2018 Gardening, Landscaping, and Plants

[Rose and Thistle Custom]

Winter finally let go here in Alaska and we went shopping today for some gooseberry, raspberries, strawberries, thyme and lemon balm

Here's some from last years garden.

 

[LEGION 12]

 

[Rupestris]

My wife and I put in four hours of yard work in this morning. Another 1000# of topsoil too.

I need to clean my siding.
[--

 

[22-rimfire]

Looks great. I guess some sort of roof will be next. The way it is layed out, you wouldn't even need to attach it to the house.

I noticed the canoe in the yard. I do you think the sun will cause the plastic to degrade, harden, and eventually crack at an un-opportune moment? I have a kayak stored outside and I keep wondering if I'm ruining it. Haven't used it for a couple years.

 

[LMT66]

Taldesta, interesting that the trillium is coming into bloom. It seems that the early spring plants get compressed into a shorter time period. I spoke to my sister in PA last week and she said that there were no wildflowers yet and you're much further north. But then, she really isn't experienced along that line.

Hummingbirds get into my garage when the door is open and can't seem to figure how to get back out. I think that's kind of sad.

I stopped at a roadside park in the U.P. one year. Unexpected but thrilled to see them all.

‎May‎ ‎18‎, ‎2012
View attachment 913527 View attachment 913528

 

[taldesta]

My wife and I put in four hours of yard work in this morning. Another 1000# of topsoil too.

Wow ... kudos, you and your wife have worked so hard - looks like it is time to kick back and enjoy the summer. BTW who was that cute little dog in an earlier pic? ... not your Daisy if I recall correctly. And your grass does not look like you have a dog at all

 

[taldesta]

Winter finally let go here in Alaska and we went shopping today for some gooseberry, raspberries, strawberries, thyme and lemon balm

Great to see what's happening with you in Alaska. The pics are a treat, especially the swallowtail ... amazing ... the geography they cover yet they look so fragile.

When I was pulling ideas for a raised garden over winter, along with the turf raised bed I found the straw bale raised garden idea but had never actually seen one in use before. I am still toying with the idea for this summer as soon as I find time to source the straw.

Have you recently built there? Nice winter shot. As well as the woodsy location, I like the roof pitch - no shovelling snow!

 

[taldesta]

Diggin' up Bones ... prepare your eyes for unkempt grass and weeds pooped by moose, because I am getting the live plants started before I tackle management of the green stuff that inhabits this property. 'Green stuff' is the kindly description

First, before and after of work on rocks that border the small patch of green stuff in front of the house. This is the tiny area that I plan to actually manage and enjoy - the rest is going the 'cut, kill or replace' route. Or cement over!





Bee Balm flanked by Sunflowers and Hollyhocks with red petunias along front.



I've mentioned before the agricultural history of this property.



The wonderfully loamy soil unearthed while planting the last two of the irregular geraniums would have put a smile on my grandfather's face. I can almost see him sifting that black earth through his fingers.






Some of the scarlet runner pole beans are just poking up at the base of their tripod. Nine tomato plants are thriving but not quite flowering as yet - Sweet Million, Beefsteak, Roma. And, because I haven't had the time to bust more sod in the veg garden just yet, I found the idea for 'trash bag potatoes' and thought to experiment ... just laid them out on the lasagna cardboard used to weaken the sod for the veg garden expansion. Interesting to me. I will have to add more mulch to keep the roots cool enough I think.

 

[Rupestris]

Wow ... kudos, you and your wife have worked so hard - looks like it is time to kick back and enjoy the summer. BTW who was that cute little dog in an earlier pic? ... not your Daisy if I recall correctly. And your grass does not look like you have a dog at all

Thank you. You, along with these threads, are an inspiration.

The little dog is Elvis. He has left his mark in our yard. The two large pots were on the patio and were his favorite spots to lift a leg. There are stains on the concrete because of it. They can be seen in the photos.

Daisy leaves dead spots in the lawn but likes to go in the same area every time. You can see that spot in the 5th pic. A little southeast of dead center of the photo. I'm constantly blasting the area with the hose to dilute the ammonia.

Looks great. I guess some sort of roof will be next. The way it is layed out, you wouldn't even need to attach it to the house.

I noticed the canoe in the yard. I do you think the sun will cause the plastic to degrade, harden, and eventually crack at an un-opportune moment? I have a kayak stored outside and I keep wondering if I'm ruining it. Haven't used it for a couple years.

The plastic that canoes and kayaks are made of is polyethylene. It's designed to take UV light in stride. Yours will probably last longer than you expect.

I'm on the fence about selling the canoe right now.

 

[Rose and Thistle Custom]

Great to see what's happening with you in Alaska.
Have you recently built there? Nice winter shot. As well as the woodsy location, I like the roof pitch - no shoveling snow!

