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Playing God (Gardening and Plants and Stuff)

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  • Maybe the marigolds steal all the dirt nutrients from the plants you're actually trying to grow.
  • edited May 2015
    Apreche said:

    Ilmarinen said:

    I've heard marigolds repel aphids, but I can't confirm it.

    You know. I've heard that Marigolds repel all kinds of pests. Now I also wonder how true that is. If that was true, wouldn't farms just plant them everywhere instead of using insecticide?
    There are actually quite a few plants that repel bugs, Pyrethrum Daisy, for example. It makes sense on an evolutionary level, ofc. According to Wikipedia
    It is one of the most commonly used allowed non-synthetic insecticides in certified organic agriculture.
    However, it has its limitations, compared to synthetic compounds inspired by its chemistry -- it breaks down more quickly iirc.

    I totally grow these, along w Marigolds, in the garden. But I imagine it would be way more expensive, at an industrial scale, than pesticide. Splicing it into the crop OTOH... would be cool. Also glowing. Everything should be genetically modified to glow.
    Post edited by no fun girl on
  • Marigolds repel most things, but they attract slugs and snails. They can also be an effective deterrent to soil pests if you mulch them up and mix them into the soil or just till them under.

    Nasturtiums are supposed to repel certain bugs and also are edible. Basil supposedly keeps away tomato hornworm... non of my tomatoes planted with basil last year got them, so maybe?

    And of course any of the plants you can make pesticides from like neem oil or pyrethrum or garlic.
  • Apreche said:

    You know. I've heard that Marigolds repel all kinds of pests. Now I also wonder how true that is.

    It likely is true; roses do a similar thing. Vineyards grow them near the grapes to attract pests away from their other plants (they also help provide warnings of mildew and mold).
  • I might give marigolds a try. I do have nasturtiums planted, but they're in a window box because I thought the leaves would look pretty hanging down over the edge. I might put the other packet out in the yard.
  • Well the ladybug larvae have arrived to help me with the aphid problem. I'm happy to report that the soapy water did a wonderful job. I was timid at first, afraid of hurting the bushes, so I didn't get enough soap in the water to get the job done. Second go around I put a little more soap into my gallon sprayer and by the next day all of the aphids had turned from fat little green things to tiny black specks. I guess they just shriveled up. I did this about once a week since my last post.

    I'm still getting aphids in smaller numbers, but I'll leave it alone now so I don't hurt or starve any of the ladybug babies.
  • edited May 2015
    I decided against buying ladybugs after all and just waiting for my locals to arrive on the scene. I was reading one lady's advice against buying ladybugs and I guess it was enough to sway me. Someone chime in if you've got better information, but basically she was saying that the ladybugs for sale are almost always wild bugs they capture. I always assumed there were ladybug farms/factories growing them. She was saying that the purchased ladybugs can sometimes come bearing mites fungus or other diseases that might infect local populations.

    Article: http://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/why-you-shouldnt-buy-ladybugs-natural-pest-control-your-garden.html
    Post edited by Chrisislost on
  • Do you have lots of ants? Some species farm aphids and carry them back and forth to plants, so you may want to do some research/fieldwork and find out what kinds are in your garden.
  • She was saying that the purchased ladybugs can sometimes come bearing mites fungus or other diseases that might infect local populations.

    Wouldn't ALL bugs do that, though?
  • Daikun said:

    She was saying that the purchased ladybugs can sometimes come bearing mites fungus or other diseases that might infect local populations.

    Wouldn't ALL bugs do that, though?
    Local bugs are in local equilibria.

    Bugs from somewhere outside of that local zone are not unlikely to bring destabilizing factors.

  • Ladybugs are migratory, they aren't an exclusively local bug in the first place.
  • edited May 2015
    How far do ladybugs migrate versus how far are they shipped? They do have tiny little wings, but I've got no idea what they capacity is.

    Also, yes I do have ants hanging around the bush. I read that they eat the dew (read: aphid crap). Do they relocate them as well?
    Post edited by Chrisislost on
  • Ilmarinen said:

    Do you have lots of ants? Some species farm aphids and carry them back and forth to plants, so you may want to do some research/fieldwork and find out what kinds are in your garden.

    The fucking ants in my yard fucking do this. Fuckers.

    I spray them with insecticidal soap mixed with garlic tea, right along with the aphids. They don't like that very much.

  • Another thing that ants don't like: Chalk.
  • I just use food grade diatomaceous earth if I'm going to do the whole yard around my porch. The spray kills the aphids too, and it works faster.
  • I bought a planter and some soil from Home Depot. I'm gonna try growing some herbs but I've never grown any plant before so hopefully it works.
  • The agave we moved in our front yard during landscaping (back in January) is the most prolific plant I've ever known. We found more babies from it's old root system in the lawn and new garden for the third time this year. Time to go kill more agave babies.
  • My table is COVERED IN PEAS!
    The snap peas and snow peas are thriving in this cool 80s-highs weather. So that's awesome. The beans have come up and appear to be starting to stretch upward... a few of them have found their trellis.

    Asparagus beetle grubs are gross.

    The garlic has scaped. I already harvested and pesto'd the ones from the community garden plot. The ones at my house are a bit behind since they get less sun, so I'm giving them a few more days. I'm very curious to see what is below ground when we harvest them in late July. I have done literally nothing to these things since they were planted... if garlic is this easy, gives me a good yield, AND I get the scapes in June, then I'm doing this EVERY year!

    I'm almost through all of the lettuce I planted... I've been harvesting all plants of certain varieties as they start to bolt, and picking the rest in moderation for variety. Salad is not a thing we have a shortage of.

