The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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Kelric
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The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kelric »

Every year a gardening thread pops up, then is replaced the next year, and so on. Let's try keeping it all in one place, shall we? I'm starting this now as my wife and I are trying to come up with a way to get compost again. Our condo was in a town where a compost company would pick up our scraps bi-weekly and we'd get dirt in the spring. Then I got a compost bin for the yard at our house and, while I had to put it on a gravel and rock foundation as critters were digging under it (to no avail, as it was very sturdy), I was quite looking forward to the compost it was going to give my garden this past spring. Then, we moved. We've been too busy to get another system going and nobody does pick-up in our new town, and while we have a nice sized yard there isn't really a good spot for an outside bin (plus we have rabbits and a skunk who live in the neighborhood), so I'm thinking of a worm bin in the basement. The little guys will have several months to get the dirt going if I start sooner rather than later. I know some of you vermicompost, so do you have any suggestions, tips or tricks?

This past year I grew a surprising amount of tomatoes, transplanted some walking onions from my old garden (they haven't started spreading yet so I didn't harvest this year), transplanted a strawberry plant that gave me one strawberry and will hopefully spread in the spring, got a squash to grow, and planted kale (which I am letting go to seed to be able to harvest annually) and sage (which may or may not survive the winter).

2018 will be more of the same, except I am going to container the tomatoes to give the garden soil a rest. I also want to start an indoor herb garden.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

I planted seeds in spring and when we moved inn June, planted the sproutlings. Tomatoes did well, had a good crop of cherry, plum and mid-sized. Only one cucumber plant survived but it was productive, probably giving is 10 large cukes. Basil did well, then was devoured by Japanese beetles. Only one bean plant survived with minimal production. Got about 10 jalapenos from one plant, maybe 8 from a banana pepper plant, and some stunted bell peppers. We inherited a massive sage patch that will need to be cut back...I almost never have use for it. A big patch of chive and transplanted scallions all did well, and grocery store lemongrass replicated nicely after being planted.

Next year I want to line the side of the house with blueberry and raspberry bushes.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Lorini »

Is this an OK thread for planter flower gardening? I don't do veggies, and my yard is rocks (fire/drought situation) but I just acquired four large half barrels for planter flower gardening. Looking at succulents, which I have some of in smaller pots. I got the half barrels on sale and just haven't taken the time to plant them yet. They'll need some planning to look nice as well, and haven't really come up with any great layouts yet.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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Jeff V wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 9:49 am I planted seeds in spring and when we moved inn June, planted the sproutlings. Tomatoes did well, had a good crop of cherry, plum and mid-sized. Only one cucumber plant survived but it was productive, probably giving is 10 large cukes. Basil did well, then was devoured by Japanese beetles. Only one bean plant survived with minimal production. Got about 10 jalapenos from one plant, maybe 8 from a banana pepper plant, and some stunted bell peppers. We inherited a massive sage patch that will need to be cut back...I almost never have use for it. A big patch of chive and transplanted scallions all did well, and grocery store lemongrass replicated nicely after being planted.

Next year I want to line the side of the house with blueberry and raspberry bushes.
Dry the sage. Once it is dried up and cut you can use it in tea, or give the whole (or cut) dried leaves to friends who cook. Make sage and honey syrup for beverages. Sage salt and sage butter are two things we use ours for. Then we bring them to dinner events (Thanksgiving, for example) and give them to people/leave it behind.

There are some miniature raspberry bushes that have been grown to not produce thorns/thistles; I want some of those in my yard in the next year or two. I forgot about the leeks - we planted some leeks and are letting them winter over as well.
Lorini wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 11:25 am Is this an OK thread for planter flower gardening?
They're plants, right? Still counts.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by em2nought »

I almost bought an edible gardening book the other day, but I decided it was doubtful I'd use it. Went with the prepper book instead. lol
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kraken »

My garden did well across the board last year after a miserable performance in 2016, so I reckon I'm in again for 2018. Since I've been farming this little patch of dirt for 25+ years I don't change much from year to year. My main challenge is ever-dwindling direct sun, and I can't do anything about that because neighbors' trees are to blame.

I will say that having two young outdoor cats did wonders for keeping vermin away last year.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Lorini »

Vermin is one of the reasons I have to do planter gardening, cats don't last a week in this coyote infested area.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Z-Corn »

Kelric wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 9:26 am I'm thinking of a worm bin in the basement. The little guys will have several months to get the dirt going if I start sooner rather than later. I know some of you vermicompost, so do you have any suggestions, tips or tricks?
I have let it lapse, so it is not running now, but I kept my worm bin in the kitchen tucked under a counter. If maintained properly there should be no odor. I found freezing and thawing my food scraps before I fed them to the worms made the little guys go crazy and chow them down quicker. This cuts down on fruit flies also.

