Smiley J, what do you have going in the garden?

[Mermaid]

I sprinkled some Sweet Basil seeds last week. Other than that, I haven't made any decisions, though I have prepped the garden for planting. I will most likely plant some tomatoes, cayenne peppers, eggplant, mixed lettuces, cilantro, :scratch:bell peppers, and anything else that grabs me.

SJ, a while back we were talking about heirloom plants or maybe it was hard-to-find varieties? Anyway, I meant to make a note of it in case I came acrosss the veggies in question in any of my catalogues and now I can't for the life of me remember what varieties were being discussed. Durn.

Do you compost? I have the most gorgeous small pile of crumbly soil, all derived from tossed coffee grinds, vegetable/fruit peels, and crushed egg shells. It takes about a year or two at best for it for it to break down but it's gardener's gold when it happens.

I never had any luck with cilantro so tell me if you do, and how you did it. :!:

 

[Mango]

Mermy, I plant cilantro and it grows like weeds. Is it getting full sun all day? I did not use any compost or anything, just turned the soil and put a little new, and fertilizer. I do have to admit that we have excellent soil in NY.

 

[Mermaid]

Mermy, I plant cilantro and it grows like weeds. Is it getting full sun all day? I did not use any compost or anything, just turned the soil and put a little new, and fertilizer. I do have to admit that we have excellent soil in NY.

You're not pulling my leg or anything are you? My basil and parsley grows like your cilantro, so I know what you mean about some stuff taking off like weeds. Maybe I will give it another chance because I love anything that has cilantro in the recipe. Full sun here I come.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Cilantro will grow like weeds around here too, but it needs water and tastier soil than the sand which is found around here. You can easily grow your edible herbs in pots. Cilantro and parsley do well for me, but I stopped growing parsley.

I no longer compost, but I think it is one of the best way to recycle and get back some black gold in return. It does take a bit of work, but not that much. Mermy, if your food takes two years to break down, I suggest you do a small bit of research on composting. It shouldn't take that long if you are adding soil and compost to the foods you are composting. You have to layer the food with the soil and compost so that it will break down much faster and retain the good nutrients. I really like the idea of using one of those big bins which you can tumble. I may make one someday. That added heat inside those things has to help the process along.

 

[dbuck]

I hope this compost bin is a long way from your house. Doesn't it stink?

 

[rapunzel]

Compost doesn't stink if done properly. It has to be able to drain well, there should be no meat or fats in the mix, and no poo!

 

[Mermaid]

I no longer compost, but I think it is one of the best way to recycle and get back some black gold in return. It does take a bit of work, but not that much. Mermy, if your food takes two years to break down, I suggest you do a small bit of research on composting. It shouldn't take that long if you are adding soil and compost to the foods you are composting. You have to layer the food with the soil and compost so that it will break down much faster and retain the good nutrients. I really like the idea of using one of those big bins which you can tumble. I may make one someday. That added heat inside those things has to help the process along.

SJ, I know how to compost but I am very lazy about it. All I do is throw fruit & veggie discards on a pile behind the shed. Every other day at least and there's always a fresh mountain of it, which means I have to dig to the bottom to get to the good stuff and that requires a lot of muscle. I suppose it must take less than two years for it to break down, but since new discards always get mixed in with the broken down soil, it seems like it takes forever to degrade. And I'm too lazy to change my system. The main reason I compost is that I can't bear to throw away all my potato peelings and coffee grinds and tea leaves, knowing that it really belongs to nature, not the garbage dump.

BTW, don't waste your money on a tumbler. I did and ended up returning it. In order to get the quick results promised, you have to do more than turn the tumbler a few times every day: you have to chop garden refuse up into tiny pieces. I thought I was heading for carpal tunnel syndrome. If I had a busy day pruning plants and shrubs, I could easily spend over an hour more cutting the branches and leaves to fit inside the tumbler. It hurts your wrist to do such repetitive motions and it's not worth it. My toss-in-the-pile method works better and it's cheaper. If I would incorporate your layering methods, I'd really have the system beat.

 

[Joe Complete]

Cilantro likes cool weather. The only time I have luck growing cilantro is during the winter here in Florida. Had a great crop all winter long and it is still producing although I did have to cover it several times during the freezing weather. Basil, on the other hand, seems to love hot weather and is not real particular on the type of soil.

 

[Jennifer Steele]

We have had a compost going for a year now and my husband and has just now been able to reap the benefits. We use a metal trash can, painted black with quarter inch holes drilled into the side. With the lid on, he can roll it to mix. The three things we put in it are:
1. Moisture (Water is fine, but Urea is better. It's found in chicken manure and is high in nitrogen)
2. Brown (coffee grounds, eggshells, vegetables & fruits (anything but meat products)
3. Green (grass clippings, dead flowers, raked leaves)

We've also begun shredding paper and adding it to the mix. Earthworms love the paper and help break it down to a rich soil. The more you turn it and the wetter it stays the faster it will work.

 

[DD]

SJ, I know how to compost but I am very lazy about it. All I do is throw fruit & veggie discards on a pile behind the shed. Every other day at least and there's always a fresh mountain of it, which means I have to dig to the bottom to get to the good stuff and that requires a lot of muscle. I suppose it must take less than two years for it to break down, but since new discards always get mixed in with the broken down soil, it seems like it takes forever to degrade. And I'm too lazy to change my system. The main reason I compost is that I can't bear to throw away all my potato peelings and coffee grinds and tea leaves, knowing that it really belongs to nature, not the garbage dump.

BTW, don't waste your money on a tumbler. I did and ended up returning it. In order to get the quick results promised, you have to do more than turn the tumbler a few times every day: you have to chop garden refuse up into tiny pieces. I thought I was heading for carpal tunnel syndrome. If I had a busy day pruning plants and shrubs, I could easily spend over an hour more cutting the branches and leaves to fit inside the tumbler. It hurts your wrist to do such repetitive motions and it's not worth it. My toss-in-the-pile method works better and it's cheaper. If I would incorporate your layering methods, I'd really have the system beat.

Mermy, thanks for posting about the tumbler. Every spring, I think I might get one and I have always held off thinking that it was probably more trouble than it looks. You have confirmed my suspicions. I'm like you, I just toss out into a pile and I turn it every so often. I'm pretty lazy about it too. mr. dd thinks it attracts varmits, but the yard cats pretty much take care of them. ;-)