Garden Journal

[Jeremy Weiss]

I believe they can be pickled whole like gherkins.

They probably do fine canned. There's probably some stuff online with various recipes for canning them.


They can be cooked, pickled or added to salads, but I usually grow them and let them spread in a permitted area and forage them as a juicy garden snack.

I've pickled them a few time when I had extras (which one usually does, the vines are quite prolific).

About the only thing I'd be cautious of in canning is the same thing one would when canning cucumbers, being high moisture, you may have a hard time keeping them firm and crispy.

[Garrett Schantz]

While digging up Kniphofia "Lola", I accidentally broke off the green bits already growing out of the ground, off the bulb.

I'm pretty sure that I can get the thing to give me a second bulb / plant.

The bulb was already putting out like 6 other shoots of growth, so I'm not concerned about it.


I'm probably going to be planting the strawberries and things into a raised brick formation thing that has soil in it.


A bunch of neighbors here have bells in these exact same structures (huge ones).

Apparently, the former owners took their bell with them. So there's a wooden post in the center of the thing.



It's tall enough that strawberries should be able to hang nicely from the sides.


I'm also going to be making a sizeable raised bed, for experimental corn mini plots, maybe wild tomatoes and peppers.

Plus flowers and things.



The property has over 6 unused planter pots. A bunch are stone. Or there's stone baskets with planter spots, stone square pots.

I suppose I'll put things in those.


There's also cracked stone bird feeders on pillars.

Some neighbors said that's nothing compared to all the stuff they used to have / moved away.


There's at least 4 or 5 bird baths. Some of them are nearly flat. Most have leaves and things in them, bit dirty.

There's a stone statue of a lady. Tall as an average sized person almost. Probably heavy.


The nice thing with the bird baths, is that the tops come off. So, while the pillars and the top weigh a ton, they're aren't too horrible to move around.

Took the one apart, because the one edge of the bird bath was eroded, probably won't hold water. Thick enough that it could probably be grinded, and it is also possible to repair stone stuff a bit.

But yeah. Nah.



I like bird baths and things. More bird baths, usually means more birds flying around. The stone planters are small and heavy for their size, but they look nice.


There was some stuff that was left behind. Like a stone koi fish statue / fireplace. Filthy, was in storage. It was orange at one point. The mouth and tail work for placing firewood in, and the other works for letting smoke pour out.


The inside of the house was apparently made with pricey stuff, top of the line decades ago.

Chandeliers, speakers in the walls in each room that can talk back and forth between others (they're broken).



I'd say the people who lived here, put some money into making things look nice and whatnot.

I'm unsure about the statues myself. I guess they're neat. Probably need scrubbed a bit.


The one statue has roses, few different varieties around it. Most are frilled, but it appears that they're types that expose the center. Bees hate having to push petals from roses.

There's a "snowball shrub / bush", huge white spheres that remind me of hydrangea or rhododendron flower clusters, wisteria shrubs, a blueberry bush (pretty big).



The owner was an older lady who hired landscapers at some point. Couldn't do stuff herself anymore, which is understandable.

So, there's a good bit of trimming and cleaning that needs done.

Some stuff is overgrown and probably needs cut back to their main branches or whatever.

Some stuff is flat out dead.


Not garden related, but there's also a piano that apparently the owners couldn't get rid of. Yeah. Maybe I'll learn how to play it.

I really dislike seeing those sorts of things get junked or burnt.


One building, a little thing used as a greenhouse, was considered a bit unsafe because of some structural damages. Very small shack.

So that was hauled away, not worth the costs of fixing it - cheaper to have a new one made. And that was kind of a "Oh, an extra thing" anyway.


The grass and stuff is dead under it, not a super ideal place for a greenhouse either. So, that's where the mentioned planter bed is going.

Just going to repurpose the dead grass area, put some stuff over it to kill off the grass completely. Nice raised bed area.

Not a huge amount of sun, but it exists. With the heat down here, a lot of flowers and things actually like the shade.



Nice house and property. Pretty excited about this. Still not living alone, but yeah.

