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[digitS']

I took a look at what U of California and Texas A & M has to say about rhubarb.

Our nawthern gardeners may not believe this but some rhubarb is grown in the South using seeds, transplanting, and producing an annual crop. Whoa. It took a couple of years after planting large root divisions in my yard to have a crop. Seeds? I knew that was possible. Annually?

Apparently so ... I didn't know that rhubarb requires temperatures below 40°f to initiate growth. In very hot weather, the plants will die. I knew that southern gardeners had as much trouble with it as I have ease in growing - big, robust plants back year after year. Uof C says that rhubarb is grown commercially in Oregon, Washington and Michigan.

Bee', do you think that you are outside of rhubarb's range? I won't suggest that you grow it from seed but, maybe.

Steve

 

[Beekissed]

I took a look at what U of California and Texas A & M has to say about rhubarb.

Our nawthern gardeners may not believe this but some rhubarb is grown in the South using seeds, transplanting, and producing an annual crop. Whoa. It took a couple of years after planting large root divisions in my yard to have a crop. Seeds? I knew that was possible. Annually?

Apparently so ... I didn't know that rhubarb requires temperatures below 40°f to initiate growth. In very hot weather, the plants will die. I knew that southern gardeners had as much trouble with it as I have ease in growing - big, robust plants back year after year. Uof C says that rhubarb is grown commercially in Oregon, Washington and Michigan.

Bee', do you think that you are outside of rhubarb's range? I won't suggest that you grow it from seed but, maybe.

Steve

Dig, we didn't used to be, but our climate is growing more and more southern like, with mild winters and more rain, humidity and heat in the summer months. We lived all our lives without AC but in these past few years were inclined to install them in the house, just to remain comfortable. Could be you are right...we'll have rhubarb while the weather is cool enough to do so, but will have a die off in the heat of summer. In light of that, I'll try to find less full sun areas in which to plant it, could make the difference.

Thank you!

 

[Beekissed]

Slowly but surely putting free skidder pallets up around the garden....the fence there~just posts, deer netting and rabbit wire~was getting quite worn. Figured I'd reinforce it all with these 10 ft x 4 ft pallets I have in huge piles around the place since last year. Need to get them out of my pasture paddocks, so breaking them down with the pallet buster and also using them for things such as the garden.

Will finish the mounting of pallets and building a gate today, but have many tweaks to the fence to make it chicken proof. Need to cut off new posts, put a top on the gate posts so I can mount a trellis there, etc.

Extended the garden to include apple saplings but one is dead, so have to replace it. Will have two apple trees on that end of the garden, which will also be the start of my perennial flower garden....I want to create a small haven there of shade, light and color where we can sit and swing, talk and watch the butterflies and bees.

I'll likely also make a small duck house to place near the perennial garden for the ducks....right now they are using an old dog house when living in the garden, but it's none too attractive. I'd like to eventually establish a water feature in there for them.

The youngest kitty seems to like it.....this is Ruffles, the last of Molly's last litter before we got her spayed. He's a quirky, funny little cat.

This new fencing should support any climbing or trailing vines that tend to climb the fence each year, as well as contain the sheep when I run them through there for cleaning up the garden or trimming any cover crops planted in early spring. Hope to get one planted here as soon as I enclose the garden once again.

 

[thistlebloom]

That looks really nice Bee, I like it! Great score on the pallets. So nice that they are all uniform in size. I have stacks of pallets too. I need them for storing hay on, but they are a conglomeration of odd sizes.

 

[Beekissed]

That looks really nice Bee, I like it! Great score on the pallets. So nice that they are all uniform in size. I have stacks of pallets too. I need them for storing hay on, but they are a conglomeration of odd sizes.

Thank you! Not everyone's cup of tea....they look rather rustic, which goes with this place for sure and I love how they look. I had to search through all the stacks to get some that sort of looked the same size and such, but some I had to "design" to the right size by pulling boards off other pallets to fill gaps and lifting some up some to a certain height, while letting others rest on the ground. Gave the illusion of being the same size, but they aren't.

Those pallets have 3x4 framing, which makes them VERY heavy and bulky, but are going to give me building materials for years to come....been busting them down with a pallet buster and will store all the parts of those I don't use whole. Had 6 stacks of these, each stack piled 6 ft high. Cost me $120 to get them home, with trailer rental and gas, but well worth it.

Scored some free railroad ties this past season also and will be using those to store all this lumber off the ground.

Made the gate for the extension today and am rather pleased with how it turned out...got to use one of my antique glass doorknobs for the latch. Much more work to be done there to make it chicken proofed, but am glad to have all the hard work done. Got pretty banged up handling all those pallets by myself....bulky and can get away from you if you aren't careful.

 

[thistlebloom]

I love the look, and I have always thought your place is lovely anyway. I'm enjoying seeing all the updates. Your gate sounds very cool with a glass doorknob latch. Years ago when my boys were little we were visiting my sister and I could have bought a shoebox full of antique doorknobs at a garage sale for something outrageous, like a dollar... Passed because of luggage space, but I always regretted not getting them.

 

[Beekissed]

I love the look, and I have always thought your place is lovely anyway. I'm enjoying seeing all the updates. Your gate sounds very cool with a glass doorknob latch. Years ago when my boys were little we were visiting my sister and I could have bought a shoebox full of antique doorknobs at a garage sale for something outrageous, like a dollar... Passed because of luggage space, but I always regretted not getting them.

I can understand that! I bought some old silver silverware back in the late 90s at a yard sale for $8...had these door knobs mixed in with.... and I'm still using it for making wind chimes, door handles, etc. My brother had a whole box of antique door knobs he gave me awhile back...some were drawer pulls, some door knobs, with the original backing screws, which are hard to find to fit the original antiques. He has a house built in the late 1800s, so he finds this stuff in his basement....also scored a screen door and several window screens from a sunporch from him and used them all in my outhouse build. To him they were just junk to get rid of, to me they were pure gold and I get to use them and see them often, which is even more golden.

My coop has a glass doorknob and the outside access doors have glass drawer pulls. I try to incorporate all the antiques I can on the place....one of the garden gates has an antique drawer pull that is metal, but very floral and scroll-ey looking.

The gates are nothing fancy, but that little spot of the fancy, the unexpected, is what makes me smile every time I use it.

Coop doors....

 

[ninnymary]

Speaking of door knobs, no I didn't buy one. But I did buy 2 antique door pulls for my bathroom door at $27 each. They were $30 but I asked for a discount since we had to wait 15 minutes for the guy to open up since he was late. Saved me shipping also so I was happy.

Mary

 

[henless]

I like the door knobs, but I love that iron handle. It's so pretty! Your sheep are looking good Bee

 

[ninnymary]

Bee you’ve given me ideas. I think my coop with the chandelier needs a glass door nob on the door!

Mary