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Garden Gate:  Will you grow something WIld and Crazy This Year?  |
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paradiseplantation
True Blue Farmgirl
1277 Posts
julie
social springs community
Louisiana
USA
1277 Posts |
 Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 06:25:20 AM
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I am so excited -- this year I'll actually be able to complete my raised bed garden, with enough room for just about everything we eat, veggie wise. With the help of the greenhouse my dh got me for Christmas, I'm gonna be sowing seeds like crazy. Every year I try to plant something a little different from my norm. This year, I saw in an RH Shumway catalog a new Snowball White Tomato. Too fun, so I just had to order some seeds! Is anyone else going to try something totally different -- or a very unusual plant or veggie this year?
from the hearts of paradise... |
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Montrose Girl
Farmgirl Legend/Schoolmarm
1360 Posts
Laurie
Montrose
CO
1360 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 07:47:40 AM
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We are talking about blueberries. Nothing unusual in the east, but our soils are too alkaline. We'll have to amend. We know of some folks that have had success, so we ordered a few plants. We'll have to keep them separate and do some work to the soil. It will be a challenge. Horseradish is our other newbie this year.
Laurie
Best Growing |
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natesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1735 Posts
angela
martinsville
indiana
USA
1735 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 08:20:59 AM
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I chose Green Sausage Tomato! Green spaghetti sauce! Yeah!
Farmgirl Sister #1438
God - Gardening - Family - Is anything else important? |
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Cindy Lou
True Blue Farmgirl
2325 Posts
Susan
Lonsdale
MN
USA
2325 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 08:24:34 AM
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We want to try growing mushrooms.
Susan
"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
Mary Oliver |
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LadyInRed
True Blue Farmgirl
6740 Posts
PeggyAnn
Vancouver
WA
USA
6740 Posts |
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Fiddlehead Farm
True Blue Farmgirl
4562 Posts
Diane
Waupaca
WI
USA
4562 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 11:58:40 AM
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I am going to grow baby corn. I just saw some seeds for it from Seeds of Change. I want to pickle it!
http://studiodiphotosite.shutterfly.com/
farmgirl sister #922
Happy to be a "Raggedy Ann" in a Barbie World!
I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult.
- E. B. White |
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TJinMT
True Blue Farmgirl
211 Posts
TJ
Billings
MT
USA
211 Posts |
Posted - Jan 04 2011 : 12:20:56 PM
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I'm thinking about trying to grow quinoa! It looks like a really interesting plant, and we love the taste!
We tried horseradish last year; I think it needs to grow for 2 years before really getting big enough to be worth digging up to make horseradish sauce. But it's exciting!!
And I'd love to try mushrooms too!!
~TJ of Green Willow Place
www.MyWesternHome.wordpress.com
"We make a living by what we get, but we build a life by what we give." ~Thomas S. Monson |
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homsteddinmom
True Blue Farmgirl
441 Posts
Brandee
bullard
tx
USA
441 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2011 : 07:58:35 AM
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we are gonna grow leeks and yard long beans, also a large assortment of gourds. dd wants to try bac choy and we are gonna try celery!
Homesteading Mom in East Texas. Raising chickens, Rabbits and goats here on my farm! |
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LadyInRed
True Blue Farmgirl
6740 Posts
PeggyAnn
Vancouver
WA
USA
6740 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2011 : 09:07:27 AM
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Brandee...if you are going to grow gourds make sure they have a lot of space all their own. I planted
them 2 summers ago and they took over my entire garden. They get way more leaves (huge) and vine than they
do the actual gourds. Good Luck with that! I know I will never grow them again because my garden space is not that large.
Blessings,
Peggy
Farmgirl #1326
http://ladyinredsite.blogspot.com
http://pegsmiles7.wordpress.com
http://www.sunshinefarmgirlcoop.com/PeggySmithsStudio.html#
"I'm only as strong as the caffeine I drink, the hair-spray I use and the Girlfriends that I have." |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2011 : 10:05:52 AM
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We are going to srt blueberries too.
I just completed going throgh the catalog and marking all the seeds we need to order.
For spring we are going to try the dark purple potatoes. These particular ones don;t fade when cooked. And purple carrots.
