How's your gardening going?

[nancyzl]

Hi everyone,
I do a lot of deck/container gardening since I have a rocky hill as
a back yard and deer like crazy. A good deer proof plant is hellebores,
or lenten rose. It starts blooming early, not spectacular but delicate
flowers , nice glossy leaves. Also the deer do not love ferns, Japanese
painted fern is one I've tried but I also spray it .
Another non-flower shrub is spirea which comes in many varieties.
I've also experimented w/ grasses which the deer don't eat and generally
take care of themselves and can be divided to save some $$.
Nancy

[rubyspirit]

I grow a vegetable garden each year. Major work! The other day I was weeding so long and hard (new patch of ground), I got a blister.

This year I planted three rows of corn. If you put them end to end, it would be at least a 1/4 mile! I've been busy.

Although I thought I might have planted the eggplant too soon, it is now thriving. Everything is in - potato, onion, okra, tomato, cukes, peppers, squash, watermelon, canteloupe, green beans, and carrots. My purple hull didn't sprout (?!bad seeds?!). I have a couple of strawberry plants, and hope to have grapes on the vine this year.

I'll try to add pictures this weekend.

[candi972]

To me gardening is like Yoga, very peaceful but also hard work. I have a great garden this year. Last year I waited too late to work on planting some area and the sun just made it impossible. This year I got an earlier start.

Currently I'm growing the following:

- I have a new cutting garden that I started with about 10 different types of flowering plants
- Collard greens
- Onions
- 3 types of bell peppers
- 2 types of tomatoes
- Cabbage
- Okra
- Black eye peas
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Lettuce
- Carrots
- 2 type of mint
- Lemon Balm

I'm an organic gardener so that makes gardening that much harder but so much more rewarding.

[KimberlyN]

I just carved out a new flower bed in a gravel covered area of my yard. Gravel is HEAVY! I moved about 33 cubic feet of it (although not very far). I definitely counted it as a workout.

Here are some before and after pictures: http://www.paulandkimberly.com/house...ravel_bed.html

[Gretzky]

I agree that gardening is like yoga with birds and bees!

I live in a brownstone in Brooklyn, which means that I have to haul everything through the house and out through the back and nothing is easy.... not pleasant when you need rocks and dirt. My friend and I rent a mini-van twice a year and drive out to Long Island to the nurseries and load up with mulch, soil, rocks and plants. Last year, I built a vegetable bed, and we had much to load and reorganize into the van after many stops. We figured out that after all the lifting and re-organizing and off-loading that we moved over 2,000 pounds!

And is there anything better than a long, hot shower after being covered in dirt and sweat and having to take your Aleve because you hurt so bad it feels so good, and your garden looks great??? I love Spring!

[amyzan]

We haven't gotten as much in the ground as we'd like yet: rhubarb, more asparagus, snow and sugar snap peas, parsley, cilantro, chives, lettuces and greens for the salad bowl, radishes, and parilla are in. I've got tomato, pepper, and a few eggplant starts waiting for a day the soil is dry enough to plant. It's been raining torrents, and still my basil seeds won't sprout. I'm not complaining--ever so grateful for rain here in dry Kansas. I want to plant okra, too, and when fall comes I'll hopefully get in more cool weather crops than I did this spring.

and you wouldn't want to see pics of this garden--I still have a tangle of tomato cages from last year right smack in the middle! Glad our neighbors aren't close enough to see that mess...

It's hard work, indeed, and sooo worth it! I made lasagna for dinner with the last of our frozen tomato sauce from last summer--absolutely delicious!

[FitBoop]

It sounds like everyone is getting a great gardening workout!

Thanks for the tips. The vegetable gardens must be so rewarding, especially knowing that everything is healthy and fresh.

Gretzky, I am so impressed with your garden in NYC. By the way, there's a NYC get-together in the works for the summer; hope you can come . We're trying to decide where to go and when (over at VFer News & Events). Please let us know if you have any suggestions.

[LynnO]

Well, I live on the plains, in our 5th or 6th year of drought, so its all a challenge.

