2017 Gardens

[taldesta]

As kindly requested by Rupestris, I am reposting my last item from 2016 garden thread as we kick off the 2017 season. Welcome to the republic of tilth, 2017 Gardens.

" Just thought to post comparative pics to wind down the year.

Ah, yes, I remember the warmth of summer And today [New Year's Eve] the snow continues daily but the temps are barely below freezing during the day.






That's the snowblower under the tarp. It's been getting a good workout!



For winter, instead of keeping hoe and rakes handy on the porch like I do in summer, there are three sizes of snow shovels, a roof rake and snowshoes. And that's just fine :thumbup: Today, I did manage to get the over wintered geraniums potted up for spring ... most for a friend. A few for here.

Happy New Year gardeners ... have a great 2017! "

 

[22-rimfire]

Got our first taste of winter this year with this late week snow storm. Temps got in the low single digits which is real cold for my area.

Added: My amaryllis are leafing out (indoors) and developing flower spikes. I was concerned as the green leaves never really died off this past year. I left them outdoors and they froze, hence cut all the frozen leaves off each bulb. Anyway, the large bulbs are developing flower spikes and for the first time, some of the small bulb off shoots (I call babies) are starting to bloom after growing a couple years and increasing the size of the bulb. I'm pleased. In a month or so I should have quite a few amaryllis blooming.

 

[taldesta]

Got our first taste of winter this year with this late week snow storm. Temps got in the low single digits which is real cold for my area.

Added: My amaryllis are leafing out (indoors) and developing flower spikes. I was concerned as the green leaves never really died off this past year. I left them outdoors and they froze, hence cut all the frozen leaves off each bulb. Anyway, the large bulbs are developing flower spikes and for the first time, some of the small bulb off shoots (I call babies) are starting to bloom after growing a couple years and increasing the size of the bulb. I'm pleased. In a month or so I should have quite a few amaryllis blooming.

Great to see that there's some growing going on in January! How are the amaryllis plants coming along?

You mentioned in an earlier post that you might consider saving geraniums, rather that replacing them in spring.

Geraniums may be considered ordinary ... but they are survivors, bloom spring to frost, are a colour blast and I have yet to see a pest that attacks them. The are my kind of low maintenance high impact plant!

Once the light hit my overwintered geraniums this month, they literally began to jump out of the grocery bags they were collected in last fall.




This works well for me but there are plenty of methods of overwintering that are out there to research. I plant outside in the largest containers I have so they have root room and watering is kept to a minimum. Lazy, experimenting gardener here. I can't bring these big containers inside.

I collect when the geraniums are sort of dry just before frost - just grab them by the bottom of the stalks, pull gently and shake gently to let the roots bring what earth holds to them, cut the top 2/3 of the foliage off and bag them (roots to bottom) in plastic grocery bags and leave the bag tops open for ventilation. I store them in a cool room without light - misting the root earth just often enough to make sure they don't completely dry out (not enough to cause rot - perhaps once/month - check them). There may be albino shoots and leaves produced in the dark. I prep them for spring way too early so my friend has hers blooming as early as possible.

Prepping for spring. I am experimenting this year thinking that the plants could actually be revived in the grocery bags they were collected in - save the bother of moving to interim pots because they are intended to be planted out again in spring anyway. I am just securing several of my plants by packing soil firmly around roots in their bags, watering and exposing directly to South facing window light, avoiding air being in contact with roots. I'm not fertilizing just yet because I don't want too much growth this early on.


One hopeful little bud and lots of others poking up. I wish I had differentiated between the new (from seed), stem cut (propagated) and much older plants last year so I could know which ones are doing the best. This past fall I cut all the geraniums back to 1/3 and back a little again before potting for this year. I was too kind to them last year, let the big stems stay and the gigantic plants I wound up with for planting out were too huge to manage easily.

 

[taldesta]

While the geraniums are looking after themselves, there is winter here. At first is was great - snowshoeing (path around shop to back of property) in the fluffy snow, sunshine. Veg garden is mound of snow at base of yard light pole.




Then rain expected so a day is spent on the house roof with the snowscoop chanelling to relieve the expected snow load ... slow and steady. Entry garden is just a mound of snow down to the right.




And it just kept on coming ... snowblowing the long lane all too frequently. By this time my arms are rubber from grappling with the blower and the shovels.




Second clearing of the house roof - and next the shop roof had to be done, both before another mild spell with rain. I can still feel the driving sleet in my face at sundown as I was only half finished the shop roof. Finished off a barely adequate job on it the next morning.






2017 I begin my bucket list. I see a welcoming woodstove heating a pointy roofed cabin with a short laneway in my future :thumbup:

 

[Catherine_Montana]

Good pictures!

Thank you.

Cate
PS: Susan, you have mail.

 

[kiemtruong]

it's too cold here to start a garden.

 

[cj65]

Southern CA east Ventura county. Japanese maple seedling still dormant. Alstroemerias are already going well. Cotoneaster horizontalis went a little semi dormant, and Gracie just wanted me to take her picture. She is sitting on Dymondia. I also built the wall with the ledge lights. Pretty proud of how it finally turned out, no turf in the front yard.

 

[Rupestris]

:thumbup::thumbup:

Everything here is still covered with mud and last years dead greenery. For Chicago, we've had an unusual winter. Rain throughout January and a warmer than normal February. We're currently at 68 days without snow accumulation.

I suspect I'll be seeing crocus, daylilies and daffodils poking out any day now. They shouldn't be but, without the ground freezing this year, the flowers get confused .

