Owner: MrBrownThumb URL:http://www.mrbrownthumb.blogspot.com Join Date: Sat, 17 Feb 2007 02:48:04 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Indoor & Urban gardening blog. Come learn about how to care for and propagate your outdoor and indoor plants. Questions and comments appreciated and replied to. Site statistics:Click here
And On His Farm He Had Some -Tomatillos? 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I was just reading this interesting article about how the trends in immigration are driving changes in what American farmers grow and the possibility of new markets being opened up to them.With the help from agricultural experts at Rutgers"..The Plan is to create a blueprint that would develop a market along the East Coast--including Connecticut, New Jersey, Florida and Georgia--to link growers with ethnic markets. Farmers would produce potentially more profitable vegetables like bok choy, tomatillos and bitter gourd that be successfully grown in their own local markets. Gourmet consumers and specialty stores are also interested in ethnic produce."I'm all for it. Just today I was doing some grocery shopping and was wishing I had an Asian grocery store closer to me so I could pick up some edamame beans. If you find yourself near an Asian grocery store stop in and pick up some Taro (Colocasia esculenta) to plant in your garden. It's a lot cheaper than purchasing plain green Colocasia
Where To Buy Cacti In Chicago 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Looking over the site stats for my blog that FeedBurner provides I've noticed a number of visits to my blog are from people doing internet searches looking for retailers in Chicago
that sell Cacti
and Succulents.Today someone was looking for a place to buy Senecio rowleyanus in Chicago and since most people are too shy to post in the comments and ask a question if they didn't find the answer I'll take a few moments here and divulge my cactus buying locations in Chicago.If you're in Chicago and looking to buy Cacti and Succulents you're sort of out of luck. I say that because we don't have a place in the city that specializes or has a vast amount of them. But if you don't mind doing some leg work you can find them in a variety of stores.I purchase a lot of Cacti and Succulents in Chicago from Home Depot. The trick to finding a cactus in a Chicago Home Depot that you'll be happy with is visiting every single one you come across. Not all of them have the exact same merchandise and
Tips For The Garden Blogger Pt4 1970-01-01 00:59:59 For me one of the most enjoyable aspects of garden blogging is hearing what other people have to say about whatever I post about and commenting and sounding off on their boards. Whenever someone leaves a comment on my blog I try to respond right away to the comment and/or I'll reciprocate with a comment on their blog. I do it because the interactivity of blogging is what has the greatest appeal for me. I live a pretty insular gardening life, by that I mean I don't know another person in real life that does it to the point where they know anything other than common names. I had that realization not long ago when I called the extension office and tried to pronounce "Mina Lobata" over the phone. It dawned on me that I wasn't sure how to pronounce the name and that I had never actually said the word out-loud before.I'm digressing, again. This entry is suppose to be about a garden blogging tip.Commenting and responding are very important tools to building e-friendships and making your Read more:Blogger
, Garden
*PSSST* Have you noticed? 1970-01-01 00:59:59 A couple of weeks ago I noticed an unknown referrer in my site stats that feedburner provides so I followed the link and came across a site that looked remarkably like GVs but only it wasn't GVs. I tried going to the main page but only got a message to "move along" and I haven't seen anyone on GVs mentioning it yet.I haven't said anything about it but I've finally have gotten too curious to keep it to myself. Have you noticed a website with a strange name referring people to you blog?I seem to recall that Josh (of GW) saying in a thread in the Suggestions Forum that they had a couple of cool things in store for us GWers come spring and I'm wondering if this "new" website is part of that. But I've done a search to see if the "owners" of this new site are the same as the "owners" of GW are but that information isn't available.Hmmm. Do you know anything? And if you did would you tell me? I hope it's nothing nefarious.:)Garden Blogger in Chicago
Do-It-Yourself Garden Design-Virtual Garden 1970-01-01 00:59:59 On Monday I was cleaning out my favorites folder and came across a link I had forgotten about. It's the Virtual Garden
