Let's get to know one another..

Hi Everyone,

I'm brand new to DG, having just subscribed a week ago. Oh, oh, yet another way to avoid housework! I've already been in touch with three other members in my immediate area and can see this site is going to be a great way to network and share knowledge. I just posted a thread to the vines and climbers forum about passionflower vine. Anyone growing this? I have two on order and no clue exactly where to plant them. Also just ordered 45 Peacock Orchid corms from American Meadows (really, really good sale on summer bulbs right now) and would appreciate hearing from any of you growing this unusual little beauty. It's supposed to naturalize(i.e. run rampant?) here?

WELCOME, coralbean....come on in to the BEST website on the 'Net.

I grow a couple kinds of passiflora..what kind do you have? (Or, I guess I should look for your post over in Vines and Climbers, eh?)

Again...Welcome! Be seeing you around the site!

Shoe

Hi Pam , I have grown passionflower vine. It likes sun, but can be partially protected. It gets big, loves to clime and smells nice. Hey, who else is in our area who likes to garden? Wow, I am so excited.

Ginny

I am, but I haven't had the time to get posted with all of you. I'll catch up one of these days.

Diane

Hey Swoz,

I will work on getting the info from the Farmer's Market and post soon. Field trip is on my mind.

gldandrews - Totally awesome pics of SC!!! The Greer, SC is pretty much as you caputred in your photos.

Horseshoe - did you says chicken eggs? cool! have any chicken manure too? Fresh Chicken eggs is superior to anything in the stores. Great.

Hey, I am going to buy some Ironite soon to help my yellow leaves turn green (gardenians need some help). Anyone else ever use the stuff?

Rebecca30

Hi Horseshoe

I have 2 Passiflora Incarnata on order, and it's beginning to look like this needs to go in a more natural area than my front entrance. I have Loblolly Pines on each side of the porch steps with Confederate Jasmine happily climbing up them. Was thinking maybe the Passiflora could intertwine, but it sounds like this would soon start popping up in the boxwood and arborvitaes. I'm trying to maintain some appearance of normalcy out front, with a loose formal structure so as not to frighten the neighbors here in suburbia. Talk about frightening the neighbors, your photo is too funny!

Rebecca30, yep...nuttin' better than a fresh egg! Gotta have 'em! (And yes, have manure for our gardens, too!)

As for your gardenias...I've used Ironite before but sometimes yellow of leaves (especially gardenias) isn't du to lack of iron. The pH could be out of range which is inhibiting your gardenias ability to take up nutrients. Another possible cause is that during this time of year gardenias will show yellow leaves (especially the older ones) due to the magnesium in the plant being transferred to the younger leaves, in an effort to spur on continued growth. You may see good results by offering your plants some Epsom's Salts (magnesium sulfate); either sprinkle a small amount on around the trunk of the bush or you can make a foliar feed (big tablespoon per quart spray bottle of warm water).

I love gardenias! I have quite a few in the g-house rooting as we speak...can't get enuff of them!

Shoe.

Rebecca

Thanks for the comment on the photos, but I,m in the Western NC mountains not SC.
Where is Fuquay Varina?

Gary

I'm in Summerville, SC. I love to brugmansia & datura. You can check out my garden here:

www.xeramtheum.com

X

Hi coralbean (I think we were posting at the same time).

Passiflora incarnata grows wild here. If you want more I could send seeds one day, eh? They can be all over the place but they are easily "arrested" if you just keep an eye out for them. Personally, those are my most favorite "wild flower".
I love the idea behind their name, too..."Passion Flower". Apparently it stems from the Spanish Monks who felt the flower represented the Crucifixion of Christ...looking at the flower you can pretty much see why.

Shoe.

