Super stoked to have a real yard I can garden in this year. This weekend I've started working on building a raised bed since my yard has funky drainage and crappy clay soil.

Anyone have experience with growing citrus in containers? I'm ordering a key lime tree for shits and giggles. Hopefully I won't kill it. Also thinking of doing an avocado tree in a container.

1/14/2012 9:35:33 PM

Got my peas in the ground. Yay for fresh peas!

2/2/2012 9:00:26 AM

I just starting prepping my front flowerbed for this year!

Had some strange bulbs in the ground though that I really don't recognize already producing green foilage... they're only in certain areas I planted begonias, but they really don't look like them (they honestly look like onions, but with really limp green stalks, just don't smell like wild onions). I don't know what to do with them - I left them to grow to see what happens.

We're doing a massive back veggie garden this year, with a proper fence to keep the damn dog out of my garden. Haven't started the prep for that yet.

2/2/2012 10:34:21 AM

^sounds like daffodils...mine are coming up crazy early this year b/c of the warm weather.

2/2/2012 10:38:13 AM

Quote :

"Super stoked to have a real yard I can garden in this year."

While I, on the other hand, will be losing mine. Can't even really do much in the way of containers as I'll be moving in/around May, and the idea of trying to transport something like a container tomato in a moving van sounds like a recipe for disaster.

I wonder what can be planted in a container in late May/early June and grow fast enough to still be worth doing? Suppose I'll find out...

2/2/2012 12:28:27 PM

Quote :

"Anyone have experience with growing citrus in containers? I'm ordering a key lime tree for shits and giggles. Hopefully I won't kill it. Also thinking of doing an avocado tree in a container."

I've got a Meyer Lemon Tree that's doing decent. I've done exactly what they told me to do (give it a ton of sunshine and water it when they say)...and although it's not close to dying, it hasn't grown any full lemons like it was suppose to. The leaves have been in a constant "half-curl" since about a week after I got it (got it in mid-fall). There are "lemons" growing (they look like miniature limes right now) and the flowers have budded as well.

Guess I'm just a little disappointed in not having a full lemon yet and I'm a little worried about the constant state of the leaves. Although I think it's getting close to the time when I'm suppose to fertilize it. We'll see what happens then.

I've also got to start getting ready. I'm a little nervous with planting soon though. I have a feeling this weather is going to send a couple days of freezing weather and kill everything right after I plant it.

2/2/2012 12:52:09 PM

^ Yeah maybe try fertilizing it and see if that helps?

I contemplated jumping the gun and doing some more planting this weekend but it's looking like nights are going to get cold again. Guess I'll wait until later this month to see how things are going.

Quote :

"I wonder what can be planted in a container in late May/early June and grow fast enough to still be worth doing? Suppose I'll find out..."

There's all sorts of stuff you can plant. If you plant things like peas and beans you can get a fall harvest. You could even plant tomatoes that late and get a late-summer early-fall harvest from them.

2/2/2012 1:56:35 PM

Good to know, I suppose. I did containers three years ago and an in-ground garden the past couple of years but I always started in March or early April. The question will be how much space I have--fiancee is going to VCU for grad school so we'll be moving to Richmond, and most likely living downtown, so I know I won't have a yard. Question will be what type of outdoor space I'll have.

2/2/2012 2:29:20 PM

I was lazy and seeded back in December under mulch, when I had time before school hit. Peas and lettuce are coming up, I might have to re-seed later this month if the turnip greens/onions/etc. do not come up as planned.

2/2/2012 5:14:12 PM

3rd year tryna grow a giant pumpkin. last two years my plants got eaten before they could get too far along. deer and borers.

2/2/2012 5:16:19 PM

Quote :

"Anyone have experience with growing citrus in containers? I'm ordering a key lime tree for shits and giggles. Hopefully I won't kill it. Also thinking of doing an avocado tree in a container."

yes. it was a terrible experiment. i tried a lime tree, and it hated where i had it outside and it especially hated it once it was time to bring it indoors. did not live. RIP lime tree.

2/2/2012 5:59:50 PM

^^ Ugh fucking squash borers. I've never had good luck growing squash in this area.

^ Y'all are breaking my enthusiasm on growing some citrus The tree is only $10 though so it's not like it'd be a huge loss if I kill it.

Today I planted my summer bulbs. I know it's early but I'm banking on it not getting much colder this season. I mulched the crap out of them but if they die meh, don't care too much.

My blueberry bushes already have flowers on them I was a good little gardener though and cut them all off so the bushes have time to establish their root system. Can't wait until next year when I can actually get blueberries!

