Gardening as therapy.

Watering the lawns tonight. Everything is so dry and hot days coming up so I thought better get at it. It takes a while to give all areas 30 mins each with the sprinkler. I see others in the street are doing the same. I'm going to shut down for the night soon and start again tomorrow before it gets too hot.

Then there are dandelions that need to be treated. They are loving the water I am sure.

The rhubarb has survived its first winter and is growing despite the drought.

I usually give the Virginia creeper and the hostas fertilizer in warm water to get them started The creeper faces north and is always very slow to get going and the hostas, of course, are in the shade.

Garden dirt is good for you.

"Further research on gardening found it improved life satisfaction and mood. Digging in the dirt really does lift your spirits. The digging stirs up microbes in the soil. Inhaling these microbes can stimulate serotonin production, which can make you feel relaxed and happier."

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauratenenbaum/2020/01/29/digging-in-the-dirt-really-does-make-people-happier/?sh=6ae1663031e1

Yes.
And there is dirt under my fingernails.
Yucky!

Send,

You have been busy!

Ahhhh....transplanted the peas, lettuce, spinach and broccoli in clumps but divided them into 4 clumps. There was no way a tiny seedling that small could stand on it's own, smaller than a thin string, it was. It was surprising the woven root system had gone that deep already. (About 4-5 inches, woven together). They all are about only 4-5 inches apart, but I will have wall-to-wall vegetables.

And hot! The broccoli may already be cooked. Hardly noticed it growing there. The dirt in the gal. plastic bottles was approx. 170 degrees, so the plants would not have survived a few more days. Then dH came out, hung up some shade cloth. The 26" wide planter is riding on wheels (the bar-be-que platform) and can be wheeled to the back yard shade in mid-afternoon.

Recovery from the heat and physical exertion may take 2 weeks for me this time.
But yes, good therapy, and fun to see these veges growing.
I used the dirt from the plastic bottles where I grew the seeds. 19 days and I am outstanding in my field, lol. Yes, a farmer.

The trellis plans are in the making. Probably will just use lattice or string tied across the metal trellis, so the peas won't burn on the metal. Cannot put these pots on the ground because of the bunnies.

Solved, so far.

Was that TMI?

Yes, lettuce is a cool season crop so I imagine it would do best for you if planted in the winter months. I always just plant it thick and snip off the leaves as they get big enough, I can't be bothered trying to coax each plant into a perfect bunch or head.

Send,

Yes, construct a trellis. My neighbors have clematis plants growing on their trellises in their backyard. So, so pretty.

Dh says to cut our losses, as it comes time to thin the lettuce seedlings.
We did not plan the expenses now required to re-pot the seedlings at this stage. Any lettuce harvesting will cost more, much more than in the expensive stores that sell organic produce.

I have read that once the temp get to be in the 80's, it may not work. It is 79 degrees today.

Maybe we can just eat them now, as microgreens. They are such a pretty green. If we set them on the ground, the bunnies can eat them.

He is against buying dirt, the potting mix required to grow.
And buying more pots, not able to do that right now.

There are lots of 1 gal. water bottles cut to hold the seedlings, maybe one plant can grow to full size in there.

I will get a burst of energy, and take care of this....soon, I think.

Thanks for the reminder about lettuce, Cwillie.

I love the look of the peas, need to create a trellis, growing from a planter box.

I don't want to be a quitter.

There is a lettuce plant growing between the concrete pavers that is already a couple of inches high, must be all the extra warmth. Too bad it will never grow to an edible size there.

I have a white-throated song sparrow singing outside my window this morning; I have to laugh to myself when I think about all the times I scrambled through woods and trails trying to catch sight of one so I could add it to my life list 🤣

I used to plant seeds in egg cartons and watch them grow before planting them in the garden... now I source from the high schools' greenhouses. FHA has all the garden varieties as well as beautiful hanging baskets and flowers.

Thanks, Send.

I love the micro greens from my farmers market. I don’t buy them every time I go though.

I do love sprouts too. I like to switch up the ingredients in my salads and sandwiches.

Hello NHWM, glad your issues with tech and access to the website are mostly resolved. I continue to have delays in receiving messages. 💫

Catskie, Yes, these little vegetable will grow no matter what color my thumb is.
Lol. I am only a helper when I water them. It is fun. 🌱

CWillie, That explains why I cannot find sprouts in the markets. The farmer's Market sells micro greens, but the expense is prohibitive. I will do without.
Thanks for the info. 🌾

We never know who we may be helping when we post. 🤸‍♀️

cw,

I do buy them from the store because I love them. Didn’t know about the issues of salmonella, listeria and E. coli with the store bought ones. Interesting…

My farmers market has a vendor that sells alfalfa and mung beans sprouts, plus micro greens. I buy from him occasionally.

