Pegasus Research Consortium

then and now is a great title..

my then was an acre of garden and greenhouse and crazy busy
age and what we feel is coming has made some really big changes to that
..but i will always have to have a garden
we have taken the flower beds around the house and turned them into veggie patches

here's one next to the patio...
before.. a few years ago  2009 to be more exact
i forgot to do a before pic  :'(
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim8110.jpg)

we use what we have and  two long pipes will form the edges of this little garden patch
approximate measurement is 8 feet wide by 40 ft long
good thing hubby has big tools, huh..lol
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2237.jpg)

yeah a few things have changed since the first pic..a fence around the house property..
dogs loose inside the fence..and now gardens beside the house
age gives new prespectives every day..
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2238.jpg)

everything is from seed
from closest to top
we have two small fences with cukes on both sides..about 100 plants to start
then a row of celery..14
these aren't mulched yet..i like to give them about a week to settle before mulching
then 2 sections for 18 green pepper plants
the idea is everything is reachable
then three excess tomato plants.
next will be my winter squash..butternut..gotta have them
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2412.jpg)

the walks are old mushroom bed boards that were still hanging around
hubby cut them to size and put runners underneath ..
things grow better if you don't compact the ground around them
and since i have gone from thinking of weeding as a meditational exercise
to weeding as a pain in the back
we mulch with cut grass....which we have plenty of
wet newspaper on the ground before putting the grass on insures no weeds
and acts as a nice way to keep moisture around the plants

it's been a much longer process to go smaller than we thought
but in the coming years it will be much easier
8)

squaaashhh.  warm squash muffins with butter.  drool.

ahhh was a good thing movin the food closer..we can water..otherwise  it is so hot  only those onions would be growing

here's what it looks like today  after one month

(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2628.jpg)


the three extratomatoe plants need bigger stakes..since they get more shade  they will be later
we got tomatoes off some other s about 10 days ago..small but red
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2629.jpg)

peppers are comming along

(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2630.jpg)

cukes are taking over the celery
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2631.jpg)

the fence face says come on back y'hear...lol
(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2632.jpg)



..plant a garden ~ you'll be glad you did
;D

We're still working on our backyard.  We've slowly been making a "memory garden."  It's where most of our companions are buried, each with a stone to mark the spot.  I want to finish taking out the horribly crappy bushes and trees that were there whem we bought the place.  Things really stalled when hubby was on the road for three years and I was working full time plus going to school full time.  Plus the drought years and water restrictions.  oh well, it gets a little better every year.

Shasta

If I ever get a yard again I will be sure to call on you.

The concrete jungle has its drawbacks.

Deuem

OUTSTANDING!

Love the pics - keep 'em coming!

Peace Love Light
tfw

Beautiful pictures, Sky.  Nothing looks as abundant to me as a healthy vegetable garden.

I feel your growing pains, Shasta-kitty. Everything green had been hula-hoed to the ground. when we first moved here. That's a favorite  landscaping style in rural desert areas.  But, bed, by bed, I'm slowly reclaiming the space. 

It can be expensive to buy large plants to fill an empty area, and unless you have a good regional nursery, you may not be getting plants adapted to your climate. And large plants don't thrive as well as small ones grown in place, but I will be rooting ciuttings of my own plants to grow indoors during the winter for transplanting out in the spring and will happily send you a collection of rooted twiglets this fall.

When it comes to grwoing from seeds 'winter sowing' is a painless way to plant lots and lots of of seeds and let nature do the work. Most people do this with annual flowers, left outdoors in jugs, and buckets through the winter, but you can also  do it with a pack of mixed perennial seeds sprinkled over a starter bed.  You won't know what will grow until you see what comes up next year, but whatever comes up in the spring likes your climate and soil.

happy garden trails to you,
rose

I'm making plans for now to next.  We're going to start some stuff inside over the fall and winter, and continue trying to rehab the back yard in cooler weather.

Shasta

 ;D

wow Shasta... great news


if i can be any help..yell.. and good growing...

(http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/13/55/53/83/hpim2630.jpg)

what are you using for mulch there on top of that soil?

something cheap...grass clippings that have dried at least one day after cutting

Okay Otterpo, I'm yelling.  What's the best way to save seeds from produce for future use?

Shasta

first some questions

are the seeds you want to try and save something that will grow in your area

when you say produce unfortunately you have to say where from
if grogery is the answer..you may as well forget it..
almost all of it is treated with something or another to
prohibit soilage and the seeds are worthless

if farmers market..ask if it's a gm seed or an heirloom plant
the heirloom seeds are hard to find but that means they haven't been messed with
and the seeds will mostly be viable..if the plant was a hybrid you can still save the seeds
but the germination rate will be lower and mysterious
some hybrids just don't grow from saved seeds and some revert back to the stock plant
meaning you will get a plant but it may not be what you think

and then if you think it is worth the effort

clean the seed ..ususally a soak in water..then let dry
the wrap in a paper towel or a paper bag. no plastic
and depending on the seed either a cool dry place or the frig on the very lowest temp

