New England Dec 2014

Having shingles doesn't mean you're done with it.

Martha, so glad it wasn't like the commercials.  A lady I knew had it bad, over the side of her face as well as  he body and it lasted months.  She was very ill with it. From that experience and the current commercial, I had the impression it was always bad.

CapeCoddess wrote:Heads up:  Storm tomorrow.

and the next day, and the day after that.

Are you all going to buy potting soil when February rolls around and it's time to indoor seed? I don't think there's any way around that, figuring that the ground is still well frozen so you can't dig up soil. Plus it may be best to use fresh potting soil. I do like the Coast of Maine potting soil.

NHGardener wrote:Are you all going to buy potting soil when February rolls around and it's time to indoor seed? I don't think there's any way around that, figuring that the ground is still well frozen so you can't dig up soil. Plus it may be best to use fresh potting soil. I do like the Coast of Maine potting soil.

I typically go with the BM8 and sometimes amend with the lobstah compost.

What's BMB?

I usually use organic seedling mix to start my guys. Someone told me once that the main reason not to start seeds with fertilizer, or other rich soil, is because they don't  have to send roots as far to look for nutrition, and they aren't as tough. It kinda makes sense, but there are seeds that are direct sown, so that kinda throws a kink in the works.

Marc, I  was reading more about shingles last night. The more I research, the more I find out different information - not a surprise there! You are right, it doesn't mean I am home free. Most websites agree with what I posted - that I am less likely to have a recurrence, because my case is so mild. Not all websites said so. I'm going to remain optimistic, though!

Regarding how brutal shingles can be, I wouldn't have believed Camprn if she had suggested shingles when I was first talking about poison ivy, for the simple reason that I am not in agony, and I though that was the only way shingles happened.

I have always said that I have a lot of luck, and not all of it is bad!

Boffer, I knew I could count on you! If you took my shingles with a completely straight face, I would worry about you!

To be clear, I was smiling with you! From the second hand stories that I've heard, shingles are as much fun as third degree burns. It hurts just thinking about them.


Doesn't anyone but me start their seeds in MM?

boffer - How do you get small batches of the Mel's Mix for seed starting? Are you frozen under in February?

I used MM last year for indoor seedlings.

NHGardener wrote:boffer - How do you get small batches of the Mel's Mix for seed starting? Are you frozen under in February?

I start planting some things in late Jan/early Feb when the weather is cold, windy, and rainy. Playing in the dirt is no fun then.

One of my fall chores is to get a couple barrels filled up with 5 way compost and MM on a pleasant day. I usually have some new MM on hand throughout the year.

One of my fall chores is to get a couple barrels filled up with 5 way compost and MM on a pleasant day. I usually have some new MM on hand throughout the year.

That's actually a good idea. I find I can always use extra soil in summer, boxes sink and all that.

boffer wrote:To be clear, I was smiling with you!  From the second hand stories that I've heard, shingles are as much fun as third degree burns.  It hurts just thinking about them.


Doesn't anyone but me start their seeds in MM?

I do , however my MM is usually diluted a further 50% because it makes the seedlings grow far to fast.

Hmmm...that might account for the dog legs I get in my brassicas sometimes.

What do you cut your MM with?

boffer wrote:Doesn't anyone but me start their seeds in MM?

3rd time trying to post this.

YES, I use 'used' MM that I dig out of the SFG in the fall a put in a wheel barrow covered with a tarp for the winter.  I add fresh compost to it when transplanting.

For 3 yrs now I've done this...so far so good.

Crazy windy out there right now.  I think I hear rain too, but it's too dark to see it.

CC

Martha,

Before I retired and moved from Southern California to Oregon, I had pneumonia and shingles vaccinations.  However, I don't know whether one can have the latter after an occurrence. You may want to consult with your physician.

boffer wrote:

Doesn't anyone but me start their seeds in MM?

The BM8 is sphagnum, perlite, vermiculite and compost.

Regarding shingles and possible reoccurrence, although I know it isn't an absolute, and maybe not even as prevalent as I think, I am going to go with optimism that this is my once and only. I'll ask my doctor, but I think they don't recommend the vaccination if you've already had shingles. so I'll just be stress free until or unless I have a repeat episode! I'm not ignoring any of your comments, I'm just choosing the path of ignorance is bliss!

Will a kale plant keep under the snow until spring?

The fall gardening workshop I went to a while back said something about planting kale in a cold frame in fall so that, even though it won't grow during the winter, it will take off early in the spring and produce before summer heat gets to it. I'm not sure whether that means my kale plant out there is going to be dormant but survive, or whether it needs an actual covering like a cold frame to keep it alive.

Snow and ice can serve as insulation for plants.

I'm wondering if the weight of the snow would crush the plants to the point that they couldn't recover.

Well, the strawberries recover after a winter under snow.

I'm hoping the root system will survive, but I've never wintered with kale before.

By the way, I've been hearing a lot of kale-hating lately. Seems people have strong opinions.

boffer wrote:Snow and ice can serve as insulation for plants.

I'm wondering if the weight of the snow would crush the plants to the point that they couldn't recover.

I think this is where zones come into play... Where I am it can get so cold for so long that my kale typically won't make it into a second year. But sometimes there is a surprise when the snow melts.

Oh good! Well, this will be fun to watch then.

There's so much I have yet to learn about over-wintering. Last year, I moved my rosemary into my unheated greenhouse. In my zone, rosemary has a very slim chance of surviving a winter, as in, I have heard people say they have had it happen, but you can't prove it by me, or anyone that I know and trust!

I ended up losing my rosemary due to under watering, but I don't know what to do in the really cold stretches, when the dirt stays frozen for a long time. I'm thinking what I could have done is to bring snow into the greenhouse and put it on the plants. 

We all know, at least those of us that have winter, that the sharp edges of ice crystals is what kills a lot of plants, more than the snow, which is why it should be possible to overwinter rosemary in an unheated greenhouse.

For this year, I just moved them to my basement, with the added advantage of using it for cooking!

Regarding kale, I do both love it and hate it. I love, love, love it in soup, so I assumed I love it. I ordered it as a side dish in a restaurant recently. They didn't do anything weird to it, but boy did I not like it!