From what I remember, they weren’t difficult to grow and so much cheaper than the small packages sold in the store. I grew them on a large baking sheet.

Sprouts from the store are such huge vectors of salmonella, listeria and e coli that I don't buy them anymore, they will be much safer if you grow them yourself.

I’m thinking of growing alfalfa sprouts in my windowsill. I grew them years ago and ate them all the time on sandwiches and salads.

Produce is so expensive in the store. I eat a lot of salads and I spend a fortune on produce.

Test

The rain and snow have arrived, just as well it was very dry. Plus all the spring flowers were so early, maybe they will stay longer around longer with the cooler weather (as long as it doesn't get too far bellow freezing).

SEND :)
That must be pretty awesome watching the veggies sprouting up. I have a black thumb when plants are involved. Totally opposite of my late dad. Even at 95+ years old he was watering the garden.

Lettuce and spinach have 1/4 inch of green showing.
One looks like a very short dichondra lawn.

Catskie,
Some are lettuce, broccoli, spinach, carrots, and peas.
I will need to check which ones have popped their heads out of the ground.
Maybe it was weeds, but I don't think so. Dh told me because he has watered them the last 2 days. He is a master of misinformation, maybe I should have waited to confirm the news. I don't get outside every day. Still recovering from the work it took to plant the seeds.

However, I placed a Garden Cloche over some of the plants. It acts as a greenhouse. It does seem early to me too. I will get back to you on that.
The internet: " About Lettuce Seed Germination. ‌Lettuce seeds can germinate as soon as two days after planting, or it can take up to two weeks.‌"

Funny, I do not recognize my screen name as SH. Everyone has always called me Send.

SH, What kind of veggies are you growing? It's very awesome how quickly they're sprouting up!

Amazed, there are vegetable seedlings already popping up, planted 4/12.
A mirage or possibly a delusion, I am sure!

If it's that easy, I am going to shop for my favorite: Sweet Pea flowers!

Glad, your garden of catnip is a cats dream come true. Haha

I have some hibiscus bushes that usually don't show life until at least mid May. They are looking green already! Daffodils and crocus have woken as have the scilla.

Crazy warmth has spring in full swing here - some volunteer lettuce seedlings have sprouted, the daffodils and forsythia are blooming and even though it didn't really need it I got out my mower yesterday to give the grass a little trim. But it's only April so there's snow in the forecast for next week, that is going to feel so miserable.

Thanks Cwillie, that sounds like it would work better than hiring a gardener.
Yay!

Also, it is the known habitat for Zink, the skink. We last saw him about a year ago, when he jumped up the stairs onto the front porch. We should protect the area.

In the meantime, I am studying dead man posts. When we were Camp Hosts at a State Park, the ranger there taught us to bury a post but put a cross beam at the bottom to make it more secure. Then it does not need to be buried so deep.

I would let it grow, you can always change you mind later if it doesn't behave. Can you hire someone to put in a sturdier post? A company that does fences should be able to do it.

The storms and wind bent over the Cape Honeysuckle in the front corner of my home. The vine had grown as big as a tree, and now is unstable at the roots.
It was constantly blooming orange flowers for the hummingbirds.

When cutting it back, pulling out the branches caused the roots to be more unstable.
(I did not do this). It is one hot mess now and looks unsightly.
However, it will grow. We just won't be able to allow it to get taller than 4 or 5 ft.

I could rent an auger to drill down, placing a post deeper down, add a brace underground, or a dead man brace above ground.

Wondering if I should keep it, try harder at more expense to stabilize it. The physical labor required was too much for both my husband and I working together. But we are in need of some shade for the summer.

Feeling conflicted. Taking it out fully could hurt us. Tying it to the porch looks really tacky. Any trellis we tried is not holding this thing up. My dH wants to keep it. It was so beautiful!

And then...we planted some vegetables to grow in the sun. I did this so poorly that doubt anything will grow. Peas, spinach, lettuce, carrots in gal. bottle containers to start. Nice effort, but that too was just too much with pain from fibromyalgia and arthritis. I will be amazed! I guess that I should have a watering schedule now. 😜

Wayyy too much for me. I am so happy! That is what feeling conflicted is all about.

Common mint and many other mint relatives are indeed a nightmare in the garden and yard, pulling the plants and roots as best you can and then smothering them under thick newspaper or cardboard for several seasons is the only solution I know of. Better to grow your mint in pots!

cw,

How do you get rid of invasive plants in a garden?

I love mint but have avoided growing it an an area where it would take over.