Dave's Progress Thread - Year II

[Digital_Dave]

Thanks, @Regina. Yep, the critters hang out pretty regularly. And I still find it strange how each year I get plants (Like the Zucchini bottom left) that pops up, considering I had it all planted on the other end last year? So unless during the tilling process it gets moved? … But there were 6, but only saved 2.

Thanks, @Janie. I’m really trying to stay on top of it this year. I don’t usually let it get too bad anyway, but there are times where work and such keeps me from staying on top of it, so grasses do overwhelm it when this is so. Heck, I looked at my neighbors garden yesterday across the field, and it looks like they never tilled. They did of course, but seems they haven’t done much with it since planting though.

[Elle79]

Love that you’ve named your snake Plissken! May have watch one or both Escape films again soon

[Digital_Dave]

Haha… Yeah, it was just the first thing I thought of when he started hanging out last year. Loves to play around in my shed. Kept moving him around when he was in the way, and he just searches around it for food. … As to the films, yeah, first one wasn’t bad really, but wasn’t crazy about the second one though.

[Elle79]

Love cheesy 80’s films & Kurt Russell.

[Ruina]

I had to look up what kind of snake Plissken is. I came up with Black Rat Snake. I haven’t ever seen one on the west coast. So cool to have such a friendly big guy hang out. Garden snakes I’ve seen are very small. The bigger ones are all rattlers out west. If Plissken had been in my yard when I was little, I’d have been out spying on him all day.

[Janie]

We call them black racers here in Arkansas and we leave them be because they eat mice. The copperheads that hang out in our wood pile get chopped up with a hoe.

My 70+ year old widow neighbor has one who hangs out below her back deck and when it is cold he’ll hang out around her dryer vent. She named him Charlie.

[Digital_Dave]

You ladies are indeed correct. ‘Plissken’ is a Black Rat Snake… Also known as; Black Racer, Black Rat Racer, Black Snake, etc… But they are harmless, and do eat Mice, Moles, Voles, frogs, etc. … So yep, he’s always welcomed in my yard. - Unfortunately we do also have Copperheads here as well, and though I don’t like killing any animals ever (except those I hunt for food, namely White Tail Deer) I have done this to keep others around me safe. Pups included. But if I can, I will try to relocate it if possible.

[Digital_Dave]

Well I can officially say that the weeding is now done… as well as myself. Kind-of baked myself over the past couple days, so have a nice sunburn on top of tan, as my wife put it. But at least it’s done for a short while at least. But I also have a bunch of stuff happening, so should be over-run with Squash and Zucchini here soon. … The only bad thing is how it keeps coming, but I have lot of folks who I usually give some to each year, so it’s never too much of a problem.

[jessOTR]

We have black racers and speckled King snakes (which I really love). I had the biggest copperhead my wildlife biologist brother had ever seen, when he lived with us a couple of years ago. It was on my front porch. I went and got him out of the shower to deal with it. It was massive! My dad’s GSD got bit by one a year or 2 ago. Poor pup. He ended up ok but it was painful.

[Digital_Dave]

We also have Speckled King Snakes here, but I’ve only seen a couple in all my years. And I think I’ve seen a total of two California King Snakes? Beautiful animals, but the Black Snakes are what you see the most of here. That and Garter Snakes. I’m always moving them out of the way of my mower as well.

Yeah, Copperheads are actually pretty as well, and really blend in with vegetation. But do have a nasty bite. Watch the babies most of all. They may be smaller but they also don’t know how to regulate their venom, like adults do. So a lot of times will inject everything at once, which is not good for the recipient.

[Digital_Dave]

Well, this totally SUCKS! … Happened to take Shelby out for a walk when I got home, and took a look at the Garden… Then I noticed something really screwed up. I had purchased all the things that I was looking to grow this year, but apparently someone on the other end of all this really didn’t pay attention.

As you can see in this image, I planted 18 Yellow Squash plants, and only one died thankfully…

But then, I walked to the other end, where I had planted my Zucchini… Well, let’s just say this is where shit apparently went wrong! I had purchased a total of 30 Zucchini plants… I think I may have …6?

