Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Mark, I'm in the Temecula/Lake Elsinore area....Wildomar to be exact. The avocado tree is a standard fuerte.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Mark absolutely beautiful to bad we weren't closer together I would give you the patio pots I have gathered over the years. An older neighbor of ours gave us a ton of them. She moved to a nursing home.
I talked with another neighbor she is planting today. I am going to let today pass the 7 day forcast starting tomorrow seems promising at least away from the freezing mark!
Mack

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

You're definitely in avocado country Jay. My parents have 104 acre's of avocado/grapefruit property in Pauma Valley (just South of your location). Your fuerte will have no problemo in surviving. You will basically have to go out of your way to kill it by not watering it.

Well, that standard tree can reach a height in excess of 25+ feet for one. At some point in time, and for convenience of harvesting, you will want to keep it trimmed low in time (maybe to around twelve feet). It will be easier to get a picking latter up into the branches that way. There are picking poles that extend with a small canvas bag on the end. You telescope the pole to the desired length, find a avocado, cut it, and it falls into the bag. However, that's some time down the road for you.

Make sure you have dug a nice size hole to plant the tree in, add the appropriate nutrients and compost and work it well into the soil, then water it all in, and plant your tree. Back fill with a mixture of the original soil and compost, and water in good. I don't know what the diameter of your tree's canopy, but your hole should be approximately the same size. When irrigating the tree, you should irrigate underneath the tree about the same diameter of the canopy. That is, the circumference of the spread out branches (hopefully that made some sort of sense). You can check out more here:

http://uccemg.com/Edible_Plants/?ds=530&uid=127

http://www.mastergardenerssandiego.o...%20Gardens.pdf


Thanks Mack. I'm sure someone in your area can make use of those pots...

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Thanks for the advice Mark. The tree is in the ground already (planted by the nursery where we purchased it from) but they did add any amendments to the soil. It is starting to produce fruit though. Their guidance to us was water everyday for the first week and then 2-3x a week after that. They did make a 'well' of mulch around it and stated fill the 'well' and that will suffice for water for the tree. I will say I am somewhat fearful of adding fertilizer (too much or not enough). I have been keeping it simple by adding MiracleGro to it. Is that beneficial? BTW, thanks for the input. I will read up on those sites tonight.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

It sounds like you're all set there Jay. It appears that the nursery crew most likely prepared the soil prior to planting your tree. You may want to call and ask them if they did prepare your soil with fertilizer just for the fun of it. If they did, great. If they did not, there's most likely a reason. I would also ask about a fertilization program for your tree once it has established itself in your yard. The one thing you do not want to do is over fertilize and burn out your beautiful avocado tree.

Enjoy all of that guacamole Jay!

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

After weather this weekend Monday rolls around still over cast T* are up a little and 7 day doesn't even come close to freezing! I got up early and here are my results
Cucumber/lettuce(seeds)
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...pse1grqjbe.jpg
Onion bed
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...psn8kaj906.jpg
Tomatoes/squash/and broccoli.
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...pslhbwrmoh.jpg
More tomatoes/water melon/ and celery!
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...ps71c7bm8y.jpg
Later today I will be putting in my PVC for irrigation system we went with soaker hose simply because we got the hoses for cheap and we will see how well it works.
We have had successful years in the past. The past 2 years have been very disappointing as far as gardening go weeds ate my lunch the 1st year then our city workers sprayed last year for weeds and killed my garden 1 month in!

This is my first year doing raised beds and we are looking forward to our results. I began doing home work on these almost a year ago. After talking with a couple of friends and neighbors they are trying them also.

Mack

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Looks great Mack

Here's my first raised bed
https://scontent-dfw1-1.xx.fbcdn.net...eb&oe=55C00E1E

https://scontent-dfw1-1.xx.fbcdn.net...33&oe=55C01921

https://scontent-dfw1-1.xx.fbcdn.net...e1&oe=55F96904

Now all I have to do is fill it with dirt and plant stuff. I wont be planting anything anytime soon though, getting ready to deploy over the summer.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Garden update- I've got more lettuce than i can eat and I'm getting tired of eating it. Broccoli is looking good and probably has a few more weeks to go. Tomatoes are plentiful but still green. Zucchini has been picked a few times and is about to be in full swing along with the cucumbers.

Had to break out the 7dust yesterday due to the caterpillars having their way with my greens.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Fried green tomatoes

I filled the bed with compost today.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Hal you are killing me I want a fresh salad out of garden so bad I can taste it! Tell you what send me some up if you have to much. Even mailed to me is probably fresher then anything we get here!
Ford that is a great looking garden spot. I am sorry you won't get to try it out this year. But you will have a jump on next year's growing season.
Mack

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

[IMG]http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/l...s/IMG_9244.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/l...s/IMG_9243.jpg[/IMG]

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Hal-

The lettuce--- Does it keep producing or is it a one and done type thing?