Coolest one in our garden for summer will be the round zucchini called cue ball
I can't wait for winter to end! |
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natesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1735 Posts
angela
martinsville
indiana
USA
1735 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2011 : 2:19:25 PM
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We've chosen several purple items this year; carrots, cabbage, potatoes, and tomatoes. We also are gonna grow jade blue corn. It's kinda gray when it's fresh and turns very blue when cooked.
I am also growin mexican sour gherkins. Tiny cucumbers that look like barbie doll watermelons and taste like they've been soaked in lemon juice! I got my hands on a few to taste last year and fell in love!
Oh! And you can't forget the ghost chilies! The hottest heirloom chili in the world!
I think that about covers all our wierd and wild stuff.
Farmgirl Sister #1438
God - Gardening - Family - Is anything else important? |
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melody
True Blue Farmgirl
3338 Posts
Melody
The Great North Woods in the Land of Hiawatha
USA
3338 Posts |
Posted - Jan 07 2011 : 9:00:49 PM
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Well Julie dear.....
Our season is so blasted short and not near as warm as I would like it to be and I have to be so careful about what I want to put into the beds because there just isn't any time to change my mind.
What I wouldn't give to live on the plantation and borrow a few of your raised beds. If I could I would love to grow some SAFFRON!!!
Melody
Farmgirl #525
www.lemonverbenasoap.etsy.com
www.bythebayhandcraftedsoap.blogspot.com |
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LadyInRed
True Blue Farmgirl
6740 Posts
PeggyAnn
Vancouver
WA
USA
6740 Posts |
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melody
True Blue Farmgirl
3338 Posts
Melody
The Great North Woods in the Land of Hiawatha
USA
3338 Posts |
Posted - Jan 08 2011 : 09:02:59 AM
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Peggy....That's a crocus!
Crocuses typically have three stamens. The spice saffron is obtained from the stigmas of the crocus plant. Can you imagine harvesting this on a grand scale??
Melody
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LadyInRed
True Blue Farmgirl
6740 Posts
PeggyAnn
Vancouver
WA
USA
6740 Posts |
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Tina Michelle
True Blue Farmgirl
6948 Posts
Tina
sunshine state
FL
USA
6948 Posts |
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melody
True Blue Farmgirl
3338 Posts
Melody
The Great North Woods in the Land of Hiawatha
USA
3338 Posts |
Posted - Jan 09 2011 : 7:51:55 PM
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Tina,
I have a lot of ferns that grow around our house and I have always wondered how do you prepare the fiddleheads? What do they taste like?
Melody
Farmgirl #525 |
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Tina Michelle
True Blue Farmgirl
6948 Posts
Tina
sunshine state
FL
USA
6948 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2011 : 12:28:27 AM
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Hi,
I've never eaten them before or even grown them, but my husband and I love ferns, and since I am wanting to have as many edibles as possible on our new property/homestead, and we'd like to create a woodland look to the back half of our 1 1/4 acre which has lots of trees on the back 1/2 of the property I figured I'd look in to growing the ostrich fern. I've seen it mentioned that they taste similar to green beans and asparagus (which we love) and to prepare them you simply rinse them very well, add to a saute pan and add a bit of olive oil , garlic, and salt and pepper and sort of steam/saute them.
I am very much looking forward to trying to grow them here as I have wanted to try them for quite a while now.
( ***I will note: please make sure that what you wish to consume is the Matteuccia struthiopteris variety)
~I Dream of a Better World..where chickens can cross the road without having their motives questioned!~
blogs:http://gardengoose.blogspot.com/
and http://thevictorygardener.blogspot.com
magazine: www.stliving.com
etsy shops: http://GardenGooseGifts.etsy.com
and http://myvictorygarden.etsy.com |
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Montrose Girl
Farmgirl Legend/Schoolmarm
1360 Posts
Laurie
Montrose
CO
1360 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2011 : 06:39:41 AM
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They are great steamed. Fiddleheads that is. You have to get them before they start to uncurl. We had them in Vermont. They were great/ Like asparagus, which is what we have now in the high desert.
http://www.inntheorchardbnb.com/ |
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graciegreeneyes
True Blue Farmgirl
3107 Posts
Amy Grace
Rosalia
WA
USA
3107 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2011 : 08:32:57 AM
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I'm going to try kohlrabi this year - the description in the seed catalog sounds intriguing.
