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aka ron View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote aka ron Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 6:20pm
Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

 
Your grass grows to three inches??  In the summer, mine barely grows.  We're not a desert climate here, but with many days over 100 degrees with no humidity, we're approaching it.  So, plants and grass react accordingly.  If we actually had a total desert climate here, I'd accept the idea of "no lawn".  Instead, I've had to get used to "kind-of-bad lawn".  It's green, but half of that is thanks to crabgrass.
 
My plants require a lot of water, too.  There are more native plants to be had that require less water...but they're kinda boring.  Some of my plants I have to keep in pots, as they can't take the really hot sunny days, and need to be put into the shade.  Then there are the plants that can't take temps as low as the 30s.  I have to drag those next to the house in the winter so that they can suck in some of the warmth from the house.
 
 
 
 
Its been a good year for the lawn. The grass needs less water when cut higher with the(canopy) effect helping to hold moisture.
I try to do the windows twice a year. Inside is done more. We smoke and burn wood.
I can take the storm windows completely out from inside so it does not really matter what the weather is doing.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 6:23pm
Originally posted by Codtaro Codtaro wrote:

current: buying and converting a 50 gal.+ storage into a 600+ sq. inches cage for my hamster...possibly doing this twice because I'm seriously considering getting a little family of Robos, or a couple of Chinese hamsters...though I may just give them Alene's terrarium.
 
Long-term: I have a dresser with several broken doors. I'm thinking of just taking them out, cutting out several of the dividers, having some acrylic panes made and building two cages into the dresser. It'd come out to 1500 sq. inches each, and they'd be big enough for two Syrians (able to hold a 12" wheel)
 
Don't put the Chinese with the Syrians.  They'll conspire against you. 
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Papa Lazarou Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 6:24pm
Joking aside, Thor, they'd kill each other, being different species. :P
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 6:28pm
 
So, the Chinese are hamsters...but what are the Syrians?  Mice?  Rats? 
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Papa Lazarou Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 7:02pm

Hamsters as well. :P

 
Syrian hamsters are sold as "teddy bear" "black bear" "fancy" etc. in the States. Basically a lot of names based on fur colour so they can charge more money.
 
 
 
Chinese hamsters are a smaller species, with long bodies and prehensiles tails. Unlike Syrians (Who absolutely cannot be kept in pairs, because they're solitary, and will kill), Chinese can be kept in pairs safely.
 
 
There's there's Campbels Russian Dwarves/Winter Whites (The only two species interbreedable) and Roborovski dwarves.
 
Robos are the tiniest.
 
 
They're also incredibly energetic and believed to be capable of travelling faster than the speed of light...They're the most social of the different species and can actually be kept in larger groups sometimes. (3-4)
 
I love my Syrian, Alene, but I miss the certain charm that comes from having multiples. Mind you, each hamster needs a minimum of 360 sq. inches, so I'd probably just get a pair at best.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote aka ron Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 7:14pm
Originally posted by Codtaro Codtaro wrote:

Joking aside, Thor, they'd kill each other, being different species. :P
LOL
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote aka ron Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 7:54pm
http://i1254.photobucket.com/albums/hh606/lkl2005/home002_zps8d624d94.jpg
Its so nice here, I'm not even thinking about the season change. I built some fence like rails for the bed of the truck so I can stack firewood higher. Like Theadkiller said, I need to check out the snowblower, run the generator.  When the leaves start falling, thats when my mower really gets a workout. I have lots of trees and I mulch all the leaves and leave them on the lawn. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 8:10pm
Originally posted by Codtaro Codtaro wrote:

Hamsters as well. :P

 
Syrian hamsters are sold as "teddy bear" "black bear" "fancy" etc. in the States. Basically a lot of names based on fur colour so they can charge more money.
 
 
 
Chinese hamsters are a smaller species, with long bodies and prehensiles tails. Unlike Syrians (Who absolutely cannot be kept in pairs, because they're solitary, and will kill), Chinese can be kept in pairs safely.
 
 
There's there's Campbels Russian Dwarves/Winter Whites (The only two species interbreedable) and Roborovski dwarves.
 
