Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor mentions a possible theory about why male flowers develop first on pumpkin plants. Back in my post from August 1 I speculate, with some backup, one reason male flowers might precede female ones on pumpkin …
Gardening: pumpkins: male and female flowers, part 2 Read more →
Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor mentions an observation about bees and female pumpkin flowers. I found this YouTube video by Grow with Honeybee about the difference between male and female pumpkin flowers. Honeybee also shows therein how to pollinate the …
Gardening: pollination of female pumpkin flowers Read more →
Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor mentions the trend of male, then female, flowers on pumpkin plants. I heard, and it’s also been my experience, that with pumpkin plants, only male flowers will be produced for awhile, with female ones eventually …
Self-tutoring about yard supplies: the tutor mentions a game he plays every year. Lime, which I think of as crushed limestone, is useful for elevating the pH of soil. I first saw my father use it back in the Annapolis …
Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor mentions something he recently learned. In the Annapolis Valley, where I lived as a kid decades ago, lots of people grew pumpkins, cucumbers, etc. They didn’t seem to worry too much about male and female …
Gardening: pumpkin, cucumber…female flower or male? Read more →
Self-tutoring about gardening terms: the tutor mentions humus. My understanding is that humus is fully-decomposed plant material. It’s dark in color, absorptive (of water, for instance), and generally rich in nutrients. Needless to say, it’s a great advantage to have …
Self-tutoring about what to do with compost: the tutor mentions what he’s doing this summer. This summer, for the first time ever, I’ve put together a small garden. The carrots, cukes, and pumpkins seem to be doing all right; the …
Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor mentions some observations. Back on May 24, I planted pumpkins, cucumbers, carrots, and peppers. The cucumbers and pumpkins came up within a week, with a success rate over fifty percent. In just the last two …
Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor mentions a possible way to deter slugs and snails. Supposedly, slugs and snails don’t like touching copper because it reacts with their slime. Therefore, a copper boundary around a garden can deter them from entering, …
Self-tutoring about gardening: the tutor notices an abundant volunteer in the beds. What is it? Doing some planting last night, I finally noticed some volunteer plants in a few locations. In one, they are particularly abundant, with dozens sprouting. I …