Garden Pictures
I keep getting requests for pictures of my garden. This is a time of transition in the garden, so the pictures are not all flattering. The grapes are a little shabby. The spaghetti squash is on its deathbed. The squash are really looking rough. Even the asparagus ferns are starting to brown out a little. The watermelon fence is still happy as are the tomatoes and peppers. The fall crops are just starting to peek out of the ground. The Kale is getting leggy; but is still producing strongly.


David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Michael Swol’s Jalapeño Poppers

Cut top off of pepper and remove seeds. Cook and crumble one hot Italian sausage. Bring some cream cheese to room temperature. Mix sausage and cream cheese and stuff into pepper. Cut some bacon strips in half. Wrap the bacon around the Jalapeño so that it covers the top. Hold together with a toothpick and broil or grill. I tasted one and it was delicious. It was a little hot for me; but not too bad.

The spinach and chard that was planted weekend before last has not come up. The mesclun and arugula planted in the raised bed have sprouted. So have the turnips and mustard. I’m thinking I should plant some kale too. We are still getting plenty; but I expect it to bolt soon.

It has been raining in Charlotte quite a bit; but my yard seems to have an umbrella over it. I finally got some rain yesterday (8/20). It soaked the ground pretty deep. Plants seem to respond better to rain than irrigation. The tomatoes really appreciated the rain and the demonstrated that by being numerous and tasty. All but one or two plants this year are Marglobe or Celebrity. They have more flavor than the new hybrids.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Fall Garden is Planted

Last weekend the Chard and Spinach went in. Everything else had to wait. This Saturday I built a new 12’ X 3’ raised bed. I was not double dug. The whole empty part of the garden was tilled deep. The box was built on top of the ground and about 6” of compost was put in. Then the surrounding loose dirt from the pathways was used to top out the bed.

The new raised bed was planted with Arugula and Mesclun mix. Tokyo cross turnips and curly mustard were planted in regular rows. The Brussels sprouts are still producing. I did not bother the replant them. The broccoli from spring is still healthy; but not producing broccoli. The yield was so low the broccoli may not be worth the trouble. It may produce some more.

The tomatoes are finally getting ripe and there are 5 spaghetti squash on the vine. We ate one early in the season and had one last night. These things really make a lot of spaghetti. Powdery mildew has raised it’s ugly head; so all of the cucurbits got a good dose of sulfur yesterday. I have the wood to make another raised bed; but the compost isn’t ready. Maybe later.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

New Link

While researching the last article, I found a really informative link http://www.freeplants.com . Not only does this site have a lot of great information, it allows the reader to subscribe to a free gardening newsletter and to download a free gardening book. There is a great recipe for potting soil for people who need a lot of it. There is also a lot of information on propagating different plants. The owner of the site Bob McGroaty has a home based business propagating plants and selling them in his front yard. I am sure he makes good money at it; but it seems to me he is doing it for fun more than money.

Fun is what gardening is all about anyway. I know I could go to the farmers market and get almost everything cheaper than I can grow it. The garden is still cheaper than a shrink however. I save money on therapy. The greenhouse gives me off-season therapy and this blog allows me to take a break during the work day. An occasional home grown vegetable is just a really big bonus.

Another major bonus is being able to give stuff away. I love to take greens to the tellers at the bank. I bring hot peppers to everyone who likes them because we don’t eat them at home. I just plant them to fool the deer into leaving my bell peppers alone. (It doesn’t work by the way; but it has become a habit.)

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Propagating Blackberries and Asparagus

I have friends who have asked for some blackberry and asparagus plants. Having done a little research on both and having planted both successfully this is the method I will use. If my camera comes back from the repair facility in time I will document the processes. First the Blackberries.

Blackberries are virtually impossible to get rid of. My wife does not like them so I am going to dig all of the healthy plants and give them away. If you want some let me know. The first step is to wait for them to go dormant in the winter. Then all of the canes will be cut about 2” from the ground. This is not necessary and will prevent berries from forming the 1st year. It will make the plants easier to handle and if any of them need to be shipped, this step is essential. Next the plants will be dug at least 6” deep and the soil will be shaken from the roots. The recipient will soak the roots overnite in water and plant in rich, crumbly, acid soil. The best way is to dig a hole and fill it with compost and water and set the plant in there. The plant should be planted to the same level as it was before. They will be marked as they are removed from the ground. A blackberry bed can be expanded using this same method.

