any gardeners?

“treebeast - OF COURSE IT COUNTS

Sass - oh, ok, being practical is soooo out of character for me anyway.”

“Be nice to Junipers, without which we wouldn't have Gin! :)”

“I'll try to get photos of the pond up this weekend.”

“Ok dokie, pond photos.
http://www.humanpackmule.com/koi/PondV2/day12/index.htm

If you go back to the pond index you can click through the whole build out.

The deck covers most of the filtration.

Working 400 miles from home really puts a hurting on finishing your various projects.”

“Very nice HPM! What's left to do?”

“Thanks.
We need to put a finish cap layer of stone on about half of the waterfall surround (no biggie there, a couple of hours of work) and figure out what to replace that ugly exposed pipe with. I'm thinking something like an old hand pump seeing as it already kinda resembles a cistern.”

“Looks great! That filtration system is a gear head's dream.

The only thing preventing me from doing this is it scares me to have little ones around so much water.”

“You can never over filter a koi pond. Ours is actually quite minimal compared to some of the other folks in the club but I was aiming for as small a footprint as possible. So far the filtration has worked like a champ and the addition of the waterfall should reduce maintenance.

Little ones can be mitigated by how you design the pond and having a fence. Laurel can swim like a fish now so we don't worry too much about her. Our pond is a sheer sided affair but I know of a few folks who have built theirs with stepped sides so critters and people can easily get out. Problem is that also makes it easy for predators to get the fish.

If you are interested in doing a koi pond I'd suggest finding a good Koi Club and attending some meetings before you commit to a koi pond project. Forewarned is forearmed in this game.

Drop us a line if you want any more info.”

“Having a pond ready before you have any fish is also a very good idea.”

“I'm really looking forward to the next koi pond, because I'm going to branch out into hydroponic gardening, even if it is on a small scale. That can be as simple as floating a plant mat on the surface of the settling chambers/ bins. The plants remove nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium buildup from the water and the fish benefit. Bacteria from fish poop? I've already been pretty well exposed (read: splashed in the mouth by a fish. Repeatedly) and had no ill effects. Anyways, in regards to many microbes and diseases, fish can be like canaries and let you know about trouble before it can affect you. All the pond water goes through UV sterilization units several times a day, too.
I plan on building more waterfalls. They are beautiful, relaxing, and provide degassing and oxygenation for the fish. I can grow watercress, waterchestnuts, anything that likes flowing water there as well. I could even grow short stemmed tomatoes and peppers in floating plant pots on the surface of the pond.

Maybe this should go on the "Bragging on the Pets" thread. I don't know. It's still gardening to me. Just a little more complicated.”

“I've seen some really simple floating islands for plants. They were some type of black foam that had holes in sizes corresponding to pot diameters. They looked so simple. I want forget me nots in/ around my pond so bad. I've tried planting them in the iris and cattail pots but they never go.”

“The floating pots I found are black styrofoam rings with black fabric in them to hold the aquatic potting soil. Impatiens do really well in water, too. The goldfish may be eating the more tender plants you put in the pond. I already learned this the hard way with koi.”

“Those goldfish have been eatting something, but the plants never sprouted to be eatten. I think I have a lack of sun and good soil. Maybe I'll see if I can find a small floater thingy. My pond is pretty full of plants and it's small to start.



You can click on it for a better (bigger) shot if you want.
last edited: 10/16/06 7:46:52 PM”

“...when was the last time you counted your goldfish...”

“Wow Sass, that looks nice. I'm jealous of your nice green lawn! No such thing around our neighborhood, unless you dump several humdred dollars worth of fertilizer on it.

Forget-me-nots do require more sun, don't they?”

“It's impossible to do so JimmySan....so last time I counted 'em was when I scooped them from the feeder fish tank at the pet shop. I cut all the lilies, ripped out the iris' and cattails (they needed to be divided anyways), to catch the fish. So I can see that there are at least two more in there. There are a lot of leaves on the floor of the pond to scoop out. They hide in them.

If it would stop raining and snowing for a minute I'd clean the pond out and stretch a net over it. Our weather sucks right now. I am not ready to be stuck inside.

On a brighter note.... french breakfast radishes are ready again! The dogs trampled the lettuce, and the snow peas are about a foot tall now.”

“French breakfast radishes? I've never heard of them. Is that just a variety?”

“That pond looks really great Sass! I love the natural, informal look myself.”

“Thanks Zombie. I've actually been thinking about moving the entire thing to an area with less tree cover. Birch will probably make fun of me for even thinking about it. I don't feel good unless I'm mucking about with something or planning on mucking about with something.

Treebait, it is a variety. My fav by far. They are prettier and tastier than normal radishes. They also have a great crisp consistency.”

“The fish will perish. They'll be fish sticks by December! I dumped the three I caught back in and cleaned up and covered the pond with the net.”

“Sass, you could always get one of those aquarium heaters and drop that in. That's help the fish survive, if you're interested.”

“One of those little tiny tube things? I have one of those. You think it'd really work? I'll give it a try.”

“I just now noticed that when the realtors came through on tuesday, some of them pinched samples of my herbs. That's fine, but I hope they knew what they were getting. Especially with the Mexican oregano ( no it isn't THAT!) that's blooming now. It makes any rice taste like it's been cooked in jasmine tea.”

“Lookie! My dendrobium orchid is in bloom now :)



and this....which has sent up 5 bloom stalks this year! :)

”

“Very nice, SC! My orchids bloomed for Halloween this year, a little early. No sign of flower stalks from any of my amaryllis though. Bummer. My Christmas cactus is nothing but flower buds though, so that's good!”

