24 Feb 2020, 7:25 pm
Karamazov wrote:
It’s cool temperate generally, temperature tend to range from -10 Celsius on a winters night to over 30 Celsius on a summers day: both of those extremes make the national news though, average range is usually between 5C - 25C. Frost and freezes are normal in winter, although snowfall is rarer: tends to average out at 18” deep when we get it.
The climate is also classed as oceanic, and we’re adjacent to the top of the Gulf Stream that loops up from the Caribbean: so we’re warmer than adjacent areas of the continent, and weather can change from pouring rain to bright sun in the space of ten minutes. It is generally wet though: not having rain for over a week is newsworthy.
And humid/damp: an Arab guy I knew at uni said he sweated more in the UK than in Dubai due to the damp weight of the air!
The climate is also classed as oceanic, and we’re adjacent to the top of the Gulf Stream that loops up from the Caribbean: so we’re warmer than adjacent areas of the continent, and weather can change from pouring rain to bright sun in the space of ten minutes. It is generally wet though: not having rain for over a week is newsworthy.
And humid/damp: an Arab guy I knew at uni said he sweated more in the UK than in Dubai due to the damp weight of the air!
So, the Gulf Stream connects south Florida with you in England and Amity in Ireland.
I also meant to mention that I envy your job as a gardener. I am pretty sure that is what I was meant to be, but I couldn't figure out how to get there.
24 Feb 2020, 7:35 pm
Amity wrote:
kraftiekortie wrote:
You're in Zone 9, Amity! Almost as warm as Florida in that sense...
lol Kraftie, if only the hardiness zones meant Ireland was warmer... Woke up this morning to a blanket of snow, power outages, traffic mahem and school closures... If I close my eyes and concentrate I can remember what it feels like to have the sun on my face
Zone 9 in Florida occasionally gets snow, but I don't think it gets a blanket of snow. I looked over a comparison chart between US and UK/Ireland zones and really couldn't make any sense out of it. It was saying I was in zone 11 and no where in Florida is it zone 11, which is real tropics. South Florida is subtropical. I am technically in zone 9b, but am so close to zone 10 I can grow some zone 10 plants. I cannot grow any fruits requiring any amount of chill hours.
Amity, forget-me-nots, if we are talking about the same plant, like to be in wet places, but don't like high humidity. Also for hydrangeas, again if it is the same we have in the states, they don't like the warm weather of zone 9. So it may be too warm for your plants.
24 Feb 2020, 7:47 pm
jimmy m wrote:
Great looking squash. I am also a fan of Baker Heirloom Seeds, but like you, I am mostly trying to cultivate things that are easy to grow, especially perennials or annuals that self-sow. I am getting too old to fuss with planting things out each year.
Squash do not grow well in my area unless one is willing to use a whole lot of chemicals. There is a Seminole pumpkin that was/is grown by this Florida tribe and I have had mild success with it. It can be eaten as a summer squash or winter squash.
24 Feb 2020, 7:52 pm
BenderRodriguez wrote:
Spending most of our time in the apartment now, so mostly herbs and I always have some Aloe Vera around. I'm looking around for some potted plants I might like. I used to have a potted orchid that only bloomed in winter, we jokingly called it the Siberian orchid.
At the house, I have a small vegetable garden and some flowers, nothing complicated. I have a few bushes of something called Nicotiana alata that blooms at night and has a wonderful smell, very similar to jasmine - it looks like this
One of my happiest memories is planting a magnolia tree in our garden when my first child was born, 16 years ago.
At the house, I have a small vegetable garden and some flowers, nothing complicated. I have a few bushes of something called Nicotiana alata that blooms at night and has a wonderful smell, very similar to jasmine - it looks like this
One of my happiest memories is planting a magnolia tree in our garden when my first child was born, 16 years ago.
Nicotiana alata has a heavenly scent. I grew some a long time ago.
I actually have an orchid that tolerates temperatures from 20 degrees F to over 100 degrees F. I got it at an exclusive sale for members of a local botanical garden when I had enough funds to support the garden. It has not yet bloomed.
What kind of potted plants are you looking for?
25 Feb 2020, 5:25 am
Not sure yet, I'll have to take a look around this spring; I'm thinking something that needs moderate light, doesn't grow too big and the cat won't try eating
25 Feb 2020, 6:05 am
25 Feb 2020, 6:36 am
blazingstar wrote:
Amity wrote:
kraftiekortie wrote:
You're in Zone 9, Amity! Almost as warm as Florida in that sense...
lol Kraftie, if only the hardiness zones meant Ireland was warmer... Woke up this morning to a blanket of snow, power outages, traffic mahem and school closures... If I close my eyes and concentrate I can remember what it feels like to have the sun on my face
Zone 9 in Florida occasionally gets snow, but I don't think it gets a blanket of snow. I looked over a comparison chart between US and UK/Ireland zones and really couldn't make any sense out of it. It was saying I was in zone 11 and no where in Florida is it zone 11, which is real tropics. South Florida is subtropical. I am technically in zone 9b, but am so close to zone 10 I can grow some zone 10 plants. I cannot grow any fruits requiring any amount of chill hours.
Amity, forget-me-nots, if we are talking about the same plant, like to be in wet places, but don't like high humidity. Also for hydrangeas, again if it is the same we have in the states, they don't like the warm weather of zone 9. So it may be too warm for your plants.
It could be the humidity, they are in a wind sheltered part of the garden, perhaps it's too sheltered when allowing for humidity. I cant imagine that it's the heat... 17/18C would be a typical warm day here. Sometimes in the low 20s Celsius, but usually just in the high teens in summer. They might do better in a draughty position and need extra care in the winter.
The zones make no sense to me either.
Missed the bit about tayberries earlier, better crop than raspberries, but they are brutes, they take over any bed they are planted in. Even the broom tea tree, mint and lemon balm couldnt compete and needed help!
25 Feb 2020, 7:08 am
26 Feb 2020, 11:48 am
I tried growing gourds one year. They were prolific. I didn't know what to do with them. I dried them and turned many of them into bird houses. But it was way too much work.
26 Feb 2020, 12:48 pm
26 Feb 2020, 12:57 pm
Yes, very impressive gourds: I love their swooping lines and curvaceous form 
That said the mere abstract thought of having to work out what to do with such a mighty crop is intimidating...
I’ve struggled before now with just the harvest off two courgettes! 
I commend your cultivation skills though: they look top notch. 
26 Feb 2020, 5:37 pm
Cavolo nero or Italian Kake... yum! So hardy it grows throughout the winter... it with basil, garlic and some spring onion, add bacon lardens on cornbread... double... triple yum
26 Feb 2020, 7:25 pm
26 Feb 2020, 7:31 pm
We’ve had some of it recently: powerful, rich, dark, metallic taste with an ever so slight nutty edge I thought.
Yummy
27 Feb 2020, 8:02 am
27 Feb 2020, 8:26 am