Thanks Horseshoe,

I love the idea of incorporating natives into my garden design and would appreciate hearing about some of your other favorites. One I love and plan to spread around is Sleepy Mallow or Turk's Cap "Malvavicus Drummondiii" (sp?). May not grow for you in NC, but it does great here and is a wonderful plant for naturalizing shady areas. I also have two Illicium or Florida Anise that I potted up as porch plants in the fall but will go into the landscape as soon as I find the perfect spots for them. They're beautiful on the porch, with flower buds getting ready to open. I understand the flowers don't smell very good, but the foliage does smell like licorice.

HI, can I join and just be a lurker until I move to our new home outside of Clover, SC????

If you all allow me to join I will tell you all about me and our new adventure....

Casey

Hah! Casey/Carot...you done been joined! (That's a Southern sentence...please learn it so when you move here you'll be understood!) *grinnin'! :>)

I've been following your thread...you wanna give a link to it here so others can enjoy your excitement? And by the way, no need to just lurk, come on in..the water's fine!

Folks, Casey is soon to be in our area and has quite an exciting project ahead of her. It'll be fun! And who knows..maybe we can all have a Roundup at her place someday, eh?

Coralbean...I haven't grown 'turks cap' (except the ones that are Hemerocalis) but went to Plant Files and looked it up. Looks like a mighty nice plant to me! Love it!

Shoe.

Oh thanks my buddy Shoe. I am thinking that I will be understood well enough once I get there. If I start talking like I am suppose to people here will all think I am losing it.

For those who have not seen my thread on our families adventure here is a link. Any and all comments, suggestions, hints, ideas are all welcome. If you have a complaint tell that to Shoe cause I only garden to make my heart smile. Just kidding.

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/554563/

Next weekend I will be at the ol' homestead spreading wildflower and pasture grass seed if anyone is bored and feels like doing some manual labor. LOL

Casey

Hmm...next weekend IS a three-day weekend for some folks! Reckon you could give "grass sowing 101" lessons to those that show up, eh?

Take some pics while there...you'll want them to refer back to one day. Each season has its own beauty.

Shoe, I am ditching work on Friday and making it a 4 day weekend. I am bringing my 11 yr old son with me. Not that he will be helping but I might need someone to check on me later to see that I haven't drowned in the bathtub soaking the muscles.

I will be taking the camera for pictures. I also have to take more video footage. I watch the two tapes I have now several times a week while playing with the landscaping program. I need to get some measurements also while I am there.

Hey, anyone have some good pointers on azaleas? I want to get a few. Talk to me, please........

Welcome there Carat - and come on in a sits a spell. We're mighty proud to have ya. Like Shoe said - no needs lurkin round the back door - when you can show your face and enjoy the hospitality!! So when are ya movin? Azaleas in the south are classic symbol of being southern - like magnolias - and every garden down here needs them. They come in bunches of cultivars - but what needs the planning is the blooming season. Now ya see - some of them bloom early, some a bit later and then still others latest. See where I'm going? So if you want early color - you'll get it just after Easter most years, then a flush in June, with the heat of our summers - most are done in July. You might want to space out or "time" your appearance. Azaleas like an acid soil and love pine straw as a foot cover. Sandy, loamy soil is good - but they will take hold in clay - just need some encouragement. They will cross pollinate and over the years will fill to be big banks of hedge like growth where all of the leaves and flowers are at the end of the branches - and long sticks within the bush. Each spring they put off tender growth at the crowns and these are the easiest way to propogate - by rooting these guys.

So there you go - azaleas 101 - now it's up to you to choose your varieties. I had fun once putting together a group that had the same names as my friends - interesting collection.

Post those pictures and let us have a look see at what you're doing...

Welcome to the gang - you've been accepted by Shoe - that's good enough for the rest of us!!

Swoz

Swoz, thanks for the lesson and the welcome. I do think I will be getting me a few but I guess I will wait until I am actually living there. I am only doing the things that I dont need to babysit right now. More then likely I will get a couple of each type so I have blooms through the seasons. I was thinking if I have the time and can dig the soil deep enough, and can find one, I will also get a willow tree bare root planted.

