tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10257413590423580102024-10-09T16:45:05.301-04:00It's all about the family. Plus the genus and species.Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.comBlogger360125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-79684558482858442542020-12-14T18:51:00.002-05:002020-12-14T18:51:49.863-05:00

 I took the year off and did it instead of talking about it.  2020 was such a terrible year for so many people that I concentrated on the gardens instead of posting online.At some point I'll get motivated enough to make separate posts on the yearly additions to the lawn and gardens, which were unusual due to limitations imposed by quarantine and what could be delivered to my doorstep.&

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-47636432361651138812019-11-17T11:02:00.003-05:002019-11-17T11:02:26.129-05:00

This year's heavy hitter was soybean meal for the organics, as usual. Later on, I enhanced with some urea, but that was fairly minimal and later in the season. I did spray ferrous sulfate as well, which helps enhance the color, right around the time I winterized. DateNPKIronOrganicsOther Notes 5/1/20180.950.140.280.0013.5Soybean Meal 9/1/20182.090.180.360.0017.5Soybean Meal, Urea (0.86 N)

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-27533894356814009982019-11-17T10:57:00.004-05:002019-11-17T10:57:35.016-05:00

My time this year has been consumed with work and new hobbies, so I've had time to write about it or do it. I've chosen to do it and not write about it so much. Still, I've kept up with the work and here's the additions to the garden for the season (which is now down for the year as first frost was around November first). This year's heavy hitter was soybean meal for the organics, as usual, I

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-20338233777142793092019-08-18T11:22:00.003-04:002019-08-18T11:22:56.017-04:00

Again, too long, busy, nothing different.  It's been rainy, and then the rains stopped, but we seem to have simply gone back to a more normal pattern for late summer. The gardens are actually in slight decline already since it's already nearing September.   Not that you can really tell, but around the edges, there are some weak bits. Still, it's not like things are exactly

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-6944271123245682442019-07-04T13:14:00.000-04:002019-07-04T13:14:01.072-04:00

It's been too long, I've been busy, and nothing's really been done differently anyway.  The rains have continued, which has meant that I haven't had to water anything, so the lawn and gardens are flourishing. The general garden image shows that nothing's going wrong, per se.  I've lost one or two plants to fungus issues and general root rot due to the constant rainfall and wet

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-27916014524770701092019-06-08T14:10:00.000-04:002019-06-08T14:10:38.941-04:00

We've had a bit more sun, which also means I can feed the garden a bit with urea and other synthetics without risking losses into the water table.  That helps accelerate things a bit, although I'm always very gentle with the synthetics anyway. The gardens actually are coming along finally! I gave the Knockout rose a pretty hard cut back this year, so it's a bit late and a bit light on the

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-36575291299965933492019-05-27T00:06:00.000-04:002019-05-27T00:06:00.404-04:00

The unofficial start of summer for 2019 is off to a less than stellar and very wet start around here. It's been a rainy spring, which isn't a bad thing, but it's resulted in a slower than normal beginning to the summer plants. They're coming along, though. The yellow Knockout rose is generally the first to bloom.  The red one is coming along nicely and should blossom in a few days. Red

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-16085352639550733682019-05-16T18:17:00.003-04:002019-05-16T18:17:33.464-04:00

Two weeks of rain haven't particularly helped the gardens along, although they haven't hurt, either.   The plants are certainly watered in well, but the lack of sun means growth isn't very far along and many things are delayed.  There are few blossoms. The pots are almost always the first things to bloom, simply because they're the best fed! And the weather hasn't done much to

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-39596563876084988092019-05-04T14:16:00.004-04:002019-05-04T14:17:42.759-04:00

Garden planting began this morning in very hazy and wet conditions, just after a raft of thunderstorms came through last night.  It ended when I ran out of energy early this afternoon and the sun broke through.  Rain is forecast again for tonight and tomorrow, so I probably won't get back to planting until Monday, but I've already completed the entire front and some of the back. Plants

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-81609777911314969972019-04-29T15:03:00.003-04:002019-04-29T15:03:58.622-04:00

Last night was the last potential frost on the docket, most likely, so I moved the flats out to harden off.  If it looks like we might get frost again, I'll move them into the kitchen for the night and put them on towels on the floor.  It's easy and kind of fun to have the jungle in the there for the evening! When splayed out, it's hard to believe these will fill 2,000 square feet of

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-17598299986433385372019-04-25T17:50:00.004-04:002019-04-25T17:50:42.520-04:00

I'd started some morning glory (Heavenly Blue) from seed this year on the 7th of April, and they're already bursting out of their pots on the 25th.  Our long-term forecast looks great, and these are all close to the house, so I'm risking it and planting these very early, to twine up the drain pipes. Morning glory don't transplant well, so a minimum of disturbance is absolutely required.&

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-22323298699377022692019-04-23T17:54:00.001-04:002019-04-23T17:55:18.503-04:00

We're about a week before the annuals (860 of 'em) go out to harden off, so we're nearing the end of the bulb season.  Unfortunately, my old camera died peacefully as its flash capacitor broke, so I purchased a "new" one, a Canon PowerShot SX160IX.  It's the latest PowerShot I could find that I liked that used AA batteries, since I have many, many rechargeable ones.  So all future

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-77888017977474386982019-03-29T16:01:00.001-04:002019-03-29T16:01:56.621-04:00

These are the later crocus, the snow crocus blossomed for about five hours and were pounded down by a rainstorm we had last Friday.  These are almost concurrent with the snow glories (which never bloom until long after the snow is gone), but the colors are actually more saturated and prettier. As always, you can click on this image (or almost any other on the blog) for a larger version.

