some dumb gardening questions

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csmswhs

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when i was a kid i grew up in the country and about a mile down the road we had a garden on a section of our neighbors field.

my dad used to send us down there carrying 5 gallon buckets of water etc.. even tho it was hard work, those are some of the best and most beautiful memories of my life.

we used to pick chokecherries too and make homeade chokecherry jam.

anyways, things changed and time moved on past the good old days, and i've been trying to grow my own garden in town.

i don't remember anything about it, and have been goen with the flow.

lol. you would call me a grand idiot if you only knew.

anyways. i have some dumb questions for anyone here who knows about it. i know alot of people garden so i'm thinking there's a chance someone here might be able to answer my questions.

i'd go to a garden website, or look up info online, or in books, but i like to go at more slowly, and talking with people you sort of know makes it less lonely than staring at blank words on a screen or book.

and i have researched online and through books also, and well whaddoyanknow?? they don't ever answer the simplest most basic questions. (or perhaps i'm a dinkus, and they might assume that if you are a dinkus you shouldn't be allowed to garden anyway!)

well, too bad for them. because i am.

ok..here are the questions:

how do you properly pluck cucumbers and peppers off the vine? do you just rip them straight off, cut at the very end of the cucumber or pepper, or near the vine, etc..?? i've been twisting them until they sort of break off in that way. (am worried i will prevent future growth or cause blight or something if i do it wrong). tomatoes seem to pop right off easily.

when is corn on the cob ready for picking?

when some cucumber leaves start to look blotchy and bleached is that ok? or should i cut them off?

and how tall can a sunflower actually get?? because the 2 i have are getting bigger than trees!!!!:):D

how old can a plum tree get. when i moved here there was allready an ooooold plum tree here, which i love:):D

my ass nieghbors complain about it and say, that thing is too old and you should cut it down and get rid of it, its creating "this problem and that problem" "attracting bees" etc...

for one thing i want the bees. and they can just suk it!! and i like the plums. should i let it go until it falls down? i'm going to let it go until it falls down.

just like this oooooold tree that must've been struck by lightning in my yard. its pure dead. its cool. they want me to cut it down. i am keeping it until it falls over. i like it:):D

ok, enough rambling. any help with the questions much appreciated:):D

thanks
 
Tell you're neighbour to go take a running jump. Bees are an important part of our life. There is a risk to people and property in keeping the tree until it falls so just be aware of that. Also if it does come down you should still keep parts of it in your garden to support nature. Dead wood piles are great for invertebrates and mammals and birds that feed off them. Wasps chew wood to form their nests, if you've never heard a wasp chew wood before you'll be surprised at how loud they are.

I'm not much of a gardener though so can't help with your other questions.
 
When i did it, i would just pick the cucumber and peppers, not cut them.

The height of sunflowers changes depending on variety and growing conditions. They can get a couple feet over the top of your head but as a max i couldn't say because as the sunflower head get larger they start to bend down due to the weight.

I have never grown plums and for corn, i would just peek in the end of it and see if it looked ready based on the kernels.

One of the places that carpenter ants like to create colony's is in dead trees. Just because you have a dead tree doesn't mean that they will move in, but if you notice them around, you may want to check the tree.

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I didn't have any good sunflower picture but these poor ones may give an idea.

f_11522d2tc4m_23be89f.jpg
 
hi, thanks for the advice Oscillate and Minus. i told my neighbor that i wanted to keep the bees too, because they are important. i have alot of bees in my yard because its a very untampered with lot and has the natural hill wildflowers on it that were probably here before they built this house (and this house is old). and the bees like it:D, and the bees are good! its not as if they are attacking my neighbors in swarms or something. and if you don't want them in your house, then keep the door closed:D

my neighbors aren't all that bad, but we just have different views about things, and they are quite rude!

i would keep the dead wood pile, but i know all of my neighbors would have a hissy fit about it, and it may even be against city code here, i'm not sure. but it makes sense. i'd do better to live in the country, but can't right now.

no, i have never heard a wasp chew wood before, but i think that would be cool.

the dead tree (possibly trees) that i have wouldn't cause harm to anyone or anything if it fell. i would never want anyone in danger. i will try to post some pics of it. i think its kind of cool.

& minus, the plum tree does have an ant hill by it. maybe it is getting ready to keel over.:( i'll check it out some more. maybe i'll have to plant a new one.

it is amazing how tall sunflowers can get, your sunflowers are immense!! i like your pics & thank you for sharing them. i will try to post a pick of mine soon, hopefully today. it is getting up there now. i was wondering if it could get any taller.

are you into canning? i've been wanting to learn how to do that too. i've done some of it as a child but i don't remember the fine details. i picked chokecherries last summer, made syrup and jam with it and canned those, but i had someone helping me. and i guess everything has to be done differently. i've been looking up some info online about it too, but i find i still have alot of dumb questions that arise that never seem to be answered.

well, rambled on enough:) thanks for your help:D i'll try to post some pics soon.

thanks
 
Yeah pictures would be great :)

I have never canned but i was around the process quite a bit, back then. I don't know how much i picked up or retained.
 

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