some good sites to read
http://www.seedsavers.org/?gclid=CKzCseva47ECFQOCnQod_S8ACw
http://nativeseeds.org/
http://urbanext.illinois.edu/hortihints/0008c.html
http://howtosaveseeds.com/

there's a bunch more out there if you want to check them out
the more time you take to read the less mistakes and waste you'll get

another good source of info is an ag dept at a state university.. mostly they have a lot of free info
for your local and zone

if you do save some seeds and have a good many.. you can try to germinate just one
put a paper towel in a dish and wet it but don't soak it
lay the seed in the middle and put a cup or something transparent over it
set it in a warm  spot with some daylight and watch it

most seeds are light germinators and this will tell you more info on what you have saved
you can even put in in some soil in a pot if it germinates and see what you get

good luck

and what are you planning to try and save anyway... ;D

I was thinking of saving some bell pepper seeds and tomato seeds.  The tomatoes were Colorado grown, don't know about the bell pepper.  They're grocery, but I may experiment a bit anyway.  Iwas experimenting when I used them in homemade pasta sauce and that turned out great.  If I end up wasting some time and paper towels, it won't be the first time. 

Shasta

Shasta
tomatoes are pretty easy to germinate and grow..but peppers are another story

this says it better than me

http://www.ehow.com/how_6085035_germinate-green-pepper-seeds.html

im like you deuem ,put a small garden next to house.watered with condensate from window ac.only plants that lived.too hot to work in main garden.here at my place,if it dont get done in spring or fall,it dont get done.
as far as seed,i put them in water with flesh on let set for a week.enzymes break it down better ,then dump out and separate seeds.let them dry out and store in jar with some cheap white rice.will store along time this way at room temp.
also i got a spray bottle for tobacco seeds and seedlings.it works great for tomatoes and other hard to sprout seeds.cant farm without it now.really worth the two bucks.
something i found out recently was how well my crappy clay soil works at starting seeds compared to potting soil.i just skim the top soil and put in a shallow dish.that way the root of the plant is easier to get out.they have plastic deli chicken and cake containers with clear domes.way cheaper than starter trays.

gardens are work..no argument there  but great rewards

june 16

(http://i35.servimg.com/u/f35/13/55/53/83/hpim2416.jpg)


july 25
(http://i35.servimg.com/u/f35/13/55/53/83/hpim2813.jpg)




aug 10

(http://i35.servimg.com/u/f35/13/55/53/83/hpim3024.jpg)

i hand shovel ,twice a year ,thirty by a hundred feet, because i cant afford a tiller.got the sharpest shovel in the neighborhood.now if i could just get rain.

I think a lot of my gardening knowledge is from about 1965.  Grade school science projects and such.  I'm going t do some experimenting through the fall and winter to see what might work.  I can build on the stuff that works and rethink the stuff that doesn't.  All work and no play makes Shasta a cranky kitty.:

Shasta

Oh, I like that AC drip line idea. I have 3 lines in the rear of the office that could have been used!

I will think of that when I move again. Right now it is all piped to go down the drain.

Deuem

the good thing about ac drip water besides being free ,it has a neutral ph and no minerals.plus its full of oxygen.good for roots.

deuem.. you need some rain barrels



i got a great surprize the other day

i have a butterfly bush .. it's purple and a beauty
last year it put out roots some feet away and a new bush grew..
and it has now bloomed..

it's white..
so big wow

for years a friend of mine and i have played with some plants trying to figure a few things out
mostly if it is the soil ph that changes the colors or if the plant just does it

we took seeds from a stand of foxglove that was totally yellow for years and tossed them in different spots
we got every color but the yellow..

we knew that rose of sharron never stays true to the color of the mother plant
and now the butterfly bush

naturs is a wonder.. and i';m grinning from ear to ear cause i wanted a white one..lol and maybe that's all it took

here's a pic from this morning.. you can see how close they are.. maybe 8 ft apart
and both in my rock garden so i don't think the ph is different.. it's the plant

(http://i35.servimg.com/u/f35/13/55/53/83/hpim3025.jpg)


Shasta.. experimenting is the best way to learn what works for you and in your area..best of luck on your newly found fun

;D

i use bat guano on my fruit trees.sometimes some will fall on some wildflowers.these flowers will sometimes change color.thats awesome your butterfly bush spread like that .i think foxglove is beatiful but i dont know how well it would do here in ne texas.plus it creep me out knowing its chemical properties.i like castor plants too but i dont grow them either unless civil war breaks out.
the flowers i play with are irises and galardias.they are reliable here.

I discovered that having cats is not compatible with trying to dry and save seeds.  I still have the seeds from Miss Otter tucked away safely.  The seeds I was thinking about experimenting with?  All over the house, following the showdown on the kitchen table.  Sigh.

Shasta

wonderfully and sadly there is no place safe
if the cat wants to see what's there

sigh

8)

i use my bbq pit .i only cook outdoors rarely.so its avalable most of the time.