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Post by lynnee on Feb 16, 2024 15:06:35 GMT -5
SO... I'm gonna start some green onions (scallions) from seed in a sprout 15 pod seedling starter and then transplant to a soil pot later this spring. My question is:
Can I just sink the sponge (with seedling) flush into the soil? Will the onion bulb grow on top of the sponge or should I cut the top of the sponge so that it won't constrict the bulb development? Another way of asking the question is: does an onion bulb grow above the soil level or just under it?
Here's a link to an article on growing green onions in soil. From the photo, it appears that only the green part should be above the soil. The white bulb stays below, which is probably the reason it isn't green!  www.epicgardening.com/how-to-grow-green-onions/ |
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CatHerder
AGA Sprout
"If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve man, but it would deteriorate the cat".
Posts: 142 
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Post by CatHerder on Feb 16, 2024 15:13:07 GMT -5
Outdoor gardening? Not any more. I'm in an apartment now. I was never very good at it, anyway, and I didn't like being at the mercy of the weather. I never have to worry about torrential rains or last frost date in my apartment. Also, I am definitely an indoor cat. I don't fiddle with pH, either. I learned with aquariums that once you start with the pH Up and Down, it's a never ending battle to keep it where you want it. I had a blackwater aquarium that I kept blackwater by filtering through peat rather than chemicals, and that worked pretty well and the pH stayed down without a lot of tinkering. But so far, every indication is that I have decent tap water because most everything is growing. It's good ol' Kansas river water. Lettuce, chives, scallions, and some herbs are thriving. Jury is still out on tomatoes and peppers, but I'll just grow whatever grows with my tap water. Sunflowers are pretty forgiving. You could probably just fling them out in the yard they would would come up. If the bluejays and chickadees don't eat them first, that is. Long ago I had a huge aquarium that I loved. Kept cichlids - one of the easiest as they survive in about any kind of water, even hard Houston water. No fiddling with the water for me. I miss those guys.  I spent several years researching having a back yard garden. Bought the books and everything. Then we had a summer that stayed over 100 degrees for a few months and that did it for me. I have long been an indoor cat myself. It just took the thought of digging in a garden when it is 107 outside to make me realize indoor cats don't have outside gardens. |
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slw
AGA Bounty
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Post by slw on Feb 16, 2024 15:14:41 GMT -5
CatHerder --I usually grow 2 cucumber pods in a Bounty and they do great. I haven't grown cukes in a Harvest XL but I think I would stick with one pod in that AG. I usually grow peppers in my XLs and they do great.
ETA--I just saw your post about outdoor gardens. I am also in the Houston area and my outdoor gardening is practically done about the time northern gardeners are planting seedlings!! I usually have my tomato plants and stuff in the ground by March 1 so my season ends pretty early. Nothing does well for me in late July/August. Just too dang hot.
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Post by lynnee on Feb 16, 2024 15:17:48 GMT -5
CatHerder, my lettuce usually continues to produce for a month or two after the leaves get large enough to harvest. It depends on the variety of lettuce, how long it takes before it bolts. FWIW, I've discovered that AG lettuce keeps for a long time in the bottom of the refrigerator, if you store it in a plastic slider bag along with a little bit of water. I cut off the individual leaves when I do this, rather than trying to cut the plant at the core like retail lettuce. I think the reason it keeps well is that it is perfectly fresh when you store it. 
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slw
AGA Bounty
Posts: 849
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Post by slw on Feb 16, 2024 15:20:52 GMT -5
You need to transplant your sunflower seedlings before the roots get too thick to be pulled through the hole in the grow deck. As I recall, my 5' sunflower was about 12" high when it was transplanted. Plant roots will take a fair amount of abuse when you are pulling them through the deck hole. Germination of sunflowers is easy, just like other flowers.  Thanks, Lynnee! I'll transplant them when they are pretty small. My neighbor told me that she has trouble with squirrels digging up her sunflower seeds after planting so I definitely think starting them indoors will be the way to go. |
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CatHerder
AGA Sprout
"If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve man, but it would deteriorate the cat".
Posts: 142
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Post by CatHerder on Feb 16, 2024 15:31:41 GMT -5
CatHerder --I usually grow 2 cucumber pods in a Bounty and they do great. I haven't grown cukes in a Harvest XL but I think I would stick with one pod in that AG. I usually grow peppers in my XLs and they do great.
