NFR 2025 Gardening Growing Thread

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

Yeah overdue starting a new thread. Not much news other than i have dug up all our begonia bulb and put in the greenhouse . Raked swept the balance of leaves . Digging another yard of my compost tomorrow and planning greenhouse starting dates . Still have a lot of parsley and oregano growing and shallots , winter stuff all growing swiftly. Favas and biennial broccoli from Sept planting about 30” tall. Temps very very mild . Lowest temp here so far since winter began is about 38-40 degrees. Garlic is taller than usual for January. Narcissus , and other bulbs on there way. Have made a soil amendment list. Will get it in the ground/ raised beds in the next month- 50 lbs cottonseed meal, 25lbs kelp meal, 12 lbs bonemeal , some worm castings(12. Lg bags) maybe ght grab 30 lbs of alfafa pellets. Happy gardening!

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

Rotting dead vermin would attract maggots . Compost tskes tending just like the garden does.. which can be a longer learning curve that most are willing to deal with

 

[goinoregon]

It rots larvae are there tobreakit down. Is your pile anaerobic? Try buying alfafa meal pellets for animal feed layeredlike you use earth untreatedlawn grass, scraps whatever you use . Never meat or attractants for fly maggots. If not enough aeration try a drilled (3/8”+. Holes) abs drain pipe in the center . Compost pile should heat up for a few days after the material is added if not improve aeration

thx. its typically just garden scraps, leaves, coffee grounds, etc., and kitchen green scraps. will work on turning it over

 

[kmudgn]

I bought a compost tumbler off Craigs List a few years ago. It really does work very well. A few turns each week produces "good" compost fairly quickly without any odor, or flies. Since its raised up off the ground it does "go to sleep" in the cold weather, but jumps right back in the Spring. When I first got it, I tossed in a few shovelfuls of garden soil to get the bacteria going. I did not know it, but there were earthworms in that soil, so I actually have a fair colony of them in the tumbler. I never fully empty the bin so it's like using starter mix from a previous batch for sourdough bread.

 

[goinoregon]

i also have a tumbler, and it works great. may remove some gold from it, and take as much of the tower compost and put it in

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

I dug in about a yard and a half this year late winter. I have two side by side aerated tower bins I built

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

This makes about a quart of marinara canned

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

This makes about a quart of marinara cannedView attachment 165124

Upper right 6 Cherokee purple, below that on right small - black Prince and a couplesan marzanos. , left top Old Germanare yellow and red outer, a couple of 1-2 ounce Basque nblue butterfly and a few Black Sea Man bottom left corner and a few Great reds

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

Plants still reaching indeterminately

 

[albula]

They appear quite determined to me.

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

They appear quite determined to me.

Did you get the pun or ignore it? However you are right about them being determined. Some in fuller sun out back are over 10’ tall

 

[G_Smolt]

Mrs. Smolt has a thing for dahlias.

 

[Matt B]

We got a pair of tomatillos, man do they grow and the bees love them so win win there and I see a salsa verde pic in the ‘whatchya eating?’ thread to come

DaveView attachment 164990

Nice, I love that stuff this time of year. I can also recommend @troutpocket ’s Chili verde recipe. Labor intensive but worth it IMHO.

Chile verde

Ingredients
Olive oil
5 cups diced onion (3 large onions, coarse chopped)
1/2 cup chopped garlic (1 head, coarse chopped)
1/3 cup chopped serrano peppers (2 peppers)
1/3 cup chopped jalapeno peppers (2 peppers)
5 pounds cubed pork shoulder
1 quart chicken broth
15 to 20 Anaheim peppers
12 to 15 tomatillos
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup corn flour

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1/2 cup of olive oil. Stir in the onion, garlic, serrano and jalapeno peppers and cook until soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

Place the pork shoulder in a large heavy bottomed pot, coated with oil, over medium heat and sear until well browned on all sides. Deglaze with the chicken broth, and then add sauteed onions and peppers. Turn heat to low, cover and let it simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the Anaheim peppers on a sheet pan.

Peel the outer paper skins off the tomatillos, then coat with olive oil and place on another sheet pan. Place both pans in the preheated oven and roast until the peppers are nicely charred and the tomatillos are soft, about 20 minutes.

Remove pans from the oven and place the peppers in a plastic bag to let them steam for 5 minutes.

Peel and seed peppers, and then puree them with the tomatillos in a food processor. Add the puree to the pork mixture, stir, and then let simmer on low heat.

Combine the garlic powder, black pepper, ground cumin, Mexican oregano, ground coriander and salt in a small bowl, then add to pork mixture and stir well.

In a small saute pan, mix 1/2 cup olive oil with the corn flour, stirring over low heat for 2 minutes to make a masa roux.

Let the chili mixture simmer for approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours on medium-low heat, or until pork is nice and tender. Then stir in masa roux and simmer for 10 more minutes.

