What have you done today in the Garden?

@Daniel W and @Pacnorwest, that was a horrid experience.

So far, the seeds I have ordered have come from the US. Though those torch lilies do NOT look like torch lilies, but I have no idea what they are. They will not get out of a pot until I can properly ID them, and if they are something bad, they will be destroyed.

Walmart did have some torch lily roots recently, but probably won't when I get back there.

I have not had problems with other seeds from eBay. I seldom shop on Amazon.

A third party seller on Walmart.com tried to sell me seeds for Walker's Low Catmint last year. Everything online says those seeds are sterile, and I wanted plants. I finally got my money back on those...

My grapevines so far have no sign of life... The three year old vine came from Target online--I have since quit them over another major problem with them. The two year old vine came from the Tractor Store, from DeGroot nurseries. The ones that died also came from those sources. The strawberry plants that I planted a few weeks ago are also dead. I did get a refund on them.

The tame elderberry I bought online, also has no sign of life... My wild ones look fine and are growing already. I think it is three or four years old.

Locally, I get Bonnie plants from various stores. However, if they have been frostbitten, or otherwise poorly cared for, I do not buy them. I don't buy roses from a certain store any more, because ALL that I have bought from them have died the first season.

My favorite blueberry bush I bought at Walmart years ago, and I think it is dead, but I got a lot of years and berries out of it. We will see on my new blueberry bushes.


Hey, I did harvest some parsley today and ate some with supper.... yummy.

 

Finished off doing the roses from yesterday, it was a bit earlier than usual to start doing things but it's supposed to rain later, but it was cold out there.

 

The bird feeder I ordered yesterday evening, was delivered at 2.00pm today.
I already had some suet cakes for it, so it's now up and available. It's very well made.

 

Not much today we had sunshine in the morning and a thunder and lightening storm in the mid afternoon, knocked the power out for awhile.

 

Those birds will love you for that!

 

Today I planted the last of the yellow storage onion seedlings, and the first group of the reds.



The Four O'Clock seeds that I soaked, then wrapped in moist paper towel + plastic bag, and stored on warming mat, germinated in three days. I transferred to to potting soil.



The Portulaca seeds that I did not send through the washer and dryer, started to germinate.



I cut the tops off of the pepper seedlings, to encourage branching.

 

@Daniel W , I cannot seem to find your instructions for cold stratifying my milkweed seeds.... I think you said to put them in the fridge? My seeds that I ordered came today. If I need to do something else let me know.

 

@AAnightowl here's what I do.
Run water over a paper towel. Get it wet, then ring it out. It should be moist but not dripping.

Scatter the seeds on the paper towel. Fold it over a couple of times so the seeds don't fall out.


Put the paper towel with seeds into a zip lock sandwich bag and zip it shut. It's ok if it has a little air, but not much.


Put that into fridge for 4 weeks.

Then take it out and plant the seeds.

Good luck!

 

Nothing today it's raining.

 

Well I did brave it and went out to sow a few more Sweet Peas, and Zinnias. I was pleased to find the greenhouse was still in one piece.

 

Thank you @Daniel W . I will do that right now so I don't misplace your instructions.

(did it, have note to plant April 28th...)

 

I grafted some gingko scion onto suckers growing from the base of a gingko tree. The tree grows horizontally. It originated when I grafted scion from a tree grown from seeds my dad collected. He collected them from the yard of an elderly German man, a WW I Veteran, who they had farmed me out to do chores. I grew the rootstock from seeds I found in town.

I don't know know why it grows horizontally. It's weird. I tie it upright, but the lead always grows parallel to the ground.

I wonder if I grafted the original scion upside down. Would that do that?

This is the graft before I covered and tied it. I did three, to increase my chances of success.



This time I wore a mandolin glove and used a cutting board. Last year I sliced a nerve on my thumb, grafting apple scions onto an espalier.

 

It looks good Daniel, not sure about how it grows and i hope that your thumb doesn't affect your hands in any way.

 

Nothing outside so i potted on 5 fuchsias and put the geraniums and other fuchsias into the greenhouse.

 

Weeded in the greenhouse. Net over the new tuinbonen. Because I have caught mallards in the garden twice now.