[Edited on February 4, 2012 at 3:50 PM. Reason : lol typo]

2/4/2012 3:47:30 PM

^ I went on a run in my neighborhood and saw two bad-ass lemon trees planted in containers. They were a little bit bigger than mine, so I'm hoping mine will be better next year. But they had full grown lemons on them. There's your hope!

2/4/2012 4:24:56 PM

I'm new and naive when it comes to gardening. I have two questions:

First, is it possible to grow an indoor herb garden and, if so, do you have any tips? I keep my plants in the kitchen window on a shelf I built to get them max light, and I have oregano, basil (2 kinds), chives, cilantro, mint, and dill. I had brought the red basil in from the summer and it didn't do well but I did manage to clone three of them and they are doing just ok. The others I planted from seed in a "greenhouse" and they came up well but when potted they got limp as hell. I had bought a dinky florescent light from Lowes for $20 that I think helped germinate the seeds, but has little effect on vegetating the plant. Would a HPS light from craigslist do the trick or are indoor herb gardens just destined to fail?

Second, I'd like to plant some veggies to grow this spring/summer but I can't dig up my front lawn (south side) and the back of my townhouse has good light on the deck, but not in the yard. Are there any veggies that do well and yield a fair amount in, say, a large rubbermaid tub? And when would I plant them?

Any tips for herb growing, veggies, etc. are greatly appreciated.

2/4/2012 8:27:23 PM

Herbs do great indoor. I used to have a ridiculous big indoor herb garden. Let me see if I ever took a pic of it...

The thing to remember is herbs like crappy soil, lots of sun, and not being watered too much. Which made them great plants for me because I often forgot to water them indoors

For containers, I've had the best luck growing tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, peas, and beans in containers. Just make sure to drill a hole in the bottom of your rubbermaid bins for drainage. I forgot to do that once and the smell when getting rid of the fungus infested soil made me puke. Also make sure that whatever you plant is getting full sun for at least 8 hours.

NCSU has a great chart for figuring out when to plant your shit: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/quickref/vegetable/plantingguide.html

Found one pic. This was before things turned into a jungle lol.



It was basil (that shit got ridiculous. At least 2 feet tall with ginormous leaves), a cherry tomato plant (didn't do too hot because the container was too shallow), peppermint (also got ridiculous), thyme, lemon balm, rosemary (I killed it watering too much), oregano, and habanero plant.

[Edited on February 4, 2012 at 8:44 PM. Reason : a]

2/4/2012 8:41:51 PM

Do you have any tips on how to tell what's wrong with the plant?

i.e. if it's leaves are dry, limp, etc. what the cause might be

I'll try to take a picture of them soon but everything I've grown from seed comes up with very skinny stalks and then kind of flops and dies. I put normal potting soil at the bottom 2/3 and seed starting soil at the top 1/3. I have them in my window but even the plants that did well this summer that I've brought in have died. I've read a bunch of stuff on google that says indoor herbs are easy to grow but everything I touch seems to wither and die lol. I keep my house at about 70 degrees if that has much to do with it. I also have pots that drain and all that.

Also, are there any places to buy some herbs that are already started this time of year?

[Edited on February 4, 2012 at 8:49 PM. Reason : ^that's awesome! that's what I want right there. how to get?? haha]

2/4/2012 8:48:51 PM

To be honest, starting most herbs from seed is a pain in the ass. I usually just buy them from a garden center and save myself the trouble. I'm trying to remember if I've ever successfully grown herbs from seed. I do cilantro regularly and maybe I've done basil before? But I usually buy basil plants instead.

As far as where to get them this time of year, I've been to Lowe's, Home Depot, and Garden Supply in Cary in the past week and none of them have herbs out yet. You probably won't start seeing them for a few more weeks, which is still faster than you would get the same sized plants from seed.

2/4/2012 8:52:43 PM

^^Sounds like it may be damping off. Check the Farmers Market for herbs. There are a few farmers out there that have a great selection. I'm not sure if they are out there yet, but they should be soon.

2/4/2012 8:55:14 PM

I actually got the herbs I had at the beginning of the summer from the farmers market and the selection was amazing. the guy really seemed to care about the plants and always told me to bring in the plant or pictures if I needed help. They did well all summer but indoors they died. This is turning into more of a hobby than I ever expected.

2/4/2012 9:01:51 PM

^^ Yeah those guys are great. None of them are out there yet though.

^ It sounds like they may not be getting enough sun then. Have you charted how much sunlight that window is getting?