I'm also going to do the super tall sunflowers and some purple bean tee-pees so there is a part of the garden that is just for my granddaughter.
Amy Grace
Farmgirl #224
"use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without"
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Bellepepper
True Blue Farmgirl
1207 Posts
Belle
Coffeyville
KS
USA
1207 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2011 : 10:27:48 AM
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About the saffron Crocus, Most crocus bloom in the early spring. The saffron crocus bloom in the fall. I think I learned this from the Penzey spice catalog. I was at a garden store in KC and sure enough, there were Saffron Crocus, fall blooming. I bought 20 bulbs and planted them last fall in the Herb garden (where else?). I can't wait to see what I get, if anything.
Probably not do much NEW stuff. Going to try for the third time to get a strawberry bed started. Will replace some of my blueberries that didn't survive last summer's heat. Also working at a new asparagus bed. My old bed is about to fizzel out after 20 years.
My "time in the sun" is limited. So will stick with the tried and true.
Belle |
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Catherine
True Blue Farmgirl
166 Posts
Catherine Ann
Temple
TX
USA
166 Posts |
Posted - Jan 13 2011 : 08:28:33 AM
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I try something new each year, this season it will be Red Noodle Asparagus Beans :) . I grew green ones last year, spring and fall with great results, the red ones look very interesting!
blessings,
Catherine :)
http://stillroomherbs.blogspot.com
http://lovelivingsimply.blogspot.com/
Farmgirl Sister #1801
Judge each day not by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant. ~Robert Louis Stevenson
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earthmamaT
True Blue Farmgirl
96 Posts
Tammy
portola
California
96 Posts |
Posted - Jan 19 2011 : 3:20:33 PM
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I am going to grow loofahs this year!
Tammy ~
"Be the change you want to see in the world" Gandhi |
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momdrinkstea
True Blue Farmgirl
180 Posts
Elizabeth
Ozark
AL
USA
180 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2011 : 05:00:15 AM
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White tomatoes! And a lot of kooky heirloom plants that just looked really fun.
Oh, and hungry kids! LOL
Stacked Stone Farm
feel free to follow my blog: www.stackedstonefarm.blogspot.com |
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Dorinda
True Blue Farmgirl
1023 Posts
Dorinda
St. Cloud
Florida
USA
1023 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2011 : 05:22:50 AM
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I am thinking about trying some leeks this year. I made a leek soup a while back and it was really good. Leeks are really expensive here at our stores. I tried swiss chard last year and it did not do very well. All my other greens did great.
Seize The Day!
Dorinda |
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eriko
Farmgirl in Training
15 Posts
barb
old bridge
nj
USA
15 Posts |
Posted - Feb 14 2011 : 12:38:44 PM
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I did leeks last year, just planted the scraps from the roots of leeks I purchased in the store. They grew great. Not a huge quantity but enough to get an additional meal out of them. I do the same with scallions/green onions when I buy them in the market. I always plat those roots!
My wild and crazy plantings will be chayotes and perhaps some other squash. But not all planted in my yard. I'm doing some "guerrilla" gardening (planting on public/abandoned land) on the edges of some scrubby woods near my house. I live in a townhouse/condo that doesn't have a lot of property and the only place that gets sun is the front yard, where it is forbidden to plant food items! Can you imagine? In the past I've sort of stuck to their rules and only grown herb plants in big pots in the front but I think this year I'm going to challenge them. I'll keep it neat (no corn plants or giant tomatoes!) and I don't think anyone will complain as long as it's nice. What's the difference between "ornamental kale" and kale that will go in my stomach? As far as I'm concerned, I'd be thrilled if all my neighbors dug up their lawns and planted food. It would certainly liven up the place and give us a better sense of community!
Peas,
Eriko |
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Garden Gate: Will you grow something WIld and Crazy This Year? |
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Will you grow something WIld and Crazy This Year?