Robos are the tiniest.
 
 
They're also incredibly energetic and believed to be capable of travelling faster than the speed of light...They're the most social of the different species and can actually be kept in larger groups sometimes. (3-4)
 
I love my Syrian, Alene, but I miss the certain charm that comes from having multiples. Mind you, each hamster needs a minimum of 360 sq. inches, so I'd probably just get a pair at best.
 
Awwww. 
 
I like rodents.  Hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, mice, rats, etc.  I don't get people's fear of them, nor the "icky" factor.  I wouldn't want them loose in the house, nor would I want an infestation, but that's not because they disgust me or anything.  I've mentioned here my dealings with the occasional loose mouse or rat in the house.  It can be exasperating, but it's not horrible.
 
One good thing is that the cats always let me know when there's a rodent in the house...and where.  Of course, they're the ones who've brought it in to begin with, so...
 
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Papa Lazarou Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 8:24pm
Our dog is pathetic.
 
At first, she'd go after domesticated rodents, but let the wild mice have the run of the house.
 
Now she just doesn't care at all. We actually saw a wild mouse eating out of her food bowl while she just lay there...sort of staring, but too lazy to do anything.
 
I love gerbils, but cannot in good consciousness buy one now. They're burrowers, so you need a lot of bedding (Aspen chips, absolutely no pine or cedar as they have chemicals toxic to rodents), and it's not readily available in town.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Sep 2013 at 8:34pm
 
Animals get jaded as they get older.  I remember last year how my then-kitten Rocco would chase gnats in the backyard.  Then, it was flies and mosquitoes and butterflies.  Now, unless it's a dragonfly or bird, he's not interested.  "Been there, done that".
 
I watch my older guys act as if they're gonna go after a bird, but end up just looking at it...probably realizing the utter futility of it all.
 
And all the neighborhood cats leave the roaming neighborhood turkeys alone.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote aka ron Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 11:48am
With cooler, wet weather moving in. I need to get the canopy off the boat lift. This thing it heavy and awkward to handle. It comes off much easier than it goes on.
The guy that cleans my chimney wanted to by my fishing boat. It would not run the last time I went out to start it. Needs carburator cleaned. I have to get the lawn mowed today also.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 2:34pm
 
I had to help my neighbor get the roof onto his '73 Blazer yesterday.  Took 3 of us.  He's had it off since the spring.  We're scheduled to have nothing but sun and temps in the 80s for the next week, but at this time of year, weather starts to get a bit less predictable. 
 
 
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 3:13pm
I've dropped by the nursery dept. at the Lowes I go to a couple times since early August & gotten some really good deals on plants off their clearance cart.

The first time, I got a dozen 4" pots of Salvias & Vincas for .25ยข apiece. A few days ago, I got five 1 gallon sized pots of Milkweed (aka "Butterfly Bush") & Verbenas for a buck apiece. These were regularly priced at between 8 & 10 bucks apiece.

Got 'em still in the pots right behind my house & waiting to plant them out near where the butterfly garden is going next year.

I had planted some seed packets back in early July & all that came up were about 8 or 9 Zinnias. So now, as the blooms die off, I'm clipping them off & harvesting the seeds for next year.

I think I'm going to have a whooooooooole buncha Zinnias.....
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 3:28pm
 
^  Hmmmm...might have to check that out.  I've gotten plants off their discount racks before.  They're perfectly good plants, but often just don't have that "sellable" look to them.  Maybe they missed out on a few waterings or something, and have some dead foliage.  But I've never gotten one of their discount plants that I couldn't revive within a few weeks.
 
I also got some zinnias this year.  They're the kind that grow tall.  I always have to pull snails off of them.  As a result, some of them get totally destroyed early on.  But if I can keep the snails off of them when they're small, they get pretty magnificent as summer progresses.  Even then, though, they often get top-heavy with flowers, and need to be staked or propped up somehow.
 
