Let's Talk about Gardens

@sueinmn @gingerw et al.

Everyone here in central Oregon has fencing around young trees and shrubs. It's not very beautiful but it gives things a fighting chance. I have fencing around my orchard - not an ideal fence, but I'm planning to put up some 10' t-stakes and string barbed wire above the fence.

A few years ago I dug up a flower bed for an elderly hospice patient, and I brought home some rhizomes from the miniature yellow iris and a couple of other things. She was happy to see the clean bed, and was glad to give the excess to me rather than putting it in the trash. I planted them in several places around the yard, and they're early bloomers, and give me a sense of anticipation for all the other colors of iris here and there in various flower beds. An extra bonus is that they require very little care. And another bonus is that the deer don't like them.

And the weeds and grass - I pull up by have as many as I can handle, but I have to confess to using roundup and weed-be-gone in places where the desirable plants won't suffer collateral damage. I don't like to use it, but sometimes I can't keep up with the weeds. I don't use it in the vegetable garden.

I read that if you put a couple of Tums (generics work just as well) in the holes where tomato are planted, it prevents bottom rot. Last year was the first time I tried it out, and there was no rot on any of the plants. I have a commercial product that I've used for that purpose, with no success.

This winter I put green netting over the things that they usually munch on, with good success.

Happy Mother's Day. Since we can't do our traditional restaurant dinner, I'm going to get dinner curbside. After dinner I'll be outside as usual.

Jim

Jim, Roundup is so bad. It's worse than weeds. Weeds may not look the way you want, but they don't hurt the environment. Roundup does, there's no denying it.

@jimhd Thanks for that tip. Husband got here last night about 9pm so he didn't see how tall the grass really is until daylight this morning. High on my list is the raised bed garden bed. Apparently, not so on his. He will be here a month before going back south on contract work for a few weeks. While I can handle any tool in his workshop, I physically cannot do the work. I would happily plant irises all over this place, they are just so pretty!

@zep denounced Roundup. Any different between the two, Roundup or Weed-be-Gone?
Ginger

@zep @gingerw Read Rachel Carsons book The Silent Spring . You,ll see how bad our enviroment is because of man,s inventions..

@gingerw Roundup (glyphosate) is a non-selective herbicide, it kills what it touches, whereas Weed-b-Gone is selective and only kills the listed plants.
There is a great deal of debate about glyphosate, with lawsuits and all that. I tend to be pretty much a non-chemical gardener but I understand there are times when a specific pesticide may be the least-bad solution. Of all the non-selective herbicides on the market for either home or professional use, glyphosate is among the least toxic and one of the least persistent. It is less toxic to the soil than industrial strength vinegar and table salt, which are often promoted as alternatives by people who object to pesticides. That said, it is still a chemical to be handled with great care and used according to directions and with proper precautions.
I am a University trained Master Gardener and research nerd - my mind was changed about glyphosate after I took a class where it was discussed as a controversial and emerging issue. We were given a lot of research material to peruse, and I did a lot of studying. We were encouraged to make up our own minds based on our own studies and conscience - we were not told what to believe or say.
I still try EVERY other solution first, but do resort to Roundup rarely, like when fighting buckthorn, oriental bittersweet and poison ivy in my yard.
I realize that each gardener in this group has their own opinion about glyphosate and other chemicals - if you want to share yours, please let's keep it fact-based and respectful of others' beliefs.
Happy gardening
Sue

Roundup is non selective. Weed-be-gone won't kill grass, but intended for broadleaf. I've heard all of the hoopla about glyphosates (not sure of the spelling), and I only use it when I need to. Actually, the product I'm using isn't roundup. If someone doesn't want me to use it, they would be most welcome to come and get their hands in the dirt. I just don't have the energy that I used to, and between arthritis in my hands and neuropathy pain in my feet, not to mention depression and anxiety, I can't keep up with everything. Some days are recliner days.

I apologise for using the word hoopla. It doesn't reflect my commitment to taking care of our earth. But those words kind of pop out when I'm tired and hurting.

@gingerw I have lots of tools, and I know how to use them, but like you, there are days when I don't have the strength to use them.

Today I put soaker hoses around the trees in the orchard and weeded around several of them. I'm already paying for the amount of walking involved.

Gotta fix some supper now.

Jim

@jimhd Oh dear, dear Jim. You get no criticism from me. I totally "get it". As always, I admire your gut level honesty. Any environmentalists that want to go into attack mode here are on the wrong site to do so.
Dismounting my gardening mat as my soapbox is too high to step up on. 🙂

@parus - My goodness, that was not attack mode. I'm sorry I stepped on any feelings by stating an opinion about a pesticide!

@parus . I too am sorry if you thought my suggestion of the book Silent Spring was a criticism it wasnt its a thoughtful book Rachel wrote She was a marine biologist . You do what you want

@sueinmn I do not like to use the super-duper stuff if not needed, and try to be gentle on our Earth. But the north slope of our property has a blackberry jungle. There is a volunteer pine tree trying to survive, plus some fiddlehead ferns. In early January the power company removed a dead maple that threatened to take out power lines, so it opened up some nice space. As in, the blackberries figured it was all for them! We have hauled out most of the rounds of wood, and need to chain up and drag the balance out with the Jeep. Previous owners actually fed the blackberries fertilizer and water! The soil here is pretty adverse to normal plantings, as it has a lot of clay, but I will give it a try.
@jimhd Thanks for that info. I feel guilty that I cannot do what I would like to, given physical/emotional limitations. Doing as much as possible without wiping me out is a daily variable! As of this morning the blackberries are almost gone, thanks to a hard-working young man from the town [posted in gratitude group].
@parus Here, I'll help you down. Soapbox? nah! I can barely manage a step!
Ginger