ETA--I just saw your post about outdoor gardens. I am also in the Houston area and my outdoor gardening is practically done about the time northern gardeners are planting seedlings!! I usually have my tomato plants and stuff in the ground by March 1 so my season ends pretty early. Nothing does well for me in late July/August. Just too dang hot.
I keep trying to figure out how to reply with names instead of quoting, but haven't been able to figure it out. Sorry. Thanks, I was thinking two would work; good to know it will. Peppers as in bell peppers? I have those pods too. I went nuts at xmas and bought whatever was on sale that would grow in the Harvest XL.  I don't do spicy peppers as I'm a yankee by birth (but have gotten better with a bit spicy over the years). I love poblanos, but straight jalapenos are a no-no for me. If you plant the tomatoes March 1, how long do they last? I bought some beautiful purple tomato seeds from Baker Creek. I was thinking of starting then transplanting in a tomato container that has an attached trellis I've had for a while. Full sun or part shade? |
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Post by lynnee on Feb 16, 2024 15:40:20 GMT -5
CatHerder, to reply with names, you (1) hit reply, (2) hit the button to the left of the smiley button with @ and a person icon, (3) enter a user name or enough of it to open a list of possible members, and (4) select the name you want. It will go into your reply. Doesn't Baker Creek include some growing info on the seed packet? If not, try googling the tomato variety, and check the seed companies that come up for growing info. My outdoor tomatoes prefer some shade, because full sun dries them out too fast.
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pfunnyjoy
AGA Bounty
Made more grow room in my office!
Posts: 791
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Post by pfunnyjoy on Feb 16, 2024 15:55:37 GMT -5
CatHerder --I usually grow 2 cucumber pods in a Bounty and they do great. I haven't grown cukes in a Harvest XL but I think I would stick with one pod in that AG. I usually grow peppers in my XLs and they do great.
ETA--I just saw your post about outdoor gardens. I am also in the Houston area and my outdoor gardening is practically done about the time northern gardeners are planting seedlings!! I usually have my tomato plants and stuff in the ground by March 1 so my season ends pretty early. Nothing does well for me in late July/August. Just too dang hot.
I was born in Houston, so I understand! Meanwhile, it's been snowing here ... last frost is usually end of April, but not guaranteed. |
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CatHerder
AGA Sprout
"If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve man, but it would deteriorate the cat".
Posts: 142
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Post by CatHerder on Feb 16, 2024 16:08:44 GMT -5
lynnee Thanks! It does have some info on the packet. I figured part shade in our zone (9a, I believe) would be better than full sun. Plus, that will give my yard 'pets' better cover from the caracaras that visit the neighborhood gardens. Yikes! 
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CatHerder
AGA Sprout
"If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve man, but it would deteriorate the cat".
Posts: 142
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Post by CatHerder on Feb 16, 2024 16:09:54 GMT -5
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slw
AGA Bounty
Posts: 849
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Post by slw on Feb 16, 2024 17:36:46 GMT -5
Thanks, I was thinking two would work; good to know it will. Peppers as in bell peppers? If you plant the tomatoes March 1, how long do they last? I bought some beautiful purple tomato seeds from Baker Creek. I was thinking of starting then transplanting in a tomato container that has an attached trellis I've had for a while. Full sun or part shade? Yes, all kinds of peppers. I have had great success with the AG bell peppers and also banana peppers. Currently I'm growing poblanos, banana and bell peppers in Aerogardens.
My outside gardens are pretty much done by mid-June, just about the time that the unbearable heat hits. My backyard neighbors have a lot of trees so over the years as their trees grew I have a shrinking area that gets enough sun for a garden. My raised beds get full sun from about 10 a.m. to around 3 p.m., which is not optimal but I can't cut down the neighbor's landscaping!!
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pfunnyjoy
AGA Bounty
Made more grow room in my office!
