, I direct seeded some beets and had particularly poor germination. Spring has been particularly cold here and any jump I can get on germination so my seeds are not rotting in the dirt seems like a good thing to me. What Williams does with these lumpy, bumpy seeds is roll them with a rolling pin to crush the outer seed coat. I felt I would surely damage the gymnosperm within, but no.
Upon seeing them crack, I dusted them into a cup of warm water for an hour. Then I strained them through paper towel, folded up the seeds in the paper toweling, and placed them in a Ziploc bag.
Two days later, I could easily see the root panicle emerge and quickly sowed them in the ground in my potager. I also did spinach and placed them in individual cells for planting in the family garden. The spinach on my light rack have emerged from the soil in one day.
With the difficult spring we have had here in central Wisconsin anything a gardener can do to save growing time will be rewarded in your harvest.
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