Gardening- For those who love to grow.

[reddog289]

Forgot about the cars, TWO will be gone soon and the other hopefully on the road next year. Gonna try bucket planting. But that car planter deal might work.
Funny thing before I got into gardening, I have another car at a different location. It is in a garage. Well it was warm out on a sunny Febuary day, So I went to the garage to mess with the car. I climb over, around, and even upside down to get underneath said car. After the lights had fully kicked on and I turned on the trouble light to see what work lay ahead of me. I noticed something green and growing, wrapping itself around the engine stand and the block that rested on it. Sure enuff A vine had grown. In the middle of winter, in the middle of a normally dark during the winter garage.
I was puzzeled, So I asked my Uncle the gardener, ''How can this be?" He said "A message from God" or a mouse dropped a seed and something was right to make it grow.I let the vine grow. Till one day I came back and it had died. Then I had noticed some thing I never noticed before.Through a vent came Sunlight. And when the heater was turned on, Moisture. Be it from snowy boots or condensation.Somewhere I have pictures of this "plant". Not that I will ever find them, Yet at the time I just looked at the MYSTERY asspect of it all.
Back then as now, It could be one of my stories that had Friends,Family and anyone else thinking, "What is he on?".
I think back on that vine and them times,wayback in the 1990's. Yet winter is on it's way and the car nor the "trellis" engine stand has moved. Only time will tell.

[sumas]

I am already planning next years garden. Can't believe it's a frost warning for Thursday. This year I think I am going to store my annual geraniums. I just pull them out of the planters. Toss them in a brown paper bag and store them in a cool dry place. In many of my planters, I use perennials. I just leave them out all winter and most survive. Best luck is with choral Bells [[any variety) Catmint, Snow on the mountain and Sedums. Coolest experiment was I took some cuttings from a customers' yard, of trailing sedum. I had a cement pedestal from an old bird feeder and a strawberry planter. The sedum almost looks like a perpetual trailing fountain now.

[reddog289]

I know my garden will be smaller next and with stronger mater cages.

[eriedearie]

reddog - I just gotta ask...by any chance were you born and bred from south of the Mason-Dixon line? Love the way you refer to them as maters! Just brings me memories of my kinfolk from down south.

[eriedearie]

Have any of the gardeners on here tried growing tomateos? Not tomatoes or maters...these are the little, round, spicy balls of flavor that grow wrapped in a papery-like shell. Attachment 3364

One of our local farmers sent some home with my husband for me to try. First taste...I wasn't too sure...was kinda spicy, sour with a hint of sweetness to it. But, I took all of them out their paper wrapping and washed them. Sat them on the kitchen counter and now every time I walk by, I have to pop one in my mouth - I think I'm hooked.

Anyway, these are little, like a marble. I have seen them sold at Honeybee - but they were way larger. Does anyone know if the larger ones have the same taste? I can't seem to find too much about them on Google. Just wondering???

[reddog289]

Erie, I myself have never grown those Tomateos,But would try if I liked them. I bought some strawberry tomatos at Eastern Market cause I only planted one cherry tomato plant this year. The strawberry maters were grown in a greenhouse in Essex or somewhere round there.
BTW people think I might be from the south, But only because of my fathers side, and not that far{West Virginia and Kentucky}. Moms side were first generation Detroiters. And to confuse things even more my StepDad's GreatGreat,X? Grandfather is said to have brought over the first plow to Quebec. There is a statue of him in Quebec City.
I was born in Wayne, raised in Garden City and Westland, although spend alot of time at both sets of Grandparents in Detroit, That when I went to High School my newer friends thought I was livin in Detroit and going to school in Westland..
But if you were to see the desk me and my co-worker share at work You might think we/you were south of the Mason Dixon line. Newspapers from Tennesee and Hunting magazines from Kentucky.
Now I need to figure out how to put pictures of my garden on here.Took some before I ripped out the dying plants.

[sumas]

A perfect rose. This year was not a stellar year for roses. Trying to put my garden to rest I found it. One perfect rose bud.

I felt a bit shameless, but cut it off and brought it indoors. A week later it still looks flawless. Tropicana is the name. It is the only flower, it [[the plant) has produced all year. I thought briefly of taking a photo. But then I decided to just keep the image in my minds eye.

[redvetred]

Erie,
They are called tomatillos. Here's some info from the GardenNet.com:


"Tomatillo is also known as Toma Verde or Ground Cherries. It is a member of the nightshade family, related to tomatoes. It is grown like a tomato, and the plant and leaves look like a tomato plant. That is where the similarity ends. Twenty years ago, most Americans did not even know of Tomatillos, let alone think about growing them. Now, avid gardeners looking for something different to grow, often turn to Tomatillos.

The fruit of the Tomatillo is green, and about the size of a large cherry tomato. The inside is white and meatier than a tomato. Tomatillos grow inside of a thin paper-like husk. They are used in Salsa, jams and other mexican recipes."

I liked the taste and they were easy to grow.

[reddog289]

Looks like sumthing I should try to grow. Every one I know makes salsa. Except me. None of my Tomatos did real well this year, I had bumper crop of Hungarian Wax Peppers and Habanaroes. Got pictures but haven't figured out how to post them.

[eriedearie]

Redvetred - thank you for the information. I was using the name that my husband relayed from the farmer. Gosh, I am totally hooked on those little guys! This past week alone the farmer has given me two-2 quart baskets of them. I'm eating them like they're M&M candies! There's no time to make salsa or cook anything with them. I get them out of their little paper wrappers and wash 'em and pop them in my mouth!

I'm gonna need to find a supplier in the coming months. I can't wait till next harvest in Ontario for another batch! So if you know of someplace that sells them - please post their location here.

[sumas]

Unfortunately for me I hate winter. Did get the snowblower fixed but then the lawnmower died.

Just finished the last customers fall clean up and my partner and I agreed that nature is just amazing. Already signs of new plant life waiting for spring.