How My Garden Grows, or Not, Sic: Journal Entry 04/28/2024

 04/30/2024 – After soaking the indoor flowering plants with Miracle Gro for flowers in the sink, I gave the smaller flowering plants in the backyard and Mary garden the leftover solution. The larger ones got a fresh batch of the solution.

I also sprayed the all the flowering plants, the lemon tree and vegetable with ‘Bonide Rose Rx Multi-Purpose Fungicide, Insecticide and Miticide’.

04/28/2024 – We finished it! My husband, Stan and I got out into the Mary Garden and cleared out all those dead leaves and branches. I will let the videos and pictures tell the story. In addition, to avoid having the large number of leaves and branches to clear away next year, we will do a weekly clean up. Generally when we do the weekly maintenance, there is not much more to do the next year, however, the pandemic played a lot in what we were willing to do the past two years. Feeding, watering and debugging the gardens were enough to keep the plants alive until the crisis was under control. 

 

 

Moonflowers Sprouting

Everything looks much better now that that debris is gone.

Don't Be Cons!

It amazes me the number of home owners who do not know the laws pertaining to the trees growing on their property and fences. Therefore, I am posting this link for a downloadable copy of the "Handbook of Florida FenceAnd Property Law: Trees And Landowner Responsibility".

This handbook will help you avoid misinformation and outright cons. Don’t let vengeful, narcissists neighbors play you for a fool. Such neighbors are not your friends and are only looking out for  themselves.  Know your fact! 

In addition, check out my post “Invasive Sabal Palm”.

How My Garden Grows, or Not, Sic: Journal Entry 04/26/2024

04/24/2024 – moved the tomatoes to a sunny area Monday. Today, I  prepared an area for the Tabasco (Capsicum Frutescens) plants. These plants are perennials in the southern part of North American but are treat as annuals in the Northern part where the weather turns cooler.

04/26/2024 – besides trimming and feeding the plants with their specialized Miracle Gro water based solution, I transplanted the Tobasco pepper plants.

The locked garden needs to have the remainder the of the dead leaves and branches removed, but other than routine maintenances of the plants, that area is nearly completely for the spring.

How My Garden Grows, or Not, Sic: Journal Entry 04/22/2024

 

04/22/2024 - I received and planted the lemongrass stalks four is a pot, but as they grow if they overcrowded I will repot a couple in another pot.

 

I also planted the climbing Moonflower seeds in the Out Sunny planters. They, like Morning Glories, are unique in their blooming behaviors. Whereas Morning Glories bloom in early hours of the day, Moonflowers bloom at dust and into the night. Moonflowers are also very fragrant flowers and fill the evening air with the scent of jasmine and vanilla.

Moonflower

Morning Glory

How My Garden Grows, or Not, Sic: Journal Entry 04/21/2024

04/21/2024 – Today I setup the Better Boy planters with a cone and water bottle. It is never to early for them because the weather will be topping 90 degrees plus soon and I want the tomatoes plants to thrive. I am also thinking of placing them in a more sunny location. When I awake tomorrow morning, I will measure the amount of full sun those are getting in the garden. If they are getting an average of six hours a day, I will leave them where they are now.

 Terracotta Self Watering Spikes

 Bordeaux Wine Bottles

I also threw out the four young rosemary plants I recent bought. I am not sure why they died, but two of the four plants I left in the pots them arrived in and the other I transplanted in my raised bed, and strangely enough they all died within three day of delivery. I replaced them with the remaining thyme, basil and chives plants, which were in the window plant center. Luckily, I still have the older Rosemary plants. It looks a little straggly now, but it will fill out over time

 

To end the day, I added a decorative "Farmhouse World Cast Iron Scroll Cross".
 

All that is left for me to do is trim up the two yucca and corn plants. My husband (Fang) will help with the final clean up of the garden's grounds.

Setup New Planters for Tomatoes and Transferred Herbs to Raised Bed Part 2

 

04/18/2024 –After some reflections, I decided that the baskets of the OutSunny planters are too small for the Better Boy tomatoes. From my recollection,  I grew them in wooden half barrels because they were and are large indeterminate plants. Therefore, I transferred them to 7 gallon half barrels, with two plants in each barrels.

 

Young Better Boy Tomatoes plants

As for the OutSunny planters, I want to plant some Moonflowers in them. I also, transplants the German thyme and chives in the raised bed.

I must postpone the other garden work I planned to do this weekend, for the chores I must do in the house. 

"A woman’s work is never done",  Proverbs 31.

So true

Setup New Planters for Tomatoes and Transferred Herbs to Raised Bed

04.17.2024 – Today I assembled the tall Out Sunny planters for Better Boy Tomatoes. I never grew them here in Florida before, but I had great success when I grew them from seed in Kentucky.  

How to Grow Better Boy Tomatoes

Also I don’t have them yet, I went ahead and made the soil and fertilizer mixture them will need to grow. 

 

I also top dressed the raised bed and transferred sweet basil and two rosemary plants in it. There is an older rosemary from a year or two ago that make up third plant. When get the German Thyme and Chives they fill in the extra space in the raised bed. I am thinking about getting some Lemon Grass to make another pot of herbs and maybe some Hot Pepper.