Best book I found on the subject was by Kalamazoo native Mary Appelhof, Worms Eat My Garbage

Buy your worms locally if you can. Most places won't ship them in freezing weather.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kraken »

Lorini wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 2:19 pm Vermin is one of the reasons I have to do planter gardening, cats don't last a week in this coyote infested area.
Coyotes are spotted around here from time to time, too. Last week a photo from a nearby town of one walking down the street with a housecat in its jaws was widely circulated.

Coyotes don't actively hunt prey that's large enough to fight back, but if a soft and slow house pet bumbles into their path they'll take the challenge. The danger is real.

My cats usually hang around together, so I worry less about them. They're at their physical peak and they've got each other's backs. They kind of own the neighborhood.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

The sage wasn't destroyed by hard frost, so I shoved a handful up each turkey's butt on Football and Turkey Day. I've never even purchased dry sage before because I've never needed it for anything I eat. I don't drink tea and honey makes my pancreas hurt.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kelric »

Getting close to spring!

I had some beans that sprouted before I could dry them last fall and I tried planting them in a container in my sunniest windows a few months ago. They grew well but one of the cats decided their leaves were delicious and chomped them all down. A few still managed to put out some pods but couldn't get any beans growing. I was hoping that at least one bean would make it through and then I could plant it in the spring, but oh well.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kraken »

Haven't thought about it yet, apart from flipping through some garden porn. Don't think I'm going to order any plants by mail this year...maybe some tomato seeds, although they're kinda expensive to order and not real easy to find in stores anymore. I could use a few days of nice weather to put me in the mood.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Madmarcus »

The planned move in July puts a damper on gardening but I'm certainly looking at garden catalogs and thinking.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

Already bought some seeds: cherry, plum, big tomato, cuke, jalapeno, banana pepper, snap pea. I'd like to plant some blueberry and raspberry this year. Maybe tomorrow I'll plant the seeds in a 50 compartment hatchery I bought. Herbs I'll buy already sprouted. I noticed that the scallions and chives are already poking up greenery from the ground.

I assume my wife will plant sweet potato leaves and lemongrass like she did last year.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kraken »

Watch out for chives. Somebody who predated me planted chives in the distant past, and they're all over my lawn and my garden plot. They will spread like mad and cannot be eradicated if they escape.

On the plus side, my lawn smells great when I mow it in the spring and fall.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

I assume sage is the same way? The sage patch was about 4 times the size of the chives. I need to trim back all of dead from last year...maybe it'll add a pleasant smell to a garden waste bon fire that's been building in the fire pit.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kraken »

Sage is easier to contain because it doesn't have bulbs. Bulbs are stealthy. My sage has always been well-behaved. Oregano is another story. Oregano has overrun parts of my yard since let it spread. I don't mind that. It makes a good looking border plant and smells good when it's mowed.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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Lorini wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 11:25 amLooking at succulents, which I have some of in smaller pots.
How are the succulents coming? My wife discovered them a few months ago and has gone nuts. She's got a little garden setup on our porch with a ton of different varieties. It's amazing how crazy some of the succulents look. And the fact that you can rip a leaf off and an entire new plant will grow sounds like science fiction. She probably has three dozen little baby succulents that she is growing. I'll see if I can get some pictures posted.

We also started a little herb garden for the first time, starting with parsley, cilantro, and basil. We put the cilantro on some home made enchiladas, and it was fantastic. The basil is starting to look a little sad though.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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Here are some of the pictures my wife has taken of her succulents.

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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Lorini »

msteelers wrote: Mon Mar 12, 2018 9:09 am
Lorini wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 11:25 amLooking at succulents, which I have some of in smaller pots.
How are the succulents coming? My wife discovered them a few months ago and has gone nuts. She's got a little garden setup on our porch with a ton of different varieties. It's amazing how crazy some of the succulents look. And the fact that you can rip a leaf off and an entire new plant will grow sounds like science fiction. She probably has three dozen little baby succulents that she is growing. I'll see if I can get some pictures posted.

