Plant Propagation: The Basics July/Aug 2016

Bunches of composting to do here. Need to clean out 2 chicken coops and layer the proceeds in between leaves and plant matter. probably over the garden, easiest place to do it. I sent Debra a dmail with a link to here and one to the back porch

A red Queen Anne's Lace Still had white blooms , can't have everything , I guess

Thank you so much for the bread crumb trail.... I thought you had all left DG and all I had was the MG forum. It is POURING here, can't wait to see how the basement holds....

I have tried to read what I missed.. looks like Kieth's Garden is out of a magazine, and Ju is as always the propagating King. Had a visual on Gypsy's fun Bee times and love the ponds. Pretty summer so far for everyone it looks like. I have put up a ton of salsa, lots of BLT's, tomatos were good this year for me. potatoes were a no show tho in the big tubs, so I planted mgs in them over the spuds. I am still captive at work, counting down the days to retirement, only 598 days 9 hours and 57 minutes to go.. today is the 92nd day of me NOT LIGHTING a CIGarette.
Please be careful Kitt in that rig of yours with the water everywhere and as far as I am concerned you can hijack this room whenever you want with trucker talk, I miss my Dad and Gpa so much with their big rigs.

Your gardens are pretty, too Ctyf, wish I knew your name. I am really wishing I'd see at least one monarch this year, lord knows I have planted a ton of milkweed for them. only three big black and yellow swallow tails so far. My gardens have had lots of action with Bee's and humming birds, just not seeing the butterflys. No zinnia this year and no white marigolds, other than that everything else I love has shown up.

Nice Photo's Debra and nice to see you here also ,
It was raining here today some also .
Good going ,, great actually on the 92days

Me! I am counting but I just say April 2017 IF I make it that long...

I wish I knew what the big difference was between waiting to 66 or to 65 for this retirement crap! LOL money wise it is only about 270.00 more a month between the two . Life span wise, I am afraid if I don't quit working at 65, I'll never quit. April , 2017 I'll be 65. off to bed for early rise, I am on call for work,,, :P
this year back yard, last year back yard

Good to hear from you again Debra. Hard to advise you on the retirement thing Debra as everyone's situation is different. All I can tell you is this. 2014 was a really tough year for me and I suddenly left early at 62 1/2. Up until a couple months before I left I would have told you that I was going to work AT LEAST 5 more years. I had a meeting with my financial advisor and he said it was doable so I took the leap, scared as h---, both financially and that I might be bored to death. Neither of the fears were justified. I don't understand it but the bank account is always is in better shape than when I was working. Maybe this winter coming up will be the killer as my 2 day a week little partner is off to school in less than 2 weeks, and I have decided to give up hunting and our winter vacation for the year since we are doing the kitchen reno. I'm pretty sure the reno will keep me occupied. I have not regretted going for a second and I still have almost a year to 65. Wendy may be working up to another 4 years but she has a dream job with every July and August off. That makes staying on pretty easy.
Keith

Nice on the blue Erigeron and I think it would be fun to have a narrow-leafed species too. Whichever way it turns out, you've got some new plants to watch grow!

i thought I said Thank you Robin hours ago for the well plant wishes , post I must of goofed

My red Milkweed , the first something seems to of happened to that , still have three ,growing to close together but I will see which one wins out , no moving or playing with them ,
As to all the others so far only one smooth blue aster looks like it should ,
I have no room inside and outside too little rain , to too much rain , and watering difficult to keep up with , ( i'm a lazy garden type

I am back to basic plants , some green fennel looking really nice , some in with the flowers (risky) some will go to the outside
edge of the vegetable garden ,Lots of BES and Echinacea for next year , All standard old ones and easy ,
From seeds I thought had rotted from the first sprouts I have numerous Bronze fennel sprouts
Things for next year ,
1 and 2 , Bulbs and Bubils
3 and 4 more of the same
5 a bowl full of Yellow Poplar seeds

This message was edited Aug 20, 2016 10:41 PM

Sunday morning pics. Sorry, not much new to show. Just updates. Also too sunny out and just trying to catch shaded areas.
1). Gazania
2). Succulent collection in my great grandfathers forge. I find it really hard to photograph the whole thing including the forge because when I get the house siding in the background it seems to mess up the colours of the succulents
3). Pot used to hide the filter on top of the waterfall. Chili pepper coleus surrounded by lemon ball sedum
4). Elephant ears, tiger eye gold rudbeckia, and a few coleus
5). Sorry this one came in sideways an I don't know how to turn. Thunbergia climbing sad specimen of blue spruce

6). Pond water finally clear again after being so badly contaminated by forest tent caterpillars this spring. I couldn't believe the size of last years babies when the water finally got clear enough to see them. Obviously there was something very nutritional in all that green grossness
7). Another sideways shot. Don't know why this started happening. Coleus bags have taken all summer to get full but are finally there

OMG! What a mess. My most humble apologies. This was really a learning experience that I will share as it may be helpful to others. #5 and 7 above are a disaster as they are both turned and distorted and I now know why. When I send my pictures from my phone to the iPad I have to choose a size. Normally I choose 30%. Last year when I won the photo contest I discovered that in order for the photos to be used for the calendar they need to be transferred as "original". This year I have been transferring a whack of photos so I got this brainwave today that maybe I should do them as "original" right from the beginning in case I decided to use some of them as entries. Bad idea. They take forever to download and for some reason the vertical shots transfer sideways and distorted. I have noticed sometimes other people's pictures looking really distorted and maybe this rambling may be helpful to others

No I goofed Ju, I missed a whole lot of posts somehow. Hi Debra, Keith and Kitt! Nice to hear from everyone! Beautiful blooms Debra and I like this years backyard, it's come a long way but looks really good now.