from the BBC website. I had a problem using the program on the website but I downloaded it and it worked fine for me that way.It gives you the ability to sketch out your gardening space and design your own garden by planting trees, bulbs, annual and perennials and placing garden items like benches in your design. The plant selection is limited but I can't really complain because the program is free and you can see your design in 3D and move around your virtual garden like it was a video game complete with fluttering butterflies.The image above is an overhead view of my front garden that I blocked in. The brown area on the far left is a walkway that runs the length of the house. The green is of course grass and the gray strip is the walkway leading up to the front stairs. The brown box in this program is really decking because they didn't have a "front porch" option. Read more:Yourself
"Seeds Grow More Than Just Plants" 1970-01-01 00:59:59 At the end of the last growing season I had a lot of my seeds set out in preparation for drying and subsequent storage. Unfortunately one of my family members tossed them out. I was livid because I had spent time making sure I'd get a lot of seeds, fought birds, plant snatchers and the odd foul ball from the neighbor's yard that always seemed to land directly on a flower head.A lot of my work and vigilance went down the drain- or should I say down the trash can. When I questioned my family member that tossed them out I was really surprised by how unsympathetic the reaction was."Whatever, they're just seeds."Actually they were MY seeds that I went through a lot of work to collect. And they were going to be used for trades and to build up the number of plants in the garden."They're just seeds that grow some plants."Seeds grow more than just plants. It was the realization that saving the biggest, nicest seeds from the best crops would result in better crops and that realization allowe Read more:Plants
The Constant Hybridizer 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I'm probably not the only one that has a secret desire to be a hybridizer of note someday. I don't want to do it because I want to be rich or famous or anything like that, I really just want a custom garden. Something unique and unlike anything anyone has ever seen before. That's why I hybridized this green rose.I'd like to have a garden full of black, green and brown flowers someday and until the professional hybridizers catch up with my dreams I'm stuck creating the flowers I want in Photoshop. I changed the color of this rose to green using the Virtual Photographer filter by Optik Verve labs. It's free and works with Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Painshopt Pro and Photo-Paint. It's an east to use filter that allows you do to do some cool effects on your photos even if you haven't mastered your photo editing program. It's probably for the best that I am only digitally creating hybrids because I'm not very good at keeping records. I've already misplaced the information on Read more:Constant
Tips For The Garden Blogger Pt 3 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Posting photos from your garden on your blog can add to your blog what words simply fail to get across. You can upload them directly to your blog or link to them from your on-line photo album or stick them on your sidebar like my flickr badge. In this post I hope to share with you some tips that I've been taught or have picked up along the way that have helped me.Best time for photosBelieve it or not there is a best time to take photos. Early morning and early evening are the best; avoid taking photos outdoors in the midday sun. Not only is it bad for your skin but it's at it's strongest and washes away color and blows out your photo's highlights. Early morning or early evening Sun gives you the most accurate reproduction of color and the shadows created by the Sun's position in the sky add depth and interest to your photos.How to hold your cameraPay attention to how you're holding the camera. You're probably sticking out your elbows perpendicular to your torso and look like you Read more:Blogger
, Garden
30 Saguaros uprooted in Tucson 1970-01-01 00:59:59 30 uprooted saguaros found on West Ft. Lowell RoadDavid L. TeibelTucson
CitizenA Tucsonan on his way to work Friday said he found about 30 uprooted saguaro cactuses in the desert that he thinks were being stolen for sale. Some of the cactuses were on Saguaro National Park land and some on unincorporated county land, said Gordon McKinley, adding he called 911 Friday morning and met later today with a deputy sheriff and a National Park Service investigator.Deputies were called to the area near Fort Lowell and Sandario roads around 10:45 a.m. after being contacted by the National Park Service, said Deputy Dawn Barkman, spokeswoman for the sheriff's department. It was "obvious" someone was trying to steal cactuses from holes that were found and dirt dug out around other cactuses, she said. (continue reading)Before I had any interest in Cacti & Succulents I lived for a short while in Northern Arizona and when I would make trips South towards Phoenix I always found the drive to be nice
