Propagation: part XIII based on my own experience

I was in the front garden today for the first time in over two weeks because of a lung infection. I was so happy because the front landscape was full of lady bugs, What a wonderful site., Made me smile all day. I worked in the garden for 3 hours just getting areas ready to plant. I have been stuck in the house for over 4 weeks so I am ready. Thank You God....

They are mine! Send them home. Do any of you remember the little ditty that they used to sing to kids, probably not, you are all too young.

Lady Bug, Lady Bug, fly away home, your house is on fire and your children will burn.

My grandmother would sing that everytime she saw a lady bug, Oh wow, that goes back over 75 years. I am older than dirt. LOL But feel good. Hugs and have a great day. JB

JB

I think I remember that song from my grandmother... oh my I had forgotten that one,,,, thanks for sending me down memory lane. I love remembering about my grandmother and being outside in the yard with her. just wonderful...

Hope your weather has calmed down and life is getting back to normal for you.

Janet

ps really the LB are missing from my house and need to come home now......thank you.....

LOL JB, guess I am older than dirt too 'cause we used to sing that to ladybugs. No wonder that dirt is worn out and needs manure s---- to grow plants. Does that tell you why we are tired?

LOL,, have a good day you all.

Jeanette

Hmmm how old is dirt??? and what did the last dinosaur look like?..... sorry could not resist. My mom tells the story of me asking her if she knew president lincoln in third grade....
JB I hope you have our weather from yeaterday as we were in the 60's and on monday it was the upper 60's close to 70. now the wind can cut to the bone with its sharp cold swipe. brrrr.
I actually did see a couple of lady bugs on monday in my plant area. it was nice to see some good action happening. I also have been planting worms as they pop up when I move leaves or pots and they are on the surface. I think its the best way to get them going in the garden beds, that way they are native and not a forigner with a strange accent.... not much else going on here. most of my woddy ornamentals are starting to come back to life and all my hostas have little starter eyes showing. I think its too cold for them. I think they need a constant temp for a few days to break dormancy.
Dave

My seeds I started look like s***! I am taking them to the greenhouse and putting them in pots and I swear never to start another plant by seeds, yet I am going to try a few of the eyeball plants as well as the egg plants and pumpkin on the stick. I do not know why they die????????I must overwater them. Crap.

We are having such nice weather I am afraid to comment. In fact 60 and 70 deg. is perfect for me. Love it. Monday it is to turn cold again, so whatever you have now, we will get later. LOL Well, I found 3 lady bugs. Now I only have 1497 to go. HE HE HE.

JB are you using sterile mix. If not your seeds are damping off.

How about this one. My mother sang it to me, I sang it to my daughterr and her daughters.

I love you, a bushel and a peck, bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck. I love you, yes I do, dood adoodle, loodle.

79 here today and every bird, including myself is singing its heart out.

Have any of you tried hydrogen peroxide in your water you use to water seeds and cuttings? I've been having good luck with small amounts of it. It helps prevent damping off and keeps my cuttings from rotting.

Here's a link telling how much peroxide to use...
http://www.using-hydrogen-peroxide.com/gardening-with-hydrogen-peroxide.html

This message was edited Mar 17, 2010 2:39 PM

Thanks for the chart. I think my glug probably is a little less then on the chart. LOL, at least I haven't killed anything yet.

Jeanette

JB Don't you dare give up on seeds. You almost sound like me, and you wouldn't let me give up soooooooooooo-----
-I think you sent the 70's here today. In the back yard, we had 76, front 70 (shade), won't last here tho, they are saying low 30 again tomorrow, with snow. Darn, just am getting to see the brown lawn instead of the dirty white stuff.
I can't seem to keep LB here, and if I do see them, there is only a couple here and there. Not like I don't have any aphids for them, I know it is early for them now, but even in the summer I don't see them much, maybe then it is too hot. I remember out in Maple Valley WA I bought a pkg of them, turned them loose in the GH and within a couple of days, they all were gone. Guess they just don't like me much.
My petunias, except for the silver ones, are just sitting there again. I just don't understand what is going on with them. No one seems to have that problem, in fact, most say they are the easiest annual to grow. I hope they will be like last year, and get going soon. Silver is pretty, but I love the blue and red ones and they are pretty sad All the rest of the seedlings seem to be doing fine.
I am with Jeanette, I think my splash splash of peroxide is less, however, it seems to work, haven't seen the little black gnats. I still get strange looks when I buy more than one bottle of it. Keep expecting the knock on the door from the DEA hehehe. Small town someone notices Lee