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

You should just be able to cut it back, leaving the root, and it'll regrow.

My tomato plants have started to take off. Seems like over night they doubled in size. Finally put the cages over them before they got too big.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

It's crazy. Some grew a second head next to the original but most grew almost three feet tall….

I harvested six heads of broccoli this morning and hacked down some of the whacked out lettuce heads. Planted a ghost, scorpion, habanero, and two Thai hot pepper plants.

Looks like the cauliflower will be ready to harvest in less than two weeks.

Maters are plentiful but still green…. Oh, I toasted a rabbit in the garden yesterday evening. One down and a few more to go. ;)

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

OK! I have a little spare room in one of my boxes. I may thrown some lettuce in there.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Picked a handful of zucchini on Sunday along with one jalepeno and two bell peppers.

Finished removing the rest of the lettuce heads and replaced them with two carolina reapers, two okra, and one more tomato plant.

My daughter and I planted two Wee B pumpkin plants on the side hill far away from anything for it to choke out or grind up in the mower.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

broccoli
tomatoes
squash
string beans
arugula
romaine

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

I am going Romaine & Arugala next weekend.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e4...pshrgrcvce.jpg

The garden after I fenced it and graveled the walks.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Looks great Mack! Always nice to place some gravel in between the raised planters...

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Everything is putting out except the hot peppers. Picked up a handful of more zucchini and cucumber plants for the side hill where I planted the pumpkins.

How's everyone else's gardens doing?

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

My garlic's about ready to pull. Cut off the last of the garlic scapes yesterday. Grilled up a few of them for dinner last night, plus a few extra to put into some hummus I've yet to make.

Cut down my mustard greens plant. I like wilted greens on occassion, but those plants produce way too much for me to eat. So into the compost pile it went.

My plants all have flowers on them, hoping to see something sprouting soon.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Cleaned up the garden today. thinned out the mater plants, cutting off all the sucker branches. Found lots of small tomatoes growing. :tu

Dug up all my garlic. No real huge heads this year, but all 40+ heads developed nicely.

Now I have a 4x8' raised bed that's empty. Anyone have ideas of late season plants I could get going? Or should I just wait for fall and plant cooler temps plants?

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Did a little picking in the garden.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Heat has scorched most of mine. I am trying to water daily to at least keep the soil moist. Peppers are coming in and watermelons will be ready shortly.

.......AND Carolina Reapers

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Pulled the last of my plants and finally dug up my sunchoke plant. Holy crap that thing just kept on giving. Pulled most of the rest of my chiltepin peppers and the last few Serrano. Those I'm going to ferment and make into hot sauce.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Peppers.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Grew orange habanero, cayenne, jalapeno, and ghost peppers this year. Critters ate my jalapeno plants. Cayennes did poorly. Ghost and habs done pretty well. Made hour sauce with some and drying the rest for powder. With all the rain early on this season it's lucky anything produced at all this year here.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

I've been busy. Not growing a lot this year. Lots of room, too much, not enough time. I was real late. I just planted a few tomatoes, cukes, peppers, beans, squash, melons. No corn or punkins.
Anyone else? I'm not talkin about your "medicine".

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Put out habanero, jolokia, and cayenne plants this year to make hot sauce with. Really hope the cayenne's do well this year. Got a recipe I come up with that makes a really tasty sauce.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

I did a fermented hot sauce with Serrano and chiltepin from my garden last year. Crazy good. And pretty easy. Unfortunately no garden this year. Need the space temporarily for a new garage.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Mr B are the cukes curling?

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

I only have a small area for planting so just did some tomatoes, eggplant and hot peppers this year. All of my hot pepper plants got eaten to the ground by a mole (I suspect), my tomatoes are OK, but seem to be rotting on the vine before they ripen and my eggplant are coming along slowly. Overall, not a great season for me. Oh yeah, I have a raised box for herbs that did pretty well. So there's that.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Did some breaking down of one of my two 4x8 planters. Both squash plants were way overgrown. Still producing, but I can only eat so much as well as my neighbors. Did pull a 6.5lb zucchini which is currently sliced up and dehydrating. Now my serrano plants have room to grow.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Thanks for the thread revive Bob. Once we own some dirt again a garden is on the first page of things to do. Love any and all pics and tips

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

I need to get my photo server back up and running. This year has been amazing so far.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Well, it looks like my old pics server is already working. That was from ten years ago. It's still about the same.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Impressive,

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

Working on a container garden of lots of ridiculously hot chili varieties. Got ‘em all in five gallon pots on my porch to help give them a fighting chance against this summers brutal weather.

Re: Gardeners in the Asylum
 

I love ghost, scorpion, Caribbean reds, Habs!
Tough for me to grow them. Those super hot are hard for me to eat. Anything less is not. I let my wife decide how spicy to make food.