Whoever lived here, seemed to enjoy landscaping and did a lot of things themselves. There was a garden at one point, but the lady couldn't do those anymore. Can't even tell where it would've been.

[Garrett Schantz]

One neighbor was helping me figure out what certain plants are.

I found a bramble, with a red cane and huge amounts of little spikes.

Went "what's that?" Was told its a raspberry.


It looks identical to a wineberry.

Because I'm into bramble breeding and growing.

I'd permit it being wineberries. But, the brambles are just all scattered around shrubs by the house.


I'm going to collect some wild bramble canes here in a bit.


Frankly, the ones I brought with me basically died immediately. And I don't feel like buying a ton of new plants at this moment.

Wild brambles or feral ones. They taste fine to me.

I'm also considering on just using Mock Strawberries and Strawberries this year to make little jams. Together. Probably won't have a ton of Strawberries.


I'll possibly be planting garlic and regular chives. Plus I'm gathering some wild garlic tops that are now all dried on plants, moved a pot with ones I moved weeks ago to the new place already.


Those little top bulblets, actually taste nice if anyone was wondering.

[Garrett Schantz]

Growing a bunch of eggplants. Seems they do well down here, few weeks behind on planting.

As mentioned before, a lot of stuff is being mixed into the neighbors garden.

They're also late on planting stuff into the ground.


I'm going to be planting the ground cherries and Jaltomato species / varieties by the new house, it's like a minute or two of a drive away from them.

Or I could walk over.



The strawberries are also getting planted over there as mentioned, same with the cucamelons.



I'm really wanting the strawberries, ground cherries and cucamelons over there as snacks.


I also kinda wanna try making a jam using both strawberries and ground cherries.

I'm growing Pierce Lester's ground cherry, a type from the Experimental Farm Network, Mary's Niagara, Aunt Molly's and some old seed from baker creek for the generic unnamed ground cherry - not many of those last ones germinated.

Good bit of ground cherries.


I found this online:

https://www.homesteadingwhereyouare.com/2020/05/14/deliciously-sweet-ground-cherry-jam/


I also think a strawberry / ground cherry pie sounds neat.


I'm glad that another person thought combining these sounded like a good idea. They seem to pair well together when eaten together.

And I think they sound like they'd mix well canned together as a jam.


Maybe I'll go nuts and try including cucamelons. Maybe to an experimental little jar.

From what I'm reading, ground cherry jams don't need much pectin or whatever added.

Different ground cherries also have different flavors.


Was telling some people about ground cherries and they didn't seem to know what they are. I believe they should grow well here.

My mother had never had them before, she was eventually eating them because they simply sat in jars for weeks. Then she went "Hey, these are good what were they called again?"

She did call them Japanese cherries earlier, probably confusing them with Chinese lanterns again. But she's got the spirit.



I'm thinking that the white alpine strawberries, and other things may pair well with these things.

Garden strawberries are lacking in some flavor profiles, even when canned. So, I quite like growing the alpine ones and F. virginiana - other things.



Ground cherries are underutilized in my opinion. People just don't know what they are or how to use them. I lived in PA, where the Amish use them and a lot of other people also didn't know what they are.


They're nutritious, do well canned or as snacks.

And they last a few weeks in their husks, cherry tomatoes tend to last a shorter period of time in comparison.


I'm also growing Queen Of Malinalco Tomatillo. I described them to others as being like small, round and fruity tomatillos.

[Jeremy Weiss]

I'm also considering on just using Mock Strawberries and Strawberries this year to make little jams. Together. Probably won't have a ton of Strawberries.

Would the Mock Strawberries just be for bulk? I don't recall the things having any real flavor, or even adding much in the way of color.

I'll possibly be planting garlic and regular chives. Plus I'm gathering some wild garlic tops that are now all dried on plants, moved a pot with ones I moved weeks ago to the new place already.


Those little top bulblets, actually taste nice if anyone was wondering.

Check some bottoms as well. I once found a few wild garlic plants whose bottom bulbs were about the size of small domestic garlic ones Though, as I found them in a disused public flower garden, they could have been some floral allium planted there on purpose. But if they WERE regular field garlic (they both looked and smelled like it) it means it has the potential to grow a LOT bigger than one would assume.
 

