What do you Grow?? The Garden Thread
The climate is also classed as oceanic, and we’re adjacent to the top of the Gulf Stream that loops up from the Caribbean: so we’re warmer than adjacent areas of the continent, and weather can change from pouring rain to bright sun in the space of ten minutes. It is generally wet though: not having rain for over a week is newsworthy.
And humid/damp: an Arab guy I knew at uni said he sweated more in the UK than in Dubai due to the damp weight of the air!
So, the Gulf Stream connects south Florida with you in England and Amity in Ireland.
I also meant to mention that I envy your job as a gardener. I am pretty sure that is what I was meant to be, but I couldn't figure out how to get there.
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The river is the melody
And sky is the refrain - Gordon Lightfoot
lol Kraftie, if only the hardiness zones meant Ireland was warmer... Woke up this morning to a blanket of snow, power outages, traffic mahem and school closures... If I close my eyes and concentrate I can remember what it feels like to have the sun on my face
Zone 9 in Florida occasionally gets snow, but I don't think it gets a blanket of snow. I looked over a comparison chart between US and UK/Ireland zones and really couldn't make any sense out of it. It was saying I was in zone 11 and no where in Florida is it zone 11, which is real tropics. South Florida is subtropical. I am technically in zone 9b, but am so close to zone 10 I can grow some zone 10 plants. I cannot grow any fruits requiring any amount of chill hours.
Amity, forget-me-nots, if we are talking about the same plant, like to be in wet places, but don't like high humidity. Also for hydrangeas, again if it is the same we have in the states, they don't like the warm weather of zone 9. So it may be too warm for your plants.
_________________
The river is the melody
And sky is the refrain - Gordon Lightfoot
Great looking squash. I am also a fan of Baker Heirloom Seeds, but like you, I am mostly trying to cultivate things that are easy to grow, especially perennials or annuals that self-sow. I am getting too old to fuss with planting things out each year.
Squash do not grow well in my area unless one is willing to use a whole lot of chemicals. There is a Seminole pumpkin that was/is grown by this Florida tribe and I have had mild success with it. It can be eaten as a summer squash or winter squash.
_________________
The river is the melody
And sky is the refrain - Gordon Lightfoot
At the house, I have a small vegetable garden and some flowers, nothing complicated. I have a few bushes of something called Nicotiana alata that blooms at night and has a wonderful smell, very similar to jasmine - it looks like this
One of my happiest memories is planting a magnolia tree in our garden when my first child was born, 16 years ago.
Nicotiana alata has a heavenly scent. I grew some a long time ago.
I actually have an orchid that tolerates temperatures from 20 degrees F to over 100 degrees F. I got it at an exclusive sale for members of a local botanical garden when I had enough funds to support the garden. It has not yet bloomed.
What kind of potted plants are you looking for?
_________________
The river is the melody
And sky is the refrain - Gordon Lightfoot
lol Kraftie, if only the hardiness zones meant Ireland was warmer... Woke up this morning to a blanket of snow, power outages, traffic mahem and school closures... If I close my eyes and concentrate I can remember what it feels like to have the sun on my face
Zone 9 in Florida occasionally gets snow, but I don't think it gets a blanket of snow. I looked over a comparison chart between US and UK/Ireland zones and really couldn't make any sense out of it. It was saying I was in zone 11 and no where in Florida is it zone 11, which is real tropics. South Florida is subtropical. I am technically in zone 9b, but am so close to zone 10 I can grow some zone 10 plants. I cannot grow any fruits requiring any amount of chill hours.
Amity, forget-me-nots, if we are talking about the same plant, like to be in wet places, but don't like high humidity. Also for hydrangeas, again if it is the same we have in the states, they don't like the warm weather of zone 9. So it may be too warm for your plants.
It could be the humidity, they are in a wind sheltered part of the garden, perhaps it's too sheltered when allowing for humidity. I cant imagine that it's the heat... 17/18C would be a typical warm day here. Sometimes in the low 20s Celsius, but usually just in the high teens in summer. They might do better in a draughty position and need extra care in the winter.
The zones make no sense to me either.
Missed the bit about tayberries earlier, better crop than raspberries, but they are brutes, they take over any bed they are planted in. Even the broom tea tree, mint and lemon balm couldnt compete and needed help!
^ haha! Yes, our Tayberry is in a large pot on top of a stone slab, and we tie the canes to a network of masonry nails I’ve hammered into the walls!
Grew it from a cutting off my dad’s: he trains the canes the same, but has it planted in a dinky bed cut out the side of a path.
Never planted one in an open bed with other plants, they are ribes: best to give them an isolated spot you’re happy for them to dominate. Still, neither mine nor my dad’s are as much of an issue as his raspberries are... maybe soil and microclimate are coming into play there.
I tried growing gourds one year. They were prolific. I didn't know what to do with them. I dried them and turned many of them into bird houses. But it was way too much work.
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Gourds look so cool, but then what do you do with them? I get it.
Weather is supposed to turn cold again in a few days, maybe down to the 30s. I'll have to watch the forecast carefully to decide what needs to be brought into the house, or covered.
_________________
The river is the melody
And sky is the refrain - Gordon Lightfoot
Yes, very impressive gourds: I love their swooping lines and curvaceous form
That said the mere abstract thought of having to work out what to do with such a mighty crop is intimidating...
I’ve struggled before now with just the harvest off two courgettes!
I commend your cultivation skills though: they look top notch.
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