Worth's 2017 Accidental Garden.

[oakley]

We have had warm weather so i have the beer traps out. And food grade DE around the
hostas. I'm catching dozens of the tiny ones in the beer traps. Copper wire rings around
them as well.
In the garden, raised beds, i use copper strips on the top edge tacked on. I just need to
run some wire wool every Spring on it to clean off the wintery soot and grime and
re-charge it.

My Dad went out one morning with a salt shaker, (without permission), and salted
heavily the slugs and destroyed the entire bed of basil ruining the soil. (great Dad)
He did not just sprinkle, he took the top off and poured and so proud.
(not a gardener)

The Hostas are just bedding plantings in the shade...i get the slugs, then the deer have
a buffet at some point and who cares. Just don't want the buggers in my food beds.

A big chunk of soaking wet newspaper/cardboard works as they go under it as the sun rises to hide where they like it nice and damp...easy to discard...

I had some monster 4inchers in my worm bin last year. Disgusting.

Can't believe i eat some varieties prepared nicely...winkles in the shell.

[Gardeneer]

Whats happening, Worth ? How are your okra doing ? Mine are growing second pair of true leaves.
My corn is almost 2 ft tall. Beans growing at their foot. Cukes are vining so are watermelons (Sugar Babies )
OH! How could I forget the project Snails.

[Worth1]

Tomorrow I am going to fertilize more and water.
Today was the day I was going to do it but the phine break down had ne tied up.
I have to have that darn phone for work.

[bower]

Best trap for slugs is a hollowed out turnip or better yet, a melon or watermelon rind turned upsidedown. Put the trap out in the evening, collect in the morning and drown the suckers. It is easier and more effective than saucers of beer. Bigger slab of melon rind is best for trapping, cw thin slices so eat your melons hearty!
Trust me, I'm living in slug heaven here.

We also use a product called Slug B Gone, there are a couple on the market same thing, it's an iron compound harmless to garden or pets but will kill Mr. Slug alright. Worked great at the farm, not so impressed with the performance here and in my greenhouse especially, the year they were hiding in the containers and chewing on tomatoes at night. Some brands may work better than others?? It's good for tossing on the ground in a row of veggies. Really kept them off greens at the farm.
PS. Saucer of beer, anyone?

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by Worth1

Tomorrow I am going to fertilize more and water.
Today was the day I was going to do it but the phine break down had ne tied up.
I have to have that darn phone for work.

No you reminded me to water and fertilize mine also. I have not water anything since last Monday/Tuesday's 5 to 7" rain. Too much rain also takes some of the nutrients away.

[Worth1]

Just scored a medium sized role of new chain link fence off the job.
The GC was clearing out the job connex.
You don't have to tell me twice.
It will make a nice material to grow vines on.
Worth

[Worth1]

I have a mysterious cucumber vine growing in the middle of the Okra I have no idea how it got there or what it is.
All I can say is I was watering and thought what is that thing it has tendrils.
Or I have a vining okra plant.
Which would be way cool.

Worth

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by Worth1

I have a mysterious cucumber vine growing in the middle of the Okra I have no idea how it got there or what it is.
All I can say is I was watering and thought what is that thing it has tendrils.
Or I have a vining okra plant.
Which would be way cool.

Worth

Volunteer Cucumber is very unlikely. Unless you dropped the seed without knowing.
Maybe it is squash or melon.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Gardeneer

Volunteer Cucumber is very unlikely. Unless you dropped the seed without knowing.
Maybe it is squash or melon.

No it is a cucumber some how a seed I was planting ended up there.
It may be an Armenian cucumber because that is the only cucumber seeds that were any place close to that area,
The snails took all of them out where I planted them.

As for volunteer cucumbers I have them almost every year.
If it weren't for them I wouldn't have had cucumbers last year.
They came up from a huge yellow cucumber I put in the compost pile next to the raised beds the summer before.
Market more 76 is what is was.

Out in west Texas and in some places around here we have what is called a pie melon.
I have no idea what cultivar it is.
It looks like a wee watermelon.
The only way they continue on is by way of volunteers.
They are wild.


Worth

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by Worth1

Out in west Texas and in some places around here we have what is called a pie melon.
I have no idea what cultivar it is.
It looks like a wee watermelon.
The only way they continue on is by way of volunteers.
They are wild.


Worth

cool. Can you not harvest the seeds and grow them? or are they that adapted to specific climates/ conditions?

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by clkeiper

cool. Can you not harvest the seeds and grow them? or are they that adapted to specific climates/ conditions?

I could I f I could find one again.
The last time I saw one was in a creek in Austin.
we also have wild little vine that puts on wee lillte melons that grows around here.
I haven't seen one in a while.
It needs a mother plant like a tree to grow on.
The name of it escapes me but the fruit is striped and orange to red when mature.
I have no idea if it is edible but probably is.
Balsam gourd Texas globe berry snake apple AKA Ibervillea Lindheimeri.

[Worth1]

Fruit set on mortgage lifter.
Worth

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by Worth1

No it is a cucumber some how a seed I was planting ended up there.
It may be an Armenian cucumber because that is the only cucumber seeds that were any place close to that area,
The snails took all of them out where I planted them.

As for volunteer cucumbers I have them almost every year.
If it weren't for them I wouldn't have had cucumbers last year.
They came up from a huge yellow cucumber I put in the compost pile next to the raised beds the summer before.
Market more 76 is what is was.

Out in west Texas and in some places around here we have what is called a pie melon.
I have no idea what cultivar it is.
It looks like a wee watermelon.
The only way they continue on is by way of volunteers.
They are wild.

As for volunteer cucumbers I have them almost every year.
If it weren't for them I wouldn't have had cucumbers last year.
They came up from a huge yellow cucumber I put in the compost pile next to the raised beds the summer before.
Market more 76 is what is was.

Yeah, if you neglect your cucumber and it becomes seed cucumber and you compost tem than you can have volunteer cucumber. But you can never have a volunteer cucumber from kitchen/table scraps.

Now, talking cukes, I have 2 kinds. One is kinda pickling size and the other is Market More. They have vines about 10 -12 inches but still standing up. I have plenty of room for them to run. I have grown Armenian cucumber few times. Technically it is some kind of melon, not really a cucumber.

[AlittleSalt]

Originally Posted by Worth1

Fruit set on mortgage lifter.
Worth

When I was watering this evening after the cold front came through without rain - I noticed many plants with tomatoes on them. That surprised me being that it is still April. I'm thinking Sweet Million might be the first to ripen, but time will tell.

[Worth1]

At the end of the plants life like cucumbers and okra I always let then get mature so I can save seeds or what ever.
One year I harvested close to a gallon of okra seeds.
Cucumbers absolutely suck anytime the seeds start to get hard or anything close to it.
Worth