How about a gardening thread?

[amogles]

It doesn't show well on the photos unfortunately, but the levaes are long and thin and covered in fine hair. The colour is a bit like sage.

[Emily161]

I'm sorry for the icky photo but does anyone know how to get rid of this? I have a dozen of these small ones in 1 vegetable pot, they do not seem to cause any damage to the plants but every time I see them I feel sick in my stomach, and I'm not sure if they make the plants unsafe for eating. Thank you.

[rakuen]

	Quote:	Emily161
	I'm sorry for the icky photo but does anyone know how to get rid of this? I have a dozen of these small ones in 1 vegetable pot, they do not seem to cause any damage to the plants but every time I see them I feel sick in my stomach, and I'm not sure if they make the plants unsafe for eating. Thank you.

Sounds like centipede eggs that overwintered in a moist part of your garden have hatched! Congrats!

Centipedes are harmless to your plants and definitely don't make veg unsafe to eat! In fact, centipedes are predatory - your new veg guardians are likely eating all the other (less scary looking) insects that would actually eat your vegetables (PS they also eat spiders ), so leave them alone

[omtatsat]

	Quote:	Emily161
	I'm sorry for the icky photo but does anyone know how to get rid of this? I have a dozen of these small ones in 1 vegetable pot, they do not seem to cause any damage to the plants but every time I see them I feel sick in my stomach, and I'm not sure if they make the plants unsafe for eating. Thank you.

Used to have these where I was living in India. They were sometimes 8 cm long and could also bite

[amogles]

	Quote:	rakuen
	Sounds like centipede eggs that overwintered in a moist part of your garden have hatched! Congrats! Centipedes are harmless to your plants and definitely don't make veg unsafe to eat! In fact, centipedes are predatory - your new veg guardians are likely eating all the other (less scary looking) insects that would actually eat your vegetables (PS they also eat spiders ), so leave them alone

Probably not from eggs. I guess they are juvenile or possibly even adult centipedes that have woken up from hibernation. They can live for several years, up to 5 years sometimes and they don't typically reach maturity or lay eggs until their second year. And yes, they are extremely valuable as they kill and eat many of the insects and other pests that will otherwise damage your vegetables, including mites and all sorts of larvae that lurk in the soil where you can't see them, and that are probably growing and multiplying as you read this. Centipedes are not poisonous to humans, at least not the species native to Switzerland.

So I'd leave them alone, or maybe even try to appreciate them. Fascinating little creatures.

[meloncollie]

A tip for wobbly-kneed gardeners:

Having thoroughly messed up my knee recently I thought I'd have to leave my garden to the winds of fate this spring - until a friend suggested roofer's knee pads.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KWA4H0S8&psc=1

These are from Amazon US, but similar knee protection pads can be bought at Hornbach, Arthur Weber, and likely most places selling work gear.

I find foam kneelers fiddly to use, as I have to keep moving the kneeler around and often forget until it's too late. Knee pads go with you, and don't get in the way in tight corners. The outer protective shell you get with construction work gear is a godsend.

Now I just need a sunny - or at least not rainy - day to get to work.

[omtatsat]

	Quote:	amogles
	Probably not from eggs. I guess they are juvenile or possibly even adult centipedes that have woken up from hibernation. They can live for several years, up to 5 years sometimes and they don't typically reach maturity or lay eggs until their second year. And yes, they are extremely valuable as they kill and eat many of the insects and other pests that will otherwise damage your vegetables, including mites and all sorts of larvae that lurk in the soil where you can't see them, and that are probably growing and multiplying as you read this. Centipedes are not poisonous to humans, at least not the species native to Switzerland. So I'd leave them alone, or maybe even try to appreciate them. Fascinating little creatures.

"Centipedes use a pair of hollow legs, adapted with claws, to bite into the skin. These pincer-like maxillipeds, also known as toxicognaths or "poison claws," are found under the first body segment and can also cause small puncture wounds and blisters when the centipede crawls across the skin. When a centipede bites (as opposed to stings), it injects venom into victims that is stored in internal glands. Although centipede bites may be painful, they are rarely fatal."

My first proper gardening year here (at my new home)!������ Been a busy bee recently! But most is ready now.