[Garrett Schantz]

Musk strawberries taste decent.

Flavors can vary between varieties and wild types, then you need male and female plants as well.

I mostly want it, because it's chromosome count works well as a base for crossing some strawberry species.


Alpine types - vesca, are probably the ones I prefer the most.


Most garden strawberries, flavors can vary but it's usually just sugary sweet which I like. Or it's very tart, very watery and no flavor.


Other strawberries have more nuances. Breeders do try getting flavorful strawberries, but a lot of them happen to be F. vesca which doesn't cross well into Garden strawberries or F. virginiana or the like.

[Jeremy Weiss]

Most of mine tend to be alpine, since those are the ones where I can find appropriate ones for my "trick" (I found out that, while the birds will gobble down any red strawberries I grow, they ignore yellow or white ones, so that is what I plant.)

As, I have mentioned, I'd LIKE to get my hands on the green fruited version  of F.viridis, but no one seems to
sell it.

I'd also love to get the Latvian leucocarpa variation of Vaccinium myrtillus, since I think white blueberries might similarly get around the problem for that. At least there there might be a chance (I do know a few seed sellers in Latvia, maybe I can ask one to go out, pick a few, smear them on a piece of paper, and mail them to me.)

[Garrett Schantz]

Yeah, I'm growing a white wonder strawberry or something in terms of the alpine strawberries.

I'm hoping that some other species and things survived.


I'm likely to just make little jars of jelly and things out of anything I get this year.



There's a chance birds and things will eat my strawberries. I don't entirely mind as I'm not gardening / growing them as a staple crop or anything.

They're also likely to disperse the seeds, there's no wild strawberries that I've found so far.

There's bogs / wetlands all around, so they'd probably do well here.

I'm sure there's some isolated spots in untouched woodlands with strawberries.

If F. virginiana survived (plants are all still too young / little for me to confirm), then that'll mean I will have pea sized strawberries from those.


There are the mock strawberries that are naturalized here. I don't say invasive, because they're on pretty much every lawn and growing in the swamps. I doubt it's possible to get rid of them.


This: https://flic.kr/p/2oygXbE

Grows everywhere. A native species called Mitchella repens, the red berries are edible - supposedly tasteless.

Well, maybe faint "wintergreen" flavors. I actually thought it could be wintergreen. Last year I gave the little berries a squeeze and they popped open. Watery things.

Rose hips and Holly have the harder drupes.


Anyways, mock strawberries and Mitchella repens are both groundcovers and they grow side by side from what I've seen.

And I've seen Mock Strawberries that have missing fruits. I'd imagine that the same birds that eat the native plant, went "Oh, more tasteless red spheres." and started eating those as well.

Mock Strawberries put their fruits on before the native plant too.



I gathered a bunch of Mock Strawberry fruits and placed them in the corner of a brick planter.


I also put Mitchella repens in the planter in a seperate spot. Did I mention this species is in the same family as Coffee?

Some people here also seem to like collecting edible plants from different families.



I plan on letting the plants drape over the sides of the "planter."


I planted some mint towards the center of the planter. There's a broken wooden post that used to support a large bell.


I also put Melothria scabra on another side, just to drape off the side.

I might plant marigolds to mitigate potential root nematodes and things. Those would go towards the center, by the mint. Marigolds produce chemicals in their roots which spreads to the surrounding soil and poisons those pests.


Strawberries were also planted.


Some of these will get larger, like Mitchella repens I've noticed gets taller next to trees or areas that don't get mowed. So, that didn't go in a corner. It's in a middle grounds spot. I'm assuming it'll get larger in this planter / taller.


Eventually adding a rounded wooden post or something to replace the broken plank in the center of those one may be in order. I'd grow true climbers like beans or some form of legume up it. Just for nitrogen.


Perennial beans may be nice.

A lot of the things I'm planting are probably breeding projects too.


https://flic.kr/p/2ozH63o



I don't know of many sellers that still grow and sell F. viridis at all. F. moschata is sold by lesser known sellers as well.