 

[Buzzy]

Nice, I love that stuff this time of year. I can also recommend @troutpocket ’s Chili verde recipe. Labor intensive but worth it IMHO.

Chile verde

Ingredients
Olive oil
5 cups diced onion (3 large onions, coarse chopped)
1/2 cup chopped garlic (1 head, coarse chopped)
1/3 cup chopped serrano peppers (2 peppers)
1/3 cup chopped jalapeno peppers (2 peppers)
5 pounds cubed pork shoulder
1 quart chicken broth
15 to 20 Anaheim peppers
12 to 15 tomatillos
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup corn flour

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1/2 cup of olive oil. Stir in the onion, garlic, serrano and jalapeno peppers and cook until soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

Place the pork shoulder in a large heavy bottomed pot, coated with oil, over medium heat and sear until well browned on all sides. Deglaze with the chicken broth, and then add sauteed onions and peppers. Turn heat to low, cover and let it simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the Anaheim peppers on a sheet pan.

Peel the outer paper skins off the tomatillos, then coat with olive oil and place on another sheet pan. Place both pans in the preheated oven and roast until the peppers are nicely charred and the tomatillos are soft, about 20 minutes.

Remove pans from the oven and place the peppers in a plastic bag to let them steam for 5 minutes.

Peel and seed peppers, and then puree them with the tomatillos in a food processor. Add the puree to the pork mixture, stir, and then let simmer on low heat.

Combine the garlic powder, black pepper, ground cumin, Mexican oregano, ground coriander and salt in a small bowl, then add to pork mixture and stir well.

In a small saute pan, mix 1/2 cup olive oil with the corn flour, stirring over low heat for 2 minutes to make a masa roux.

Let the chili mixture simmer for approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours on medium-low heat, or until pork is nice and tender. Then stir in masa roux and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Does this freeze well?

 

[Matt B]

Does this freeze well?

Very well!

 

[gwb72tii]

its that time of the year

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

I am making marinara and canning it
Of course this is cook down phase… mixed tomatoes salt fresf oregano and basil cook down foe acouple hours put in a food mill to remove skins and seeds and bsck on heat to a simmer until condistency is right - jar and lid prep and can. Over a long canning career( . ) I have owned snd used gadgets for this but over the last 25 years I have simplified and primitivized the process

 

[Modest_Man]

Pumpkins and watermelon are coming along. First year trying watermelon in Western Wa, they have good size but not sure when they're going to be ripe.

 

[Salmo_g]

Garden related, I have an Italian prune tree in my backyard. I planted it when we landscaped the back yard in 2013, so it's been there a while and should be well established. In all this time I think I got one good crop off the tree and a few very so - so ones, like 3 or 4 dozen prunes total. My back yard has 4 to 6 inches of topsoil over some kind of hard pan. Last summer and this summer, now that the tree is pretty good sized, the leaves on the top of the tree will shrivel, and I assume that means they need more water than just lawn watering. I've been watering the bejeezus out of that tree this year, and still the topmost leaves are kind of shriveled. I speculate that my watering effort soaks the topsoil, hits the hard pan, and then runs off the edge and down the hill, with the tree not getting enough water.

Your thoughts? I have two apple trees growing in this same type of hard pan, and they are doing well, but their locations are different than the prune tree.

I'm leaning toward removing the tree this winter. It throws a lot of shade on my postage stamp sized back yard. And I can just buy a box of plums or prunes at a farm stand every summer or two to fill my food dehydrator.

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

Pumpkins and watermelon are coming along. First year trying watermelon in Western Wa, they have good size but not sure when they're going to be ripe.

View attachment 165634

View attachment 165633

Buy a wTermelon ripening guage. I would go with the digital type.

Garden related, I have an Italian prune tree in my backyard. I planted it when we landscaped the back yard in 2013, so it's been there a while and should be well established. In all this time I think I got one good crop off the tree and a few very so - so ones, like 3 or 4 dozen prunes total. My back yard has 4 to 6 inches of topsoil over some kind of hard pan. Last summer and this summer, now that the tree is pretty good sized, the leaves on the top of the tree will shrivel, and I assume that means they need more water than just lawn watering. I've been watering the bejeezus out of that tree this year, and still the topmost leaves are kind of shriveled. I speculate that my watering effort soaks the topsoil, hits the hard pan, and then runs off the edge and down the hill, with the tree not getting enough water.

Your thoughts? I have two apple trees growing in this same type of hard pan, and they are doing well, but their locations are different than the prune tree.

I'm leaning toward removing the tree this winter. It throws a lot of shade on my postage stamp sized back yard. And I can just buy a box of plums or prunes at a farm stand every summer or two to fill my food dehydrator.

bore some drainage holes through hardpan 36” deepat the drip line perimeter and a foot and a halfinside of that. Get a 2” soil auger or have it done. Get advice. Hard pan clay is awful stuff

 

[Modest_Man]

I think I'll stick with waiting for the vine near the melon to dry and brown! I didn't even know there were digital tools for telling fruit ripeness.