So far this year planted/growing are (ok ok , some plants are perennials��) :

Rhubarb, raspberries, sweetcorn, 2 different tomatoes, peperoncini, 2 kind of zucchini, red radishes, chervil, leeks, oak leaf salad, yellow and red Swiss chard, romaine lettuce, 2 diff. beetroot, beer radish, kohlrabi, celeriac, french beans, spring onions, several different mint plants, tarragon, majoram, lemon balm, savory, scarlet beebalm, oregano, 2 diff. parsley, chives, sage, dill, coriander, lemon verbena, borrage, strawberries, chamomille, melon, fennel, sweet peas, lavender, cucumbers,basil, Rosemary, lovage, nasturtitum, mini kiwi, thyme, lemon scented thyme, blueberries, juneberries...... and I still have some space for more������
Respectively, as soon as one plant is harvested, I'll sow/plant stuff that'll be ready for harvest in autumn or winter even. What we can't eat fresh, will be preserved one way or other, such as dehydrating, pickling, jams, syrup and so on.

I should get also a lot of wildflowers this year.

#beeandinsectfriendlygarden

Also set up again bird/bee/insect water bowls as well as 3 bee hotels�� for wild bees and other insects.

Unfortunately we have to get rid of the box trees�� we'll build a wooden fence with panels instead and I'll see to place climbing, flowering plants such ivy, clematis, roses etc along the new fence to make up for the loss of the box trees.

Have I told you yet, that I love gardening������

[DantesDame]

This rain should be settling in anything that hasn't already settled in

But at least our temps are staying above 10° C at night, so maybe the leaves that DO come out won't be tinged with frost after now.



Trying a few "new to me" veggies in the garden this year: celery, brussel sprouts, broccoli, and green beans. I always seem to do just a few plants of many different things, rather than the industrial mass plantings of my garden neighbors. Makes me feel like I'm doing it wrong, but fortunately, I don't care

[meloncollie]

	Quote:	DantesDame
	celery,

Speaking of celery...

I've been disappointed with my celery, as it usually tastes rather bitter, with a woodier texture. Pretty much like Swiss celery in the grocery stores. I had simply attributed the bitter taste to something unique in Swiss soils.

However I've been reading about blanching celery in the weeks before harvest, which might be what gives it the sweeter taste you find in 'foreign' celery.

About blanching celery:

https://gardeningknowhow.com/edible/...the-garden.htm

Have any of you experienced veggie gardeners done this? Does it indeed yield that crisp, sweet celery taste?

	Quote:	DantesDame
	This rain should be settling in anything that hasn't already settled in But at least our temps are staying above 10° C at night, so maybe the leaves that DO come out won't be tinged with frost after now. Trying a few "new to me" veggies in the garden this year: celery, brussel sprouts, broccoli, and green beans. I always seem to do just a few plants of many different things, rather than the industrial mass plantings of my garden neighbors. Makes me feel like I'm doing it wrong, but fortunately, I don't care

I am the same as you, hence the wide variety in my garden that I posted yesterday.

Brussels...... aaaaaahgggg, they'll be the death of me!! The first year we had them, we had quite a goid harvest, despite having to uproot/replant them twice (from bed in the ground, to pot to the new high rise beds) last year had them again after a two yr pause and despite looking well after them (they need lots of water and feed) only a handful of 'bulbs'...... wonder if it was the extremely hot summer we had....

[ladylou]

Hi everyone! I haven't been on in ages, will have to read back quite a bit to catch up! Hope everyones enjoying the summer so far. Glad the rain has taken over for a few days so i can catch up in the house again!
So i just had a question about garlic.. does anyone grow it? I put 6 pieces from my kitchen that were sprouting into a raised bed last year to experiment and nothing really came of them though they sprouted.. i thought i pulled them up but i guess not, as this year, in april maybe, i noticed something sprouting in that spot! They have grown this year. The greens were quit high this month and have suddenly fallen over. Does this mean they are ready to harvest? I pulled one up and the segments haven't developed..Its garlic alright! Can anyone offer any advice on what to do next? Will they mature underground? Can i harvest them?

On celery, i usually use a cutting from coop celery and grow mine in the kitchen over winter and then plant outside. The early stalks are usually quit sweet. My plant this year hasn't been used a great deal and is starting to flower now.. Im wondering also if i can leave it to flower, cut it back and will it take off again?? Anyone done this?

[DantesDame]

	Quote:	ladylou
	So i just had a question about garlic.. does anyone grow it? I put 6 pieces from my kitchen that were sprouting into a raised bed last year to experiment and nothing really came of them though they sprouted.. i thought i pulled them up but i guess not, as this year, in april maybe, i noticed something sprouting in that spot! They have grown this year. The greens were quit high this month and have suddenly fallen over. Does this mean they are ready to harvest? I pulled one up and the segments haven't developed..Its garlic alright! Can anyone offer any advice on what to do next? Will they mature underground? Can i harvest them?