Asparagus can be propagated in two ways. They can be started from seed or the crowns can be divided. My plants are only 3 years old; so I do not wish to divide the crowns. I am picking seeds just before they fall. The seeds will be planted 1/2 “ deep in very loose rich soil this spring. Very early the next spring or late in the winter the crowns will be dug and replanted. Asparagus should be planted in a permanent location as they come back every year. Make a bed with very loose soil 2’ deep. Dig a v shaped trench 1’ deep. Spread the roots at the bottom of the trench and cover the crowns so that they barely show above the top of the soil. As the sprigs grow cover them almost completely with loose soil or compost. Asparagus are very heavy feeders. Don’t cut them at all the 1st year. Cut them for 4 weeks only the second year. After that they can be cut through the end of June.


David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

The Glory of Dirt

After weeks the tiller finally came home with a new cable. It worked for about 5 minutes. Finally duct tape to the rescue and the dirt was flying. The soil was pretty dry. I did not apply the meter; because this was unplanted ground. Even where there was a cover of mulch the ground pulverized easily. If it is not too hot this afternoon, the new raised bed will be built.

A trip to Renfrow’s wonderful store yielded seeds for mesclun mix, arugula, spinach, Tokyo cross hybrid turnips, curly mustard, kale and chard. The spinach and the chard were planted Sunday morning. The late crop cucumbers are starting to run so they got a good dose of compost. Powdery mildew has raised it’s ugly head. The sulfur mix has done better than the baking soda did so this afternoon, everything gets a dose of sulfur.

The first tomato was subjected to the taste test last night. It is perfect. Nothing can beat a really good home grown tomato. This was a marglobe and had a very high acid content, rich red flesh and a nice firm texture.

Michael Swol took some of the peppers I have been giving him and made some Jalapeño poppers wrapped with bacon. Awesome!!!

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Odds and Ends

Chris has been wondering what to do with all of the figs. He found a recipe for fig wine. Here is a link: http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/reques6.asp . Our figs are not ripening fast. We just get a few each day. I will only prune the branches that keep me from opening the greenhouse door this year. Maybe that will help. Speaking of pruning… The pruning that the deer gave to the tomatoes delayed production by a month. We picked the first tomato last weekend. The vines are totally loaded. The real test will be in how they taste.

The replanted cucumber vines are climbing and blooming. Hopefully they will be productive. Mesclun, Arugula and Chard will be planted for the fall this weekend. Maybe we will get a full salad from the garden yet. We could use kale; but it is a little strong for a full salad. It does make a great addition of two or three leaves though. The carrots are still doing well. The rabbits really like them. Potatoes are just not happy in my garden. The space they take will be dedicated to other things next year.

Our winters have been coming so late that a fall planting of squash may survive to produce a few fruits. The old plants are still producing; but they really look ragged. They might make good candidates for the new raised bed. The winter garden will also include mustard and turnip greens, carrots and beets, more kale and onions. The bunch type onions will be used for the fall/winter garden.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Finally Rain

We had a couple of frog stranglers at the end of the week and the earth is showing her appreciation. The grass is growing really fast. We even picked a tomato finally. The kale just keeps on keepin’ on and the squash is still producing. The watermelons and spaghetti squash are growing. Even a few figs are getting ripe. Chris has been kind enough to bless us with some of his abundance and my wife made some fig preserves.

She did not use Chris’ recipe because it had too much sugar. Ana used a ½ cup of sugar, the juice and some of the zest from a lemon and a stick of cinnamon. No butter. Her preserves were like those that our neighbor Ruby Owens used to make when I was a kid. They were wonderful. My wife thought they weren’t sweet enough so she opened all the jars (except for one that I made off with) and added more sugar. They are just ok now.

The vacant rows in the garden still have not been tilled. That has to happen this weekend. There is enough compost on hand to make a new raised bed. I hope that will happen too. The time is almost here to plant the fall garden.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Sugar Baby Watermelons

Having learned the lessons from last year the sugar babies are growing on a watermelon fence with a fine mesh (1”X1”) plastic material. There are quite a few nice melons developing. Another mistake made last year was not picking some of the melons early enough. This year each melon is being checked every few days. The BT is being used after every rain to keep the worms down. The watermelons were not big victims of the pickle worms last year; but why take a chance.

The BT (Bacillus Thuringienses) is apparently working on the other crops. I feel like I am using biological warfare. BT is a disease. Just call me Saddam. At least we are getting nice clean vegetables this year without resorting to noxious chemicals. The bugs (in the larval stage) won’t get sick if they don’t try to eat my vegetables. The pollinators are not harmed.

A big surprise this year has been the zucchini. Every year before, even if the rest of the garden is doing poorly, the zucchini is really prolific. This year we have had as much as we wanted; but no excess. The peppers are doing better than usual. I think it is something I learned from Michael and Ray. The pepper plants received no compost until they bloomed. Then, it was loaded on heavily.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/