GARDENING 2025!

[Weedygarden]

I've never explored growing an olive tree. I have a lemon tree in the greenhouse with a few lemons on it. I had a coffee tree but I think I killed it. I have a fig tree that was started with a single leaf that's doing great. Have wondered about an avocado tree. But never really thought about an olive tree.

Large pots that stay in the house during cooler times, and go out during the heat of the summer, or a nice greenhouse where you can keep them protected year round.

 

[RJ2019]

Large pots that stay in the house during cooler times, and go out during the heat of the summer, or a nice greenhouse where you can keep them protected year round.

I had to make an enormous effort to not go look at the citrus trees at Home Depot today, I saw them out front and thought they looked real nice.

 

[PopPopT]

Large pots that stay in the house during cooler times, and go out during the heat of the summer, or a nice greenhouse where you can keep them protected year round.

The large pots in the house thing is cumbersome. We don't have a lot of room in the house for plants nor do they tend to like it that well since our south-facing windows (the best for anything that loves light) don't typically provide enough light to keep things happy.

The greenhouse situation, though, I hope will improve over time. At least in my small one (16x24), I do have little areas under cover with a tiny heater, including my lemon tree, but would like to see if I can improve on that to the point where I can pretty much heat the whole thing. Not sure how best to do that without needing a winning lottery ticket and still be practical.

 

[joel]

Anyone have a Amazon Lily? I have two & one is in bloom.

Amazon Lily – Eucharis grandiflora​

Common Name: Amazon Lily
Botanical Name: Eucharis grandiflora, YOU-kar-is gran-di-FLO-ra
Decorative Life: 7-10 days.
Flower Color: White
Family Roots:

• Member of the Amaryllidaceae (amaryllis family).
• Native to Colombia and Peru.
• Related species include onion, Narcissus, Nerine, Zephyranthes.

Personality:

• Tubular flowers with flared petals and a central cup to 3 inches across occur in a cluster of 3-6 at stem end.
• Stems leafless, to 12-18 inches long.
• Plant is a herbaceous perennial from a bulb.
• Flowers have sweet fragrance.

Storage Specifics:
45-59 F, individual flowers stored dry in airtight boxes and misted with water.
Tidbits:

• From Greek “eu” (good) and “charis” (attraction), in reference to the blooms.
• The specific epithet name grandiflora means large flowers.
• Used in corsages and wedding arrangements.
• 
  
  
• https://www.calyxflowers.com/floral...5W4eHs49_7pLKCYT63jLpmYO7PKSuIbvhLpJEQIj4qfyk

 

[Weedygarden]

For those who live in cold regions but want to grow trees and other more tropical plants, this is an idea to keep the greenhouse warm enough for your tropical plants.

 

[joel]

For those who live in cold regions but want to grow trees and other more tropical plants, this is an idea to keep the greenhouse warm enough for your tropical plants.

View attachment 171411

They been doing this for hundreds of years, to heat bamboo floors in home also.
Reminds me of the rocket mass heater stove.

 

[elkhound]

They been doing this for hundreds of years, to heat bamboo floors in home also.
Reminds me of the rocket mass heater stove.

i done a thread on it here somewhere.

 

[elkhound]

i done a thread on it here somewhere.

https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/greenhouse-korean-style-heating.17320/


https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/ondol-flooring.11918/

 

[Smalltimefarmer]

Do you guys start onions from seed? This is the 2nd time I've tried without luck.

 

[Smalltimefarmer]

While the granddaughters may benefit from the mature walnut trees, my motivation is harvesting the nuts. I have two english walnut trees that are going on 7-8 years old. I have yet to harvest one nut! Walnuts don't happen fast.

Ben

I love walnuts, but they will mess with a garden. Juglone poisoning. I had to cut 3 and still have to plant the tomatoes in containers because the roots are still there

 

[Neb]

Do you guys start onions from seed? This is the 2nd time I've tried without luck.

I have mostly started onions from seeds with good results. I Start around 50 seeds in a 4x4 in pot on a heat mat under a dome.

Ben

 

[joel]

Do you guys start onions from seed? This is the 2nd time I've tried without luck.

It is hard to do, they are small & can be buried.
I like sets, but my B I L saves his own seeds & grows them by the thousands.
Carrots are hard to grow for the same reason.

 

[JustMe]

The large pots in the house thing is cumbersome. We don't have a lot of room in the house for plants nor do they tend to like it that well since our south-facing windows (the best for anything that loves light) don't typically provide enough light to keep things happy.

