Memph's 2024 garden (mushrooms, growing, strawberries, containers)

[memph]

2023 thread:
https://www.city-data.com/forum/gard...23-garden.html

The containerized maypop passionflower I'm keeping in a south facing window sprung a new vine out of the ground in January, and now it already had its first flower.

[memph]

Got a few more flowers.

[Cambium]

Looking forward to a new season with you.

[memph]

Trying to pick out perennials for the garden.

I already have perennial onions (welsh onions, walking onions), caucasian mountain spinach, strawberries, raspberries, figs, yacon, passionflowers, lovage, sorrel, mint, oregano, thyme, sage, tarragon, chives and rhubarb, as well as some peppers that I overwinter.

I got seems I'm starting for perennial shallots, earth chestnut, asparagus, skirret and perennial (hardy to zone 4) ground cherry. I also have some pawpaws I grew from seed in containers that I'll plant this year. Also gonna try growing mushrooms in woodchip mulch and in logs which I guess count as perennials (but not plants).

I'm planning on buying hardy kiwi, American persimmon, haskap and currants from the local nursery. Maybe concord grapes too. I'm also thinking of stone fruits or pears (American or Asian), but not sure how they'd fare against plum cucurlio, late frosts and pesky squirrels and birds - anyone have experience with those in the Great Lakes/Northeast (I'm zone 5)?

[Threestep2]

I had to look it up. Ground Cherry = Tomatillo. Earth Chestnut I am not familiar with. Just a little bit green eyed as in Oklahoma, USA most of this list will not grow.

[memph]

Originally Posted by Threestep2

I had to look it up. Ground Cherry = Tomatillo. Earth Chestnut I am not familiar with. Just a little bit green eyed as in Oklahoma, USA most of this list will not grow.

Earth chestnut (conopodium majus) is a novelty that I'm not sure if it will work out here since it's slow growing and only hardy to zone 6. It's in the carrot/parsnip/celery/parsley family and produces a small round edible root.

Ground cherry and tomatillo are similar but still not the same. Both are in the physallis genus, but grouncherry is smaller, yellow, and sweeter and more fruity tasting.


Longleaf groundcherry is native to much of the eastern US, including Oklahoma.


I bought several types of physallis seeds from the same guy, and will also growing some I had from prior years

physalis longifolia (Longleaf groundcherry) - winter hardy to zone 4, so hopefully a perennial here
physalis pruinoisa (Aunt Molly's groundcherry)
physalis peruviana (Cape gooseberry) - very different from the ribes gooseberry
physalis alkekengi (Chinese lantern) - winter hardy to zone 6 so might try overwintering in my garage since I'm zone 5
physalis ixocarpa (Tomatillo), I have a green/purple, and a yellow variety

I also got a bunch of edible solanum berries (well, edible when ripe)

solanum alatum (sweet amber pearls)
solanum villosum (golden pearls)
solanum retroflexum (sunberry)
solanum caripense (tzimbalo aka melon pear)
solanum laciniatum (kangaroo apple)

And another type of edible night shade called jaltomato (one purple and one green species)

And also some wild tomatoes, currant tomatoes (solanum pimpinellifolium) and galapagos tomato (solanum lycopersicon cheesmanii).

[Threestep2]

Thank you for this information Memph.

[memph]

Figs are starting to wake up in the garage.