I know if I asked my friend to take care of them she would try but if they didn't make it she would feel bad and I dont want that. Grass and wildflowers are hard to kill and since I am planting a total of 75 lbs of seed I am sure she cant kill it all.

If you want to see before pics they are posted on this link, http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/554563/, I dont want to tie up space on the server posting the same pictures twice.

Casey



This message was edited Feb 12, 2006 11:51 AM

Cullowhee is in Jackson County in western North Carolina. It's mountainous and sparsely populated. The soil is mineral (aka clay) and acidic, usually with plenty of rocks and roots. I used to live in the bluegrass country of Kentucky, where even a person with a bad back could sink a spade into the earth to dig a hole. But here, digging a hole for a gallon-size perennial can put me in the hospital. Believe me, I know this from experience. I am a compulsive gardener with degenerative disc disease.

Enough complaining! We live on 10 secluded acres, wooded and most of it pretty steep. Right now we have about 4 inches of snow on the ground. Finally! Most of January felt like spring.

To grow flowers and vegetables we had to have space bulldozed. I have raised beds filled with a mixture of composted cow manure and topsoil which was trucked in by a local farmer for a very reasonable amount of money. My husband started raspberries, strawberries and grapes last year, none of which have done well at all. He has them in the native soil which is very poor.

Rabbits and burrowing moles or voles are big problems.

Happy Birthday Scshadylady!!!!!

Thanks for the birthday wishes...just got back from having dinner with my DH, son, and his girlfriend. Had to wait for an hour, but the food was worth it. I think I hinted enough about gifts. I have received $175 so far for yard money!

Good for you!! Happy late birthday.

Happy Birthday - love your "scshadylady" ID.

Happy Birthday CarolinaCathy!!!

gldandrews - Fuquay- Varina is just south of Raleigh, NC.

Horseshoe - Epsom's Salts to cure the yellow leaves problem? Hmm never thought of that. I will have to try that first. Once I apply a treatment, would this have to be repeated every so often?Or is this a permenant fix?

Rebecca30

This message was edited Feb 19, 2006 10:46 AM

Swoznick - I called the Raleigh Farmer's Market, and right now they have alotof leafy green veggies, baskets, etc now. But I think, the guy said in March is when the perrenials/annuals start coming in. Plus they have a Craft Show upcoming in March.

I have created a new post called "Field Trips" with the links and more information there. Who knows, maybe we could do like a small local swap on one of these field trips, bring a plant- get a plant. Like someone suggested, perhaps just meet and swap from our cars for those who are interested in participating.

Been kinda quiet here folks.... Why don't ya join me an sit on the porch for a spell. ...

Shucks we might even talk Shoe into telling us a story.....

JessieK - did you figure out what kind of flower setups that you wanted to do?

Rebecca,
I put in 4 new gardenia's 2 years ago in 2 diferent area's of my yard. First 2 of them did really well, while the other 2 started yellowing as soon as the it started getting really hot. I tried everything, including epsom salt. Nothing helped. Finally last year, I dug them up and moved them to where the others were located, they get full afternoon shade there and have greatly improved, not a single yellow leaf. The only conclusion I could come up with was that they were struggling with the heat we have here in summer. They're much happier now ;)
Alice

I still have not decided exactly what i'm going to do as far as outside gardening. There are so many good ideas. Oh, I forgot to say thank you Adele for sending me that article. That was really sweet of you. It does look very interesting. I also thought of the lasagna gardening but DH says he would rather buy me that special cloth that you put down to keep the weeds from coming through. My latest interest has been in the Square Foot Gardening. With this I just have to build my boxes and then put in the dirt. I think that is what I am going to do. I'm pretty good at following a grid so I think that I could do that. I would really like to get the book on square foot gardening. But I'm still sort of tossing ideas around. I know that once I get started I can do it. It is just getting started that is the hard part. But I'm still planning what I want to do so hopefully by the time comes for me to start planting, my little plot will be ready. Does that cloth, or whatever it is, that you put down right on top of the grass really work? Does it really keep the grass or weeds from coming through? If it does, my DH said that he would buy it for me, to make it easier for me. With back and knee problems, I need all the help I can get. So if I can put that down and put good soil on top of that and plant my little plants, that would be great. Of course with the square foot gardening you can build your boxes and make them any height that you want them so that you don't have to do a lot of bending or stooping. I'm still thinking about it all though.