We get the same thing when we get ammonia sulfate to decompose the strawbales to plant. I guess in some areas if you want 50# they get your name, address, etc. Ain't gardening fun? Keeps people on their toes doesn't it?

I remember years ago my mom was in the drug store and bought up all their Epsom salts. The clerk wanted dto know why she was buying so much and she told her for her roses and tomatoes. The clerk yelled to everybody in the store, "This woman is buying Epsom salts for her roses and tomatoes". My poor mom was so embarrassed.

People are weird.

Lee, the ladybugs will leave when they don't have anything to eat. If they cleaned up all of your aphids then they will go looking for more food. They don't hang around waiting for eggs to hatch. But, you would think they would have laid eggs themselves to hatch out and be there for the aphid eggs to hatch. I thought that was the way nature did.

Yea, but when nature doesn't like you, there is nothing you can do. I had plenty of aphids for them, they were just not interested. Lots of water also since I have several fountains for them to play in. I am paranoid, they just don't like me. lol Lee

That is pretty sad when ladybugs don't like you Lee. LOL

After all that snow etc. you mean you don't have ice now? Boy this weather is something else isn't it. Sounds like JBs weather. Can't make up it's mind.

I am trying to get my brugs outside, but the nighttime weather is just too cold. I put them out on the deck today and it is amazing what a little daylight does for them. The leaves, what little they had, turned from white to almost green today. One day!! They and some weak growth on them from being in the pantry. They want to grow so bad.

I have tomatoes up!! I planted them last Friday. Yup, they are up. Almost 2 inches tall. I have the lights almost touching them so they won't get leggy. Think I will put a fan on them so their little legs get strong.

Also, a cucumber with 2 huge leaves. And a carnation!

IF YOU READ YOUR CONTAINER OF LADY BUGS YOU WILL NOTE. PLEASE DO NOT LET MY NEIGHBORS KNOW. When you get the ladybugs there are directions on the container. Go out, water down your landscape, wait an hour so the plants cooled down after sun down and then release the lady bugs. Love you all.. LOL

Last week it was snowing here, and today it felt like spring...a little warm, then a chiily breeze, then warm again....I was sowing seeds for most of the day as well as moving seedlings up....

I hope that everyone here recovers from all the weather and diseases 'n stuff! Then we can go out and play in the gardens....or greenhouse, if you are lucky enough to have one

best to all,


Evelyn

Good mornin: Not much news to report just weather and I am guessing we are all tired of my wintery weather reports.
Lots of things up and growing quite well and others just standing there looking at me, going now what. Oh well we will see how they end up. I am thinking i need to water with some weak 20-20-20 peters. all this garden stuff has ma stumped. I can grow flowers like there is no tomorrow but the veggies it seems is a whole different ball of wax. I will try for pics of my cukes later today as I am planning to pot them into 3 gallon pots 3 per pot.
Dave

I remember that one, but wasn't that from a Broadway Show. A long time ago. I love this.
Do you remember this one, it was from the WWII time,

Kiss me once, kiss me twice, kiss me once again, its been a long, long time? I was invloved with and still am involved with the USO..back then we would go to dances and dance with the guys on leave. No hanky panky, just dancing. It was really fun to meet all those young men, who many did not ever return home.

There is a new mini series out just now called Pacific, it was made about the war in the South Pacific and is on at 9 on HBO on Sundays. It just started Sunday. If any of you had parents that were in that part of WWII I suggest you take the time to watch it. Sunday was the first and it was very good. Humerous as well as historic.