This is my first time planting garlic, so I've recently read up on it

Apparently, you need to dig the bulbs up, not pull them. You probably left some behind last year and they grew. The "proper" timeline is:

October - plant bulbs
June (or when the stems turn brown) - dig up the bulbs

Be sure to let them dry somewhere shady and cool for at least two weeks. I'm about to go dig up mine - let's see if I know what I'm talking about

[DantesDame]

Confirming not to wait too long to harvest them! The stalks that had already turned completely brown had only rotten bulbs to dig up. The rest of the crop still had some green in the stalks and they looked much healthier

[meloncollie]

Oh the joys of hanging strawberries... and how I wish I had discovered this wonderful variety earlier!

For the first time ever I am not locked in a to-the-death struggle with slugs, nor do I need to be ever vigilant against Rainy Dark Side Rot, which in years past led to the loss of much of my strawberry crop. With hanging plants I'm actually harvesting all my berries!

Next year I'm ripping up the traditional bed and instead planting hanging strawberries in every nook and cranny.

Added bonus: A basket of hanging strawberries looks lovely, too. Decorative and useful. In my small garden, double duty is a must.

[DantesDame]

Nothing like inviting all of your workmates to the garden to kick you into gear! I spent the last two days getting things prepared and while I'm still not done (one is never done in the garden), I got a huge chunk of things out of the way...

- Summer pruning of all four trees
- Complete weeding and trimming of the front garden (the part that faces the public walkway)
- Trimming and tying up the raspberries
- Staking up the tomatoes
- Trimming the kiwi and grape vines
- Weeding, weeding, weeding...

A nice overview...


Grapes


Blackberries are just now starting to come in




Apples are coming in nicely


Raspberry bushes!








Taking advantage of the neighbor's new fence to shelter some sunflowers and gladiolas

Ants are eating my grass - the little fekers.

We moved last week into new place, nice, renovated, great .. We agreed/accepted that the garden was not in great shape, primarily the grass .. The gardener scarified everything, laid new seed, installed an automatic watering system and we agreed to care for it..
I'm noticing ants though, millions of them on the "grass" .. They are collecting the grass seed and taking it to their little holes. I've watered the holes and forked them but more just appear..

Anything I can do, short of properly digging them out? or pouring in molten lead? I'm not expecting a perfect lawn overnight but i'd like to see a little progress and not just grass seed going down ant holes.

Here's a pic

[meloncollie]

Need help from the tomato pros...

I have several different varieties of compact ('Balkon') tomatoes. Two should have grown to 60cm, one 40cm.

Those plants, three different varieties, are now pushing 150cm.

What gives?

At first I thought it was the unusually hot weather, but I have three other compact plants that stayed nice and tidy at 40cm. (These are yet another variety.)

All plants have had the same amount of water and fertilizer. The three giants are each in different spots, but one of them is in the same area as the well-behaved compacts. So unlikely to be due to a difference in sun, shade, etc.

All plants - well-behaved and rogue - have fruit.

Any idea why some of my compacts decide to go 'magic beanstalk'?

Any ideas or advice would be much appreciated.

[pilatus1]

	Quote:	John_H
	Ants are eating my grass - the little fekers. We moved last week into new place, nice, renovated, great .. We agreed/accepted that the garden was not in great shape, primarily the grass .. The gardener scarified everything, laid new seed, installed an automatic watering system and we agreed to care for it.. I'm noticing ants though, millions of them on the "grass" .. They are collecting the grass seed and taking it to their little holes. I've watered the holes and forked them but more just appear.. Anything I can do, short of properly digging them out? or pouring in molten lead? I'm not expecting a perfect lawn overnight but i'd like to see a little progress and not just grass seed going down ant holes. Here's a pic

Pour in boiling water, a few times a day, until you kill the queen off. If that doesn't work you could try insecticide or molten aluminum


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IGJ2jMZ-gaI

[Belgianmum]

	Quote:	John_H
	Ants are eating my grass - the little fekers. We moved last week into new place, nice, renovated, great .. We agreed/accepted that the garden was not in great shape, primarily the grass .. The gardener scarified everything, laid new seed, installed an automatic watering system and we agreed to care for it.. I'm noticing ants though, millions of them on the "grass" .. They are collecting the grass seed and taking it to their little holes. I've watered the holes and forked them but more just appear.. Anything I can do, short of properly digging them out? or pouring in molten lead? I'm not expecting a perfect lawn overnight but i'd like to see a little progress and not just grass seed going down ant holes. Here's a pic

Sprinkle ant powder all over the grass so they take it back to the nests and it kills them all. You will need quite a lot. Or there us one that you can dilute in water and pour on.
You can also put a few of the ant traps down which effectively does the same thing.

Boiling water will kill the grass and leave you with a very brown lawn. If the whole lawn is affected as seems to be the case you’ll never get rid of them using just boiling water and the lawn will turn into a hell of a mess.