    Summer squash just started yielding! Today I picked the first squash of the year from the two plants that are bearing. The plants are huge and vigorous, so I am hoping my strategy of keeping them covered while young (with floating row covers) was enough to thwart the cucumber beetles from destroying them too early.

    My nightshades (tomatoes, tomatillos, ground cherries, potatoes) are doing well by appearances. I'm trying to keep them pruned enough to allow light and air to circulate and prevent powdery mildew, but I don't want to defoliate the plants too much. This year is an experiment in balance. Except with the potatoes... We're just letting them do their thing. Potato flowers are pretty! The flowers also mean that right now is when the plants are starting to set tubers.

    Three-lined potato beetle grubs are also gross. (Tomatillos are their favorite food, apparently.)

    Peach tree did jack-all this year. We punished it with a severe haircut.

    There is a small bunny at my house that routinely wanders my house garden and snips things off and then LEAVES THEM on the ground. About a third of the gooseberries on my tiny bush met this fate when it snipped off an entire branch. I have since put up some minor fencing and cages around particular things to prevent more snippage. I am also patrolling with vigilance. The culprit was taking an adorable dust bath in a bald patch of the yard this morning when I spotted him and captured video. I now have evidence.
  • Peas are the best!
  • Good to see that you're giving peas a chance.
  • I'm culling my seed collection, since seed time is coming & this is my last year stateside. I have a lot of seeds! Of many kinds! They are of variable quality and age, mostly not being grown because I don't have the room. If you are interested, let me know & we can figure something out.

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  • New to roses, I'm timid about touching the mini Rose that we inherited with the house. I got a little curious and decided to pin down the two largest canes with a rock just so it wouldn't grab at clothing as you walk by, turns out that I stumbled upon 2 rose growing techniques called pegging and layering (sounds a bit dirty, no?) Anyway, on a whim I was hoping that it may root where I secured it in the ground. Seems my theory is sound, now to wait and see if I have success. The goal is to start a ring of roses around the base of this short crepe myrtle in the backyard. I only got about 4 blooms last year from the Rose I was avoiding, supposedly by lowering the top of the canes I'll be forcing the plant to flower. Lucky.
  • Layering is good for anything that will form roots off stem tissue f it is held to the round for an extended period. It's fun!

    As for roses, you can generally prune them aggressively. It may take a few years to figure out the flowering habit... we have some kind of rose that grows canes and hasn't flowered since we moved in. I've been aggressively pruning it and trimming it back to try to actually make it shrub-shaped, so I'm not too surprised. But even if you cut it back so much it doesn't flower this year it's pretty darn hard to kill. And that means it's devoting its energy to growing in the shape you want it to grow, and flowering next year!
  • edited March 2016
    For my desk at work I got some Baby Dwarf Tears. For my windowsill I got a jade plant. I need more windowsill plants, though. It's a South-facing window, so lots of sun this time of year. I think I might try some tomato since I'm already good with them, but I need to find a variety that will stay small and not get tomatoes all over my apartment or need a bigger pot.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • I'm culling my seed collection, since seed time is coming & this is my last year stateside. I have a lot of seeds! Of many kinds! They are of variable quality and age, mostly not being grown because I don't have the room. If you are interested, let me know & we can figure something out.

    I can adopt anything you have left over. If they don't sprout, that's okay... more fodder for the worm bin.

    I'm not having much luck with my 2yo pepper seeds. However, I have a bunch of tomatillos and ground cherries that came up from my compost, so yay! My beets are doing great, and a chipmunk tried to eat my radish seedlings, but I rescued them before he got more than 3 or 4.

    I'm trying not to buy seed this year since we're likely going to be moving in June and I have a significant backlog of seeds. So I'm planting what I have and seeing what's still viable.

  • edited March 2016
    Apreche said:

    I need to find a variety that will stay small and not get tomatoes all over my apartment or need a bigger pot.

    I'll start an extra remy rouge for you.
    Nuri said:


    I'm trying not to buy seed this year since we're likely going to be moving in June and I have a significant backlog of seeds. So I'm planting what I have and seeing what's still viable.

    i shall mail them since im not sure i'll see you before your seed time.
    Post edited by no fun girl on
  • Buying So Much Plant for the new house. Aside from taking over everything I already have, I'm getting 4 blueberry bushes, 2 elderberry bushes, 3 cherry trees, and 2 European pear trees. That's all for the FRONT yard! It'll be a 2 or 3 year wait for good yields on them, but that's okay. I've got time.

    (House already has a giant apple tree and another smaller one in the woods.)
  • edited May 2016
    Does anyone have experience with lavender? It's looking kinda wilty.

    image

    Can a lot of watering help replenish this plant, or is it a lost cause?
    Post edited by Daikun on
  • edited May 2016
    Lavender likes poor, dry soils, so I doubt watering a lot will help...but that's also when you're growing it as a shrub. It's interesting to see it trimmed up as a mini-tree like that. I'm wondering if that trunk is able to get enough water up to that large top.

    You can try giving it one deep watering, and then leaving it alone; that means either put a hose on a slow drip and leave it in the pot for a few hours, or give the plant about 1 quart of water every hour for 5 hours. If it's looking better a day or two after that, then your problem is that you need to change your watering regimen. (I can't tell what specific changes you'd need to make unless I know what you're already doing.)

    Lots of people water shallowly every day, which doesn't permeate the lower levels of the soil. Or they water too much, and the roots rot so the plant doesn't get water, and then it wilts, which of course makes those people water it even more. For lavender and rosemary, you want to get a good, slow soak and then let it dry out between waterings for best results.
    Post edited by Nuri on
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