Small lot growers

I figure, to heck with it, the plastics are already in me. I don’t remember the name of the spray but go to a home depot or lowes type store and ask for outdoor plastic protection spray.

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creative use of containers! a cool thing you could do with the jugs that are cut in half is flip the top around so the cap end is down in the bottom half and fill it soil. then fill the bottom with water for a small, self watering container. you would make a small hole in the side of the bottom where you want your water level to go.

if yall have other cool and creative things youre doing with containers, we’d love to see them over in the containers thread: Pots and bags and containers, oh my! i cant tell ya how many times someone elses post has jostled something loose. even the little or insignificant things might trigger an idea in someone else :pray:

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I’ve been thinking about the fake snake too! I’m mostly scared it will scare me over and over and over again.

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I’m trying this for the first time now with zucchini and squash. Every year, my vines rot mid summer. Hoping this negates that problem. I put cedar posts I had right next to the plants at planting. They’ve grown enough and started to flower, so I have one tie up and am continuing to prune off leaves. We’ll see how it goes. I forgot what varieties I’m growing…I’m not super invested in summer squash.

For ties, I’m using old stockings. Source from elderly family members :slight_smile: they always have ones with holes that are headed for a trash can. I just cut a thin slice off a leg so you have a ring and then cut that for a strip. I’m using them to tie up my trellis melons and pumpkins as well to get them going. They also work great as hammocks to help support the melons. My family thread gets a text a week asking everyone to save some random household/personal item!

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Thank you everyone for sharing about your dreams of neighbors properties. I thought I was morbid and weird.

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Oh, please. Talking about morbid, the neighbors on one side are very, very old. I am so nervous about who will move in there when they are gone. All I need is a playset along that fence and I would lose an imense amount of sun, or a raised pool and there would go what little peace I have in such a crammed neighborhood. The only reason I don’t dream about buying that lot is because at that point, I may as well move to another area with more privacy, if I can take my trees, vines and bushes with me.

There are a few lots in my street that the city bought up so that they can no longer be developed due to flooding , and I have been eying them and thinking about gorilla gardening there, but the adjacent neighbors are keeping tabs on those lots and would probably throw a fit. I may try to call the city and ask about making them a not for profit community garden or something.

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I’m sure it’s morbid but I think all of us do it :skull::ghost:

I really like my neighborhood and we are in a good spot for safety stuff, medical access, everything, but not on a major street, so I don’t want to move

I just want to own all the yards around me

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Most municipalities have programs for this exact purpose.

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Had a small lot moment yesterday when I pulled the compact Stella tree in my narrow driveway garden (it had zero new growth and roots looked pathetic). With the tree gone, suddenly a world of possibilities opened up :slight_smile: :grin: I think a bunch of things are going to win a ground spot. my dead pink muhly grass also afforded the opportunity to rearrange, balance and make space for a bush cherry. I’m forever amazed at how little shifts can lead to big inspiration when you’re dealing with a tiny space! It’s always an evolution, right? Ill take some pictures after it’s all done.

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What are you doing with the Stella? I just planted a Joel bush cherry last week. It’s tiny, bought as a rooted plug, so will take a long while until it fruits.

Awesome! The Stella is trash. I bought it “6-7’ fruiting age” from Willis last fall before I had read much of anything about buying fruit trees. Was super excited about it, but that time has past. It barely leafed out, had zero growth and I don’t trust it given everything I know about Willis now. I was going to transplant it to a family house, but I think it was barely alive and not worth the hassle.

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What is up with Willis? I’ve never ordered from them, but have had things in my shopping cart every year. I always wonder what people do when they pull trees/bushes. I think if it was me, I’d stick it in a container and give it a second chance in a less desirable location.

There is a lot on here about them sending the wrong trees and people not finding out until they fruit. Lots you can find on other blogs as well. There are some people talking about good experiences but majority is really negative. While this had the stature of a genetic dwarf and was likely a compact Stella, it was really not growing and I pulled it very easily. Roots looked nearly identical to when I planted it in the fall. No new root growth. I only regret not taking a cutting from the top and storing in the fridge. Otherwise, good riddance.

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my big issue these days is that all my project stuff is on the back porch and I need to make space for a table and a few chairs so we can cook out over summer. I don’t like to hard scape so I’ll probably just clear a small patch to packed earth underneath.

gotta level it with more dirt though. then set things up. unless I want to clean off the porch; which I don’t.

Table and chairs amidst the garden sounds much more lovely than on the porch anyways. Maybe just mulch it? So it can easily be converted to something else if you don’t like it?

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I had to blow your picture up because I thought you were holding a very, very big hedgehog, lol.

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I WISH (it’s a durian)

@Eme the porch has a view of the entire garden and it’s shaded and nice. the spot I have that a table and chairs will fit is in the way of my hose path, mostly in sun, will bother the birds at the birdbath etc etc

I should just clear off the porch.

You can do it! I am pretty crazy about keeping my stuff organized. With so little space, I can’t think clearly if things are all over. That said, my garage has all my random gardening things in two organized piles that drive me insane. After I finish the major projects this spring/turning summer, I have to finally install some cheap organization in the garage. I would love to put up panels that I can easily attach hooks baskets and shelves to, but then I spent a million dollars on fruit plants….anyone with a beautifully organized gardening supplies space to show off?

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Sometimes, I think I would have easier projects on a bigger piece of land not trying to maximize every inch.

Put up one of the front yard fences. Still waiting for concrete to set to attach the gate door. Definitely a bit wonky because we had a slight slope, oh well! The deer busters plastic coated disappears to the eye. The cheaper steel in the back I strongly dislike but, it’ll be hidden by berry bushes. I had to leave enough of the fancy one for the main front yard. FYI a basic brand at HD 14g 2x4 really feels lighter and crappier than 14g!

Oh— and I wish I had gotten the 8’ posts and sunk 2’ as originally planned and not switched to the 7’. The posts do not feel stable to me. Assuming my kids don’t try to climb/play/lean on them (BIG ASSUMPTION) it should be fine….

Gate goes up, and I take down the 4’ netting the raspberry bushes are busting through and get them organized/trellised.

Then, I have to take off the hoop/netting over the garden and have my husband build a tall pvc rectangle and only net two sides. Still figuring out how to attach that netting.

Hopefully, no one complains. With 3 nectarines and 2 gooseberry (goose in the fall) going in the space next to the veg garden, and 3 trees then out in the open to the street (1 now, 2 fall or spring), and all the flowers and bushes to grow in, it really should be obscured/invisible during the growing season. Taking the time to spray paint the T posts black pays off.

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What did you think of the Costata Romanesco zucchini fruits? Lots of flavor?