Hi is this the yak forum for michiganders? Notmartha told me to go here.
I am obeying! LOL.
I feel bad for the flinters that had that heavy snow. its not easy living here sometimes.
does anyone have any idea why i cannot click on the little photos and make them
bigger?
we have a brand new home and farm on flat beautiful rural by Freeport, MI.
about 25 min. se of grand rapids. we have property along the coldwater
creek that is trout stocked. We farm with our percherons joy and ollie and
we rescue Mastiffs and have two Pugs also. They rule the roost here
. We grow
corn and beans as cash crops and have pastures for our horses, and i am
starting a 2 to 3 acre landscaping project around the house. I have also
started a small plot of garlic as a cash crop too, and am experimenting with
many different varieties. I like to plant the garlics. You have to get right down
into the dirt and push em in. : )
We have some asparaguses that will finally be edible this coming season.I have
never tasted a fresh asparagus before. I would also like to try growing some
of the newest extra sweet corns. Tomatoes are nuts here. They are lanky and
then flop over and then die. and make a mess. ugh. the peppers did real good
last summer. the heat was oppressive and they like that. I had to carry an
umbrella around so I could garden without passing out.
I grew up in Williston Park,NY on long island, where the zone was 7. I planted
things my whole life and my parents used to yell at me. I was adopted and
when i found my natural family, i discovered why I am the way that I am. LOLOL.
I was brought up in the wrong spot of the USA. I should have been reared in
farm country, with 4H, and critters and sewing and arts and crafts and small
town morals and slowness. Now that I am here, i fit in so perfectly,and I am
so happy to finally be where I feel that I am normal and part of the world.
my biological family btw has a farm/ranch in northern california and they
cash grow all sorts of fruits and vegies. they have horses and chickens and
do landscaping and have greenhouses, shadehouses and also, like me
do nursing and all are sharpshooters. My other sister who was seperated at
birth like me, also is a nurse, and has critters, and shoots and does art too.
we all laugh the same too. and have the same crazy humor. how strange!
This is way fun to be here on daves garden and to learn and share my
life and others lives and knowledge and plants. How much better can it
get?
Regards to all
sheri
good morning MICHIGANDERS lets yak.....
Hi Sheri that was very interesting,who knew you were a farmer all along.It was in your genes.You sure have some beautiful property there I betcha you are itching to plant.BTW Terry is a women I thought she was a man too,til someone told me different..What I do to enlarge the pictures is just hit my cursor on the picture and it makes it larger...
Hope you have fun here and check out the other forums there's alot of nice helpful gardeners here,willing to help if you need it...:o))
Loretta..
Hi Sheri,
Welcome to the Michigan Gardening forum. There are a whole bunch of nice people here.
Marilyn
Hey Sherri - you are just down the pike from me!! I used to teach in Middleville (know where that is??) Nice to hear from another so close!!
Hi Sheri...and again....welcome to the Michigan forum.......small small world. I too grew up on Long Island, in a town that was called the Village of Hempstead back in the early 50's. Went to Hempstead H.S. and then to Hofstra College. My DH is from Michigan which is how I got here.
I think that is great that you farm with horses....They are beautiful animals. Would love to see pictures of them when you get the chance. We have a farmer here in my area who farms with them too, and I love to watch as he plows his fields. Its almost like watching a ballet. Are yours gray or black....Glad to know there is another animal lover here in Dave's. I myself have two German Shepherds, Blaze, my ole guy who is 11 years old, and Cyndee my "Brate girl" who is 3.
When did you leave Long Island?? You know its not the same. It was pure culture shock when I went back to Hempstead. Even my old high school was gone.
Deann
sheri
I have been to freeport many moons ago!
i want to grow some garlic here-i heard it helps keep the voles away from the gardens!
asparagus-its yummy! its wierd cuz as a kid i hated it and now its yummy even eat it without cooking!
My favorite is fresh peas, we just sit in the garden and munch them down-never cook em,just pick and swallow! LOL
My dh uncle(lives a mile away) grows all kinds of stuff for his sons market in alpena and he gives us all kinds of the sweet corns to grow!
Tomatos are what Im going to try in a brand new spot to see if i can get away from that darn blight! My lil granddaughter(3yrs)loves her mators!
I have to start the onions a tad earlier this yr as they didnt get to big!
Im glad you found your family and your notch in the world!!
i have a dog 2 cats and a canary in a pear tree..........
Im glad you are liking the site its a wonderful place and im proud to say I was among the first people to join 5yrs ago!
MARYLIN
I love your pictures but the spring one looks much more inviting. Only a lil while longer and spring will be here and i will be busy in the garden!! oh yaaaaaa!