*So yep, I now have 48 or 50 Yellow Squash Plants, when I purchased twice as many Zucchini’s and I apparently got 1 (6-pack) that was actually Zucchini & the other 3 (6-packs) were labeled wrong. At least this is what I’m hoping, since the row shown below is the only one showing as Zucchini. (at least the two on the right) Also had one die to the left, but not sure why? No indicator of the culprit???

So, I guess Saturday morning I will be taking a ride back to the place I got them & let them know of this screw-up. I don’t mind Yellow Squash, but much prefer Zucchini overall and use it much more. I’m just not sure now where the hell I will plant it all? Unless I extend my Garden back to where I used to have it, which means a hell of lot more work. - I cut it back to 50’ x 20’ a couple years ago, from 90’ x 20’

… &^#%@$!#!!!

[Regina]

What a pain! We planted seeds, and are letting nature take its course.

[Robinette71]

My squash plants are massive but the squash get about 4 inches long and die. Don’t know what that’s about. One of zucchini plants was destroyed in a storm and a bird demolished my 1st beautiful tomato. We only planted 3 zucchini, 3 squash and 3 tomato plants, along with 4 or 5 cucumber plants. The cucumbers are starting to produce. I’m really disappointed in the squash so far.

[Digital_Dave]

Sorry to hear about the Zucchini, you might want to take a close look and make sure you don’t have some pest causing this? Some will suck the fluid right out of the plant, but this is usually done at the base of the plant, and not on the fruit itself? … Does the rest of the plant look overall healthy though? I’m wondering if it could be water based, meaning under watering, or even over watering? I do know too much watering can really mess plants up, including Tomatoes. Too much water can simply stop some from growing and simply start to ripen no matter their size. … But overall the plant itself usually shows signs of what might be happening?

[Robinette71]

Dave the actual plants are beautiful! It’s mind boggling. Never seen anything like it.

[Digital_Dave]

That is strange? I’m guessing there something at play, but not sure just what it could be? … I just had a storm blow through and lost 6 more nice Yellow Squash plants. … So I now have a few more spots to drop in some more Zucchini, but hate to see those plants go, since they were all starting to produce quite well. - Storm blew through quickly, but the winds did their damage, didn’t even get much rain overall? I walked in the garden barefoot & hardly left any prints and no mud. Really sucks though…

You can see where I laid the 6 plants off to the side, were they simply snapped off at the base. May look at pinning them down since they’re presently top-heavy & significant winds can destroy them.

[Janie]

I’m so sorry, Dave!

My garden is in the meadow with very rich soil… because it sometimes floods and brings in nutrients.

Two years ago we had 2 very bad spring floods after I had planted my garden. Deer fencing down and had to be repaired. Lost about a third of my plants and the ones that survived I had to muck out all the debris and mud from around all of them. I was amazed they survived at all! It was heartbreaking.

When we had to do it a second time I was so exhausted and discouraged but stuff was still alive so we cleaned it up again. I decided if we had a third flood I would give up for the year. We didn’t.

Last year we had our neighbor come over with his backhoe and build us a berm around the back side. If it is real flooding bad it would breach it but it has prevented damage from “normal” flooding so far.

[Janie]

This is a pic from 2 years ago. You can see some plants made it but it was a lot of work hauling all the mud and debris out and re-planting (twice).

I hope that is the last of the storm damage you have this year.

[Digital_Dave]

Thanks, but hoping the 6 that broke off clean were the only casualties? Time will tell, being any that are damaged should die off in the coming days. … And yeah, I’ve had those years as well. Think I mentioned it before, but I’ve planted over $80 worth of plants, and it started raining the next day and didn’t stop for over a week… Needless to say, my 3-D plants, became 2-D being they were simply flattened and I lost all of it. Had to go out and get all new plants and replant once the mud dried up to access the area. … Sucks

[Digital_Dave]

Ouch… Yep, that looked like mine as well that time and not a single plant survived. They were blasted with very heavy droplet rains that just beat the living tar of them and they just couldn’t take the battering.

Glad to hear some of your survived though. That’s a lot of sediment to deal with too. Mine was just the rain, and no other materials came in which looks like it would be even worse. But nice view in the back-ground. Looks like it would make for a nice Hunting Spot.