Taldesta, we built last summer. I put together an album with some pics of the building last summer https://photos.app.goo.gl/3Z6WHUT0hjde9kK62 When we got this place people had been using it to dump on for 20 years so lots of trips to the dump later it was looking a little better. Last summer we ordered a bunch of bare root plants sent up from the lower 48 but due to the difference between our planting season and when they were meant to be planted about 1/2 died so this summer we just blew several hundred to get nice started plants. We have 3 more Nanking cherries on the way and recently added big gooseberry plants, raspberry, a bigger blueberry bush than our 3 from last year, a bunch of flowers and herbs, an old fashioned (very fragrant) rose. From bare root, the currants did well, the blueberries, and the rhubarb, but all the raspberries died, only one lilac made it, only 2 rosa rugosa survived, and only 1 of the gooseberry. Most of the 1/2 acre we've left wild but we picked an area about 60'x30' with the driveway arcing around it for planting.

 

[SW-EDC]

Peppers really coming along.
These 2 are Ghost and Bishop's cap.

 

[22-rimfire]

Those pepper plants are huge for "coming along".

 

[SW-EDC]

Secret is good soil and partial shade. I've learned this from years of growing peppers.
Cannot recommend Dr. Earth potting soil enough.
Beneficial microbes, fungus, nutes.
Peppers plants don't like wet feet so let soil completely dry out before watering.
Also, half strength fish ferts once a month

 

[Rupestris]

New grass! And Daisy giving me the stink eye.

 

[22-rimfire]

Secret is good soil and partial shade. I've learned this from years of growing peppers.
Cannot recommend Dr. Earth potting soil enough.
Beneficial microbes, fungus, nutes.
Peppers plants don't like wet feet so let soil completely dry out before watering.
Also, half strength fish ferts once a month

I've never tried to seriously grow peppers in pots/planters. May have to give that a shot. There's still time.

 

[SW-EDC]

You probably noticed the 5 gallon buckets. $3 at walmart.
Drill about 5-6 holes (3/4" paddle bit).
Well draining. I found these work awesome for lots of yield.

 

[taldesta]

New grass! And Daisy giving me the stink eye.

Oh yeah, that's the look all right

Because I know you work hard to keep your lawn, I meant to post earlier about creeping Jenny - thought I noticed a couple in your planter pics. If so, you likely know this but I did not ... when I replaced invasive goutweed (snow on the mountain - the charming name) with 4 creeping Jenny plants because I liked their light colour and trailing habit. Well, those charming little yellow spring blooms dropped many seeds and the runners just moved like lightning - over the side of the raised garden and into the grass in no time. A tough one to control if it likes where it is. I finally just started to mow it like I did the grass.

 

[taldesta]

The red hot cattails (firetail/chenille) plant that was overwintered indoors grew so huge that I repotted it - but I am pretty sure I over-watered it to death at that point. Replacement is looking happy.



Coleus that "Thrives in both sun and shade" - red - is Ruby Slipper which can take 2-6 hours of direct sun/day. The orange one is Campfire that can take "3-6 hours of morning or late afternoon sun". There is one I meant to pick up that looks exactly like the Campfire orange - called Inferno ... which is more sun tolerant like the Ruby Slipper. These are potted up now and may stay here or go to a friend with more shade/sun areas. I love the richness of coleus and just wish I had more natural shade here. I have been planting big pots with scarlet runner pole beans to grow on West side (all day brutal sun) to shade the deck plants - a temporary fix.



My blue columbine from long ago has survived in the same spot, yet toughing it out in full sun even though its shade cover was lost years ago when the overhanging honeysuckle was levelled. Finding these was a happy surprise.



Potatoes - seem happy in spite of their humble trash bag beginnings It seemed time to hill them up a little ... and re-mulch to keep the roots from baking. Any tips are welcome. I haven't planted potatoes in a long time.





These are the begonias (5 corms/pkg) that are retailed in early spring so they started before and are further along than the ones that were shipped to me closer to last frost. The pine planter fits 4 of these pots.

 

[bmilla35]

Secret is good soil and partial shade. I've learned this from years of growing peppers.
Cannot recommend Dr. Earth potting soil enough.
Beneficial microbes, fungus, nutes.
Peppers plants don't like wet feet so let soil completely dry out before watering.
Also, half strength fish ferts once a month

Yeah, might have to move my peppers from full sun after seeing your plants. They look incredibly healthy! Luckily, the sand-heavy soil here in NJ drains very well. There can be no evidence of multiple days of heavy rain within 48 hours of it stopping.

 

[jill jackson]

My special garden in close to keep the deer and raccoons away. Peppers, tomatoes, corn and sunflowers. Who knows what the sticks I tied the tomatoes up with are?