DEANN
Dale is working in tawas the rest of the week-maybe i will tell him to stop at your house for a nice lunch and homemade ice cream! ;)
TODAY is my sons BD he is 9yrs old!! He is the baby of the 5boys!
Its snowing and blowing horrible this morning! The road was plowed yesterday and it was drifted pretty good at 6a.m. and hadnt even started to snow till around 7:30a.m. Im really glad to have the snow on the gardens, I hope it stays until spring.
The winter buisnesses are really suffering this yr with the warm temps and lack of snow! Now FORD is closing so many plants that wont be good for the state either!
Im pulling for the STEELERS in the superbowl!!
**I have lots of daylily babies up!! oh happy me!
stay warm everyone and think SPRING!
dori
Dori.......Dale is welcome anytime.....Lunch here is usualy 1:30....but for Dale I can push it back to 12:30....and if he wants homemade Icecream....he needs to let me know so I will make it ahead.....
Venison Stew today with crusty bread.......yum!
Hi gardening friends,
Nice to see you started a gab session, this time of year it seems the only thing to do.
Marilyn, the pics of your spring garden is awesome, boy does it give me spring fever. I just can't wait to get out there this year. One of the greatest joys for me is the first day it is 60 degrees and I can open my windows and freshen this house up, then I start cleaning the garden beds. This year I am not sure how soon I can get out there, my total knee replacement is February 28th. My hubby said I can set in the lawn chair and use my cane to point and tell him what to do and how to do it. That is not the same as getting in the dirt with your own hands!! I just love it. We got a couple of inches of snow during the night but the sun came out today and melted it all. Then around 3pm the sleet started in and for about an hour we had this sleet storm. The wind is really strong and cold. But it is suppose to be in the 40's by Thursday. I am afraid without the snow to insulate my perennials that I will be losing some this year, sure hope not.
Deann, is your Chia Pet growing? what did you spend all the Christmas $$$$ on? did you get lots of new seeds?
I was looking at seed starter containers in the store the other day and I am just not sure if I can do that "winter sowing" without killing all my seeds. Maybe I should try just a few at first. Everyone keep your fingers crossed for an early spring or else some snow to insulate my perennial beds.
Lynne
Francee - good luck on the knee replacement. My mom had it a year ago (gosh, it might have been two years ow that I think of it!!) and she wondered why she had waited so long!! She feels great now - riding a bike even! After the surgery she went for a week at a rehab hospital so she could get rehab several times a day - made a big difference!! You'll be back in the garden in no time!
Good Morning Francee
Have only spent $23.00 on seed so far......you gotta check out this seed place called Value Seed.....Such deals.....and Garden Watchdog has nothing but positive things to say about them..
http://www.valueseeds.com/
As for the chia pet....what a total waste of money....it started to grow a little in the back and stopped. I even created a mini greenhouse for it and no luck....but tell you what...love what came in there...$$$$ ...gotta admit DH has an imagination...color me surprised to find $200.00 bucks in cash in the chia box for my spring and summer planting....
francee, use your one gal milk jugs for your winter sowing, or plastic containers with dome's that you get from the Meijer bakery or something...or what you bring the BBQ chicken home in....those are all good containers....
Good luck with your knee replacement...and just take the year off....just think about how your gonna be able to get down on your knees and weed in 2007......
Deann
Good Morning Michiganders!
I have sunshine peeking in and out and wind!! I know the sun wont last long! The snow has been melting I sure hope we get some more to cover the gardens back up-I will be covering my daylilies next fall, i didnt this yr and I sure hope I dont lose any!
They say snow flurries it sure looks like it could at anytime-dark all around me.
Today I will start the last of my daylily seeds and then do a few pots of hostas!
I cant wait to get out in the greenhouse and start stuff out there, but i will have to wait till around March as I dont heat it. I do add a small electric heater when I get the seeds started. I really could use one of those nice heat mats! :)
I think it will be a spagetti n garlic toast evening!
LYNNE-winter sowing is in containers OUTSIDE and let mother nature do the work
I dont do it -but im trying a few containers this yr!
I use the seeddomes for indoor sowing, using overhead lights or a good south window. Thats where all my daylily babies are growing right now. Yes good luck with the knee surgery will keep you in my prayers for a speedy recovery!
DEANN-sorry about your chiapets lack of growth! You only spent 23.00 so far-wow
I havent added up my total daylily bill yet. I do know that my eflowergarden order would have eaten most of your gift money!! shhhhhhh I know what your thinking-sick
sick girl needs a 12step program!!!! But im not on prozak!
EVERYONE-Have a great day in your neck of the woods and stay safe and warm.