A Strange Way To Grow One 1970-01-01 00:59:59 A few days before Christmas I was walking through the greenhouse of a Home Depot and I came across this new way of growing an Amaryllis. At first I couldn't believe what I was seeing it looked like the brain child of a sadistic Amaryllis grower. It reminded me of this one time when I was working in a bonsai nursery and these two older ladies walked in and walked out in a huff but not before I got an earful of how "mean" we were for growing trees in such little pots. When I saw this Amaryllis I had almost the same reaction as those two ladies some years back except I didn't yell at anyone and threaten to call the Arbor Day Foundation.I don't know if I think this is the worst idea ever or the best. You can't tell by the photo but you insert the amaryllis through a hole in the bottom, then add soil and then you insert the plug on the underside. On the plus side I think it could be a great solution to the problem we all experience at least once, the toppling Amaryllis. I had it happen Read more:Strange
How To Start A Community Garden 1970-01-01 00:59:59 A few days ago I was walking past a vacant lot near my home and remembering the "bird lady" that lived on the lot when I was a kid. On the now empty lot sat a large and imposing 3 story house that I can only describe as a poor man's Victorian.It had some of the same details and shapes of a Victorian home but it never quite had the charm of a Victorian. It was covered in dark green shingles, always in need of a paint job and appeared to always be ready to collapse. In it lived a little old lady who was the subject of a lot of gossip and rumors created by the neighborhood kids. Most of which resulted from the fact that she would sit in her window and stare out into the distance for hours. It didn't help that her roof was home to a massive amount of pigeons that she fed daily. There were so many that they would cast a large shadow as they flew around and around the house startled at the slightest noise.A few years ago the "bird lady" passed away and her house was demolished and nothing Read more:Garden
, Start
Tips For The Garden Blogger Pt5 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Do you wonder what those orange squares (chicklets) that are on blogs and sites that you visit? Wonder no more feedburner writes an explanation here about what they are and why they're so useful.They're not only for big media companies or large websites they're also for garden bloggers like you and I. You can use them to allow people who come across your blog to subscribe and keep up-to-date with your blog from their favorite home page.The image in this post is a screen capture of my Google Reader. Every time I come across a site or blog that has an chicklet (mine is at the top right hand corner) I'll click it and subscribe to the feed and when I'm signed into my Google Account I can go to my Google Reader and see the latest updates on the blogs I visit right away. I can read the blog entries and click on them to visit the blog and comment or do whatever. It's a neat way to keep up to date with the news and blogs that interest me all in one place.But here's the thing- I just che Read more:Blogger
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Have You Seen This Cacti? 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Look closely at the Cacti
in this picture. It was stolen from Pancho Villa's Restaurant (1625 Sir Francis Drake Blvd Fairfax, CA) and is valued at $5,000.00 But I think that aside from the monetary value it has sentimental value as it was planted in the mid-1970s by Jose Luis Velasquez who worked as a bartender at the restaurant and passed away two years ago. The owner of the restaurant, and cacti, Kelly Medina is offering a reward for the return of her stolen cacti. She's offering a "sumptuous feast" in exchange for information leading to the return of her beloved cacti.Is there a worst kind of thief than a plant thief? There probably is but it has to rank right up there next to baby candy theft and I'm hoping that the person(s) responsible for this theft weren't cacti and succulent enthusiasts.You can get the number for Medina and the local police and read the story at the link below.(read the story here)I just realized that if I had a similar looking cacti I'd probably prop it
Who's The Boss? 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Ever get the feeling that you're being used. I'm sure I'm not the first person to come to this conclusion but it dawned on me today while posting an entry on propagating an Amaryllis that we're nothing more than insects with opposable thumbs. Plants are in charge.They use us every chance they get and we're more than happy to oblige and indulge their every single need. We break our backs tilling soil and moving rocks just so they have a comfortable place to lay their roots.We build them pretty houses made of glass where we make sure the temperature and humidity is just right. We bring them water when they're thirsty, nutrients when they're hungry, dust their leaves, fight off their enemies and for what? So we can feel good when we see them bloom?I'm telling you we're being used and we're being used by creatures that have no remorse and are only in it for themselves. They sacrifice some of their own to keep us fed so we can continue to do their bidding. We spent time on the in