Oh sweet, just opened a packet that came in the mail today and it's my tomato and pepper seeds If you ever want to try some crazy veggie seeds, I recommend this website: http://www.amishlandseeds.com/

I bought some seeds from her a few years ago and they were all great. And yes, that website looks like it's straight from the 90s.

[Edited on February 4, 2012 at 9:06 PM. Reason : z]

2/4/2012 9:02:56 PM

how do I go about doing that? I feel like that's exactly the problem but the window they're in is facing due south (isn't that the best spot?). I was thinking about getting a 1,000 watt HPS light to supplement that light but I'm hesitant because I don't know how much it would run up my electricity bill, and I also don't want a cop kicking in my door thinking I'm growing pot

2/4/2012 9:07:11 PM

South facing is the best but there could be a tree, or another house, or whatever blocking some of the sunlight. The way I always chart sunlight is to sit out in my yard with a case of beer and just make notes in my gardening notebook over the course of the day while playing cornhole or something I'm sure these days there's some sort of electronic sunlight monitor thing you can buy at Lowe's but my method is more fun.

They sell LED grow lights now. I'd read some reviews before buying one but it should at least take care of your electricity bill.

2/4/2012 9:11:05 PM

dammit, beat me to it.

With the winter we had, I almost wish I would have just left everything planted

2/5/2012 10:11:07 AM

Dude I still have snapdragons that I planted last fall growing under my mailbox. A few died but the others are growing like crazy. I don't think snapdragons are supposed to be perennials

2/5/2012 10:21:20 AM

I have dill all over the place. And i am quite certain had I not pulled them up, I would still be getting bell peppers.

2/5/2012 10:40:49 AM

I wonder if the bell peppers would have had enough pollinators hanging out though. I haven't seen too many in my yard yet.

Question for everyone: I want to plant something along my back deck to give us from privacy from the neighbors. I'm thinking some sort of quick growing vine would be best. The deck gets partial to full shade which makes it tough. Right now there's some azaleas and random patches of grass going back there but that's about it. My first thought was wisteria since I've seen plenty of that growing in the woods next to my parents place but I also don't want to deal with something that's crazy aggressive. Are there some less aggressive varieties of wisteria out there? Or should I go for something like native honeysuckle? I thought about trying kiwi but according to the ag extension it gets too cold here for most varieties.

2/5/2012 11:05:59 AM

I start my herbs from seed and they have done very well.

2/5/2012 11:08:09 AM

Man you're lucky then. It's usually a disaster for me, especially every time I've tried lavender, rosemary, and thyme. Those seeds need way too much germination pampering for my patience level lol.

2/5/2012 11:12:27 AM

The rosemary and thyme are established outside so I don't have to worry about them. I've tried lavender twice and they died once they were planted outside. Ive had good luck with Italian basil and Thai basil as well as cilantro. My mint comes back every year and hoping the oregano will come back. I've still got a ton of cilantro growing in a container outside which is also full with arugula.

2/5/2012 11:17:28 AM

from the discussion I had with one of the herb guys at the farmer's market, only one strand of lavender tends to do well in North Carolina humidity. I can't remember it off the top of my head, but I know someone there could help you, and honestly even then you have to take really good care of it. Basically what he told me was when it's not too humid for it there isn't enough heat and when there is enough heat it is too humid.

2/5/2012 12:39:39 PM

I think you need a nuke to go off in your yard to kill mint lol. I've never been able to get it to grow from seed but cuttings are super easy to establish. I only grow it in containers otherwise it would take over the entire yard.

There is a lavender farm in Orange County and they grow a couple different types: http://sunshinelavenderfarm.com/home.php

They're good people to talk to as well. They recommend for house plantings to get a bush that's a couple years old because they can deal with transplanting and what not more easily than those wee plants you often see at garden centers. I'm thinking about planting one in the corner of my yard that gets a lot of sun but not a lot of water because of the way it's situated against the house.

2/5/2012 2:16:06 PM

^6

I love my Elaeagnus. It grows super fast and smells delicious! I have no clue what variety I have, it has been here forever. It even survived my daddy completely mowing it all to the ground. It came back. It can get a bit aggressive, but nothing like wisteria. I would stay away from wisteria.

2/5/2012 2:38:19 PM

Is this what you have?

http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/plants/autmnolive.shtml

2/5/2012 2:47:27 PM

No. The blooms on it aren't visible, you can just smell it.

Mine looks more like this http://www.magnoliagardensnursery.com/productdescrip/Elaeagnus_Ebbingei.html.