We also started a little herb garden for the first time, starting with parsley, cilantro, and basil. We put the cilantro on some home made enchiladas, and it was fantastic. The basil is starting to look a little sad though.
They are doing pretty well, we actually have had some rain which is good. I have four half barrels I need to fill with succulents but haven't gotten around to planting them. I really like succulents, they grow well in containers and are easy to care for. And what's very important to me, they are native to my area, so I know they won't take a huge amount of water.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by hitbyambulance »

msteelers wrote: Mon Mar 12, 2018 10:30 am Here are some of the pictures my wife has taken of her succulents.
i was wondering why they looked so great and then i saw you live in Florida. they don't do so well in Seattle.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Isgrimnur »

I would imagine fungi and mosses would be more in line with the climate.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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hitbyambulance wrote: Wed Mar 21, 2018 12:29 am
msteelers wrote: Mon Mar 12, 2018 10:30 am Here are some of the pictures my wife has taken of her succulents.
i was wondering why they looked so great and then i saw you live in Florida. they don't do so well in Seattle.
Yeah. They need a lot of sun and very little water. I imagine that's the opposite of what Seattle has to offer.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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So we are now picking snow peas, or sugar snaps, I forget exactly what they were called. The Fava's have flowered and the artichoke plants are looking great, but no chokes yet. We are going to shop for tomatoes this weekend if the rain slows down.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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Scuzz wrote: Wed Mar 21, 2018 2:51 pm So we are now picking snow peas, or sugar snaps, I forget exactly what they were called. The Fava's have flowered and the artichoke plants are looking great, but no chokes yet. We are going to shop for tomatoes this weekend if the rain slows down.
It almost snowed here, and still might overnight. Nothing is even getting in the ground soon.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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I could never live where snow actually stayed on the ground more than a few minutes.
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Finished putting in my tomatoes today. My ridiculously elaborate process involving "landscaping fabric", newspaper, compost, stakes, cages, and a soaker hose took me six hours to put in 27 plants, but doing all of that work up-front means I won't have to do any weeding the rest of the year. Not in the tomato patch, anyway, and that's more than half of the garden. Unfortunately none of my other crops reward such a regimented approach.

I have about a dozen Romas that I grew from seed, a couple of cherry tomatoes, and a few each of Early Girls, Celebrities, and Goliaths. The Goliaths are speculative. I've only grown that variety once before, and I can't remember how well it did.

I've still got a few herb and pepper plants to get in this weekend, and then I need to seed my squash and beans next week. Those don't flourish until the soil is very warm, so there's no rush on them.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Carpet_pissr »

Anybody have tips on planting beets from seed? I've tried three different batches now, and end up with the same result. Some initial sprouts that look promising, then within a few days, they get really weak and end up withering or wasting away to nothing. First batch I thought it was too little water, second batch too much, but given I successfully produced plants from other non-beet seeds, not sure where I am going wrong (and I tried a different seed packet the second and third times).
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Carpet_pissr wrote: Fri May 25, 2018 3:59 pm Anybody have tips on planting beets from seed? I've tried three different batches now, and end up with the same result. Some initial sprouts that look promising, then within a few days, they get really weak and end up withering or wasting away to nothing. First batch I thought it was too little water, second batch too much, but given I successfully produced plants from other non-beet seeds, not sure where I am going wrong (and I tried a different seed packet the second and third times).
I think the problem is that you're planting beets. <blerg>
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Biyobi wrote: Fri May 25, 2018 4:41 pmI think the problem is that you're planting beets. <blerg>
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

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Carpet_pissr wrote: Fri May 25, 2018 3:59 pm Anybody have tips on planting beets from seed? I've tried three different batches now, and end up with the same result. Some initial sprouts that look promising, then within a few days, they get really weak and end up withering or wasting away to nothing. First batch I thought it was too little water, second batch too much, but given I successfully produced plants from other non-beet seeds, not sure where I am going wrong (and I tried a different seed packet the second and third times).
We have never done beets, in fact I have never seen them in the stores. But they do grow them by the acre not far from here. My wife would probably grow them if we did find them, so I am glad we have never found them. :roll:
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by em2nought »

msteelers wrote: Mon Mar 12, 2018 10:30 am Here are some of the pictures my wife has taken of her succulents.
You should get your wife to try some Christmas Cactus too. They do well in FL.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Carpet_pissr »

Have you two beet haters ever eaten fresh beets? :)

Huge difference between fresh/roasted beets vs the pickled stuff in jars.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Z-Corn »

We bought seedlings yesterday and woke up to rain this morning. We may have to wait until tomorrow to get things planted.

Just a few plants this year, all in containers on the deck. A couple cherry tomatoes, a couple San Marzano plants and a slicing variety. Three jalapeno plants that I plan to smoke and dry to make into chipotles.

Also herbs, a couple different kinds of basil, some thyme and some rosemary.