Posts: 791
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Post by pfunnyjoy on Feb 16, 2024 18:44:16 GMT -5
Melted off again. I don't miss it at all! Didn't grow up seeing much of it! Once or twice, before I left Beaumont for college. |
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Post by lynnee on Feb 16, 2024 19:35:10 GMT -5
lynnee Thanks! It does have some info on the packet. I figured part shade in our zone (9a, I believe) would be better than full sun. Plus, that will give my yard 'pets' better cover from the caracaras that visit the neighborhood gardens. Yikes! Yay, you did it!  You have birds of prey visiting nearby gardens? Ouch! The worst we have are turkey vultures. We hardly ever see them. |
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Post by swimmom500 on Feb 16, 2024 23:00:45 GMT -5
CatHerder, to reply with names, you (1) hit reply, (2) hit the button to the left of the smiley button with @ and a person icon, (3) enter a user name or enough of it to open a list of possible members, and (4) select the name you want. It will go into your reply. Doesn't Baker Creek include some growing info on the seed packet? If not, try googling the tomato variety, and check the seed companies that come up for growing info. My outdoor tomatoes prefer some shade, because full sun dries them out too fast. I don’t know how to do this either but I am stuck on step 1 hit the reply button- where do I find the reply button? Sorry if this is a dumb question but I have been trying to figure out how to do this for awhile. |
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Post by tompepper7 on Feb 16, 2024 23:50:48 GMT -5
On the upper right of a post there is Reply, Quote, Thumbs Up, and other actions.
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Post by swimmom500 on Feb 17, 2024 7:45:15 GMT -5
I guess the problem is once I hit reply I don’t have any choices other than to type. And in the upper right on a post I have quote, thumbs up and other actions. Maybe I need an update or something.
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Post by Clovis Sangrail on Feb 17, 2024 8:43:59 GMT -5
I guess the problem is once I hit reply I don’t have any choices other than to type. And in the upper right on a post I have quote, thumbs up and other actions. Maybe I need an update or something. If you hit Reply, you just get a blank page to type in. If you hit Quote, which I just did to your post, you get the text and pictures and everything from the post on which you hit the quote button, plus a blank space to type in below it. |
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Post by lynnee on Feb 17, 2024 9:22:55 GMT -5
I guess the problem is once I hit reply I don’t have any choices other than to type. And in the upper right on a post I have quote, thumbs up and other actions. Maybe I need an update or something. If you hit Reply, you just get a blank page to type in. If you hit Quote, which I just did to your post, you get the text and pictures and everything from the post on which you hit the quote button, plus a blank space to type in below it. , Posts and their buttons display differently on Proboards, depending on the kind of device (laptop/desktop or mobile) and/or operating system (iOS or Android) that you're using. I suspect that you're using the Proboards "mobile" display option, where the "Reply" button is at the right of the thread title. So scroll to the very bottom of the page, where you will see "Back Top Dashboard Desktop" choices. Choose "Desktop" and you will see posts displayed with "Reply" and other buttons above the area showing the post. Hit that "Reply" button and you'll get a window with a row of buttons, including the "@" button. You get out of the Dashboard display, if you don't like it, by scrolling to the bottom of the page and choosing "switch to Mobile". These are the buttons you want:  |
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Post by scarfguy on Feb 17, 2024 11:59:35 GMT -5
Got a question that has been bothering me for some time. I'll ask it here although it might be more appropriate in my cantaloupe thread:
I have a melon that is getting close to harvest. Everything I've read says to cut back on watering in the last couple of weeks before harvest to increase the sugars in the melon.
That, of course, applies to soil farming. How do I cut back watering in an AG ?
Should I...
1. fill the bowl partway full keeping most of the roots above the water line?
2. fill the bowl to the top and wait to refill until the water level is very low?
3. stop watering the plant all together? (I think the plant would just die before ripening the melon)
Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks
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CatHerder
AGA Sprout
"If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve man, but it would deteriorate the cat".
Posts: 142
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Post by CatHerder on Feb 17, 2024 14:41:55 GMT -5
lynnee Thanks! It does have some info on the packet. I figured part shade in our zone (9a, I believe) would be better than full sun. Plus, that will give my yard 'pets' better cover from the caracaras that visit the neighborhood gardens. Yikes! Yay, you did it! You have birds of prey visiting nearby gardens? Ouch! The worst we have are turkey vultures. We hardly ever see them. Our subdivision is surrounded by "lakes" so we have the vultures and all kinds of hawks (red tail, cooper's, sharp-shinned, etc.), crested caracaras (HUGE, mean, nasty birds that hunt in multiples), owls, and once I saw an osprey. Unfortunately, the caracaras eat the doves and bunnies that frequent yards with landscaping and gardens. I lost my 'family' of doves that lived in our yard for years. So sad. 
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I don't do spicy peppers as I'm a yankee by birth (but have gotten better with a bit spicy over the years). I love poblanos, but straight jalapenos are a no-no for me.