I know of one seller that offers named F. moschata varieties and that's the strawberry store or whatever the sites called.

[Garrett Schantz]

I planted out the corn the other day.

I planted out the peppers in a garden bed.

Neighbors one garden, the tomatoes went into.


I planted the eggplants near roses and things in a large bed (we are moving from the rental property to a nearby property), I also planted ground cherries and a few tomatillos and things there.


The lady who owned the place was older, stuff needs cleaned up anyway. So they're going in that rose garden bed. Leaves and things keep the weed down, so why not, right?


I also planted some stuff by weedy shrubs that we won't cut down this year.

Some moonflower seeds, Clark's heavenly blue morning glory, cardinal vine, blue podded shelling peas. For some reason I bought guar beans at some point. So they went there too.


I planted some Hokaido Adzuki beans, Village Bambaras in the same area.

Next to a large garage, wooded area near it has a big clearing with fallen branches everywhere - lot of them work as natural trellises.

On the other end of those, I planted Holstein cowpeas, and Sea Island cowpeas. Some of them climb.

I haven't grown a lot of these out, even though I bought a lot of them awhile ago.


So, I'm planting them not for eating - just for seed.


I also planted like three or four dwarf / bush runner beans from Germany.


I planted some Red Swan bush beans, and Succotash beans.


Sunshine runner beans, some yellow podded beans (Mera-something, I'll probably reply with the name later), and Lohrey's Tasmanian Beans, went into different corners of the garden bed.

I'll let them probably grow up some prepared things.



I'm hoping to see if some of the dwarf beans, still outcross at all.


If they do, the beans all appear to look different, save for the white ones.


That's also why I planted the sunset runner beans there too. There's apparently genetic factors with it too. There's a higher likelihood of them being able to cross back to the outcrossing beans - usually it only works in one direction.


Some people here were interested in that sort of thing if I remember correctly. They're finally planted!


One variety has huge beans. Larger than any lima I've seen. I'm interested as to how it'll work as a dwarf / bush variety.

I'm not sure if they're all "bush" or if some are half or dwarf ones. Crossing some poles beans, especially different species doesn't always give out half runner, pole or bush.

[Garrett Schantz]

Planted some Tarahumara squash and Calabaza mayera - along with some more compact things.

Planted an African landrace of squash too.

Plus, some C. pepo var. texana.

The texana, and some others went near a semi sun / shade area with fallen branches, natural living trellises. Plus there's some fencing nearby.


There's a similar area on the other side of the garage where I planted some bush beans towards a sunny area, then I planted some pole types on more fallen branches / cut branches and things.


This way, the pole beans / bush beans are seperate. Plus, they're separate from the other legume climbers.


These are solely being grown for seed. Squash is more or less in that same boat. The squash will probably cross, but I want that to happen. And I have limited amounts of seed to sustain actual populations of each "variety." Being landraces probably helps for some of them.

[Garrett Schantz]

I planted the following in an area where I dumped old soil at: 'Monarch' Celeriac, Sweet Cicely, Polish Root Parsley, 'Harris Model' Parsnip, Skirret, Bigseed Biscuitroot, 'Chinese Pink' Celery, Polish Turnip-Rooted Chervil, Cow Parsnip (California Ecotype), Homesteader's Kaleidoscopic Perennial'Kale Grex.

I should have Seombadi (Perennial Korean Celery) somewhere too.


I planted a pot that has had some PA State Champion Kentucky Coffee Tree and Mao Er Shi Shu (Blue Sausage Fruit) germinating in it. Something killed one that was germinating. A coffee tree seedling.


I'm hoping to get some Zabala and Akebia plants / seeds and some related species eventually too.


I have two Boquila trifoliolata plants / vines coming in from Far Reaches Farm in a couple of weeks.

I bought one from them before, had it indoors. Cats thought it would be funny to knock the pots over when I was out of the country.

These may be self incompatible, so more than one plant is probably for the best. I want berries since they're seemingly hardy in my zone.

They should produce little berries that have edible skin and seeds unlike other species.


It's a very cool species, shipping and plants can be pricey. But.