Days Ago Counter-Uses For The Gardener 1970-01-01 00:59:59 A week or so ago I tuned into Oprah because she was having a "Moms to Millionaires" episode where average women went from home makers - to- millionaires. I love watching those types of shows because you always think; "Gee, I could of thought of that" and then kick yourself for not having invented something so simple. Probably the best example was the mother that "invented" sticking trinkets into the holes of the sandals her daughters were wearing.By the time the inventors of the Days Ago Counter
came on I was pretty much over the episode and only had the television on in the background while I was surfing the net. That was until I heard one of the inventors mention that you could use the counter to keep track of how many days ago you last watered your houseplant to give you an idea of when you should water next.Hmmm.Well that may work for some but anyone who knows anything about houseplants realizes that you can't water your houseplants like that. But then I started thinking about oth
The Friendly Local Retailer Myth. 1970-01-01 00:59:59 All "friendly local retailers", are local but not all "friendly local retailers" are friendly. I was just over on GVs catching up with various gardening blogs when I came across an entry by Trey, owner of The Golden Gecko Garden Center. On his blog (thegoldengecko.blogspot.com) he's criticizing Home Depot for their latest ad campaign that tries to brand HD as the "friendly local retailer." I'm not sure Trey has much to worry about because I don't think anyone will ever really buy into the idea, but what I don't agree with is how he puts local retailers on a pedestal.In my 29 years I've only been in one local retailer that lived up to the myth of the "friendly local retailer." It was a few years back and it was a garden center in N. Arizona and the proprietors of the place where straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting and treated me like I was royalty even though I was only there to buy a couple of plugs for a container garden. They even laughed at my dumb joke of just being the Read more:Friendly
, Local
, Retailer
Forever Flowers 1970-01-01 00:59:59 During the last growing season I was recruited to help a neighbor in her garden. She'd seen what I had been doing with the front yard and she must have figured it was an opportunity to get her hands on some free help.One day she called me over after having been on a shopping spree of tender bulbs and corms. She wanted to get started right away and plant her a garden. I tried to get her to slow down and sit down with me so we can draw up some kind of plan instead of just planting things here and there, the way I do.Her front yard can easily accommodate the house I live in and have a little room left over. I've always envied it because it's a great size and a perfect rectangle. It could be a great garden one day with enough space for several garden rooms or small themed gardens. But as she always reminds me; "she's not getting any younger" and the lady next door "always has something blooming in her garden."It took a few minutes but eventually I got her to realize that the lady next Read more:Flowers
, Forever
Amaryllis Minerva-The Wait Is Over! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 In this previous entry to my garden blog I posted about waiting on this particular Amaryllis
to bloom. Today the wait was finally over as it decided to bloom for me and allowed me to snap a few pictures of it.This past Christmas Target carried these bulbs from Smith And Hawken that ranged in price from $6.99 to $29.99. At the local Target there were two bulbs for sale for $29.99 they were a Minerva and Mont Blanc. They were exceptionally large bulbs about the size of the JUMBO Amaryllis bulbs from Breck's it came with a glass container and some colored marbles.I didn't want to pay that much for an Amaryllis I wasn't desperate to have so I waited for the after Christmas sale and picked this bulb up for about $10.00. I had to go to two different stores to find it once they were discounted but I'm now glad I did. It's a really nice flower and I'd been wanting one for a while. Whenever I bought an Amaryllis kit from a big box store that was suppose to be Minerva it turned out to be