2/5/2012 5:12:16 PM

Quote :

" I want to plant something along my back deck to give us from privacy"

You could plant some bamboo in containers lined up along the deck.

2/5/2012 5:49:41 PM

Ok guys, need some help. Are there any bulbs that I could buy now, plant in small pots, and force to bloom in early May? Wanting to do this for favors for my wedding. Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

2/5/2012 8:27:30 PM

How early in May? If late May there's some choices but no guarantee they'll all be in full bloom your wedding weekend. You're better off buying bulbs planted in pots and in bloom close to your wedding date. Most garden centers sell them.

2/5/2012 9:39:36 PM

^ Thanks for the advice. Would I be able to buy a pot that has multiple blooms in it and then separate the blooms into individual pots for favors? Would they still bloom and not die?

2/6/2012 8:14:08 AM

You could but there's zero guarantee they wouldn't die. Depends how careful you are about transplanting them. And even then, most bulb flowers aren't too happy about being messed with while blooming.

Are you just looking for a favor that people can then replant when they get home? Instead of doing pricey bulbs I would select a cheaper annual that reseeds if that's the sort of thing you're going for. Nasturtiums, echinacea, salvia (would obviously need to do baby plants for this one), gardenias, all sorts of choices. And they're going to be much cheaper and easier to deal with in the long run. When you go that route you just need to go to the store and choose what you like a day or two before the wedding. Choose plants that still have some closed buds for prolonged blooming. You could even do a mix and match of complimentary flowers or colors to add visual interest.

2/6/2012 8:58:54 AM

now that we have a real yard, i've made my rather ambitious list of veggies, herbs & fruits i intend to grow this year. some i've done before in containers with great success; some i'm hoping to have success with in the raised beds i plan to build out of pallets; some first time attempts.

first step, get the raise beds made. will get that done in the upcoming weeks. i'm getting excited

2/6/2012 11:54:33 AM

Be careful with pallets. Like railroad ties they're often treated with all sorts of nasty chemicals that can leech into your soil as they get rained on. It would be a shame to go to the trouble of building a raised bed then find out you have a chemical soup in your soil.

Decent summary of issues with pallets:

http://www.cheaplikemeblog.com/environment/dont-reuse-wood-pallets/

You're better off going to Habitat ReStore and buying some cheap pressure treated 2x4s.

[Edited on February 6, 2012 at 11:58 AM. Reason : a]

2/6/2012 11:56:23 AM

we have access to non treated pallets through a friend that works for a green company; he has gotten lots for creating compost bins for folks. thanks for the tip though

2/6/2012 2:15:56 PM

I'm so excited. Went to Niche Gardens after work today to pick up some ferns I needed and they had calycanthus shrubs there! If you've ever been hiking in the area you've probably seen these bushes. They have red flowers that smell like Hawaiian Punch. My parents used to have a big one in their front yard until a drunk driver ran over it They're pretty foolproof to grow since they're native. Just find a spot that's part shade, water it so it can establish its roots, and then forget about it.

2/6/2012 5:54:25 PM

^ do you watch In The Garden with Bryce Lane?

2/6/2012 6:23:22 PM

No but I've heard I should. It comes on PBS right?

2/6/2012 6:39:16 PM

Yea. Usually on Saturdays. The Niche gardens was featured a while back.

2/6/2012 7:24:55 PM

Never bothered to dump most of my container plants from last year as we don't spend much time in the winter; looked out today and noticed that while the winter killed off just about everything (save for the rosemary), my parsley plant also survived. The outer stalks are pale and droopy but the center is nice and green. I didn't think parsley would survive winter temperatures...hmmm. Nice surprise there.

If it makes it through the rest of the winter, guess that one will be coming with us when we move.

2/6/2012 7:36:56 PM

Quote :

"I didn't think parsley would survive winter temperatures."

It probably helps we've had spring temperatures most of this winter, knock on wood.

2/6/2012 8:10:38 PM

parsley is a biennial plant. it will spend most of its energy in the 2nd year making flowers and seeds. you may want a new (first year) plant if you plan on harvesting it heavily.


wolfpackgrrr, i love carolina allspice, or "sweet bubbies" as my grandmother called them. be on the lookout for the raulston hybrid with white flowers, i think it is called venus, and there is a pink called hartlage wine that has a different flower shape. the two n. american species have been hybridized with the chinese allspice species.

2/8/2012 7:41:03 PM

Ooh a white one sounds awesome! I'll definitely have to be on the lookout for that.

2/8/2012 8:21:43 PM