They're too interesting and hard to get for me to ignore. Plus the whole edible "chocolate smelling / tasting" berries.

[Kadence Luneman]

I'm on the way to a fiber show for the weekend. I spent the week getting everything priced, tagged, packed,... Setting up everything for the sheep so my sister can take care of them and the dogs for me.
Sooo the garden isn't getting planted til next week. Same as last year's tomato plants. My plants are significantly shorter this year! I'm actually going to have to start the seeds next year maybe another week or so early than I did this year. We'll see how they do in the garden though.

[Garrett Schantz]

Bush beans are coming up. These are planted sorta late.

Which is whatever, its the south.

Pole beans are a better option as its the south - and I have space for pole beans (I can get a lot more out of pole beans from what I have been reading, bush beans are shorter with their growing time / production for shorter seasons), but I don't have trellises or things set up on the new property.



I will try posting the beans that I planted, their names. They're all in German, I had a small lots of seed permit and obtained them at some point.


Finally got around to planting them.


4 or 5 different bush / dwarf runner beans with purple or pink dry beans. One has a huge bean / seed. Most have the same coating as typical ones.


I planted a few white ones elsewhere.


Near these, I planted a row of Succotash beans, a row of pebble beans, a row of red swan beans - some others.


I planted some pole beans in the beds corners. Marvel Of Venice, Sunset Runner, Lohrey's Old Tasmanian.

Did two different corners of Sunset Runner, I believe.


I was gonna plant some golden wax bush beans and whatnot too.

Frankly, I'd prefer it if I could manage a cross with Marvel Of Venice instead. It has nicer pods and things, in my opinion. And, I don't care about getting pole traits mixed into anything as I'm planning on making bush and pole populations at some point.


I would like to plant purple podded beans at some point too.

Maybe next year. Or maybe I'll goto Walmart and get seed for a random variety.


I'm probably waiting. I'd prefer to get decent varieties with all sorts of traits.


Oh yeah, there's multiple "Marvel Of Venice" varieties. I planted the black seeded type that I got from Baker Creek, years back.

Yes, the other type is supposedly earlier. The black one, seems to give me flatter pods while still having larg beans though. And its silkier / smoother in my opinion.



Lohrey's Old Tasmanian, is a sort of pole bean that has a natural salty sort of flavor.

Sometimes, foods and things have myths about them.


I researched it quite a bit before buying it. Seems like multiple people note that it has a salty taste and whatever contents.


This could mean that the bean pulls up salt from the soil or something, and puts it into the beans. Some studies that I found, did mention beans that may be able to do this.



I wouldn't be surprised if this turns out to be true.

A lot of plants do this.


There's crystalline ice plants and other plants that pull up salt from the soil, and they drop their leaves eventually which prevents other plants from growing there.

Okahiji Saltwort does that to an extent.


A population of beans, adapted to grow around salt and take it into themselves and do the same thing isn't unthinkable.


I'm highly assuming that if they do have a reasonable salt content in them, that this may impact other plants.

They could easily probably grow as creeping plants or grow on other salt adapted plants.


Anyways. Large beans, that have colorful pods and have salty tastes. Productive and large pods would be nice.


I also actually kinda really like the color of Succotash beans. I've grown them before, they crossed with a green bean (Succotash parent) and some other beans.

Noticed the second year or so, but stuff happened, lost the seed.


Anyways. Yeah. They're nice little purple bush beans. Just as purple as Dobranoc corn when dry.

Crossing them with pintos or something would be a nice goal for the future.

Granted, I also want deep purple podded pole beans.


If I get any bush Runner beans with the typical Runner seed coating on them to cross with the Succotash beans.

That would be wonderful. Succotash beans are a deeper purple. Runners are always bigger from what I've seen.

It's also possible that they have different genes responsible for the antho / purple colors. Which could mean a deeper purple. Different species sometimes have that happen.

It's been seen with tomatoes.


While I'm also interested in Purple corn and whatnot, I've noticed that they tend to get a lot of antho on their foliage or things, which can be detrimental to production and growth to an extent.


