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05-26-2008, 05:55 PM
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does not swim unless there's a waterpark involved
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Seattle -> San Antonio
2,401 posts, read 1,340,105 times
Reputation: 770
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sapphire
I'm interested if you care to take it to the Off-Topic thread--I'm sure I'm not the only one that would like to hear about your plants. I'm a total plant-lover, and I'll always take advice from someone who knows what they're talking about.
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Ok... here goes. I like the Northwest and plan on taking a bit of it with me after the move. We have non-native blackberries growing all over the place and they taste good, but I wanted something else and got some plants this year before finding out about the move to Texas. I don't want to give them away so I had to learn how to make them survive over there. It really requires an understanding of how to grow the things here, the differences in the soil and weather over there, and how to make up for the differences.
Blackberries and raspberries - grow in canes that when left alone kind of make a big thorny bush. There are tons of varieties out there. Blueberries on the other hand aren't thorny and just grow in a regular bush.
The Soil
The soil in the northwest is somewhat acidic - the PH is around 6 from what I've been told. Over in central Texas there's a ton of limestone that raises the PH to around 8. The rasp/black/blueberry plants prefer well-drained soil but in San Antonio there's a lot of clay to deal with. You can't just put them in the ground or they won't last long. I'm going with one 10 (maybe 20) gallon container per plant, and planting them with a sandy / peat mix. They do best in that kind of soil here anyway. To go along with that I'm using the soil from over here they were planted in to begin with.
The WaterI actually measured the tap water in San Antonio with an aquarium tester and it was supposedly over 8. This is WAY too high to water the plants with because it'll change the soil PH in a container before too long. So to keep raspberry, blackberry or blueberry plants suited to the northwest alive you'll need to collect rainwater or condensation from something. They'll probably need plenty of it too, but don't like too much hanging around. This + the container part will have probably scared nearly everyone away already but wait, there's more...
The Weather
There are two things to deal with here - the hot and the cold. In particular, the raspberry plants don't really like to get hot so I'm adding 3-4 inches of mulch per container. I forgot which type... gotta look that up again. All of these plants enjoy sunlight but since it'll be more intense over in Texas I plan on keeping the containers in a semi-shaded area near the house. I'll have to take a picture after the move.
The cold. Why is this a problem; it snows in the northwest in winter? The problem is, when it gets cold in winter here it stays cold, but in central Texas the winter temperature bounces around a lot, and then a cold front comes in and it freezes again. This would fool the plants into coming out of dormancy only to be damaged by a freeze. My solution to this problem is to keep the plants closer to the house where I'm hoping they'll stay slightly warmer, and to cover them up during wintertime freezes so they won't get damaged.
Other stuff
Fertilizer for azaleas is best for all three kinds of plants, and I may also use Miracid and Ironite as needed.
I've seen raspberries and blackberries grow up to 7 feet tall over here, but I don't think they'll get that big in San Antonio. Canes should be cut back after 1 year because they will no longer produce fruit. Blueberry bushes can get pretty big too - maybe around 5 feet or so but I also doubt these will get that large or else I'll have to study up on how to prune them.
It'll be a lot of work but should be totally worth it later this summer when they start making fruit. I'll have to take pictures of how all this comes out once I get over there in a week or two.
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05-26-2008, 05:55 PM
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How's that "change" workin' out for ya ????
Status:
"Bankruptcy..What a Christmas present for America..."
(set 8 days ago)
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: San Quilmas, Tx
1,818 posts, read 859,732 times
Reputation: 7255
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Lt. Dan Band
To change course, I was news surfing and found a video clip of Gary Senise and his Lt. Dan Band. The man is amazing. He supports the Troops 100%, nay, 1000% and seems to be at some military installation, somewhere, all the time. A true American hero. The music isn't bad either. If anyone hears he's coming to town please post. The Band was named after his character in Forest Gump, Lt. Dan who became a double amputee. You can catch him on Youtube..although some of the recording leaves something to be desired.  |
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05-26-2008, 06:30 PM
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Conservative Thinker
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: San Antonio North
4,126 posts, read 2,161,926 times
Reputation: 928
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What do you think?
YouTube suit called threat to online communication - Yahoo! News (broken link)
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05-26-2008, 07:36 PM
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Chuck Norris doesn't run for president.
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: <'///>< fish on!
2,829 posts, read 1,599,386 times
Reputation: 910
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Man, I :heart: craigslist - I just sold two desks in about an hour....
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05-26-2008, 07:42 PM
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Semper Ubi Sub Ubi
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Join Date: Nov 2006
10,155 posts, read 6,273,804 times
Reputation: 2354
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gwrober
Man, I :heart: craigslist - I just sold two desks in about an hour....
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I <3 craigslist, too. I am on there all the time!! Not in the naughty areas, though! Wow, some of them are pretty naughty, too......so I've heard anyway.  |
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05-26-2008, 07:50 PM
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aged to Perfection
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Diyallusss, TX
1,732 posts, read 1,262,936 times
Reputation: 443
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Deep Forest
To change course, I was news surfing and found a video clip of Gary Senise and his Lt. Dan Band. The man is amazing. He supports the Troops 100%, nay, 1000% and seems to be at some military installation, somewhere, all the time. A true American hero. The music isn't bad either. If anyone hears he's coming to town please post. The Band was named after his character in Forest Gump, Lt. Dan who became a double amputee. You can catch him on Youtube..although some of the recording leaves something to be desired. |
I have always liked Gary Sinise, even when he played bad guys, and I had read about, but forgotten his loyalty to and support for our troops... yeaaaayyyy Gary, for being one of the GOOD guys!!!!! |
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05-26-2008, 07:54 PM
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Chuck Norris doesn't run for president.
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: <'///>< fish on!
2,829 posts, read 1,599,386 times
Reputation: 910
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sapphire
I <3 craigslist, too. I am on there all the time!! Not in the naughty areas, though! Wow, some of them are pretty naughty, too......so I've heard anyway. |
Sure......
Make sure you check out the "best of" section... |
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05-26-2008, 07:57 PM
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Semper Ubi Sub Ubi
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Join Date: Nov 2006
10,155 posts, read 6,273,804 times
Reputation: 2354
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gwrober
Sure......
Make sure you check out the "best of" section... |
Oh, yeah, some of those are side-splitting!
Seriously, though, I just check out all the stuff for sale, for free, events, and the like. It's where I got my Roscoe, my basset who is near and dear to my heart. |
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05-26-2008, 07:59 PM
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Conservative Thinker
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: San Antonio North
4,126 posts, read 2,161,926 times
Reputation: 928
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I have a pocket full of sunshine
WTF does that mean?
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05-26-2008, 08:01 PM
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Semper Ubi Sub Ubi
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Join Date: Nov 2006
10,155 posts, read 6,273,804 times
Reputation: 2354
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ryneone
I have a pocket full of sunshine
WTF does that mean?
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Hahaha! You are so random!
It means you are so, so happy! |
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