@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

LallyLuckFarm

@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org

Small scale permaculture nursery in Maine, education enthusiast, and usually verbose.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. For a complete list of posts, browse on the original instance.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

For the northeastern US, I'm really a fan of:

  • FedCo - employee owned and good selection, based in Maine. Orders ship in the spring, organized by frost dates
  • edible acres - Based in upstate New York, Sean has been an inspiring force for me, and is an awesome person to interact with.

Though the above have more selection, for full disclosure:

https://beehaw.org/pictrs/image/c50c40c3-8c46-4439-9e86-e851c0bb5956.webp

What's growing on, Beehaw?

There's so much to do this time of year that the days are a blur! But my garlic is all planted out now, and I'm working on seed collecting as well. I've got my propagation presentation this Monday, sadly light on the memes so far (but working on it, if anyone has asexual-plant-reproduction-adjacent memery to offer)....

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

That's awesome to hear, and I'm very glad the raspberry has begun to reward you for it!

What kind of ducks are you raising? We raise muscovies, ourselves. Please feel welcome to share about them over in !Animals and Pets

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

That's fantastic, great job! Growing plants from seeds you've collected yourself is one of the coolest things I know of, and it's one of the healthiest addictions around.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

All is forgiven, my wife rarely gets any of our yellow raspberries for pretty much the same reason. They are too delicious

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Could you put the filter medium into another pot, perhaps? This is such a cool project, I wish I was more helpful to you

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Oh wow! And congrats, that first egg is always super exciting even when you know there's more to come.

The muscovies have been great for all of those things, yes. There are several weeks each year where I've got to follow them around for an hour after letting them out just to keep them from hiding clutches from me though

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Don't give up, it'll happen! I've only grown a few honeysuckle varieties but they're fairly amenable to layering, if you've got the mother plant available to work with. If there's a honeysuckle species in particular, let me know and I'll check my books for you (it's Dirr's Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation usually)

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Actual image of OP admitting he only knows enough to upset the people who know stuff

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

You got it right, softwoods are the better choice for rooting with hormone, be sure to keep it misted as well. If it's got larger leaves, don't be afraid to cut them perpendicular to the main vein to reduce water loss.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Yes, like this:
https://beehaw.org/pictrs/image/5ae1195a-658d-4c40-9bb4-d5f7dbd2b28f.webp

A ‘Trump Train’ convoy surrounded a Biden-Harris bus. Was it political violence? ( apnews.com )

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas jury will soon decide whether a convoy of supporters of then-President Donald Trump violently intimidated former Democratic lawmaker Wendy Davis and two others on a Biden-Harris campaign bus when a so-called “Trump Train” boxed them in for more than an hour on a Texas highway days before the...

LallyLuckFarm ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Defense attorney is technically correct, they didn't conspire against the Democrats on the bus because they thought some different Democrats were on it instead. bee fingerguns cool emoji

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

I sure did! Plants I can kinda figure out but insects are tougher to key out. Luckily iNat gives a number of options so I can go through and match what I'm noticing, which makes me feel like I'm contributing even more

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Dang, what a catch! I don't know as I've ever seen a dragonfly caught, that's wild

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Send hot sauce recipes! A friend of mine got into them earlier this year and is coming to spend a few days with us (and I have some peppers to get through).

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

bee surprise emoji

But also of course it's an orb weaver. What an incredible picture, thank you for sharing it!

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Thyme runs and spreads pretty well among grass in my experience, and bee balms (Monarda spp) can do pretty well too for something taller, but they're so pretty I wouldn't mow them. Other good low-growers include things like wild strawberry and heal-all (Prunella vulgaris).

Autumn is also a great time to plant dormant and bare root plants to let them root over winter and early spring, for any patches you're looking to fully transition into multi-year plants.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Tysm!

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

I haven't lived in an HOA but I have some friends that do, does yours have any guidelines or rules about garden edging or borders? One of my buddies was getting heck from his next door snitch until we put some stones around his "weeds" patch and tossed a little mulch down. Once it looked just that tiny bit more formal the complaints died down.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

That's awesome, I'm glad they're not aggressive reporters!

LallyLuckFarm OP ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Getting this party started:

https://beehaw.org/pictrs/image/ac062ee1-ab6e-41c3-a23f-c070a6a05893.webp

What's growing on, Beehaw?

I saw a few trees beginning to change color and senesce on the drive home the other day and had a hard time believing it's already September. How have your gardens done this summer, and what are you looking forward to this autumn? What sorts of cool fall flowers or foliage are on their way for you? What's growing on with you...

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

A wooden post is surrounded by large Sedum flower clusters which are at various points in the earliest stages of blooming

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

https://beehaw.org/pictrs/image/74638bea-08c8-49b3-8200-9333c87b515a.webp

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Super neat, I thought I had some going but lost them in another squash or something. Make sure to post when you harvest!

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

I think you're doing great things, making sure there's prey for lacewings and ladybugs!

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

It's okay to be a stand-in predator of insects that are listed invasives in your bioregion, with the caveat of "as long as you've correctly identified them". But planting native plants is a calling card for many insects that support many more species, some of which may be entirely dependent on the species you've planted.

