Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
AWESOME! I dont think my leaves broke down enough but I'm curious what the temp is in the pile.
Edit: Just checked... Had to make a hole
41.9°F. Guess nothing is composting. lol. I bet you if it was actual soil instead of leaves and if there was a snowpack it would be double that temp
You think a pile of soil would be 84F? Or do you mean double in celcius (~52F)? If you put that leaf pile through a leaf shredder or lawn mower I bet it'll heat up now that the mild temps are coming back. My leaf pile hit 155F in November right after I mulched it.
Yes, because its compacted holds more heat. My pile is in shade too, not that we've gotten sun past month but sunlight helps and yes if I shredded the leaves. There's too many air gaps in the pile thats why its only in the 40s. Also height of it. If I bulk it up more into a pyramid maybe it might get warmer
Took the hardy passionflowers (p. caerulea) out of the cellar to get some light. They look in good shape still. When the temperatures drop again, I'll take them back in the garage, and them hopefully they can remain outside permanently around mid-late April.
I've never seen cornsalad--how is it prepared? fresh or cooked? is it like spinach?
I just read wikipedia and it doesn't like warm weather so maybe I'll grow it next winter since I'm in North Carolina.
I've never seen cornsalad--how is it prepared? fresh or cooked? is it like spinach?
I just read wikipedia and it doesn't like warm weather so maybe I'll grow it next winter since I'm in North Carolina.
I just eat them like lettuce with light dressing of balsamic vinegar + olive oil. The leaves are very tender and silky, more so than lettuce or spinach.
Ideal temperature for them is around 35-60F and they can handle temps down to -20F or colder. Extended periods of 70F+ is undesirable. They also require <70F soil temperatures to germinate, so the seeds should be sown in the fall. Over here, the seeds germinated in Aug/Sept (Aug here was very cool, 73F/53F average high/low & 63F soil temp). I sowed them under my beans and eggplants so they were being shaded out by those bigger plants at first but once the frost killed those off on Oct 23, the corn salad took off and grew well until December. Then they stalled out during winter, which although very mild by our standards, was still in the 10s-30s mostly, and I think they're going to pick it back up soon. Once we start getting days pretty consistently >60F with some in the 70s, I expect the plants to start bolting, so probably in late April to mid May.
They should be able to grow through the whole winter unimpeded down in NC, considering the average winter temperature there falls right within their optimal range, and they should be available to harvest from something like December to March.
Thanks for that info. Can you self-collect seeds to start or is it best to buy every year.
You can self collect. Or just let a few plants go to seed and drop their seeds in the garden and then rake the soil around a bit to spread them out more. They'll drop their seeds in late spring when it'll be too warm for them to germinate, but they'll germinate when the temperatures cool back down in the fall. In the meantime you can grow some summer crops in that location.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
