Gardening

Critical, Those are incredible pictures, especially the one of the Praying Mantis.
And, I just wanted to scarf up that sandwich that looked like tomato, basil and mozzarella, correct? You do a better job than the Food Network! :biglove

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Originally Posted by norealityhere;3684804;

Critical, Those are incredible pictures, especially the one of the Praying Mantis.
And, I just wanted to scarf up that sandwich that looked like tomato, basil and mozzarella, correct? You do a better job than the Food Network! :biglove

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Yep :nod that's what it is. I could seriously eat that every day. Last summer, a friend gave me a bunch of tomatoes from her garden and I pretty much ate nothing but tomatoes on french bread with mozzarella and fresh basil for at least a week! :drool

Hopefully, the rest of my tomatoes will ripen before we lose the sun. I started out this spring/summer getting at least 6 hours of direct sun and now we're getting around half that. Fingers crossed, I have some tomatoes to harvest in the next few weeks. Like I said upthread, I'm definitely starting earlier next year :up

I have three hosta plants that are enourmous. I know they can be split and I've been searching online trying to find the easiest way to do it. I see many posts say just take a shovel and split it.

My question is, do you litteraly take a shovel and split it in the middle? When is the best time to do this, and can I simply take the splits and replant them? :shrug

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Originally Posted by GuardianAngel;3749613;

I have three hosta plants that are enourmous. I know they can be split and I've been searching online trying to find the easiest way to do it. I see many posts say just take a shovel and split it.

My question is, do you litteraly take a shovel and split it in the middle? When is the best time to do this, and can I simply take the splits and replant them? :shrug

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yes, a straight shovel works best and cut straight down, then dig up the part that you want to move, and backfill the hole. If you could have your new hole predug that would be best, if not, replant as soon as you can. Another way, is to dig the whole clump up and cut it into several pieces with a pruning knife and replant. I wouldn't cut my pieces too small, a 12" clump could be divided into 2 or 4 nice size pieces. Spring is the better time to divide them. If you need to move them now, watch your weather and make sure there is no chance of a freeze for the next few weeks. After you replant them make sure they get water about 1" per week or if you get rain each week they should be fine, and mulch them heavy. I always mark where I replant the new plants in the fall, that prevents me from digging them up next spring.

Thanks so much inthegarden. You have explained it perfectly. I couldn't make any sense of some of the articles I was reading. I will be doing it in the spring, as we have already had a couple of overnight frosts. Marking the plants in the fall make sense, good idea.

I maybe wishful thinking here, but I'm getting ready for spring.
My tomato and flower seeds that I planted in flats in January have sprouted and are growing. Between snows, I've pruned my fruit trees and sprayed them with dormant oil spray. It is still too early to clean out my perennial beds, so I'm taking note as to what needs to be divided, replanted or "shovel pruned".
My compost is ready, and my gardening tools are sharpened.
The weatherman has predicted that we will get snow into March, but I did see the tops of spring bulbs breaking through. That is an encouraging sign that spring can't be to far away. :nod

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Originally Posted by inthegarden;3830294;

I maybe wishful thinking here, but I'm getting ready for spring.
My tomato and flower seeds that I planted in flats in January have sprouted and are growing. Between snows, I've pruned my fruit trees and sprayed them with dormant oil spray. It is still too early to clean out my perennial beds, so I'm taking note as to what needs to be divided, replanted or "shovel pruned".
My compost is ready, and my gardening tools are sharpened.
The weatherman has predicted that we will get snow into March, but I did see the tops of spring bulbs breaking through. That is an encouraging sign that spring can't be to far away. :nod

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What zone are you in? When do you usually put your toms in the ground?

I'm in zone 6b and I won't be planting the tomatoes until the end of April or the first of May, and until the ground warms up and we start getting those warm spring rains. They should be the right size to plant by then. :)

I'm going to plant at least one potato on March 17, come hell or high water. I don't care if I have to use a pick to break the ground.

I am thinking about planting sugar snap peas, onions and leeks - our crocus and daffodils are blooming so it seems like time. I think they are about a month sooner than last year - we had all our cold weather in November and none since to speak of. Weird. So I think it is time to get the peas, onions and leeks in. And maybe some beets! We have a wonderful tomato lady who brings heirloom tomato starts to our farmer's market, which works well for me. I don't have a good place to start seeds, but have a nice raised bed garden just waiting for spring!