[RT]

Aha! The author is Patricia Lanza - I didn't find the book yet, but a website.
HERE'S a novelty, Potatoes in a Can!

[valley]

Originally posted by RT:
But I would be sure get the sawdust from a lumber mill and not a carpenter's shop to avoid treated wood sawdust.

true..I never would have thought of that.

We live in the woods so sawdust is free for us. Between my hubby's seasonal woodcutting and my wood-crafting....we usually have pile. He generally uses it to soak up oil or blood in the shop so we keep a pile as it comes in handy.

But the soil in the garden is rich enough not to bother with it. I guess it was an old farmer technique. But a good one now for people who dont like to get too dirty. I'd rather be dirty than itchy though

[valley]

oh, another cool idea one of our neighbors used to do is this:

Take a 5 gallon plastic pail and cut a hole in the bottom. fill it with soil, put the lid on it and flip it upside down. Plant a tomato plant in the hole and when it takes root, flip the pail right side up, take the lid off and hang it from the ceiling of a porch or whatever. The tomatoes grow down and are at eye level....gorgeous things! And very ornamental. You dont have to worry about putting a cage around it to hold it up or anything.....and anyone can grow one as long as they have a small porch or even a fire escape. Fresh tomatoes...yummmm

[valley]

Originally posted by RT:
Aha! The author is Patricia Lanza - I didn't find the book yet, but a website.
HERE'S a novelty, Potatoes in a Can!

cool idea!

[valley]

oohh...another one I thought of....the old "cucumber in a bottle" trick. Just take a glass bottle and shove a tiny cucumber into the neck (while its still on the vine growing!) It will continue to grow in the bottle......when its done....voila...a full-sized cuke in a bottle and most people cant figure out how it is done. Great conversation piece. Add some brine to it, recap it and sit it on a shelf.

Hello and thanks for all the tips.

Yes, Davey, I was thinking about hemlock the other day! It's the poison the Greeks and Romans used I think. I like to see fungi growing and watch out for it on my walks - I wouldn't risk picking any of the wild ones though.

I've just looked in amongst the greenery in the garden and I see I do have an angelica plant - my neighbour gave it to me last year and I'd forgotten about it. Growing very nicely next to a delphinium. I thought I had lost all those, too, to slugs last year. Have a young peony growing - a pink one I hope. Already have a red one which my mother planted around 50 years ago - still going strong. I love them.
Also have a lung-wort that has appeared from nowhere - blotchy leaves and flowers like those on comfrey. It was used as a medicinal plants years ago.

Bye,
Penny.

Lungwort

<img src="http://forums.techguy.org/attachment.php?s=&postid=850787">

LUNGWORT PULMONARIA OFFICINALIS
It is of great use in diseases of the lungs.
The plant Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis) is recognised by its spotted leaves and violet-blue flowers. There is also a kind of moss (Sticta pulmonaria) with broad, greyish, rough leaves, which has similar properties.
Where to find it: The moss grows on Oak and Beech trees and is also known as Oak Lungs. The flowering Lungwort is found in woods and shady places.
Flowering time: Pulmonaria officinalis flowers in spring. Sticta pulmonaria flowers not.
Astrology: Jupiter owns this herb
Medicinal virtues: For coughs,. wheezings and shortness of breath. As anastringent it can be used in lotions to stay the moist humours that flow to ulcers and hinder their healing. It is also used to wash ulcers of the privy parts. It is drying and binding and will stop inward bleeding and too great a flux of the menses.As a syrup it is good for consumptions and disorders of the chest and as a remedy against the yellow jaundice.
Modern uses: Because the name Lungwort has been applied to both a. flowering plant and a moss there has been confusion among even the best herbal writers, who have mixed up the slightly differing attributes of both remedies, and even the common names. It is Pulmonaria officinalis that is commonly known as Jerusalem Cowslip, and is the 'Lungwort' rnainly used by modern herbalists. This is emollient, expectorant and astringent. It is used as an infusion, the whole plant being collected in late spring and dried. It will be found useful for most respiratory conditions, including coughs, bronchitis, pharyngitis and bronchial catarrh. For coughs use equal parts of Colt's Foot and Lungwort. The infusion of Lungwort is also indicated for those with haemorrhoids and simple diarrhoea.

[Shadow Bea]

Originally posted by valley:
The tomatoes grow down and are at eye level....gorgeous things! And very ornamental. You dont have to worry about putting a cage around it to hold it up or anything.....and anyone can grow one as long as they have a small porch or even a fire escape. Fresh tomatoes...yummmm

Val, what an absolutely wonderful idea! I'm going to try it Thank you!

