I really loved the gardening thread last year...I learned so much from you wise chickies with huge green thumbs! Plus, I'm hoping that this brings Sil out of hiding...I've missed you, girl!

So, what's doing in your garden? Have you found any weird plants/weeds that you need identified? Post pics here! What did you plant? What are you hoping to grow in your veggie garden? Any pics of how the garden's looking?
Let's hear all about it!

We got our seeds and cuttings last week for our veggie garden. Hope to get them in on Saturday. We've got: tomatoes (plum, big boy, and grape), green beans (fillet and bush), zucchini (a small variety and a big one), petite spaghetti squash, carrots, cucumbers, mesclun mix, dill, basil, parsley, rhubarb, and we hope to get a blueberry bush as well. It's going to be a yummy gardening year!

We've got tons of doin's in the rest of the yard, too! Lots of planting...several perennials (astilbe, bayberry, some new ones I've forgotten the name of, coral bells, caladium, etc.), a ton of annuals (I do a mix of tons of different annuals for our front walkway and fill our parterre--a sunken garden--with impatiens). I also have hanging baskets to fill. I'm trying to brighten up the huge open space under our hemlocks which is very shady. I found a ton of different yellow, lime green, or silver/grey plants to put in there...hopefully at least one will make it. I also found a couple plants to put in on our corner where it's incredibly dry and nothing has ever grown. We'll see how that works out.

I'm most proud of the hellebore (lenten rose) that came back this year! I bought it on the cheap last year...it looked half dead, so it was only a couple dollars. It looks amazing now and has already produced two maroon flowers. So pretty! My hydrangea also made it back...the first one to survive the winter (my fifth try!)! It's a blue one and I'm hoping that it blooms. Right now it's just making tons of leaves. The branches from last year are staying bare. Should I cut them off?

Looking forward to seeing and hearing about your gardens!

Here are a couple pics:

My hellebore flower.

DH tilling the veggie garden. Our 15 square yards of mulch pile is in the foreground. The weeds are way too high in the grass...DH killed them off the week after this pic was taken.

Wonderful thread!

We are already picking yellow summer squash, chili peppers and grape tomatoes. We have several other varieties of tomatoes (small ones do best in our heat), cayenne and bell peppers, eggplants and onions.

Herbs are doing very well. We have oregano, rosemary, thyme, parsley, cilantro and catnip as well as mint and Mexican mint marigold that just grows wild.

We used to put in a veggie garden, but my Dad always gets his feelings hurt when we refuse the veggies from his garden, so we just quit putting one in. We get more than enough from him! I do have 2 tomato plants and some basil, though. Each year we add more and more perrenials to our beds, but I just planted 3 flats of mixed marigolds in our front yard, and I want to plant some dark blue lobelia in with them. I still have to get some impatiens my all-time favorites) ,for the shady areas around the patio, and I'm putting a colorful mix of petunias, Gerbera daisies, verbena, etc. in the planters and hanging baskets. It costs us a fortune every year, but it's so worth it!
Laurie, wait another week or so on your hydrangea, and if the branches don't show any new growth by then, cut them back.

Thanks for the advice on the hydrangea, Cottage! Your plantings sound gorgeous, especially the marigolds and lobelia! Yellow and blue is my favorite color combo!

Barb, your garden sounds absolutely amazing!!! It joins the list of "Reasons Why I Want To Come Back Next Time As Barb's Kid" Your family must be eating so well with all that wonderful produce! I envy your early growing season! What kind of onions are you growing? Did you start with seeds, plants, or sets? I'd love to grow silverskins because we buy about $5 worth every week, but I can't seem to find any anywhere.

I plant my onions from sets. This year I planted red onions since I buy them a lot and they aren't as cheap as the other types. Unfortunately something (probably squirrels) dug up most of them. I have more I can put down, I just need to find some time. It is great that we can plant so early here. We actually have a Spring and a Fall planting season and many things die off in the summer because it gets too hot. That's why I like to do stuff like peppers that can handle the heat. I chop and freeze the peppers and then I always have some in the freezer.

I think I need to be picking the squash a little sooner though. The one I snacked on yesterday was a little tough.

I'm so envious of your planting seasons, Barb!