“I bought a lavender plant last spring and it did well. But what do I do with it now during the winter? Do you you cut it back? It didn't die during the recent hard freeze we had.”

“leave it, the foilage helps protect it somewhat through the winter :)”

“First sign that spring is coming - the crocuses are in bloom this week. Tulips are coming up out of the ground.”

“Don't be so sure. There was a robin in the area 10 days ago, now we got a foot of snow! :-)”

“before the last leaf fell off of the liquid amber in early january, the buds were there. they appear to be dormant now though. i've never ever seen that happen before.

besides everyone knows you don't plant a thing until the maple leaves are as big as a squirrels ear.
last edited: 2/14/07 3:01:27 AM”

“"First sign that spring is coming - the crocuses are in bloom this week."


In my area, it's the Spring Hill catalog coming in the mail.”

“We had robins here in December and our tulips are four inches tall (and now burried under 6 inches of snow). We even have some perenials coming up again. Not spring though....maybe in 8 weeks.”

“q, for crying out loud, dont order from spring hill!!!! they are a rip off! I made the mistake of ordering from them last year, 3/4 of my 72 plants I ordered were dead. the 1/4 still alive looked half dead. Don't know if they had enough umph in them to survive the winter either. I called for replacements, the replacements came dead as well. I told them off and asked for a refund. Still waiting.
last edited: 2/14/07 6:10:05 PM”

“That sucks, sc.

Fours years ago, I order some Keys of Heaven, a Jackmanii (sp?) clematis and two red climbing roses, all of which have kicked all kinds of ass since I put them in the ground. They have a deal where there giving ya 25 bucks to order; I don't really need that much more, just some fill in stuff.

As it is, I've got mucho Hollyhock, various forms of lilies, Keys, Hostas -- all kinds of stuff that need dividing. I just did my purple bearded iris this past fall and I can't wait to see how everything went.

Anybody want a sample of bamboo this spring?”

“Too invasive (but thank you anyways). Bamboo is right up there with purple loosestrife on the list of plants thou shall not plant in your yard. Too bad because it is gorgeous and it grows fast.

Springhill does suck. I rdered from them when we firs got our house. Half of everything arrived dead. The other half was nasty little half dead bare root plants.”

“Has anyone ever tried growing tomatoes upside down, like this?: http://www.gardeners.com/Topsy-Turvy-Vegetable-Planter/default/StandardCatalog.VegetableGardening_TerrificTomatoes.36-450.cpd?SC=KNA7008B”

“I'm picking up a couple of topsy turvy bags to try this year. Hopefully NC is more conducive to disease free conditions than the semi tropical nirvana of fungus that is Florida.”

“I'm planting an herb garden this year so I can have fresh herbs to cook with. Can't wait!”

“My new yard is quite literally a blank slate. I'd considered the new koi pond as the first project, but now that we've had several very windy days and all of the straw and grass seed is blown away, I'm planting a row of windbreak trees first.”

“You have a slate yard?

You did say "literally".”

“Nigal (or anyone else) if you want I can mail you some chives, mint and oregano plants. Don't plant oregano or spearmint anywhere you mind them spreading. They will spread like wildfire. Containers don't even hold them.
last edited: 2/24/07 8:01:11 AM”

“Trying to figure out how to get enough flagstones or pavers to do a walk, patio and another walk in my yard this spring. I think it may be that we'll be driving to the UP to get lake superior rock from our friend's boat launch. Sounds silly that it costs less to drive 800 miles but seriously, rocks are pricey!
Also will be making a shade garden. I'm hoping to stick to native species like trillium, trout lilly, vinca, ferns, etc. I've been dreaming about what to do on the "dog and log side" of the yard for ages. Can't wait to start construction this spring!!

First step, level the yard (by hand). I'll post pics as I go.”

“My "yard" is about 3 acres and I have no clue what to do with it. Some will be a garden and something delicious should grow over the drainfield, but I'm drawing a blank about what to do.”

“Nimble plant some fruit trees around the borders. Wildlife will love them and you should get some fruit without spraying. I have planted blueberries, rasberrys, and blackberrys. I don't spray or net them but I still get some fruit before the birds.

I want to try grapes but I don't have a good spot figured out yet.

This fall I cut down about 6-8 big trees and I will be extending my yard into what used to be woods. I have 2.5 acres mostly woods.”

“nible berreis and fruit trees!




im going to have lots of veggies this year, I still have to order blue berry bushes....I need about 4 or 5.”

“http://www.the-landscape-design-site.com/

This site has hundreds of links to free plans for garden furniture, homemade faux stone planters, etc, etc. It's a great resource.

Nimblefoot, if you drop the $15 to join the Arbor day society you get ten trees. I think you can pick fruit, flowering or pines. They're supposed to be three feet tall bare root, but shoot, they cost $1.50ea.
last edited: 2/27/07 8:21:40 AM”

“I am buying a big effing rototiller.That's it.

I didn't realize how spoiled I was about trying to grow stuff in sand in FLorida (just apply some hydrponics theories)but the lumps of clay the contractors spread around as topsoil are a freaking joke. I may also go visit some people up the road who own horses. Maybe I can get a loads o' poo and dump in there and till it in. If I have to listen to the dang dogs next door barking all the time than they can smell my gardening!”

“Beware of sprouting hay. Even when it's aged it can add alot of weed growth to your garden. Fall leaves work really well.”

“BTW, anyone have the code for $25 free plants w/ Johnnys seed company? I gave Abby my catalogue to trace pictures and it's disapeared!”

“Nope. I never got my new Johnny's catalog either. I guess it's because I didn't order from them in a few years. ;P

They spread straw all over the place here. Eventually I see most of the grassy areas going away anyways, but that's a few years out.”