JesseK

Jesse,
I have used the "plastic ground covering" in several area's of the garden. It does keep the grass and weed that were already there from coming up but of course it does stop the weeds that come for seeds from the other parts of the yard from growing on top of it . But you can keep them in check by getting to them as soon as you see them coming up. Good luck to you and keep us posted on the progress, Pictures if you can.

Take Care
Gary

JesseK

I built raised beds for my veggie garden. It took some serious soil to fill them for the dimensions that I put in - but it did reduce the amount of weeding I had to do - and was much easier on my back. I watered with drip hoses and gave a good soaking a couple times a week. I would reccomend it for anyone. I built my beds from landscape timbers and then lined them to keep the leaching of the salt treating from getting into my veggies. The sides were two foot high - and since I'm short - it worked well. I'll do it again in a heartbeat. For one thing the soil is clay based here - much easier to build on top of it and put your resources into improved compost from the start, rather than spending (sometimes years) into amending the soil.

I have a book on square foot gardening and it's pretty cool. This is the first run from the author and he had his beds in the ground with walk boards around the plots - so raised boxes or beds is not too far off of a stretch for that kind of structure. Weeding smaller spaces would not be so daunting as traditional garden rows.

Swoz

Thanks Swoz,

That is really encouraging. It would be so much easier for me and once it is built then all I have to do each year is add new soil where needed. I'm not really sure of how to build them but I think I am going to search ebay to see if I can find his latest book on square foot gardening. Our finances are really really tight right now because the company my husband works for has basically closed. He is the only employee left beside the bosses so he has to do everything, the programming, maintenance, he is telecommunications specialist, and the list goes on and on. The company is trying really hard to pull itself out of the red but we are owed backpay going all the way back to december. I hate it because it limits me as to what I can do with my plants but we are hanging in there. But it would be really neat to grow some of our own vegetables this year. That would be very helpful. Now if we can find a place to get some cheap supplies to build with. The people next door moved out and left some very good lumber. I think the sides could be built out of it and all we would need would be the plywood for the bottom. I guess plywood is what we would need. I am not sure how we will make it but I know some how we will. If the company gets back on its feet, then we will be doing okay. I did not mean to throw a pity party here. Sorry if said too much. Anyway, we will make it. And we have all of you giving us such valuable information that is worth a whole lot. Thanks to all of you that so lovingly give of yourselves to teach us newbies how to garden.

JesseK

JesseK,
Unless there is a compelling reason, you don't bottoms for your raised beds. They would rot over time anyway. My daughter did the square foot gardening method in raised beds and said it was the best type of gardening she ever did.

I have some extra banana pepper seeds and a few different types of flower seeds. I'd love to send them to you. I was just wondering today what to do with them.

If you aren't in the address exchange yet, dmail me your address and I will send you these seeds on Friday.

Diane

Alicewho - I will keep the that in mind. Right now I have 2 gardenia cuttings that I have raised in 2 pots since 2005 Spring. One is really green and the other is yellowish. I have recently repotted them and both are the same. But right now I am trying Shoe's advice with the epsom salt spray. So I am crossing my fingers. This is kinda my little exeriment with these gardenian cuttings, even thought I have 4 plants outside in the ground, some yellow, some not.