I've been growing gomphrena from seed for the past few years, as the variety I like is just not available at the local nurseries.  However, this year, I planted some back in March, and they're just now coming up.  I don't know why.  I wonder if this could be from having used older seeds.
 
Gomphrena:
 
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 3:51pm
Originally posted by Jimbo Jimbo wrote:


Got 'em still in the pots right behind my house & waiting to plant them out near where the butterfly garden is going next year.


 
I bought a yellow/orange/red lantana about 9 years ago.  Tiny little thing.  It grew and grew, and I eventually put it in a stone planter I built.  The thing's supposed to grow to 3-5 feet wide.  It's now about 10 feet wide!!  It puts out a sh*tload of flowers.  Butterflies and hummingbirds love it.  It's also a pretty problem-free plant.  I read once that in Texas, it's considered a weed.  But "weed" is a subjective, not scientific, term.  It's really pretty nice.
 
 
 
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 3:56pm
Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

I've been growing gomphrena from seed for the past few years, as the variety I like is just not available at the local nurseries. However, this year, I planted some back in March, and they're just now coming up. I don't know why. I wonder if this could be from having used older seeds.


Have you tried harvesting the seeds from your own flowers?

If they're similar to Zinnias, it's pretty easy.

There are some good instructional videos on YouTube.

The main thing is to make sure the flower is completely dead with no hint of color left in any of the petals.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:03pm
 
Yes.  I usually use seeds from the previous year's flowers.  But for some reason, I didn't harvest any seeds last year, so I used some older ones I had. 
 
I grew some Rose Campions (perennials) this year from its own seeds.  They did beautifully.  I'll tranplant those from pots into the garden next spring.  That's another plant I've never seen in any nursery.
 
As far as most annuals, though---if they're readily available at nurseries in those 6-packs that cost maybe $2, I'll just buy 'em like that.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:05pm
Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

It's also a pretty problem-free plant. I read once that in Texas, it's considered a weed. But "weed" is a subjective, not scientific, term. It's really pretty nice.


Same with Milkweed. It's not really a weed at all.

Several wildflowers are considered weeds by some, like Coneflower, for instance, but again they really aren't.

I guess it depends upon where they're growing & how they got there as to whether they're considered weeds.

If one sees them growing in an empty lot or in a field out in the woods, they're a weed. If they're in someone's flower bed or planter, they're an ornamental plant.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:10pm
 
^  Exactly.  I've found various tall grasses growing wild in the mountains, which I've dug up, brought home and planted in my yard.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:14pm
I get a sh*tload of switchgrass growing in my backyard every year.

Practically takes over.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:21pm
 
I bought a few (maybe 3) Mexican feather grasses over the years.  They're real fine and blow with the slightest breeze.  They're considered great for "adding movement" to your yard.  They grow to about a foot and a half tall.  Very pretty.  But now, I have about 50 of them.  I even have one growing from the gap in my patio cement.  I hate to get rid of any, as they're really nice.  The cats love to lay in them.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:54pm
There is a variety of shrub that's popular around here called Mexican Petunia. A lot of yards in my neighborhood have it, including the people across the street.

It was considered an invasive species because of how aggressively it propagates, but botanists have developed a strain that doesn't grow out of control.

I'm thinking of getting some too.



Might try to sneak some cuttings off of someone else's bush some night.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hootman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 4:55pm
And we now pause for a commercial.  Back to "Jimbo and Thor's Garden" in a moment.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 5:02pm
Originally posted by Jimbo Jimbo wrote:

There is a variety of shrub that's popular around here called Mexican Petunia. A lot of yards in my neighborhood have it, including the people across the street.

It was considered an invasive species because of how aggressively it propagates, but botanists have developed a strain that doesn't grow out of control.

I'm thinking of getting some too.


 
Haven't had luck with petunias in a few years.  They'll do OK for awhile, and then start to "go away" in the heat.  I did have one once that grew huge and even lasted a second year.  Haven't been able to find it again. 
 
Problem is, the best nursery around here just closed this year.  Now, it's mainly whatever I can find at Lowe's.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote aka ron Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2013 at 5:04pm
After a message from our sponser...Round-up.
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