Forums: Gardening

Good morning gardeners. The end of August is approaching and the temperatures have moderated here in East Central Mississippi. Lows are in the mid 60’s with daytime highs in the high 80’s to 90 degrees. My garden is thriving in this weather. The sweet and hot peppers are abundant and the tomato plants are back in production mode. I think I will be removing my okra plants this week. They are huge and sprawling and over seven foot tall. They have to go so the sun can get to other plants. If you are a gardener or you are just...

Ron Hoskins has found a breed of the insect that protects itself against the parasite blamed for the alarming fall in numbers. The 79-year-old made the discovery after realising that one of his hives had far fewer deaths from the varroa mite than others. He found that the insects in that hive 'groomed' each other to get rid of the mites before they had the chance to do any harm. Now he is attempting to spread his mite-resistant breed of bees by cross-breeding them with queens from other hives. Decline: The UK's bee population had dropped by 60 per cent...

Good morning gardeners. Freeper tubebender submitted a request yesterday afternoon via FreepMail that we make one of our threads about the garden magazines, books and web sites we peruse to further our quest for the perfect Zucchini??? It is a great idea. How about we also add seed catalogs and where we get our recipes to the list also. Here a just a few web sites that I like to go to regularly: Mississippi State University Extension Service National Gardening Association Pick Your Own - Also Info On Canning, Freezing and Recipes All Recipes.com Brewing-Compost-Tea Vegetable Gardener finegardening.com Pruning Tomatoes

Good morning gardeners. Typical August weather has set in here in East Central Mississippi with days in the mid 90’s and nights in the mid 70’s. I have pears and a few figs maturing and being picked. My garden is still producing but just a little slower in this heat. This is typical for me. Daisyjane69 asked me to pass on a link to a weekly radio gardening show by a gardening expert in NE Ohio. It provides advice about vegetables, flowers, shrubs, trees, soil, watering, bugs, fertilizer, pruning, and EVERYTHING. At the link you can download the programs and...

Good morning gardeners. It has been extremely hot over a good portion of the southern U.S. this past week and the heat is expected last for another week or more. Freepers please stay safe when outside tending your gardens and keep yourselves well hydrated. Also your gardens may experience some drought stress, but over watering, as Freeper and Master Gardener Daisyjane89 has been warning us, can be equally devastating, especially when drainage is poor. Poorly drained, soggy soil conditions combined with hot weather can wipe out a plant in a matter of days. Water deeply and infrequently. If you are...

Good morning gardeners. Hopefully everyone has had some success with his or her garden this year. The Dog Days of summer are upon us and as summer comes full on we are now enjoying the fruit of our labor. If you are a gardener or you are just starting out and are in need of advice or just encouragement please feel free to join in and enjoy the friendly discussion. Our Freeper community is full of gardeners, each with varying interests and skill levels from Master Gardener to novice.

Packing foam now entering the marketplace is engineered from mushrooms and agricultural wasteA new packing material that grows itself is now appearing in shipped products across the country. The composite of inedible agricultural waste and mushroom roots is called Mycobond™, and its manufacture requires just one eighth the energy and one tenth the carbon dioxide of traditional foam packing material. And unlike most foam substitutes, when no longer useful, it makes great compost in the garden. The technology was the brainchild of two former Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute undergraduates, Gavin McIntyre and Eben Bayer, who founded Ecovative Design of Green Island,...

Has anyone seen the documentary "Mugabe and the White African?" I watched it last night after downloading it and it's brilliant. What do you think of it, if you've seen it?

Good morning gardeners. I hope all of you are doing well and your gardens are flourishing. I ran across a thread posted by FReeper Lorianne last night that I thought everyone might find interesting. It is about an enterprising 14-year-old young Lady from Michigan who is using her love for gardening and making a few dollars on the side. Link: A Michigan Teen Farms Her Backyard