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I received my Tioga strawberries from Koanga yesterday. I had been thinking that I only got one plant but bonus, there are 5 of them! I thought it was odd that there were several plants in the box but thought maybe they were all part of one big plant that came apart in shipping. Yay! I like the 5-plants concept better.
I planted them today. I wanted to put them in a strawberry barrel or strawberry/herb planter but don't have either and wanted to get them planted today so put them in a normal long plastic planter. We need to go to hardware/garden store tomorrow so I might pick up some strawberry planting mix or maybe some strawberry food and sprinkle some around the plants. The Tui potato food did a great job with this year's potatoes so I have faith in their stuff. I do need to get some bird netting for the strawberries as well as the black & logan berries.
Our back fence has been pulled down and there are new posts cemented into the ground. I had shifted some of the plants away from the old fence a few weeks ago and last week had to do an emergency shift of the rest of them and finish up the weeding in that area. Our neighbor in #1 is putting the fence up. The plants are all crammed here and there & I worry about someone nicking the fruit trees (it happens). So far so good though.
Influencing the next generation....
Today when I was out there planting the strawberries the little boy in #1 (about 6 yrs old) walked up the back driveway and asked me what I was doing. We talked a little, he asked what I was doing and I told him. He's often expressed a bit of interest when I'm doing something around the garden. They don't have much room, his mom isn't a gardener nor is his dad.
If you don't know this about me, I'm not a kid person. But they like me. It's like people who aren't cat people. Cats can sense this and will flock to someone who is Not A Cat Person. Kids do the same thing. I always attract them & don't know what to do with them or say to them.
I showed him the strawberries and he watched while I planted them. I talked to his mom & answered his questions. When I was done I pulled out one of the old tomato pots and scraped a bit of the soil off the top. I had him hold his hand out and poured some mustard seeds into it, some into my hand and showed him how to sprinkle them around the pot. When we did that I gave him my trovel & let him scoop some dirt out of a bucket, put it onto the mustard seed. I spread it out as he shoveled it on. I had him hold onto the watering can & I helped him lift it so he could water the seeds, then we sprinkled Quash snail & slug bait around. It isn't toxic to kids or wildlife & I keep mine in an old drink bottle so the pellets come out the sipper top. I've taken off the labels and marked it so it's obvious it's not a drink.
He seemed to enjoy himself and I put the pot near the gate between our units so he can look through the gate and see "his" mustard grow.
Perhaps another budding gardener in the making.
After they left I chucked some more mustard into 2 of the former potato bags & planted about 10 Snowball Cauliflower today (yay heirloom! and 300 seeds for $2.95NZ, Kings site says 6-8 days?!). I want to plant some of the Year Round Cauliflower in a couple weeks to extend the cropping (heat & cold stress resistant & matures in 70 days). And tomorrow I want to finish the planting with Rainbow Chard (21-35 days for baby leaves) & some Amber Carrots.
I've ordered my seed potatoes from Koanga, to be delivered in June. Tonight we went grocery shopping and needed to pick up some potatoes amongst our usual big-shop. They had Purple Heart potatoes so we picked up a bag. A bit pricey (I think they were about $4.50NZ for the bag??) Check out those antioxidant levels! I'm hoping to set 3 aside to sprout for seed potatoes, maybe give them their own grow bag. Supposedly you aren't supposed to try to grow potatoes from supermarket ones but I am willing to give these a go and hopefully they'll breed true since it says they are "bred naturally". (Interesting article here about purple potatoes. PS- just found an article that says they are "Bred by Crop and Food, it is a cross between urenika, one of the old Maori potatoes, and more modern varieties." I'll still give it a go for seed potatoes. If they don't work that's fine, I'll have the seed potatoes I ordered. Fingers crossed though!
I planted them today. I wanted to put them in a strawberry barrel or strawberry/herb planter but don't have either and wanted to get them planted today so put them in a normal long plastic planter. We need to go to hardware/garden store tomorrow so I might pick up some strawberry planting mix or maybe some strawberry food and sprinkle some around the plants. The Tui potato food did a great job with this year's potatoes so I have faith in their stuff. I do need to get some bird netting for the strawberries as well as the black & logan berries.
Our back fence has been pulled down and there are new posts cemented into the ground. I had shifted some of the plants away from the old fence a few weeks ago and last week had to do an emergency shift of the rest of them and finish up the weeding in that area. Our neighbor in #1 is putting the fence up. The plants are all crammed here and there & I worry about someone nicking the fruit trees (it happens). So far so good though.
Influencing the next generation....
Today when I was out there planting the strawberries the little boy in #1 (about 6 yrs old) walked up the back driveway and asked me what I was doing. We talked a little, he asked what I was doing and I told him. He's often expressed a bit of interest when I'm doing something around the garden. They don't have much room, his mom isn't a gardener nor is his dad.
If you don't know this about me, I'm not a kid person. But they like me. It's like people who aren't cat people. Cats can sense this and will flock to someone who is Not A Cat Person. Kids do the same thing. I always attract them & don't know what to do with them or say to them.
I showed him the strawberries and he watched while I planted them. I talked to his mom & answered his questions. When I was done I pulled out one of the old tomato pots and scraped a bit of the soil off the top. I had him hold his hand out and poured some mustard seeds into it, some into my hand and showed him how to sprinkle them around the pot. When we did that I gave him my trovel & let him scoop some dirt out of a bucket, put it onto the mustard seed. I spread it out as he shoveled it on. I had him hold onto the watering can & I helped him lift it so he could water the seeds, then we sprinkled Quash snail & slug bait around. It isn't toxic to kids or wildlife & I keep mine in an old drink bottle so the pellets come out the sipper top. I've taken off the labels and marked it so it's obvious it's not a drink.
He seemed to enjoy himself and I put the pot near the gate between our units so he can look through the gate and see "his" mustard grow.
Perhaps another budding gardener in the making.
After they left I chucked some more mustard into 2 of the former potato bags & planted about 10 Snowball Cauliflower today (yay heirloom! and 300 seeds for $2.95NZ, Kings site says 6-8 days?!). I want to plant some of the Year Round Cauliflower in a couple weeks to extend the cropping (heat & cold stress resistant & matures in 70 days). And tomorrow I want to finish the planting with Rainbow Chard (21-35 days for baby leaves) & some Amber Carrots.
I've ordered my seed potatoes from Koanga, to be delivered in June. Tonight we went grocery shopping and needed to pick up some potatoes amongst our usual big-shop. They had Purple Heart potatoes so we picked up a bag. A bit pricey (I think they were about $4.50NZ for the bag??) Check out those antioxidant levels! I'm hoping to set 3 aside to sprout for seed potatoes, maybe give them their own grow bag. Supposedly you aren't supposed to try to grow potatoes from supermarket ones but I am willing to give these a go and hopefully they'll breed true since it says they are "bred naturally". (Interesting article here about purple potatoes. PS- just found an article that says they are "Bred by Crop and Food, it is a cross between urenika, one of the old Maori potatoes, and more modern varieties." I'll still give it a go for seed potatoes. If they don't work that's fine, I'll have the seed potatoes I ordered. Fingers crossed though!
