The weather improved so much that the kale was planted without provisions for covering it. The covered row has been uncovered for a week. A few cabbage, broccoli, and pak choy plants are being hardened off for next weekend. Onions will go in at the same time. Hopefully the pak choy and cabbage will be ready to plant by the time the later plants go in and the space can be used by pepper, egg plant or tomato plants.
I have always hardened off plants going into the ground, but I never really understood the benefits until this week. While studying for the vegetable part of the Master Gardener® program, I read that it makes the stems thicker. When comparing the cabbage plants that are being hardened with the plants in the greenhouse this was verified.
Almost all of the initial planting of basil died after germination. They were replanted this weekend and have already sprouted. It seems they were planted too thickly this time and will need to be thinned. Let’s see how many survive first.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
I’m No Groundhog (again)
Last year Paxatawny Phil and I disagreed. I was right. This year we agreed. Neither one of us saw his shadow. Sir Walter Wally, in Raleigh NC saw his shadow and went back in his hole. It may be wishful thinking, but I feel spring in my blood. Good Friday is not until April 22 this year so that would call for a late spring.
Almost everything in the greenhouse has germinated. Even a few of the ghost peppers and cherry peppers have come up. The new greens that were planted under plastic have come up as well. They are mighty tiny, but they should grow fast. The spinach has been fairly productive and the mesclun is almost ready to pick again. It has not been harvested since the hard freeze.
If the weather is not too un-cooperative, another bed will be covered with plastic this weekend and collards, kale and onions will go into the ground. The bed for the greens did not quite collapse with the rain, but it is damaged and will require repairs. It should have been opened up yesterday.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Almost everything in the greenhouse has germinated. Even a few of the ghost peppers and cherry peppers have come up. The new greens that were planted under plastic have come up as well. They are mighty tiny, but they should grow fast. The spinach has been fairly productive and the mesclun is almost ready to pick again. It has not been harvested since the hard freeze.
If the weather is not too un-cooperative, another bed will be covered with plastic this weekend and collards, kale and onions will go into the ground. The bed for the greens did not quite collapse with the rain, but it is damaged and will require repairs. It should have been opened up yesterday.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Thursday, February 3, 2011
The Purpose of Fruits
Fruits are the product of plant sex. Their purpose of fruits is to disseminate the plant’s seed. The fleshy fruits do this by getting eaten or at least distributed by animals. The season determines the type of fruit that is designed to take advantage of the prevailing circumstances. Summer fruits are soft and sugary. They flavor attracts their carrier. The seeds are either large enough that they can’t be easily swallowed or small and hard enough to pass through the digestive system.
Fall fruits are nutritious. Animals use these fruits to put on fat before hibernation or they store them for the winter. Many of the stored fruits are lost. Winter fruits are hard and not very tasty. The animals eat them only as a last resort. Therefore the fruits hang around all winter and frequently fall close to the mama plant. The ones that are distributed come up in a wide range.
Plants grown from seeds are not always true to their ancestry. Many fruit trees are grafted onto strong localized root stock. The plant resulting from the seeds may not be hardy enough to withstand the rigors of local conditions.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Fall fruits are nutritious. Animals use these fruits to put on fat before hibernation or they store them for the winter. Many of the stored fruits are lost. Winter fruits are hard and not very tasty. The animals eat them only as a last resort. Therefore the fruits hang around all winter and frequently fall close to the mama plant. The ones that are distributed come up in a wide range.
Plants grown from seeds are not always true to their ancestry. Many fruit trees are grafted onto strong localized root stock. The plant resulting from the seeds may not be hardy enough to withstand the rigors of local conditions.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Dispersing Seeds
Dr. Mellichamp also talked about the way plants propagate. The organs that mean most to gardeners are the ovaries, which become fruit and the ovules which become seeds; but for those who save seeds, the entire process is pretty important. Dry fruits, such as nuts and dandelions, are disbursed by animals or wind. Fleshy fruits are disbursed almost entirely by animals. That includes us of course.
The wind borne seeds usually have to be saved by tying a bag or something over the seed head to catch the little seeds. It would not be too good to let the arugula choose where it wishes to be planted. The nuts are distributed by squirrels and birds. Dr. Mellichamp said that the acorns were designed by the willow oak tree to be distributed by blue jays. Those acorns are just the right size and shape to fit into the blue jays beak and on occasion fall out. The blue jay goes back to the tree to get another rather than look on the ground for the one that was dropped.
The dry seeds are usually in an inedible case so the seed is the only thing that is eaten. The fleshy fruits are usually in a case that serves as an enticement to some carrier to plant the seed somewhere. The single seed fruits, like cherries, are called drupes. The multi-seed fruits, like tomatoes, are called berries.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
The wind borne seeds usually have to be saved by tying a bag or something over the seed head to catch the little seeds. It would not be too good to let the arugula choose where it wishes to be planted. The nuts are distributed by squirrels and birds. Dr. Mellichamp said that the acorns were designed by the willow oak tree to be distributed by blue jays. Those acorns are just the right size and shape to fit into the blue jays beak and on occasion fall out. The blue jay goes back to the tree to get another rather than look on the ground for the one that was dropped.