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-90074431363003859262019-03-17T02:31:00.003-04:002019-03-17T02:31:54.419-04:00

While it was actually some days ago, the red Profusion zinnia were the first out of the gate.  I had a bit of a problem with transferring them downstairs last year, so I'm holding the Profusion zinnia in my upstairs office this year, so currently I'm juggling four flat.  Fortunately, I have LED plant lights I use on the pots, which can be straightened and laid atop the flats. I'll send

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-16211178719780589372019-03-09T17:04:00.000-05:002019-03-09T17:04:10.889-05:00

It's been a long, cold...actually, per the Weather Service, slightly above average...winter, and as of today, the gardens restart.  I held off a little late as the Easter Eggplant tend to lose their lower leaves if started too early. The first three flats went today, including the Easter Eggplant, red salvia, blue salvia, blue ageratum, red Profusion zinnia, and yellow Profusion zinnia.&

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-45852950829383448682018-11-14T12:11:00.000-05:002018-11-14T12:11:03.166-05:00

This year's heavy hitter was soybean meal for the organics, as usual, with some corn early in the season.  Later on, I used more urea as I damaged my knee in July.  That's repaired, but I was advised to take it easy until 2019. I did spray ferrous sulfate as well, which helps enhance the color, back right around the time I winterized. DateNPKIronOrganicsOther Notes 5/1/

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-81948719968070318042018-09-29T14:04:00.000-04:002018-09-29T14:04:12.378-04:00

Or so, anyway.  October's lawn feeding will also be urea, but I'll time that with the next rainfall.  That looks to be around October seventh. The grass is looking fairly good.  Myrtle (the robot) broke and I have yet to replace the main board, so this is being done manually.  The standard garden shot shows pretty good color remaining, although things are drifting

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-59872713351366854342018-09-01T14:40:00.001-04:002018-09-30T17:17:58.990-04:00

2018 featured a little more nitrogen and an extra September application of urea to the gardens.  I'd irritated a torn meniscus in my knee, which meant that September's lawn feeding was urea instead of soybean meal (to lighten the weight I had to carry).  It was just as easy to also apply around 2.5 pounds per thousand square feet of urea to the gardens as well to cover September growth

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-8667043697546260382018-08-23T13:10:00.002-04:002018-08-23T13:10:11.783-04:00

Summer is starting to spin down and nights are getting just a bit cooler than their high point, but the gardens don't notice and won't care much until October. The main back garden, showing off the blue gazing ball.  Most of this is Magellan zinnia (in scarlet) that do very well here. I'm very happy with the Babylon dahlia, although I wish they were just a bit taller. I keep trying to

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-5812010028709067592018-08-12T16:56:00.001-04:002018-08-12T16:56:15.198-04:00

We're pretty much at peak on the gardens for the year, although things are still a bit delayed and I'm expecting a good show right through September. The salvia always do well, and our older dog appreciates that. I like the Babylon dahlia, although I wish they were a bit taller. The general garden image, along with our younger dog. Easter Egg plant are a fun addition to any garden. 

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-26167061681696198742018-07-25T15:32:00.002-04:002018-07-25T15:38:34.351-04:00

We've had about three inches of rain since Sunday, which has restored the grass and pushed the gardens into growth.  At this point, they're pretty much caught up with late July and look pretty good. The grass is definitely recovering, but still shows signs of the drought it was in through June and into July.  Regardless, it'll recover fully by fall (assuming rainfall) and no harm done.

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-11818587195854489832018-07-20T14:41:00.000-04:002018-07-20T14:41:02.670-04:00

Things are moving along, although slowly.  While I just posted images a few days ago, I took several this afternoon that are worth showing off. Profusion scarlet zinnia are new to the garden this year, but very quickly earned an established place for future years.  They're much redder than the Fire, although not quite a scarlet except in more shadowed areas.  And they are, indeed,

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-79671859875150575472018-07-18T17:38:00.004-04:002018-07-18T17:39:16.796-04:00

The lawn has improved a bit as rainfall resumed on July 4th, although it remains dry.  The next week or two looks to be somewhat wetter, fortunately. The gardens are still behind where they should be, which would be approaching peak in a normal year.  This year, peak won't be until mid-August. It looks OK from the top of the deck. Although generally small, individual

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-85830868335967367062018-06-25T17:41:00.002-04:002018-06-25T20:08:06.983-04:00

Even with no rain (or, perhaps because of the increased sunlight and adequate water via irrigation), the gardens have taken off.  While the Fourth of July is the traditional day for photos for the real start of summer, I took a bunch this evening. A lot of the dahlia bulbs are second-year, so they're blooming much earlier.  This Blue Boy normally wouldn't blossom until late July. The

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1025741359042358010.post-74252964051029044122018-06-23T21:55:00.001-04:002018-06-23T21:55:50.836-04:00

We're getting rainfall in occasional drips and drops, but nothing appreciable. The grass is starting to go dormant, although I'm maintaining the gardens, of course. You can water, about an inch a week total on most northern (and most southern, for that matter) lawns, done either all at once, once a week, or half the amount twice a week. Mow as long as you can tolerate the lawn to preserve

Sodfatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02919182045467611404noreply@blogger.com0