What is the name of it JB? Just Pacific? Sounds good, but I don't have HBO. I might be able to get it on netflix before long.

Dave, hang in there. They do grow a little different than flowers, but not much. They are annuals. Think of them as that, rather than flowers and vegetables. All annuals.

JB, did you watch Band of Brothers? According to netflix Pacific is connected to that. I had to put a save on Pacific since HBO isn't done with it yet.

Jnette - tomatoes are much easier than petunias....they grow fast and not so tiny. I think that I am losing petunias, so I may have to do some re-seeding of them. I took them off the heat after they emerged, but they are not growing very fast. In that time, I have shifted some of the tomatoes twice already, from seedbad, to cell-pk, then individual pots. I had a few root-trainer pots, so thought to use them for some of the larger tomatoes. I think I will try to harden off some of the tomatoes already, as the weather has been nice.

In our county, there is a saying that to not put tomatoes out until it has "snowed on the dogwood"...in bloom. Well the dogwoods up here don't usually bloom until May. And we do get late snows. Still, I have enough tomatoes already to take some chances, as well as saved water bottles to serve as "walls-of-water"...just in case. Oh and some small bits of row cover as well. There is a lot to do outside, but I want to get more seeds started. I don't have enough room inside so I suppose I can try a few by the Deno method. Which ones are best that way? Others I have already put outside with plastic bags over to keep them moist until they germinate.

I would like more petunias than tomatoes though...I just have not grown them before and am a bit frustrated with them.


Dave, what veggies are you growing?


Evelyn

howdy:
carrots radishes,broccoli, onions red, sweet and yellow,lettuce,spinach, mescalin (leafy lettuce type).
nexts is my blue lake bush beans, oregon sugar pod, sno peas and soybeans. oh yea zuccinii and yellow squish.
I was out side this am. high 65 today...tomorrow another story rain mix with snow. anyway I was looking over what needed to be pulled from the green house to clean it up and get ready to move outside with my trays. I looked and spotted 6 - 10 Japanese Maples sprouting from last winters planting, december 2008. I tend to leave some of my perrienials alone and let them be for close to 3 years.
Boy has everyone of my seeded perrienials poped up. white echinacia, double rudbeckia,green eyes rudbeckis (or is it echinacia?) marmalade rudbeckia, siberian wall flower, lavendar butterfly bush, lambs ear. my stock plants I bought last year are all up and going great. I thought I had lost all of them. 3-4 kinds of asters, polmonaria, skull cap a few other perrienials I am going to plant into my new big empty bed.
it is really fascinating how I have no trouble with all the tricky perrienials and the annual veggies are really giving me some horrid issues. here is a pic of my cart under it cover
Dave

O.K. I am going to keep trying the seeding, but I used the Deno Method and the peroxide and still feel I could do better. I think the light was the problem. Will try some in the greenhouse now. Later. It was nice here for ttwo days. We will probably have a hurricane over the weekend. LOL.. You can never be sure of anything anymore.

Evelyn, plants don't all grow at the same speed. Why don't you give your petunias a bit before reseeding? Maybe the ones that haven't germinated need a little more time since you took them off the ? Are they all in the same area? maybe a cold spot in your heat?

You are 3 zones warmer than I am so I would expect your plants to grow faster than mine. ie. tomatoes. But, you are right. petunias do not grow as fast as tomatoes. If they did as much thru the summer as tomatoes do they would be forever getting the produce ripe in time for Christmas.

I did the Deno method on some Datura seeds and they had little feet sticking out the 2nd or 3rd day, and then I didn't get to them (actually forgot about them) for 3 weeks and planted them yesterday. Don't know how they will do.

Well, since some germinated, I took them off the heat...should I put them back on?

Thanks!

