Thread Drift

We went to the farm store and bought organic topsoil and mushroom compost, along with some river rock and grass seed. Then we filled in the hole where we had a giant dead silver maple cut down and put down grass seed.

Next weekend we'll work the ground for herb garden...the nice 84 year old lady helping at the farm store told us not to bother with buying herb plants but to go ahead and plant seeds in a couple of weeks, because there's still plenty of time for them to sprout this year. Does that sound right to you gardeners??

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Originally Posted by Pax

Thanks for the info Oak! The plot is a small one by our back door that gets full sun. The the previous owner used it for some sort of garden, so no grass to mess with. I'll buy organic fertilizer and some good topsoil from our co-op and prep the soil in the next couple of weeks...we had 32F temps again last night so I'm guessing we should wait to plant.

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Compost. Forget the fertilizer and just mix equal parts compost and topsoil. (In my world, topsoil is just that--whatever is in it is in it, but compost is rich and dark cooked up just for the richness is provides.)

*shoulda read ahead.
Karen

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Originally Posted by tulip

I just cannot imagine NOT gardening. I guess that's why I became a landscape architect. Today I went to the local community garden. They were having a fundraising plant sale. I got two huge Russian sages, some oregano and thyme, some obedient plant (which is not obedient, and I'm hoping it will spread!), and some black-eyed Susans...all for $15, but I gave them $20 for their fundraising. I have a very sunny slope that I plan to pack with all sorts of perennials. I'm on a corner, so it'll really be wonderful for the whole street.

Then I went to the Habitat store and bought a couple of old storm windows for $2 each for my cold frame. I already have broccoli and collards growing in one bed, and a beautiful mix of lettuce interplanted with onions in the other bed. I have several other beds to build and plant, but that'll have to wait until after Cycle Zydeco next week. I've started seeds (tomatoes, peppers, all sorts of flowers), but it's still a bit cool to leave them out all night, so I set up a grow light in the basement. I have a mouse that likes to dig up the seeds down there, so I fashioned a frame that hopefully will keep the critter out.

My neighbors invited me over to thin out their amazing hostas, so now I have 41 hosta plants to fit somewhere in my yard! I planted a few in my side yard that I've done the most work in, and it's really looking great. The columbines are blooming, the heuchera is going wild, the Lily-of-the-Valley are poking up and the azaleas are in bud. I'll post a picture later on. It's really lovely.

Tomorrow I'll clean up the other side that I haven't touched since I bought the house last summer. It has beautiful azaleas that are just beginning to bloom, but it needs a bit of cleaning up.

It was just a great day spent outside doing one of the things I love most. It was pretty cool and misty all day...perfect!

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Okay, Ms. Landscape Architect...how do you think hostas would do under the azaleas? I have a north facing house, and the only thing that grows there in the shade are the azaleas. Total shade! I would like to block the dogs from getting under them by planting hostas in a row in front of them. (They wouldn't actually block the dogs, but make the spot less fun to view the world from.) Do you think the hostas would get too big? The azaleas are 3-4 feet high.

Karen

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Originally Posted by Pax

.the nice 84 year old lady helping at the farm store told us not to bother with buying herb plants but to go ahead and plant seeds in a couple of weeks, because there's still plenty of time for them to sprout this year. Does that sound right to you gardeners??

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Depends on the herbs.

Basil, cilantro, borage, dill, definitely yes. Shiso (perilla), yes, but plant way more than you want, because it's notoriously difficult to germinate (the seeds need both light and moisture).

Parsley, if I'm not going to be home in time to start seeds indoors, I usually buy one or two plants in addition to direct seeding some more, because it takes a while to grow big enough to harvest (around two weeks just to germinate).

Perennial herbs (rosemary, thyme, tarragon, sage, oregano, lavender) I've always bought as plants. I'm not sure how long they take to get established enough to harvest, but perennials generally tend not to grow as vigorously as annuals in their first few months. (Actually my lavender will be in its third year this year and I MIGHT get to harvest some. So I guess I may as well have started it from seed. :rolleyes:)

If you're planting mint, plant it in a confined space, because it will take over everything. Oregano and lemon balm have similar habits but are a little easier to control.

You might want to put your perennials in a separate patch if you want to turn your garden under every year. There are pros and cons to doing that...

What herbs are you planning?

We're planning on planting basil, cilantro (lots!), dill, rosemary, and chives. And one cherry tomato plant. I know it sounds like a tiny garden but we wanted to start small and see how we do. :)

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Originally Posted by Tuckervill

Compost. Forget the fertilizer and just mix equal parts compost and topsoil. (In my world, topsoil is just that--whatever is in it is in it, but compost is rich and dark cooked up just for the richness is provides.)

*shoulda read ahead.
Karen

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Does it ever seem funny that we buy food, and since "good cooking is very wasteful" as one of the chefs I worked with said so we we pay someone to come by and get the scraps and turn into compost and then we pay for compost. :rolleyes:

Why not grow your own and turn the salad trimmings to compost? ;)

Tucker--I can't quite picture your scenario. Do the dogs view the world from the azaleas and dig a hole as a viewing platform? Most azaleas have branches very low, so I can't see how hostas would grow underneath them and still be visible. If you are talking about in front of the azaleas, then I think they would do fine, unless the dogs decided to hang out there anyways. Hostas go dormant in the winter and disappear. Mine are coming up now; my neighbor's are already up because she gets more sun than I do. If the dogs hang out on top of the hostas when they are delicate and poking up, they will get damaged and won't look too good.

