southern california guy Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 (edited) Gardening is my favorite hobby. And since today is my day off and I'm at home working on getting some stuff in for a home loan (I'm buying a place with about three quarters of an acre!) I thought that I would take a break and post some pictures of the garden at my parents place here in Encinitas Ca (Just north of San Diego). This year -- for the first time -- I'm growing pineapples! Yes, pineapples! I planted them in the ground a couple of years ago, neglected the poor things -- hardly watering them -- and now they are getting pineapples. How cool is that? [img]http://inlinethumb20.webshots.com/45331/2817577700066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] [img]http://inlinethumb44.webshots.com/41579/2719825740066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] [img]http://inlinethumb51.webshots.com/41842/2582206800066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] We also grow tropical fruits -- like cherimoyas! They have a sweet custard like flesh on the inside that you scoop out with a spoon. [img]http://inlinethumb43.webshots.com/44266/2590658710066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] Of course I also grow a big regular vegetable garden. But it's just in the beginning stages for this year. However I thought that you guys who live outside of California would like a picture of the bougainvillea that I'm growing on a retaining wall at my parents place (The place I'm buying is level! ). The plants growing on the fence at the top of the wall are grapes. Does anybody know how to "gib" the grapes? [img]http://inlinethumb40.webshots.com/41575/2220955300066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] The "pink" bougainvillea will turn more "orange" as it gets older. I like the orange better. Edited May 11, 2009 by southern california guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmotherofpirl Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Very nice! What zone are you in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puellapaschalis Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Pineapples don't grow in supermarkets? I wonder whether I'd like a climate like California's. Is it similar (warning: dumb ignorant question coming up) to that in the Phillies? Because I find that...challenging Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 I can still remember the smell of the bougainvilleas outside my apartment in Oaxaca. That seems so long ago. We are going to try to grow some sub-arctic tomatoes on our patio this summer. They were developed by the USAF for their troops in Greenland. I'm hoping they will grow here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern california guy Posted May 11, 2009 Author Share Posted May 11, 2009 [quote name='cmotherofpirl' post='1864242' date='May 11 2009, 12:29 PM']Very nice! What zone are you in?[/quote] My parents place is about a mile from the beach here in Southern California -- just north of San Diego. We're "zone 10" but I've also heard people call it "zone 9" and "zone 24a" (Basically we're above zone 9.) Cherimoya's will take a little cold weather -- depending on the variety. They're the tropical variety of the pawpaw. And pineapples, being bromeliads, can be grown in pots -- indoors -- during the cold time of year. However they like full sun if they can get it. The place I'm buying is zone 9 but I actually prefer that because it will mean that I can grow a larger variety of apples, cherries, plums and blueberries. But I'm going to also grow avocadoes, white sapotes, mangoes, and bananas! Isn't southern California the greatest! I'm sure you've heard that we're all a bunch of fruits and nuts down here -- but I'll bet you didn't know what kind we were Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VoTeckam Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Beautiful garden. I bought my first house 9 months ago and I am so intimidated by gardening. I just dug up some overgrown/ past their prime nandinas last weekend so I will hopefulyl be replacing them this coming weekend. As for flowers, I somehow have managed to convince myself that planting in planters will help me keep them alive longer than if I plant them in the ground. lol. I will let you know how that goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 We are zone 3a. I guess zone 2 is tundra where you can only grow moss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern california guy Posted May 11, 2009 Author Share Posted May 11, 2009 [quote name='VoTeckam' post='1864257' date='May 11 2009, 01:04 PM']Beautiful garden. I bought my first house 9 months ago and I am so intimidated by gardening. I just dug up some overgrown/ past their prime nandinas last weekend so I will hopefulyl be replacing them this coming weekend. As for flowers, I somehow have managed to convince myself that planting in planters will help me keep them alive longer than if I plant them in the ground. lol. I will let you know how that goes.[/quote] VoTeckam, You're a better gardener than I am if you can do better with plants in containers. Half of the plants I have in pots die before I ever get them into the ground . But once I get them into the ground I'm usually "safe" Plants in the ground are in less danger of drying out. And you must be living in a fairly warm climate if you have nandina's. You know a really nice flower you can grow is called clivia (Named after Sir Clive -- so that's supposedly how it's supposed to be pronounced). [img]http://cliviasociety.org/gallery/d/1282-2/FDK6.jpg[/img] And I think that cycads of all sorts are great little landscaping plants (They're the little palm tree like plants that have been around since dinosaur times). [img]http://www.cycad.org/images/Photos/E_lehmannii.jpg[/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sojourner Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 We just bought a new place a couple months ago, and I have plans to start a vegetable garden next year. We have a lot of land (upwards of 8 acres) but lots of it is marshy and so not suitable for gardening. Plus we have lots of trees, so not many spots that get full sun, or even mostly sun. I will plant a few flowers, and clean up some of the existing beds, though. I just have to find ways to keep the deer/rabbits out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rose wrought of iron Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 (edited) Wow... I've never known how pineapples grew... that looks really cool! My gardening