The dry seeds are usually in an inedible case so the seed is the only thing that is eaten. The fleshy fruits are usually in a case that serves as an enticement to some carrier to plant the seed somewhere. The single seed fruits, like cherries, are called drupes. The multi-seed fruits, like tomatoes, are called berries.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Master Gardener (Day 2 and 3)
Monday and today the classes were on Botany and were conducted at UNCC. The class Monday dealt mostly with the parts of plants and how to identify plants by their parts. Today (Wed) we learned about the naming of plants. The first name is the “Genus”. The second name is the “species”. These two names are specific for each plant and can help avoid the confusion sometimes present with common names.
Only wild plants have a distinct species name. Garden plants are mostly “cultivars”. The important thing about cultivars is that they have been either bred or selected for certain advantages. Most cultivars could not exist in the wild because they need someone (a gardener) to take care of them. It is critical that the gardener choose the proper cultivar.
One of the tools gardeners have for choosing the correct cultivar is the zone map. The zone map is based on minimum temperatures. This is why the seed catalogs list the plants as suitable for zone 3-6 or 4-8. The cultivar chosen is based on cold hardiness and heat tolerance. Rainfall and soil type is also important, but that is indicated in the zone maps.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Only wild plants have a distinct species name. Garden plants are mostly “cultivars”. The important thing about cultivars is that they have been either bred or selected for certain advantages. Most cultivars could not exist in the wild because they need someone (a gardener) to take care of them. It is critical that the gardener choose the proper cultivar.
One of the tools gardeners have for choosing the correct cultivar is the zone map. The zone map is based on minimum temperatures. This is why the seed catalogs list the plants as suitable for zone 3-6 or 4-8. The cultivar chosen is based on cold hardiness and heat tolerance. Rainfall and soil type is also important, but that is indicated in the zone maps.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Friday, January 21, 2011
Master Gardener Day 1
The day before yesterday (1/19) was the 1st class for Master Gardener. It was primarily orientation so nothing was learned about gardening, only about the program and the co-operative service. We did get to meet each other. The next class will be on botany and will take place at UNCC. That should be very informative.
A bunch more stuff sprouted in the greenhouse. There are now a lot more plants under the lights than in the “incubators”. The decision time is coming close about culling some of the little plants that don’t look so healthy or a few that are obviously dead. The reason for reluctance is that there were several seeds put into each cup and maybe there are un-sprouted seeds hanging around.
The warmer temperatures have made the garden more enticing. Maybe this weekend there will be an opportunity to replant the greens and rework any un-refreshed beds. The old turnips and mustard still need to be pulled off.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
A bunch more stuff sprouted in the greenhouse. There are now a lot more plants under the lights than in the “incubators”. The decision time is coming close about culling some of the little plants that don’t look so healthy or a few that are obviously dead. The reason for reluctance is that there were several seeds put into each cup and maybe there are un-sprouted seeds hanging around.
The warmer temperatures have made the garden more enticing. Maybe this weekend there will be an opportunity to replant the greens and rework any un-refreshed beds. The old turnips and mustard still need to be pulled off.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
Thursday, January 20, 2011
So Much for Resolutions
There is no way that there will be 15 posts this month. I will try to do better next month. The snow kept me out of the garden for the most part, but the greenhouse is doing well. The “new regime” seems to be keeping more of the plants alive and healthy. There was an organic liquid fertilizer in a spray bottle that attaches to the hose at Home Depot. It makes a really nice spray. At first the spray seemed too heavy. The water pressure was turned down and it got worse. The pressure was turned all the way up and by standing back from the plants a nice sprinkle was achieved.
The snow seemed to perk up some of the things in the garden. Others are just beyond hope. They are now in the compost pile. New seeds have been purchased along with a roll of 1.5 mil polyethylene. 2 raised beds will be converted to tunnels so that they can be covered on extremely cold nights.
The greenhouse is filled to capacity with sprouted and un-sprouted plants. The cabbage, broccoli and pak choy can possibly be transferred to the garden once the tunnels are finished. They would normally be planted outside in mid-February anyway.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
The snow seemed to perk up some of the things in the garden. Others are just beyond hope. They are now in the compost pile. New seeds have been purchased along with a roll of 1.5 mil polyethylene. 2 raised beds will be converted to tunnels so that they can be covered on extremely cold nights.
The greenhouse is filled to capacity with sprouted and un-sprouted plants. The cabbage, broccoli and pak choy can possibly be transferred to the garden once the tunnels are finished. They would normally be planted outside in mid-February anyway.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/
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