I have a vegetable garden that is about 12 x 12 (or it might be 20x20, but its pretty big, relatively speaking) and so far I just planted peas, snap peas, lettuce, turnips and some greens. The tomatoes and a few peppers are ready to be planted, but its either wait until June or they have to be protected. I bought some materials for a cold frame type cover today (found some 20 dollar materials for 1 cent! at home depot). A couple non-treated 2x4s and I'm in business with my own little cloche. We can get hard frost and snow until June.

I did double dig the garden, so that was a workout. I have a huge amount of property (60 acres) but finding a place to actually grow things is hard. Our property is mainly grassy plains, with some very limited areas of good soil and some of gravel, or very alkaline clay. Plus I was actually surprised that 12 - 18 hours of scorching sun isn't a good thing. LOL

Any veggie gardens have to be rabbit fenced and still the prarie dogs burrow up under and into the garden. Not complaining, but it takes a lot of planning, money and work. So the hubby has to help out, and that is hit or miss. Also putting in a garden close enough to enjoy is more of a challenge than anticipated. But shasta dasies and bearded iris grow despite lack of organic matter and water.

Ackk, you got me started and I'm yacking. I did pick up some heirloom tomotoes and a couple raspberry bushes at the botanic garden sale today.

[Charlene]

I've got a container garden going on my balcony - three types of peppers, tomatoes, peas, one container of flowers, a few herbs, and if I get lucky with the seeds I planted, one or two cherry tomatoes and some more flowers - and maybe carrots . I will probably put in a round of romaine lettuce, too, but I need another pot and bag of soil.

For all those of you struggling with deer, an unconventional suggestion my extended family has had some success with: pee (or have someone else, i.e. a man ) around the borders of your garden. Deer pick up the scent and they understand territorial markings.

Fortunately for me, with the balcony, I just have to make sure the cat is out there enough to ward off the pigeons

Charlene

[funathome]

You THREAD timing is SO APPROPRIATE!!! HEE...HEE.....

We live in Military quarters.....so every 2 or 3 years I am "doing" something flower wisebc that is how often we move!!!

last Monday...I had to "reinstall" our 8 ft LONG trellis's in our back yard. Hurricaine Isabelle decided to make them the Leaning Towers of Trellis, here!).....Our quarters are "back to back" with our neighbor's so little privacy!.......any way...I had to "redig" the hole's in the ground, 4 of them... Now~ the post hole digger is 5 ft LONG/tall and I am 5 ft SHORT! so that in itself was a upper body work out!! I then had to lift the HEAVY 50 LB BAG of Quickkrete...THINKING ALL THE WHILE I am so glad that I have been doing Cathe PUB, JV and MR for upper body weights!!!

I "set" all the post with my 10 yr old DD help! then my neighbor helped me to HOLD the 8 ft LONG Trellis's so I could Drill them to the post!

The flower beds were already established brom the past 2 years...but had to WEED and then plant! I let the kids pick out so we have mainly "COLORS OF FLOWERS" and a variety! Mostly Yellow for 10 yr old DD, RED for 6 yr old DS and then Blue and Pink for 4 yr old DD....

Then up front I had to DIG up and divide my HUGE Hostas! they had just about taken over my front bed! all 4 of them! Do you know, I thought I would have to did to China! I ended up with the Largest kitchen KNIFE I COULD FIND to cut the ball/roots! Then still had to use the shovel to break and dig some more! GREAT Upper Body W.O.!! I planted white and red impatinets....and Blue Forget me knots!..NOW, DH says..."It is supposed to be RED, then White and then Blue!" WEELLLLL, any "gardener" who "see's" the flower bed, just KNOWs it looks better with the Hosta's, and heights of flowers, etc..... with Red Impatients, then blue Forget Me Nots and then the White Impatients with the Hostas behind them....

Thanks for letting me "rant" about all this...but Abbe~~ you are so right! Gardening is a W.O.!!!!!!!!

Amy
Who, after this summer will move again...and have another gardening bed to do again! I told DH,"Why, oh why do we always get the quarters with the abandonded yards?"..... God know's how much I love and enjoy taking care of my flower bed's!!