experience is pretty much limited to planting flowers I bought at the nursery and keeping them alive and flowering, nothing that drastic. But I've got tomatoes and some herbs too (rosemary, sage, and getting some basil). Edited May 12, 2009 by rose wrought of iron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TotusTuusMaria Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 What a beautiful tree/plant in the last picture. You say it is going to be grapes? I wish I could garden. I've always wanted to. We live on two acres of dirt, weeds, and bugs. We have trees everywhere and hardly any good grass. There are spiders cross-breeding with some bug I've never seen before. It is weird. The plants are beautiful. You are doing a greeat job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern california guy Posted May 12, 2009 Author Share Posted May 12, 2009 [quote name='TotusTuusMaria' post='1864592' date='May 11 2009, 07:51 PM']What a beautiful tree/plant in the last picture. You say it is going to be grapes? I wish I could garden. I've always wanted to. We live on two acres of dirt, weeds, and bugs. We have trees everywhere and hardly any good grass. There are spiders cross-breeding with some bug I've never seen before. It is weird. The plants are beautiful. You are doing a greeat job.[/quote] That's bougainvillea. It's sort of a vine or shrub. They come in every color -- and are almost always covered with flowers. The grapes are up above on the top of the wall growing on the fence. Here's a picture of the wall that I built with the bougainvillea just planted in the planter blocks. Doesn't "Tigger" look ferocious in that picture! Actually she's a really sweet dog. [img]http://inlinethumb47.webshots.com/40814/2730854600066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] And in case you're curious about the construction detail of the wall here's another picture taken during construction. Each block weighs 105 lbs (40kgs) and they're connected together with fiberglass pins. They look a lot like the little Keystone blocks, sold at Home Depot, once the wall is finished though. But you shouldn't try and build a wall this big with those little blocks. This wall even has fiberglass mesh that stretches into the hill. [img]http://inlinethumb42.webshots.com/34601/2345682070066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] Fortunately we don't have many bugs around here. But I've lived around the country and I know exactly what you mean about the spiders and bugs. Unfotunately we do have snakes... I didn't really believe that we had rattlesnakes here, until one bit me last year when I was planting a tree... I didn't even know that I'd been bitten until the next morning when I woke up with a very painful very swollen ankle -- with two prominant fang marks in it. I luckily got a "dry" bite (Not much poison) but I still ended up spending two days in the hospital hooked up to an IV because of the infection... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TotusTuusMaria Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 [quote name='southern california guy' post='1864737' date='May 12 2009, 12:16 AM']That's bougainvillea. It's sort of a vine or shrub. They come in every color -- and are almost always covered with flowers. The grapes are up above on the top of the wall growing on the fence. Here's a picture of the wall that I built with the bougainvillea just planted in the planter blocks. Doesn't "Tigger" look ferocious in that picture! Actually she's a really sweet dog. [img]http://inlinethumb47.webshots.com/40814/2730854600066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img][/quote] Well its beautiful. I love the leaves... that sounds weird, but I do. You did a really awesome job. Do you landscape for a living or is this just something you're interested in? Yeah, "Tigger" looks mean. [quote]And in case you're curious about the construction detail of the wall here's another picture taken during construction. Each block weighs 105 lbs (40kgs) and they're connected together with fiberglass pins. They look a lot like the little Keystone blocks, sold at Home Depot, once the wall is finished though. But you shouldn't try and build a wall this big with those little blocks. This wall even has fiberglass mesh that stretches into the hill. [img]http://inlinethumb42.webshots.com/34601/2345682070066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img][/quote] yeah, that is a beautiful wall too. awesome. [quote]Fortunately we don't have many bugs around here. But I've lived around the country and I know exactly what you mean about the spiders and bugs. Unfotunately we do have snakes... I didn't really believe that we had rattlesnakes here, until one bit me last year when I was planting a tree... I didn't even know that I'd been bitten until the next morning when I woke up with a very painful very swollen ankle -- with two prominant fang marks in it. I luckily got a "dry" bite (Not much poison) but I still ended up spending two days in the hospital hooked up to an IV because of the infection... [/quote] bummer. i heard california and arizona had snakes... i think i would much rather have the rare snake...snake bite smells of elderberries though. Bugs are everywhere here. It makes me hate the outside. actually, i just killed a spider about a minute ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern california guy Posted May 12, 2009 Author Share Posted May 12, 2009 (edited) My parents backyard is pretty steep, but we decided to garden it anyway. The garden was a major project. My brother and I moved all of the dirt with a shovel. I was really out of shape when I moved down here (After being a longhaul truckdriver) but I got into shape quickly. [img]http://inlinethumb37.webshots.com/43364/1456086132066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] Here's another picture of the vegetable garden at the beginning. [img]http://inlinethumb52.webshots.com/42099/1456087741066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] I tried a "high tech" garden using a drip system and plastics to heat up the soil for the melons. It worked well! [img]http://inlinethumb06.webshots.com/43909/2373202330066947068S500x500Q85.jpg[/img] Edited May 12, 2009 by southern california guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TotusTuusMaria Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 very impressive. it looks like a huge back yard. do yall have much of a front yard? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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