Gloriosa superba 'Rothschildiana' 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I grew this plant for the first time this past spring and fell in love with them because of the unusually shaped flowers and the plant's climbing habit. It was a big conversation piece in my garden and as was the case with anything I really loved this spring it was subject to theft and damage from the neighbor's foul balls that landed in the garden. Some people grow this plant as a houseplant and after growing it in the garden I can understand the allure.If I remember correctly I paid about 12 dollars for three tubers that were about 3 1/2 inches long. Each of the tubers formed two offsets but the odd thing was that the tubers that I planted in the ground produced offsets much larger than the two that were potted up. The reason the difference surprised me is because they all treated the same the only difference is that the tubers in the ground were in really poor soil. Since the tubers were planted in bagged potting soil I would have expected them to be the ones to produce the bigger
"Love Love Marimo" 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Back in August of '05 I wanted to be part of the Japanese fad of growing cacti on your key chains. But we're in '07 now and I'm onto something completely different, this time I want a Marimo. I'm sure I'd be the only one on my block with one. :0)"What's a Marimo?"Well, really it's just an algae that grows in a spherical shape but they're kept as "pets" in fish tanks. Click the image for a larger view and notice the two green balls. I took the screen capture from this website where you can learn more about Marimo. I guess they're the pet rocks of the plant lover world and I want one-actually I'd like a whole colony of them growing in a fish tank like in these images from Google.You can learn more about the classification, nomenclature and growth habits of Marimo on Wikipedia.Garden Blogger in Chicago
Read more:Love Love
Hurry Up, Alredy! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Possibly the worst part, for me at least, about growing Amaryllis bulbs is the time it takes for the flowers to open up. I've been waiting on this particular Amaryllis bulb to unfurl it's flowers for three days now.No amount of cajoling has made the process go any faster. I'm just about ready to start in with the idle threats I sometimes resort to with my plants.This particular bulb is taking it's sweet time as if it knew that there was nothing else going on in the indoor garden and that I'm counting on it to keep my plant growing sanity.While I've been waiting I've been taking photos of the bloom and I must have over two hundred photos by now.I'm ready whenever you are.Garden Blogger in Chicago
Read more:Hurry
"What Do You Want From Me... 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Just over a year ago I was given this Haworthia by a GWmember by the name of Cactus Cathy in a trade. Since that time this little pup has become kind of a sore point for me.The reason being is that the darn thing won't grow! It won't grow but it won't die either. I've spent a year trying to persuade it to grow some roots and it's done nothing. I've tried water, sunlight, fertilizer, rooting hormone and everything I could think of and yet it's sat there dormant refusing to grow or do much for the past year.About a month I decided I'd leave it completely alone and set it in a corner of my plant shelf half hoping it would just die on me and then it started to send up that long shoot you see in the picture. I've never seen a Haworthia flower in person but I think it's trying to flower now. It has had the same tiny roots trying to grow since I got it. I really like Haworthias and I was glad to get this little pup from Cathy but I'm at a loss of what to do with it other than let
Aloe Vera Houseplant Care 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Aloe vera or what is commonly cared "burn plant" is one of the easiest succulents to grow. I consider it the Ficus of the succulent world because it's grown everywhere. I'm never surprised to see it sitting in windows of homes, restaurants and shops near me. From my readings of various gardening forums and results that bring people to my gardening blog I am surprised just how much trouble people have growing it. It's an easy houseplant."Why is my Aloe vera dying?"Caring for your Aloe vera houseplant can be very easy if you take into consideration where the plant comes from and what the conditions are that will make this houseplant thrive. This plant is native to the Mediterranean and that's an important clue to successfully grow this houseplant. It comes from a hot, dry and sunny area-so give it heat, sun and don't water it so much. Resist the urge to water it every time you walk past your Aloe vera-your plant will thank you."Why are my Aloe vera leaves mushy?"Chances are that yo Read more:Aloe Vera
, Houseplant