Spring has to be on the way-dh keeps telling me the days are getting longer-to me this means longer to wait each day!!!!! ;)
HUGZ ALL!
Hey Deann I have two chia pets still in the boxes you want them their free to a good home?Mine did'nt come with the $200.00 like your's did tho..Now if you need any help spending it I'm available just give me a holler..! :o)))
Loretta...
Loretta....Tanks.......but NO Tanks.....you can keep your chia pets to yourself...or...save them for a yard sale...or donate them to a good cause....or if your ever board and need something to do....
As for the cash, trust me, come spring it will be all spent....been planning on what I want new for my garden...and I always spend a small bundle at that Nursery in Romulus...forget the name of it, but you know, as you can get flats of flowers for only 7.00 bucks a flat....
Deann
Deann
That sounds like Blocks Deann. Tons of people go there.
I think that's the place she's talking about I go there too,and Swartz's is another good one..
Loretta..
Hemlady....thats it.....Blocks...thanks...
Deann
Deann when your at Blocks the other Nursery is Swartz and it's only a few miles away you might wanna check it out..!
Loretta..
Loretta.....thanks for the tip.....I will let you know when I am down there to buy my annuals...
Deann
I hope everyone got to enjoy yesterday and today!!! I have been working/playing in the GH where the temps were around 88 yesterday with all that sunshine and today 75. I got some cleaning done and winter sowed some onions.
We try to have the first row of peas here as early as March. then a second row a week or two after the first row. The earlier the tastier.
I was organizing what seeds I will start first and seeing what I have. Where did I get all these seeds? I tossed out my tackle box of seeds a few yrs ago and havent saved many since(could be why i have some many plants)but I did buy a bunch this fall from that site-valueseeds.
I posted a link about the planttrade get together -I really want to hear from everyone
Nothing is set in stone-not even the date-so lets have some ideas, suggestions, thoughts?
I know arliene is itchin-twitching to get in the woods and hunt for mushrooms. I did it once in my life but will try to make it for a weekend this spring. Does anyone else go shroom hunting? Im usually hunting daylilies---he he heee.
We still have several inches of snow on the ground for the most part My gardens are all still covered so that tis good. Sound like rain coming my way followed by some snow! Thank goodness i can go sit in the gh and do some crafts or something and wait out the rest of winter. I think id go bonkers without it! ;)
well i must get busy here-children will be arriving home any second-IM HUNGRY WHATS TO EAT??? Have a great afternoon and I will be bach(terminator voice)
Hey D I am "itching-twitching" too!! LOl I am also dreaming about those things! With Aaron getting married on April 29 and mushrooms usually start about the 19th-I will have to take a week off to watch the girls. Now on the weekend, they can go too! Bought a travel trailer just for that! Sleeps 5-6 if anyone wants to go. LOL
Kitchen needs paint, and floors and then I'm DONE!!!!!!!!! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
flowers and shrooms, flowers and shrooms and fishing!
Hugs,
Arliene
I just looked and noticed that Michigan was one of the very few Regional Gardening sites
here on DG! I am so impressed! Makes me feel warmer and more fuzzy knowing that
I came to a vibrant state, full of self minded strong people who love home town values.
Francee- good luck with your knee surgery on Feb 28th. I will be praying for you and
wishing you the most easy and speedy recovery possible. I have had many open
knee surgeries on my knee and know the unhappy recovery time of not being able
to bend that sucker and kick the football. ONe time it took me a year to make it
all the way around with my leg on the bicycle pedal in the gym/physical recovery place.
Dori- I need to see this greenhouse!!! I need to sit in it and just smell the dirt at this
time of the year. DH can drive me up there. I will bring you some tubers, some corms.
Any ideas anyone about how to find morels in our woods? Do I need to get on the
forest edge floors and scrabble scritch through the leaves? I heard they grow better
along the edges rather than in the forests.
One day, our surveyor found one growing happily along the side of our road, in the
hard pack road surface. go figure.
i posted the pics today-sorry they are a lil blurry!!! yesterday i had to open the door becuz it was 96 degrees in there and still goingup! It was wonderful, ! i was doing a lil painting to garden decorations and just enjoying the sunshine.
Today we have a lake in the yard and a river running through this old michigan basement!!!
I can hardly wait for spring to get here--i sniff and sniff but could not smell spring in the air ;)
i have to get busy here for a lil bit-kids and lunch!
WOW its Feb 3rd! Where is everyone?
Its a balmy 32 out at 7am and a windchill of 27 and light RAIN
I cleaned up the garage a lil and raked some of the crap that has gathered by the house over the winter months-where does it come from? No one is even out there to make a mess.