Squirrels like onions? Oy! We have a row of tulips planted on both sides of our front walkway. This year the squirrels ate half the ones on one side and all the ones on the other side. I'm so frustrated with them, as much as I love their antics. They even ate my daffodils, which are *supposed* to be squirrel-proof. Guess no one sent the memo to the squirrels.

I planted a lily garden last year and was worried it wouldn't come back this year, to my suprise it did and I was so excited, I thought the moles and voles ate the bulbs over the winter.... WELL the deer have eaten the tops off about half of the lilies...GRRR!!! They also ate the top off a cherry tree (just a baby tree)....Can't wait to go out and see what they had for their midnight snack last night.....

Mo, I'm so sorry! How awful! Have you looked into deer repellent? I got some stuff that's supposed to work for small critters...it's basically a bunch of different kinds of pepper. I've seen in the Park Seed catalog (www.parkseed.com, I think) that they have a product made of urine from predators (i.e. foxes, wolves, etc.) that is supposed to repel deer and squirrels. However, it's something like $14! I guess if your plants cost more than that and this stuff works, it's worth it!

We planted like crazy people in between the downpours and hail this weekend. Got the veggie garden in (YAY!!!), the impatiens in the parterre, and the mixed annuals along the front walkway. DH did a bunch more weeding and mulching on the side yard and I did some extra planting...hanging baskets, tomatoes in containers, a couple more containers, and some plants in the tricky areas (dry and shady) in the yard. I'm so thrilled to have it all done!

I need to get some deer repellent this week...
And more flowers and veggies...There might be frost tonight so I need to wait... Just when I thought we were done with the frost! For weeks it's been warm!
I guess if you are planting your veggies up there in NY I can get mine in down here in PA.....

Yup...you can put yours in...but do know that after all that work, we had to spend an hour tonight draping everything in plastic against the threat of frost. Yikes!!! I hope our plants are okay!

Frost, my fluffy butt! We had hail yesterday that looked just like snow. My pansies are riddled! We didn't have a killing frost but things are looking pretty unhappy. I have nothing planted outside at the moment and will really harden off stuff when I do it later this week if it ever warms up! It's 42º at the moment. The temp has dropped since I got up.

about it never warming up...you aren't kidding! But it feels like 70 outside here, though it's supposed to get down to 37 tonight. I have shorts on! I figure that's just because I'm going to CA... Tomorrow it really is supposed to be 70; the weatherman gave us permission to plant tomatoes and impatiens. (ours have been in for several days now...)

I'm sending warmth up to you, Ruthie!!!

I need a good way to deal with caterpillars! I went out to the garden today and noticed my bell pepper plant had no leaves. Then I noticed the pepper on it was half gone and there is a huge caterpillar on it! I've never had that problem before.

Then I had pill bugs eating one of the summer squash! One the plus side, I did bring in a bunch of cayenne peppers which I sliced up and froze. I touched my lips afterwards and now my lips are burning.

The okra are starting to grow as are the eggplants. I did bring in a bunch of oregano to dry. I love using my own herbs. It really saves money at the grocery store.

Yikes! I really let this thread fall behind!

Barb, did you find a remedy for caterpillars? I'm at a loss...but I'm sorry about your bell peppers! Makes me want to go take a peek at mine... How are things in your garden now? Do you plant new things mid-season since you have such a long growing time? Here we are lucky to get four months...if that.

Our garden is doing great! I'm thrilled at the progress of our tomatoes and lettuces. The zucchini, cucumbers and individual spaghetti squashes are doing well, but have started getting powdery mildew, which killed them off last year. I went online and read a ton about using a 10-30% milk mixture and spraying that on the leaves...it seems to work really well. Did that yesterday and am that it works! So excited to be gardening semi-organically.

Half our green beans didn't come up, so DH planted pumpkins and radishes two weeks ago. They've started coming up and we'll see what happens. I thinned out our carrots the other day...the bunnies are enjoying the thinned ones.

The rest of the garden is doing pretty well. The hydrangea bloomed and it is blue!!! I'm in heaven!!!

What's doing in your garden? (and where is Sil??? )

Does anyone do herb gardens either inside or in a flowerbox? We are moving into a townhouse next week where I'll have a decent-sized patio, but won't be allowed to plant herbs in the ground. I really want to try to grow herbs to save money. The ones I really enjoy are rosemary, chives, oregano, and basil. Anyone have advice? I really have a black thumb...lol...as I look over at my poor dying plant in my office!

Jessie