Originally posted by RT:
Aha! The author is Patricia Lanza - I didn't find the book yet, but a website.
HERE'S a novelty, Potatoes in a Can!

Cool site RT!

Originally posted by davey7549:
PS: Picked up 15 mature strawberry plants for a steal and they are loving their new home. Today they grew four inches in the warmth! Might even get a few berries this year for some short cake!!!

Dave would you please tell me what you said to those strawberry plants ?? musta been some sorta plant incantation!! *just kidding*

[eggplant43]

Davey, what a great thread.

I'm a lifelong gardener. Started getting serious when I was about twelve. My first experience was with burning the garden up My dad had brought home nitrate, a white, salt-like granular product. I spread it thoughout the garden. The next morning everything was burnt up. I was shocked. This immediately converted me into an organic gardener.

I've enjoyed all the things people have posted here. Lots of great ideas from everyone. Thank you.

Another potato method: Place a tire on the ground, place seed potato's on ground, cover with leaves, water. As the vines grow through the leaves, continue to add more leaves, allowing the vines to peep through. When it gets high enough, add another tire. This method is weed free, low moisture use, very good in areas with less heat, as the tires heat up and continue to be warm when the air is colder. When ready for harvest, just burrow down with your hands

A couple of caveats. Use Certified seed potato, this means it is disease free, and that you'll get a healthy crop. Secondly, know where the leaves have come from, and that they have not been exposed to a herbicide, or you will not get a crop. Sawdust can work, but is denser. Leaves are lighter, and therefore easier to work with.

There is nothing like new potatoes in a white sauce with baby onions and peas. A wonderful Spring ritual

[DNeurococo]

I occasionally play at gardening. I say “play” because I’m not very good at it and my garden is usually small. This year only 6 “Champion” tomatoes.

I thought I’d mention the “J. L. Hudson – Seedsman” catalog. A good source for “heirloom” seeds and hard to find varieties. I’ve tried some of their tomatoes (such as Oxheart, Ponderosa Red, Purple Calabash, Rutgers, White, Yellow Stuffer, and Tigerilla). Catalog address is
J.L. Hudson / POB 1058 / Redwood City, Ca / 94064.

Or better yet, go to the website==> http://www.jlhudsonseeds.net/

Another neat source is (or was) Countryside magazine - - don't know if they are still in business.

Also useful is the “seed exchange” in such magazines as Mother Earth (you list what seeds you have and what seeds you want - - people will send you the asked for seeds along with a letter about what seeds THEY want from your list. It’s all on the “honor” system). I got some “white cucumbers” that way.

Hey, it’s a little late for this year’s planting, but maybe we could set up a “seed exchange” HERE on this website - - anyone interested?

Also, has anyone ever tried composting using worms? I was inspired from the book “Worms Eat my Garbage”. It really works out well.

#$DN

[jakoval]

Was never much of a gardener before, but my dad just loved it.
When he retired, he started up a small market gardening operation. I used to do the tilling for him (60" tiller on the Massey and 32" one on the lawn tractor, so you can get an idea of the scale), but otherwise didn't get involved too much. After he passed away my mom wanted to keep up the gardening - not commercially, just for personal use, but she needed some help with it.
The last couple of years, I've really come to enjoy it. Even weeding can be quite relaxing (as long as you get 'em while they're small ), almost like a form of meditation - the physical activity keeps your body busy and your mind can wander where it will..

Our major problem last year was "veggie predators" - not just deer and rabbits, but also our 3 dogs. They love most vegetables and have finally figured out where they come from. Don't think we got any carrots or peas last year although we planted 3 rows of the former and 2 of the latter. All the carrots were dug up before they got more than thumb-sized and the pods never had a chance to fill out on the peas. Fortunately, even they couldn't keep up with the production rate of the bean plants, and they haven't developed a taste for tomatos and peppers, so we did get some vegetables for ourselves. (My older female has even been known to pull cobs off the corn plants and has a passion for asparagus, so we've had to fence off the asparagus patch.)

Unfortunately, this year it looks like we're going to have to scale back - not sure we're going to have enough of an assured water supply to keep things healthy. It's been fairly dry here for a while and the water table appears to have dropped. Had a sprinkler on the asparagus the other day while doing a couple of loads of wash and basically ran out of water, although it came back after allowing it to sit for a couple of hours. Plumber suggested pulling the well intake pipe and extending it in hopes of getting back down ito a reliable source, but if that doesn't work looks like we'll be looking at drilling a new well. The way the summers are here, there's no point in planting a large garden unless you're sure you can keep it watered.

[Davey7549]

RT
Thank You for the newspaper method! I have just the area to try it in! Behind the main garden to the neighbors fence is 4' so the layout would be 4' x 30' or less! Also know a farmer who sells straw so off I am this weekend for a pick-up!
Thanks for the Website too as I have bookmarked it for viewing latter when time allows.