Yesterday afternoon i went for a walk in the gardens it was really nice when the
sun was TRYING to shine through the cloudy sky. I did a lil grass burning(they gave my lighter back)around the raspberries. I scouted out how much room I will Have in the daylily beds for new daylilies and where oh where will I put all the tomatoes I want to grow?
What will DH say when I say I need more ground worked up again this yr? lol
Im so ready for spring to get here and get out in the garden. Im making a list of things I want to do and plants i want to trade.
I have decided to get rid of all the NoZoners this yr and I do mean all! No more brugs or EE or anything Tropical unless it grows continuously all yr round as a houseplant!!
SO WHATS KNEW WITH YOU???
We decided no more brugs for us either.
Got tired of fighting off the white flies.
I'm going to concentrate on my roses and try and talk DW into some more garden space for my roses.
Paul
Good Morning to ya all.....its Feb 5th, still dark out, and tons of snow on the ground and still falling.....boy how true that expression is for Michigan......."If you don't like the weather, stick around, it will change in a moment". When it becomes daylight, I will get my camera out and take some pictures, I know its gonna look like a Winter Wonderland.
Paul and Dori......You guys are getting rid of your Brugs and I am just getting starting. A garden friend of mine in Indiana gave me 6 starts, and I have been nursing them along all winter in a bucket of water. Which ones do you have??
Dori.....I am so looking forward to our Michigan Roundup. Anxious to meet alot of the new folks who have joined Dave's. Paul I hope you can make it this year as well as all the new folks.
Paul since your gonna be concentrating on Roses, let me pick your brain for a minute. For Christmas I received a beautiful trellis. I am going to be buying some climbers. In your humble opinion, and hey you Michigan folks, chrip in with your opinion too, what is the fastest growing rose climber around.
Deann
Three inches here but a powerful wind - windchill in the teens...brrr winter is back...
Time to get starting seeds!!! My order from Pinetree is taking forever. I even called them on Friday (it's been two weeks) and their order form said a week if ordered in January. Drat...
Time to load up the woodstove and curl up!!
De - I have a ton of brugs. I keep thinking 'this is the last year I'll fuss with them", but end up digging them all up and lugging them inside.
Deann
I have a couple that are not techinacly climbers but I grow them like climbers.
Eden: light pink, grows on a trellis huge blooms I have it growing on a trellis at the side of our deck.
Martin Frobshier: Pink grew to about 15 feet tall this past season. Blooms all season
Paul
We got some snow in Alpena. Yesterday, most of the lawn was showing. Today, I wasn't sure if we could get to church (we made it!). Here are a couple of pics:
Here's the other one:
I'd say you got "some" snow!
holy smoke-you guys got hammered!!!!!! we got a few inches and its blowing like crazy! I wish we would have got that much!!! cool beanz
BBL to post-getting ready for football game-go steelers!
I'm not sure you really want this snow. It was a pain to blow. There was about an inch of slush on the bottom and about a foot of snow on top. My snowblower is only 7 horse power, so it kept getting clogged with the slush/snow mixture. By the time I got back from church there was another three or four inches to blow again. There's another inch out there right now (3:00) and it's still snowing. The kids sure had fun it it though, so I guess it's ok.
we got the slush crap too under the 4in we got. we have all kinds of plows here though! my kids would love it for fort building and snowball fights. It quit snowing here but they say snow all week-my gardens are insulated and im happy!
Hi folks! Ohioan here! I have voles and mice really bad in my flowerbeds...and would like to know...what is this Ranik green? I tried googling it..and came up with nothing? Would appreciate any info on it.
Thanks much!
You couldn't find it because it is Ramik - no "n" in it.
http://www.hacco.com/Spec%20Label%20pdf/RamikGreenMiniBaitPacks.pdf
http://www.cooperseeds.com/catalog/Ramik-Green-for-Rats-and-Mice-p908.html
Al
Awwwwww...redface here Tapla! Now I KNOW I need my glasses changed for sure!!!
Thank you ever so much for the links!
... and forgive me - I forgot the smily face. ;o)
Al
Nothing to forgive tapla! Thanks again for the links! I think that little device might just work here too...with the Ramik green in it! :)
Good Morning Everyone.....well when it was all said and done we got about 4 inches....higher in some spots because of all the blowing snow.....After I cleared a path to my greenhouse, it was 60 degrees in there yesterday. I don't heat my greenhouse in winter, too costly.
Paul, I have tried Eden, and it did not grow well for me. Will check out Martin Frobshier and see what it looks like.....Or may just get the Eden Rose again...I love that rose, as I am partial to the soft pinks.