Urban Gardening 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Gardening within the confines of a city can be daunting and heartbreaking and annoying and messy and did I mention annoying? We have to work with less ground than our counterparts in the suburbs and rural areas. Where they can measure in acres we have to resort to measuring in feet. And sometimes we don't even have square footage to garden in. If you're container gardening then we're talking about inches and everyone should shed a tear for urban gardeners who only have a windowsill to grow something on.Gardeners outside of a large city probably think that gardening is the same everywhere you go and hey- they're the same plants, right? I'm telling you they're not. Our plants have to be tougher to survive in the city. They have to contend with heat islands, pollution, being trampled on by kids, dogs, passed-out drunks, constant background noise. Sometimes I have to laugh at the gardeners who I read on gardening forums post about their flower garden being nibbled on by deer. So Bam Read more:Urban
Real Men Garden Blog 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I think I get my appreciation for plants from two places. My grandfather was a gardener who grew mostly fruits and veggies who I swear would garden in anything that would hold a couple of handfuls of soil. He wasn't a very open or kind man he was quite the opposite of those traits. I have no memories of getting butterscotch candies from him, or of him magically finding a quarter behind my ears- but I do have a lot of memories of watching him grow plants.When he would come to Chicago for extended visits the first thing he would do is find an empty container and go outside and fill it with dirt and plant something. It was usually a seed from a food item he had just eaten which I guess made him an old school frugal gardener. If he visited in the winter he'd start seeds that needed stratification in empty coffee cans, milk cartons and when he'd be back in the spring the plants would be ready for him. I hardly ever remember him smiling except when he was looking at his seedlings sproutin Read more:Garden
, Real Men
CITY CURB APPEAL 1970-01-01 00:59:59 DESIGNING THE SMALL URBAN FRONT YARDBy Carolyn GailDo you have the typical Chicago front yard - over grown or over pruned evergreens that hug your home's foundation, or my pet peeve, a humongous tree ( usually a Blue Spruce or Magnolia ) completely covering it's façade and nothing else but a patch of grass ? Or, if it's a newly constructed house did the builder leave you with a postage stamp size yard, a few shrubs here and there and a tree? Or, no yard at all, just a front stoop?The front yard is not only your link to the neighborhood but a well designed one speaks of your pride and achievement. Landscaping can add up to 30 percent value to your property and it can make or break a sale.Ready to do something about your front yard and don't know where to start? Grab a camera and start walking the streets in your neighborhood. Ask yourself what do I like? Do I like cottage garden design, rock garden design, Japanese garden design, flower garden design or something more conte
Tips For The Garden Blogger Pt 7 1970-01-01 00:59:59 In previous entries to my blog I've blogged about the importance of feeds and provided info on how to set up a feed and how to use feed readers to keep up with your favorite things like blogs. If you've visited my gardening blog recently you've probably noticed some changes in the template design and how some things are laid out. The reason for the changes and additions of things like my feed flares, search boxes the addition of social bookmarking buttons... is I'm attempting to make my gardening blog "Web 2.0"In particular this part:A social phenomenon embracing an approach to generating and distributing Web content itself, characterized by open communication, decentralization of authority, freedom to share and re-use, and "the market as a conversation"Source: WikiUnless you're a advertising/marketing nerd like me these phrases mean nothing to you and perhaps they do mean something to you but you don't agree with the ideology. Either way they're going to play a part in how I ho Read more:Blogger
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How To Choose The Right Pot For House Plants 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Choosing the right pot for your House
Plant is as important as providing the right light and proper watering. If you ask a number of gardeners you'll probably get a variety of responses as to what kind of pot to use. The trick is to take the plant's needs into consideration.Do you go with a plastic or terracotta pot? what about a glazed pot? Each have their pros and cons and their devotees. I'm an unglazed terracotta kind of guy and once you take some things into consideration you may find you prefer one type of pot or another.Terracotta post are great for people who may be water worriers. If you are constantly wondering if your plant needs water or if you are always watering- terracotta may be the medium that best suits you. Unglazed terracotta pots are porous and the pot absorbs water and allows it to evaporate. I find that to be a plus for plants like cacti & succulents that are susceptible to over watering. Another feature of terracotta pots is their weight, they're good stabil Read more:Plants
, Right
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