Tony
The Strawberries may not even produce this year being new plants but who knows! Would be nice though! If the birds are grabbing the berries I have some netting that will work quite well for prevention. Little creeps can go find their own!

Valley
Some neat ideas there... Thank You. I really like the bucket\Tomato one. I will have to try a couple and see how well they do!

T2
Yes hemlock could be a serious problem if one made an error. Best to stay with a known plant.

Mushrooms
I have been fairly successful in finding "Chicken of the Woods" and was actually lucky enough to have one growing on a Oak Stump out back. They are one of the safest to identify, since there is no lookalike! They are extremely delicious but must be pick while fairly young. They rapidly grow in size so they are easy to spot!
Depending on climate the grow late summer and into fall only on Ancient Oak trees. When one is found cut slightly above ground level or if on a tree leave about an 1/2 inch of stock. Do not pull by roots to remove since they will not regrow the next year.
Here is the one that was growing in my back yard. See pic that has long grass by stump with DRS initials.
http://www.bluewillowpages.com/mushr...us_montage.jpg

Another real common is "Hen of the Woods" (Commonly called the Cauliflower Mushroom) and you can see the pic here: http://www.bluewillowpages.com/mushr..._frondosa.html
Hen of the woods is actually more common then the Chicken variety and I believe is the one used in Cream of Mushroom soup.
Same finding and harvesting procedure is required. Note in the pick shown the Leaves are wide but many you will find have narrower leaves. Sad to say I cannot locate my personal pics for them now.

Mushroom preparation and use is as follows:
Chicken of the Woods is rather easy. Cut/Clean lightly blanch and freeze for use in Soups. Excellent substitute for Chicken in Chicken soup!

Hen of the woods is a bit more involved since it contains a bitter called Tannic acid which will not hurt you and some prefer the taste, I do not! Cut and clean mushroom and throw pieces into boiling water for 10 minutes. Remove mushrooms and toss water and reboil another repeating process three times. You will notice the water will turn a stained brownish and the oder is quite strong at first. This is the tannic acid being removed. After process cool mushrooms down pack and freeze for use in sauces, soups or any method you could use mushrooms.
You can also dehydrate them for saving and they will of course rehydrate upon use.

Bea
I didn't have to talk to the Strawberry plants for them to take off.... All I did was use Angels flashing method!

Bruce
I to made a similar mistake years ago but not quite as bad. I excited the soil by using 20/20/20 and ended up with 8 foot cherry tomato plants but they produced more than I could eat or give away!
Also thanks for the Certified Potato tip! Does that mean I have to read all there resumes?

DN
I would go for seed exchanging.... Sounds like a great idea!

Jakoval
I hope the water supply holds out or the Point extension helps. Sure would be nice if your Mom could have Her Garden!
You bet it is a relaxing job once most of the prep work is done! I is nice to sit back and enjoy the spoils!

Dave

[eggplant43]

I'd go for a seed exchange as well.

I'd mostly have flowers: snapdragons, pansies, sweet pea (but from hybrid) so wouldn't be true, phlox, petunia (also not true), a wonderful daisy (not Shasta), and others I'll think of later.

[jimi]

davey this is a great thread - thanks - having been a live-aboard for many years my gardening was what one might call very limited - i had a 3" pot with grass in it so i could mow the lawn - literally. well the new place has some of the best soil i've ever seen, nice raised bed, not very large, about 10 X 20 but it will do, right now it has a wonderful crop of clover, errr weeds. but with the texan due to arrive i'd like to get in on this seed exchanged, while i may be asking more than i can offer at the present, i'll work to correct that - overalls are at the ready. think i can lay my hands on some tulip and daffs bulbs quite easily anybody know anything about growing sea cucumbers

[DNeurococo]

If you'd like to participate in seed exchange then post a message with a format similar to the following:

I have: Snapdragon, pansies, sweetpea.

I would like: phlox, petunia, daisey.


You can also include general categories such as I would like "medicinal herbs" (no marijuana jokes please!).

You can also include cuttings (the small ones are not too hard to ship).

If you see something you like, send a Private Message to the poster and arrange to exchange address information.

If you are worried about privacy/security you can ask to have the seeds/cuttings sent to a P.O. Box, or general delivery in care of your local P.O. branch for you to pick up.

Another tip: probably better to write "HAND CANCEL" on the envelope to prevent the seeds from getting squished! It is also a good idea to include some planting tips with your seeds (i.e. plant this one 3 inches deep, likes full sun, lots of water, sprouts in 15-20 days, etc.)

#$DN