There are other good shade plants, too, and lots of them. Ferns, native columbine, heuchera, tiarella, Solomon's seal, brunera, astilbe, hellebore, wild ginger, caladiums, bleeding heart, euphorbia, yellow (native) foxglove, wood poppy, pachysandra, hydrangea, trilliums, mayapples, mosses...

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Originally Posted by Trek420

Does it ever seem funny that we buy food, and since "good cooking is very wasteful" as one of the chefs I worked with said so we we pay someone to come by and get the scraps and turn into compost and then we pay for compost. :rolleyes:
Why not grow your own and turn the salad trimmings to compost? ;)

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Yes! And that's exactly why I bought a heap o' special species composting worms and a cool 5 tiered worm bin and just finished setting up my vermicomposting bin in my kitchen this past week! They'll be thriving on all our kitchen scraps and even on shredded scrap paper and cardboard too. See lots of gross worm pictures here!:
http://strumelia.blogspot.com/ :D :D :D
My 2000 eisenia fetida worms (2 lbs' worth of wrigglers) are doing really well so far, plowing through their bedding like mad and getting used to their 'new digs' (ha ha).
I'm having so much fun with it! And the 'end result' :rolleyes: will be incredibly rich earthworm castings fertilizer for my tomatoes and chard and stringbeans. :p

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Originally Posted by Tuckervill

Compost. Forget the fertilizer and just mix equal parts compost and topsoil. (In my world, topsoil is just that--whatever is in it is in it, but compost is rich and dark cooked up just for the richness is provides.)

*shoulda read ahead.
Karen

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One of the rare pleasures of living in Central IL is the soil, it's deep rich black soil. I'll add in some compost just in case the previous owners ornamental gardening has depleted the soil.

It's weird, I know NOTHING about gardening but I know lots about prepping a farm field for planting...it seems similar in many ways, only I don't want to grow corn or soybeans in my herb garden. :p

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Originally Posted by tulip

Tucker--I can't quite picture your scenario. Do the dogs view the world from the azaleas and dig a hole as a viewing platform? Most azaleas have branches very low, so I can't see how hostas would grow underneath them and still be visible. If you are talking about in front of the azaleas, then I think they would do fine, unless the dogs decided to hang out there anyways. Hostas go dormant in the winter and disappear. Mine are coming up now; my neighbor's are already up because she gets more sun than I do. If the dogs hang out on top of the hostas when they are delicate and poking up, they will get damaged and won't look too good.

There are other good shade plants, too, and lots of them. Ferns, native columbine, heuchera, tiarella, Solomon's seal, brunera, astilbe, hellebore, wild ginger, caladiums, bleeding heart, euphorbia, yellow (native) foxglove, wood poppy, pachysandra, hydrangea, trilliums, mayapples, mosses...

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Yep, they've built nests under and behind the azaleas right up to the foundation. :eek: They like the shade back there and I'm sure the foundation on the north side is a relative cool spot on a hot day. It is incredibly cute to see a little nose sticking out between the branches and then a doggie stretching out of his nap as he comes to greet you at the gate. But it's not good for my house or the azaleas!

The hostas would be in front of the azaleas. I guess I was thinking the hostas might look out of place at the end of the season if they got huge like my other hostas do. The dogs only dig in the hot summer time, and I think if the hostas were there all filled out, they wouldn't find it as interesting. They tend not to dig under there when I remember/have time to mulch heavily underneath, but they are home more than I am and take advantage! I also throw their poop under there and it keeps them away for a while, but then it's just one more thing I have to remember.

I'll look up that list and see what works. Thanks!

Karen

We have been very successful in using a product called Deer Scram to keep deer and other animals from eating our hostas. It is 23% dried blood, along with some pepper and garlic. It doesn't smell, but it keeps the animals away, without being harmful. You can get it at gardening stores or farms.

Tucker, I'm not sure why it's not good for your foundation except when it rains and water settles in the dog nest and then into your foundation. Is that the case? Are the azaleas suffering because of the dogs? I can imagine the soil compacting, but that's about it. You might want to consider temporarily fencing that part off to keep the dogs out while you provide them a more attractive (to them, and to you) place to get out of the sun. Hostas might work, but the dogs gotta cool off somewhere, and they might just move to another undesirable (to you) spot and you'll have the same problem in another place.

Mulching is very good for the plants (azaleas and hostas, both), conserves water, and keeps the dogs out in your case. It's worth doing twice a year; and maybe once in the summer if the dogs get in there again.

The stupid dogs can go INSIDE to the a/c whenever they want! I don't understand why they insist on going under there and digging holes. The roots of the azaleas are exposed in some places. I'm sure they like to just be outside some, but I'm always amazed when I come home and they're panting in the shade when they can just go in the doggie door and have the run of the house.

My house is a really old house (<112) and it has a rock foundation that was skimmed with concrete at some point, and then someone built a flat concrete apron around the foundation, about 18 inches wide. That's the part of the foundation that they are digging under. I just really don't want them to do that. Eventually they could allow water to seep under.

Karen

I understand now--they are digging into the foundation and the roots, not just making a bare dirt spot. Yeah, it's a problem. Is there another place that they could adopt, with a little encouragement, mulch, hostas, and fencing, of course?

Inside it might be cool, but there aren't all those sounds and smells that make life interesting for a dog.

A question about fencing for my little herb garden...we have about 9,000,000 squirrels per block here, should I build a little fence with a lid to keep those furry rats out??