Yes do not give up on seeds I have 2 trays of Japanese maples that germinated this winter. They were trays I set in the back under my bench on the lower shelf really dark back there. anyway I pulled all the weeds out and found 30 to 40 Japanese maples from the winter of 2008. more to follow tomorrow I am beat from the days activity. a very productive day
Dave

I have some sporatic things popping up here and there, but a lot of the stuff is not looking like anything is happening at all. I will wait but I think I will direct sow the rest, but in my ice cream containers, with a better moisture retaining mix or in boxes. I like to use boxes and plant the seeds or cuttings so that, if I get a snap cold streak, they are somewhat insulated from the cold winds and the box decomposes in my soil and the seeds just grow right where I planted them, don't have to lose the fragile ones, that hate to be touched.

I now have all of my geraniums are up, a lot of petunias, and some others I didn't turn around to read the labels. I will not take my petunias off the heat untti I see most of them up. I also saw a first sprout in my winter sowing. Ornamental grass.

Almost all of my tomatoes are up now. I did break down and give the tomatoes a weak solution of fertilizer. They had skinny legs.

Sounds like a good start and a hopeful one.

Ok Helen,

I had forgotten all about my lizzies. They had come up several weeks ago. I had winter sowed them and then Lea told me they needed warm so I brought them in. Well they came up but could hardly see them.

Then I moved things around when I brought the shelving in and started planting my seeds so I forgot about them until tonight. I just remembered them so I found them and they are up about 1/4 inch and that is all after all that time.

So, you see, seeds all grow at their own speed. Lea told me they grew really slow. She sent me the seeds and told me to get them planted right away because they are slow. Only half of them came up.

Believe it or not, my petunias will pass these in a hurry.

Years ago when I was raising a family, I grew a lot of vegetables, including tomatoes. I never bought tomato plant, but sowed them. We tend to get late frost on occasion even in early June so covers are important. I always set out some tomatoes before it was safe to do so.

Below is the mini greenhouse over a tomato plant made from a gallon milk container. The bottom is cut off, and a dowel is threaded through to hold the container in place. I cut a doorway for ventilation. Not only does it protect against frost, but it shades newly planted tomatoes, yet still get enough light. Also even on a sunny day, you can leave it on and not worry about overheating.

The doorway can be cut smaller, to enlarge as the plant grows.

What a good idea blomma. I never thought of something like that. Very good idea!!

Here in Vegas, we have to protect our tomato plants from the March and April winds. The tomatoes need to be in the ground before St. Patrick's day to gets a well established root base to beat them heat. I am up right now because we have a small hurricane blowing down the canyon. I leave in an area called The Canyons @ Summerlin.. Just big gullies but the housing developments were built on either side and the gullies were turned into greenbelts. Well when the SW high winds blow, they come down these canyons like a freight rain. Woke me up and could not go back to sleep.

Morning Saron, I know that feeling, it too me two days to finally sleep all night since the storm last week end. I just kept waking up hearing wind and rain and I was exhausted by the time the storm passed. It is not that you are afraid, you just wonder what you will find blown away in the morning. LOL Think happy thoughts and enjoy your day.

Then that picture blomma posted should work good for you Sharon. I thought that looked like it should work good.

You are right but I have no access to milk containers.

Juice containers are sturdier than milk. Do you have those? How about neighbors? People you work with? Think what you might have you can use instead of.

sharon: I would send you some but the postage would be a monster. I know in the past I have been able to frade plants for some of the stuff I need. You might try an add on craigs list.
well we are in for it now. yesterday was a delight nice weathergot a lot of stuff done and found more plants I forgot I had. today we are in the mid 70's... now tomorrow is another story. the low is 40 degrees and tomorrows high is suposed to be 35. Last night the weather man droped a bomb on us tomorrow we are suposed to start with rain and turning to snow later in the day. our expected accumulation...4 - 8" of the white fluffy crap. so its time to move stuff as well as cover everyone up
more banter later
Dave

Uck....

sharon

I'm sure you have a coffee shop like starbucks, they are more than happy to let folks take their milk jugs...... for free.

check around.

Janet