May Lotito

Same experience with the red buckwheat. I sowed all the seeds and couldn't get a harvest. I am suspecting different varieties have slightly different requirements for nutrients and that one happened to not like my soil. I have difficulty growing Japanese squashes too. I'd like to buy the seeds again and try one more time, but not using them all at once.

Picture one and two are showing different plants. I have these in my yard: one with a whole of 6 leaflets and pink flowers is field madder, one with 4 leaflets is foothill bedstraw. I don't know about the one in the first picture, it seems to be seeding already.

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:Yesterday, I planted five seedlings each of paw-paw and persimmon.

What do you think the challenges would be growing pawpaw in Utah? Protecting young trees from intense sunlight? Keeping the soil moist? Soil pH?

It looks like yours is very mild and still has a good amount of growing season ahead. Small seeds like lettuce, carrot and brassica don't like to be buried deep as they carry little reserves. I just broadcast and thin later. For cold protection, I cover with a wool or fleece blanket when needed. Some people start seedlings indoors and transplant larger plants into mulched bed. That would work too. Have you heard of the Ruth Stout method of deep mulching? It is suited to your local weather being developed in the New England region.

I am wondering how your spring and early summer weather is like. I am in zone 6a, and historical data shows 50% chance of frost free after April 15. I sowed my seeds 6 weeks prior to that date and did encountered three below freezing temperatures.  With protection they are doing fine and actually bolting already. I harvested some radishes last week and the remaining ones are sending flower stalks. So the window for cool season veggies can be very short, depending on your location. Hardness zone is an indication of how cold it can get in winter. If you are in the coastal region with maritime climate, you are fine. But I do feel you can have warm season veggie seedlings ready in case it gets hot quickly.

For winter rye, pollen shed is the time to do termination. But I doubt tramping would be as effective since the roller crimper is much heavy machine. If you simply cut them down they won't grow back. Scathing is better than mowing because the biomass isn't shredded into small pieces and causing saps to expose. Mines are heading but like Judith said, yours look like different species.

I made a couple rugs and they have been in use in the kitchen. I just took them out to shake and beat off the dusts. Glad to give the old shirts and ugly fabric a second life.

I scatter winter rye grains randomly in my yard as the visual cue for mapping soil fertility so I get an idea what I need to prepare certain spot for gardening. As you see a little treatment can make a bit difference in plant vigor.

Besides sunlight, if lots of trees have been cleared from that site, the neighboring trees can extend roots over and further extract minerals from there. From the symptoms, I am more inclined that it's calcium and potassium. Scatter some lime and wood ash and grow a season of legume first.

The bean sprout looks paler than other plants shown above. Do you think inoculating the clay balls with nitrogen fixing bacteria would help?

Since Arkansas is severe drought, that may cause the astringent taste because plants are stressed. You don't have to cook that long, it's just my lazy cooking. Besides, I didn't bother to harvest many to make an entire dish. I grew up eating the giant type, maybe a kind of moso, that one shoot was more than enough to serve a whole family. Short ones that look like traffic cones were younger and tastier. We only ate modestly each time as people said too much would cause indigestion.  The peeled shoots was cut into fine threads similar to those of potato hashbrowns and blanched in boiling water. Then drained and sautéed with some meat.

Do you know what variety it is? I am still trying to figure out what I have.