I haven't noticed it much in beans.



I'd also like to see if there's traits that could move the anthocyanin found in purple beans pods, solely into the seed itself.

Or if they'll tie together when mixed with other anthocyanin sorts of varieties - runners and other species anthocyanin podded types alike. Just a hope. I haven't researched that sorta stuff too much yet.



There's also Runner beans with bicolor flowers. Very nice looking ones.


There's also ones with double or triple flowers. That's what happens when people grow things as an ornamental and as food.

I'll need to find those. I've also heard of orange and red bicolored flower types.

There's a purple podded type only found by trade seemingly as well.


I've also heard of variegated foliage beans, and ones with silvery or velvet foliage. Both are kept by close knits of traders who don't want them to enter any form of commercial trade. That way only they have them.


Now, if there ever happens to be variegated podded beans that appear. I'd jump at those.


I'm going to be planting some Red Sunflowers later and Variegated Sunspots Sunflower later. Hopefully.

Appearently, critters find them to be very tasty. And I have limited seed. So I'll need to start them in pots until they're a certain size. Even seedlings are seen as fair game to critters here.

[Garrett Schantz]

I purchased some spinach, beet and bean seeds at a plant nursery m.

"Top Notch" company.


Anyways, Early Wonder and Bloomsdale. Beets and spinach.


Then, Jackson Wonder Lima beans.

Seems like they're bush beans. Which I guess Bush limas tend to make tendrils. And they can withstand a lot of heat and things.


Perennial beans, woodland ones - can't quite remember their name. Those are more closely related to Limas than other species I think.


I've also heard that interspecific hybrids may cross over to teparies more easily (In the case of runner x common beans).

This could be because runners have more open flowers.

Bean flowers tend to abort a lot, I've noticed if tampered with or emasculated.


I'm going to check out Limas more next year, maybe some runners and tepary beans.


I dislike growing teparies near other beans. They have some diseases that they're immune to, but they harm other related species and infect them.


They're usually not pole beans, some wild subspecies are. But those don't seem to be cultivated.

So I may grow some in pots indoors and do some safe crosses / limited contact, no insects being pests and spreading disease.


Like the pebble beans, these appear to have beans with different colors on them in the same plant.

Christmas beans or whatever seem to be the same. Limas in particular are notable with them doing that sorts stuff.


I haven't grown many limas, save for Alma's PA Dutch.

[Garrett Schantz]

Lot of beds to fix up or plant stuff in, at the new property.


Some stuff we got:


2 Mexican Heather Allyson

1 Texas Sage - I thought this looks nice and may pair well near the Heather. Not a true sage.




1 Cardinal Flower - planting near the hummingbird feeder.

2 Candy Corn Vine - planting up a trellis next to the hummingbird feeder - got two plants

1 Salvia splendens x darcyi - Roman red - Planting near the hummingbird feeder

1 Pineapple sage - planting near the hummingbird feeder

1 Asclepias perennis white milkweed - pollinator garden


1 Katie Purple Ruellia - Already have a volunteer / native to the area or invasive Ruellia in a pot. Was here when we moved, it's in other yards and wherever.

This one is R. brittoniana

1 Helianthus salicfolius first light - pollinator garden

1 Blue Fortune Mexican Hyssop / Agastache - pollinator garden

I didn't know this when I bought it, but it's a cross between A. rugosa and A. foeniculum. So a native species and a non-native. Either way it works as an herb too.

1 Monarda didyma bee you bee free

1 Machu Morado Ruellia simplex, already planted in the same pot as the native one.

1 Wild ruellia

1 Mealycup sage sallyfun snow white Salvia farinacea



There's some shrubs too.


I'll probably get volunteers and stuff from the sages and things. They'll be moved to the pollinator garden at some point.


Eventually.


I'd have them there altogether in the first place, but I do actually want hummingbirds to stop at the flowers rather than drink sugar water.


This is just me, but I feel that it's very unhealthy for them. And they come back to the same areas, year after year.


And flowers give more than just sugar. I'd very much prefer them drink from flowers.


Anyways the feeders will be in easy to see areas, from the windows.