I bought a Self Watering Container just to give a new gimmick a try. I'll probably put the indeterminate cherry tomato variety in there as I also purchased the trellis system for the container. I'm really good a fertilizing my crops so I tend to struggle with plants that sprawl. Not a bad problem to have but I have to keep coming up with better trellises every year.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by em2nought »

Carpet_pissr wrote: Sat May 26, 2018 7:43 am Have you two beet haters ever eaten fresh beets? :)

Huge difference between fresh/roasted beets vs the pickled stuff in jars.
Beets are my favorite "canned" product EVER. Has to be whole or cut beets, not sliced. They just need doctored up on the stove with sugar, apple cider vinegar, and some cloves. Drop a few peeled hard boiled eggs in with them yet if you want it to be even better, then refrigerate.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

I bought some multi-colored swiss chard that I saw for the first time ever a few weeks ago. They probably grew about 50% (still small considering how big they can grow) but yesterday my wife cut them all down, fed them to our goat I mean baby, and asked me to get some more. I have no idea where else to get them, since I bought the only plants they had.

I need to cull some tomato sproutlings so perhaps some will rise to production -- it seems the ones left to rot last fall are germinating large quantities of sprouts. Strawberries we've planted this year are producing a few good berries (and sweet!) but I guess it takes a few years for them to really get going. The blueberry bushes I planted went from green to half-yellow after planting a month ago and seem to be holding, they aren't growing, but not dying. Not sure what to do with them.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Isgrimnur »

Can someone get us a JeffV reality show, please?
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

For reasons unknown to us, the baby is inexplicably adverse to red meat. She will eat almost any sort of vegetable matter though and is a huge fan of fish. I have a cute video of her meticulously picking apart and eating bok choy for breakfast a few weeks ago.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Jeff V »

So how's everyone's harvests so far?

We've been harvesting cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, plum tomatoes, a few large (beefsteak?) tomatoes that have dark red and super sweet flesh, okra, lemongrass, jalapenos, anaheim peppers, chard, basil, rosemary, scallion, chives, flat parsley (it massively bloomed and there is almost no usable leaves left...last year, it survived the frost and i was still harvesting leaves in November). I think my wife planted late zucchini...there are large yellow blossoms now, there's about 2 more months for them to come to anything.

Blueberry and raspberry plants that I bought this year didn't amount to anything. Maybe next year I'll procure more mature plants. I planted 2 strawberries in the spring, while they haven't born fruit since shortly after planting, they are running amok and taking over much of the herb box (4x4).

The cherry, grape tomatoes have been producing faster than we can use/give away. Today I cooked down a whole bowl of them and made some excellent pasta e fagioli, mostly using garden veggies.

In non-garden agriculture, my front flower garden and lawn appears to have been invested with voles. I've put some mouse traps out today, hopefully I'll wipe them all out.
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Re: The (New, Maybe Improved) Gardening Thread

Post by Kraken »

Cherry tomatoes are producing faster than I can use them or give them away. I lost all of my early plum tomatoes to blossom end rot but the mid-season crop is ripening now and looking good. I made a poor choice in slicers by planting only Celebrities and Goliath. The Goliaths were very good, but the determinate plants are already done and dying back. Celebrities are on the small side for slicers, but they're reliable and versatile and still producing. I had to go away twice in early August and a lot of tomatoes got overripe because I wasn't here to pick them.

All in all, not the best year ever for tomatoes, but I'm still picking more than I can easily use, so that's a win. Yesterday I made a big pot of red sauce and finally got caught up with the harvest -- it took hours to peel, core, and seed 50+ tomatoes, but oh man is it worthwhile. After simmering for three hours I think it was the best spaghetti sauce I've ever made, and there was plenty left to freeze for some miserable February night. We will be eating a tomato-based diet for the next few weeks, and expect enough Romas to make another batch of sauce.

The yellow pole beans produced very early, but not abundantly. They're getting a second wind now with a new batch of flowers. The green pole beans are late and have just begun to flower. Those vines are robust so I anticipate a lot of green beans in the next few weeks. Fresh green beans at peak season are soooo good.

Banana peppers are doing great.

I have good years for squash and bad years, and this was a bad one. I blame weird weather -- too dry followed by too wet and then back to dry, with a couple of long stretches when it was just too hot for me to be out there. A rabbit ate some of my early zucchinis and there haven't been many late ones. At least one plant looks like it might have fallen to borers. I ran out of Sevin and didn't get more, so the borers win.

My basil plants became basil bushes, so I have way more of that than I can use without much bug damage...which is a nice problem to have. I also have a lot of parsley for some reason. I don't like parsley very much or use it very often, yet I plant some every year just because. Oh, and I remembered to dry some oregano early in the season, before it went to flower.
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