Robin I agree about looking good all Keith even the distortion looks good in the photo ,realizing that was not was not suppose to happen ..

photobombing my dvd case pic, Bronx
My peonies FINALLY got in the ground. They lived in pots for a year.
Hummingbird(over my covered truck, was in the Turks Cap)
Tiny frog whose nose is visible under the overhanging stone on the left side of the lily pad picture
Now I know what soapwort looks like. Picture 5

Keith, I'm running out of fantastic words to say about your amazing skill. I guess I should just say THANKS for sharing!

Ooh Gypsi, I love your Soapwort!

I believe that will work ,, All the plant from you all look fantastic !!! The rest ain't bad either !
I am trying some fall planting , be back ,,

Some efforts the past few weeks
1 red Milkweed
2 Croton a few years old
3 a smooth Blue Aster Have about three looking good ,

Love that croton Ju. That is my kind of plant!

Thank you Keith , Large , bold , Beautiful colors, easy to grow (sort of )

It bloomed to early Ants ,of all things pollinate them for seeds That bloomed just before outdoor time

beautiful plants but I am out of yard and out of house too.

Gypsi I have been there

Today's pics. Also if you haven't already peaked I added a new album in Garden Showcase of my succulent collection
1). Love Lies Bleeding now in full splendour
2). Foreground Marigold Durango Bee, background Rudbeckia Cherokee Sunset
3). Hybrid Redbor Kale (doesn't get eaten here except by deer when I let my guard down)
4). If this coleus collection gets much bigger it will fall apart
Keith

Fabulous! All looks like it's in full splendor.

Wonderful !!!

Is Love lies bleeding a form of Amaranth?

I Love all Amaranths, your Gardens are gorgeous, Keith.
Ju, I love that you are still planting seeds.
Took cuttings of Kopper King, Vitex, and Porcelain Berry tonight, hope they take.
around the back patio...

Yes Gypsi, those are Amaranthus caudatus. Those are some beautiful shades of blue and red Debra!

Wonderful Plants all

Debra 3 and 4 Penstemon and Lobelia ? wonderful colors .

Little warm for fall crops . lots of my mid seasons failed .
I have most of the flowers I tried except the Blue Miscanthus
These are Mustards , came up in last nights rain , 30 tornadoes on the ground just east of here and south and North last night , whew ,,,,

Southern Giant Curled Mustard , I love easy plants , their good to eat too ,lol

Feels like Houston, but I am in Baltimore. Steam heat. Those twisters had my phone alerts on siren call. I do love those blues, and Keith's talents wuth a color palette are awesome! I had a visitor last night where I was enjoying the trees.

Love the Butterfly Katt

1 Blue Aster seedling
2 Red Erigeron
3 a really fuzzy pic of Pink Aster and Feverfew Seedlings
4 more mustards
5 Turnip Greens that survived the heat

1 seedlings from farther away 2 containers like this about the same
2 Baby Milkweeds everywhere
3 and 4 more more mustards
5 a nice bright buckeye butterfly to cheer it up !!!

Awesome shot if the butterfly on the Mexican Sunflower Ju!

Keith (Smiley ) !!! Thank you !!!

Ju. Suggestion from Smiley. If there is a calendar photo contest this fall, crop your photo like this to enlarge the butterfly and flower and remove the one dead leaf on the sunflower and all of us here on Propagation will vote for you. That butterfly and flower are a winning combo.
Keith

I agree, that's an awesome photo, butterfly and flower!

I will give that a try if the contest link comes up .
usually I am told .

Agreed!

Yes, excellent shot, Ju. Surely a winner . I have spruts and cuttings going everywhere, will try to get some shots for this propagation thread. Kitt, I used to love to stop at the truck stop rest points and get out and explore.
1.. a type of mallow from seed, didn't label it
2. poblano pepper, picked a bunch and now they are in my belly after being grilled on top of salmon..
3. iron weed from seed gathering out in the country
4. pink chiffon hibiscus sirica from a cutting
5. brugmasia from a cutting in flush on the south end of the patio

More things from cuttings and seeds north fence garden
petunias and coleus on the bottom of the oleander tub, all from seeds
..Brugmasnia "isabella" from cutting
I am glad you all like my two blue lobelia and the red one, they are in a bog tub, and thrive in it, on the patio. They are all three from seeds gathered out in the country.