Everyone - since I am talking about the yellowing affect here, has anyone noticed while driving on the roads in your area that alot of the pine trees have a sickly yellowish tint to them? I have noticed this that past couple of weeks off Route 1 near I-40 highway. I am wondering if it's because of winter light (photosynthesis slow now?), this locale, or I am just seeing things. Anyone else notice the trees lately? Just Curious.

This message was edited Feb 22, 2006 8:47 PM

This message was edited Feb 22, 2006 8:48 PM

JesseK:

You don't make bottoms for raised beds. You need only sides. Lots of different things can be used, you don't have to buy lumber. In fact, if the soil underneath is not so bad that you need drainage materials and more than 6inches of top soil, you can just create an unframed raised bed by adding a bunch of organic matter and mulching to get what will look sort of like a freshly dug grave. Make it flat-topped with sloping sides. Can you get someone to help you? (That is what I have had to do since degenerative disc disesase is getting the best of me.)

To frame a bed, you can use wood, brick, rocks, or cement blocks, anything that wouldn't be toxic to the plants. And I don't think someone on a tight budget has to fixate on making something "permanent" for this year. You can always upgrade next year. I have raised beds made of rocks, wood, and unframed mounds. I have even been known to make a raised bed using absolutely free freshly cut logs: everyone says, "oh, they'll rot"; but so will we all! One doesn't necessarily need or want a permanent structure. "Permanence" of almost any kind on this earth is illusory.

I have used landscape cloth only to put under mulch where I wanted no plants at all, so I can't speak to its effectiveness where plants would be grown. I have killed grass under a raised bed area by covering it with black plastic to starve everything from light. Then I removed the plastic, turned the dead sod over, and mounded good soil on top, lightly turning it all.

Missgarney,

The reason that I was going to use the wood to frame my bed is because it is free. The people moved out and left the lumber and the landlady owns both this house and my house. She said we could have the wood so I don't think I should turn it down. It will not cost me anything to put a simple frame together. I have the screws and the wood so why not make it something nice looking.

I can get my husband to help some but he suffers from costocondritis, sp?, so I do not like for him to do too much or his chest will start hurting and he will not be able to work or do anything else. But together I think we can do it. I like the idea of framing it in because I like the grid system used in square foot gardening. I have lots of old mini blinds or string, which is one thing reccommended in the square foot gardening.

And using the black plastic sounds like a good idea since that is easy for me to get. So I think with all of this I will be able to make a nice structure for my beds.

JesseK

Rebecca,

Here in the mountains, we have lost most of the jack pines to the pine beetles. everywhere you look there are ridge tops covered with dead pines. The White pines have'nt been affected as bad. I'll try to find the Forest Service article on the pine beetle, In it it said that unless they got it stopped the mountains within 50-70 years would lose 90% of all pines.

Rebbeca,

Here is one or the articles, Sounds like it may be the beetles making it to your area.
http://www.dfr.state.nc.us/health/health_spb.htm

JesseK: Wow! free lumber. I don't know if your state still allows it, but make sure it isn't pressure treated with arsenic-containing preservatives. You wouldn't want that in your vegetables.

It's true the wood frames will make things neater-looking, which is important, I think, because it makes you more likely to stroll through the garden and observe, and that's how you learn what your plants need.

Costochondritis...ouch! The rib cage is highly innervated, which means it doesn't take much of an insult to give one a lot of pain. My sympathies to your husband. As a chronic back pain sufferer, I often look back on my pain-free youth with incredulity! How could I have been so cavalier, so ungrateful for the flexibility, strength and comfort? I really took it for granted. But I guess that's typical of young people. Now, when I have a good day and can lie down at night with a tolerable amount of pain, I give thanks.

gldandrews - hmm food for thought. I think I have seen these affected areas many times on my way to the Smokey Mountains on 40west. I also wondered why the heck the forest look brown and burned to a crisp in certain sections of the mountain sides. Goodness, I hope my pines don't do the same in time. Thanks.

Rebecca30