The greenhouse situation, though, I hope will improve over time. At least in my small one (16x24), I do have little areas under cover with a tiny heater, including my lemon tree, but would like to see if I can improve on that to the point where I can pretty much heat the whole thing. Not sure how best to do that without needing a winning lottery ticket and still be practical.

Have you tried passive solar type ideas?? Barrels of water warmed during the day that hold the heat thru the night? Same with rocks or concrete blocks? It would also depend on your area temps.

There is or was a YT channel called Swedish Homestead (I think that's what it was) that raised chickens inside their polytunnel type greenhouse. It's been years since I watched it, but IIRC they had done that just to keep the ground turned and fertilized, then would move the chickens to let it compost. Not sure if it was part of their video, but I would think the heat generated both from the chickens and then the hot compost would help keep the greenhouse warm......even in Sweden.


OK did a search and found they changed their channel name. I think this is the right video, maybe not.






I had bought a lemon and a lime tree this year. They are sitting outside, right next to the house on the deck facing east, for the same reasons as you mentioned......no room in the house. So they do have some protection and so far we've had a mild winter here in PNW. I am hoping they'll survive so I can plant them outside and this is my way of getting them used to it. So far, so good

 

[Magpie]

Saw this and thought it was useful - plant markers

 

[RJ2019]

Have you tried passive solar type ideas?? Barrels of water warmed during the day that hold the heat thru the night? Same with rocks or concrete blocks? It would also depend on your area temps.

There is or was a YT channel called Swedish Homestead (I think that's what it was) that raised chickens inside their polytunnel type greenhouse. It's been years since I watched it, but IIRC they had done that just to keep the ground turned and fertilized, then would move the chickens to let it compost. Not sure if it was part of their video, but I would think the heat generated both from the chickens and then the hot compost would help keep the greenhouse warm......even in Sweden.


OK did a search and found they changed their channel name. I think this is the right video, maybe not.






I had bought a lemon and a lime tree this year. They are sitting outside, right next to the house on the deck facing east, for the same reasons as you mentioned......no room in the house. So they do have some protection and so far we've had a mild winter here in PNW. I am hoping they'll survive so I can plant them outside and this is my way of getting them used to it. So far, so good

I did this and it was VERY stinky! Effective, though.

 

[RJ2019]

I pulled some of the peach seeds I was stratifying out of the produce drawer in my refrigerator this morning and I have germination! I'm excited to get these potted up when they get used to it being warmer.

 

[WVDragonlady]

Just ordered my veggies seeds I want to try growing this year.
Broccoli
Oak Leaf lettuce
Boston Butterhead lettuce ( I usually just go with the romaine and salad mixes)
Silver Slicer cucumber (its shape like normal cukes but a yellow color)
Bush green beans

I'm hoping my zucchini does good this year since I want to stock up on it in the freezer and I want to eat more of it this year. A number of years they've gotten hit with squash bugs

 

[Neb]

After over a month stratifying my first batch of garlic SEEDS is ready to plant.

The germination rate for garlic seeds is supposed to be low so I planted about 20 seeds in each pot hoping to get at least one plant in each pot.

Shooting for 25-30 unique varieties of garlic.

Ben

 

[RJ2019]

Just ordered my veggies seeds I want to try growing this year.
Broccoli
Oak Leaf lettuce
Boston Butterhead lettuce ( I usually just go with the romaine and salad mixes)
Silver Slicer cucumber (its shape like normal cukes but a yellow color)
Bush green beans

I'm hoping my zucchini does good this year since I want to stock up on it in the freezer and I want to eat more of it this year. A number of years they've gotten hit with squash bugs

Squash bugs are a huge problem in my garden too. So, last year, in a desperate hippie-dippie plan I contrived, I decided to just not grow any squashes! Starve the out! I won't know if it worked until this summer, though.
Besides succession planting and killing with fire, there isn't much you can do to control them. I certainly don't have the patience to hand-pick them off plants.

 

[poltiregist]

Neb, very cool!! I've never explored growing an olive tree. I have a lemon tree in the greenhouse with a few lemons on it. I had a coffee tree but I think I killed it. I have a fig tree that was started with a single leaf that's doing great. Have wondered about an avocado tree. But never really thought about an olive tree.