 

[cj65]

I used to be employed with Armstrong Garden Centers, a high end retail nursery chain that survived the big box garden center boom, they just sent me a job employment opportunity. Maybe when I retire, I will work weekends in a retail nursery, til then, I will build my new business.

 

[eisman]

We've had a weird, wet, winter. Started FEB with 137% of the annual rainfall (Since 1 OCT), and for this month we're 5" above average for snow and 6" above average for rain. Moss growing everywhere. But the spring flowers are starting to come out. My tulips are still underground but my neighbors are coming up. My Perris are blooming:

And something is digging up my new grass. Best bet is raccoons looking for grubs. Going to set out the traps...

 

[taldesta]

cj65 ...

Beautiful addition to your landscaping ... and one stunning model in Gracie :thumbup:

And something is digging up my new grass. Best bet is raccoons looking for grubs. Going to set out the traps...

Chewed up or not, it is just great to see such green!


These seeds arrived just yesterday, the last day of Feb ... so I can almost see the colour of summer over the snowdrifts here. Plain old dependable, time-honoured plants ... that will just bring so much pleasure. Yes, I can buy the seeds from racks in stores all around town, but having the catalogue pages to enjoy as the snow flies and the cold deepens in January and February... then to decide and order ... and then track. No need to explain on these forums.




Mid Feb I pulled all the seeds gathered from last years plants (brown paper bags) along with the packets left over ... potted up some saved from plants (experimenting here) and set them in a couple of plastic covered mini green houses that are new to me. I needed a way of bringing along seedlings in a situation that would keep the humidity and heat on the trays in the colder basement. From the last few years I learned the lesson to not give over my space in the warmer living room to the sprawling seedling trays. I set one 60W bulb for heat in each greenhouse ... right in front of the south facing walkout and stood back!





Some jumped out of their pellets (nasturtiums, salvia), lots didn't. I now have the seeds in hand to replace these failed ones.



Geraniums taken last fall, whether left in bags or potted up, whether upstairs in warmth or downstairs cool, are just thriving in the south-facing windows. Just recently I am seeing a renewed growth of two other live-overwintered plants - lobelia and red hot cattails (chenille) - that possibly might be due to the change in the strength of the sunlight.






Meanwhile, there is still a lot of snow here and snowshoes are still footwear of choice to get to the incinerator out back in spite of the record mild and rain. Since last posting, the house and shop roofs had to be cleared of snow one last time, 3rd for the season. Lost count of the lane clearing. I thought the snowblower was going under there a week or so ago!




Skeletons of the perennials (milkweed here) in the wild garden are finally emerging along with the tips of the fence posts. The winter garden

 

[taldesta]

Spring has sprung, the grass is far from riz ...
but it is not far away!!! What are the signs?

My overwintered plants inside know something is up! It seems to be the angle of the sun.

The snow has so many layers of accumulation this year ... snow, melt layer, snow, melt, freeze, rain, melt and snow, rain and freeze, up and down - a cutaway would look like an anthropological dig through the sands of time.

The weathered deck overlooks the river. Snow has been up then down then up and down ,,, winter has given and taken away many, many times this winter. I don't want to think about if all the snow that fell had stayed. The flooding is always a consideration when high accumulations stay to melt.

Here's how I know that spring is here at last .. lawn chairs

Earlier this winter



March



Whew ... summer is coming

 

[22-rimfire]

Spring is certainly not too far around the corner here in Southeast TN. Have already mowed my grass a couple times. I picked my last batch of broccoli about a week ago and picked up some more plants to put out. We are having a mix of warm and cold spells. So, you never really know. Some fruit trees are starting to go into bloom.

Still have some lettuce that survived the winter. Munching on that with sandwiches. Planted some more a few days ago.

We had a very powerful weather front move through in the last week and it totally destroyed my newest metal wind spinner. Oh well... I am looking at repairing it, but not sure anything can be done.

 

[taldesta]

Spring is certainly not too far around the corner here in Southeast TN. Have already mowed my grass a couple times.

Mowing grass

 

[eisman]

Normally I'd have mowed my lawn in FEB. Here it is, more than a week into MAR and it's snowing again. This is really late for us!

 

[Stumps]

Not out of my vegetable garden, but this opened up in my front yard today;

Been picking tomatoes already too.

 

[cj65]

We've had a weird, wet, winter. Started FEB with 137% of the annual rainfall (Since 1 OCT), and for this month we're 5" above average for snow and 6" above average for rain. Moss growing everywhere. But the spring flowers are starting to come out. My tulips are still underground but my neighbors are coming up. My Perris are blooming:

And something is digging up my new grass. Best bet is raccoons looking for grubs. Going to set out the traps...

Love pieris but a little tough to grow in so cal. I am envious.

 

[cj65]

If you apply an insecticide to your lawn and kill the grubs, the digging may slow down.

 

[taldesta]

Would nematodes also do the job? I don't know what zones they can be used in but they are often recommended here (4b) for lawn grubs that attract the diggers. Never tried them myself. http://www.nematodes.com/

 

[22-rimfire]

Not out of my vegetable garden, but this opened up in my front yard today;

Been picking tomatoes already too.

I never had much luck with Amaryllis outdoors in terms of blooming. I have or had a bunch blooming inside the house. They are on the decline now with just a few blooms left. I assume the bloom is an amaryllis.

CJ65: I think that might be possum damage. My biggest problem are squirrels. Have lots. I have to be careful what house plants I put outside when the weather warms up a bit more. A squirrel can cut years of growth off a plant in seconds. In particular they hit my christmas cactus. Have so many that I need to put them outdoors, but the squirrels are bad. Learned that squirrels like to eat the leaves or branches off broccoli plants. That actually makes a lot of sense as they are pretty fleshy and high in nutrients.