Firefly larvae will prey on beetle grubs, and I learned recently that tachinid flies will parasitize Japanese beetles. There's also Bacillus thuringiensis that can be used to help mitigate pressure from these beetles and preserve the foliage for the local ecology that needs it.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

I still get the shiver of worry around spiders, but I will say that for every spider I've witnessed I've seen hundreds of butterflies and moths. I understand and empathize with the concern though

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod , (edited )
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Yeah they love the heck out of Rosaceae members for sure. If you've got the flies around, keep an eye out for a white dot on the heads of the beetles - that's the sign that there is an egg which will hatch and parasitize them. The BT will go after them during their grub phase in the soil, which should make other control methods even more useful. A good rule of thumb for these live controls is to check for lot numbers and packaging dates, as less BT will survive the longer the package sits before use.

LallyLuckFarm ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Hear hear! Vote, and then keep organizing to achieve better with the next vote.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Nice! On the off chance you still have the tag, or if you recall the cultivar, I'd recommend checking to see if it's a "summer bearing" or an "everbearing" variety. If it's summer bearing, remove the old canes at the end of the season to make room for next year's canes. If it's everbearing, you can leave them to fruit in spring and then remove them in favor of the younger canes for summer fruiting.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Glad to see your garden still going strong despite the unruly weather! That squash appears to have a good deal of powdery mildew, and I'm curious if the others are dealing with similar conditions. Otoh, I see some of the powder on the mulch surface and wonder if you were treating them with something (perhaps baking soda)

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

A close up view of the beginning of root differentiation. On the left is the growth tip with little development. The middle individual has begun sprouting roots but is still developing leaves as well, while the individual on the right has considerably more root development than leaf.

Here we see further root development, with the far left individual being the previous image's rightmost specimen. The cutting on the right has the most developed root cluster and leaves that have begun growing away from the roots

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

I'm in the process of cutting my black raspberries now - they're the ones pictured. My preference is to "tip layer" them, essentially leaving long canes with the tips pinned to the ground in early spring for cutting free around now. I leave other canes for fruit with a "heading cut" to force the side branches where the fruit forms.

I like fall planting better, but I'll qualify that with "for temperate climate areas". For New England in particular autumn is when insect pressure decreases, precipitation is a bit more regular, and temperatures are kinder to plants. Plus there's additional time in the ground for the plant to establish, and it's my belief that the warmer soil temperatures relative to air temperatures helps to drive root growth even while the aboveground sections are dormant.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

For cane fruits like raspberries and blackberries, no. Truth be told I avoid rooting hormone liquids and powders when I can, they can have some nasty health effects without PPE. Many different fruit bushes can be cloned either by rooting the tips, mounding around the base (stool layering), or by dividing rooted stems without the need for chemicals, but others can be rooted in water with willow cuttings - the willows will leach a safer concentration of the rooting hormones into the shared water.

I leave little pockets of extra mulch around the tips I'm planning to take and replant as a visual cue, but stones or logs or some other kind of weight will help to keep them in place for rooting. Older canes from bushes you like can make good cutting material, but can be more difficult to pin without breaking. Some varieties of raspberry will only fruit on first year wood, and for those I do think it's totally worth pinning right after fruit harvest for additional first year plants.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

I definitely will!

LallyLuckFarm ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar
  • Run a small mill for grains or herbs
  • Pump water to irrigate plants
  • Aerate a pond
  • Community device charging station
  • Organize with fellow citizens to change that
LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Yes, exactly! It's a small shrub, topping out around 1m, that produces the same compounds found in Camellia sinensis, the plant that most teas come from. We make a black tea by oxidizing the leaves before drying, and add in some of the leaves from our bee balm (Monarda spp) to make a very close approximation of "Earl grey". During the period around the American revolution, it was used to avoid paying for the imported British tea and helped to make the case for independence. The roots have historically been used by herbalists for its hepatoprotective, lymphatic, antispasmodic, antiseptic, and expectorant qualities, though most commonly for liver conditions.

It's also a nitrogen fixing plant, which helps to build soil health and fertility around it. The flowers attract and support dozens of species of pollinators, including a variety of parasitoid wasps, and the leaves are crucial for several species of butterflies and moths.

LallyLuckFarm OP Mod ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

Interesting! I don't believe I've seen that listed in my books or notes for teas, but I have some growing here. Thanks for some reading material to go through!

LallyLuckFarm ,
@LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org avatar

My side of the family is slowly trickling into the state for their annual vacations in Maine, for two weeks this year instead of the usual 7 days. It's nice though, getting to see each group when they arrive instead of showing up to 20-something people all at once, all in one house. It will be that level of craziness come Sunday, when they're planning to throw (yet another) baby shower for us. Much as I enjoy not spending money, three baby showers is too damn high. I'm hopeful that my brother found the copy of Go the F#$k to Sleep we gave them when my niece was born.

One of our ducks, Pearl, hatched out a dozen little babies under my potting bench. While she's exceptional at hatching them, she is a less than stellar mother and I have been responding to alarm peeps regularly while she sits around with the ones who manage to keep up with her.

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • random
  • test
  • worldmews
  • mews
  • All magazines
    •