Step-son used to live in Scottsdale, AZ and I remember of walking around his neighborhood seeing lots of orange, lemon, grapefruit, and occasionally an olive tree.

Not sure the extent of protection it would have to have here in zone 7a, north-central Tennessee, probably similar to the lemon.

So many things to try, so little time.

Question- I bought a lemon tree at my local home depot store at 1/2 price as winter was upon us and they were dying from improper care . I have babied it back to health and plan to plant it outdoors next spring and build a green house around it for the next winter . How large a green house do I need to build to contain the lemon tree ?

 

[Neb]

Question- I bought a lemon tree at my local home depot store at 1/2 price as winter was upon us and they were dying from improper care . I have babied it back to health and plan to plant it outdoors next spring and build a green house around it for the next winter . How large a green house do I need to build to contain the lemon tree ?

I would say that is up to God and you. How you prune and train it.

Ben

 

[Amish Heart]

Just ordered my veggies seeds I want to try growing this year.
Broccoli
Oak Leaf lettuce
Boston Butterhead lettuce ( I usually just go with the romaine and salad mixes)
Silver Slicer cucumber (its shape like normal cukes but a yellow color)
Bush green beans

I'm hoping my zucchini does good this year since I want to stock up on it in the freezer and I want to eat more of it this year. A number of years they've gotten hit with squash bugs

Mine got hit bad, too, last year. I'm going to grow squash in another area entirely this year.

 

[Amish Heart]

Squash bugs are a huge problem in my garden too. So, last year, in a desperate hippie-dippie plan I contrived, I decided to just not grow any squashes! Starve the out! I won't know if it worked until this summer, though.
Besides succession planting and killing with fire, there isn't much you can do to control them. I certainly don't have the patience to hand-pick them off plants.

I even tried hand picking them off. Once they find you, forget it.

 

[RJ2019]

Question- I bought a lemon tree at my local home depot store at 1/2 price as winter was upon us and they were dying from improper care . I have babied it back to health and plan to plant it outdoors next spring and build a green house around it for the next winter . How large a green house do I need to build to contain the lemon tree ?

What kind of rootstock is it on, do you still have that info? The type of rootstock determines the full grown size of the tree. There is standard, Dwarf, and semi-dwarf. Most of the homeowner type trees from HD would likely be semi-dwarf or Dwarf. Although... if it's from seed there's no telling, citrus unlike many other types of tree fruit grows true to type from seed.

 

[poltiregist]

What kind of rootstock is it on, do you still have that info? The type of rootstock determines the full grown size of the tree. There is standard, Dwarf, and semi-dwarf. Most of the homeowner type trees from HD would likely be semi-dwarf or Dwarf. Although... if it's from seed there's no telling, citrus unlike many other types of tree fruit grows true to type from seed.

The type of lemon tree is unknown as there was not any identifying label except the one that said lemon . So I will hope and assume it is either dwarf or semi-dwarf and make my plans around that assumption . My fig trees , I enclosed with wire cages and filled with leaves for insulation for the winter , however they go dormant during the winter but it is obvious the lemon tree is evergreen so that strategy I don't believe would work for it , thus my green house plan .

 

[WVDragonlady]

I'm hoping to use diatomaceous earth sprinkled on before they get to the plant. Hopefully it'll be a deterrent.

 

[RJ2019]

I'm hoping to use diatomaceous earth sprinkled on before they get to the plant. Hopefully it'll be a deterrent.

They aren't soft-bodied insects so DE may not have an effect. Maybe they will deter the nymphs though. There aren't even many pesticides that are really effective for squash bugs, which makes dealing with them extremely challenging. Very few biolgical controls too. Squash bugs are a total IPM fail lol

 

[Pearl]

They aren't soft-bodied insects so DE may not have an effect. Maybe they will deter the nymphs though. There aren't even many pesticides that are really effective for squash bugs, which makes dealing with them extremely challenging. Very few biolgical controls too. Squash bugs are a total IPM fail lol

DE will get them in their nymph stage! Put it out early, it will kill them after the eggs hatch! Squash bugs also avoid Marigolds, plant them with the squash!

 

[RJ2019]

DE will get them in their nymph stage! Put it out early, it will kill them after the eggs hatch! Squash bugs also avoid Marigolds, plant them with the squash!

Sevin dust was relatively effective too, but I haven't used it in years now because of the effect is has on pollinators and the other good bugs.

 

[RJ2019]

UCANR info sheet on squash bugs
https://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74144.html