I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about care?

My Swiss Chard, which did nothing when I put it in last fall, is
starting to take off.

Gardening, what a mystery!

Jeff

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about
care?

Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is there. Kale
may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep the water up to it and
the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is hot. My idea of cold is -5C and no
snow. If you have -30C and heavy snow I don't know. I have also noticed
some variation between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs.

David

In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about
care?

Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is there. Kale
may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep the water up to it and
the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is hot. My idea of cold is -5C and no
snow. If you have -30C and heavy snow I don't know. I have also noticed
some variation between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs.

David

Here in region 9, kale and Swiss chard are almost impossible to kill.
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Arn3lF5XSUg
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/HZinn_page.html

Billy wrote:
In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about
care?
Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is there. Kale
may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep the water up to it and
the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is hot. My idea of cold is -5C and no
snow. If you have -30C and heavy snow I don't know. I have also noticed
some variation between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs.

David

Here in region 9, kale and Swiss chard are almost impossible to kill.


Summer or winter?

How should I water the Kale, can I drip it like everything else, or
should I get some of those spray emitters? If so, I won't plant it with
the cucurbits.

Jeff

Jeff

On Apr 15, 9:56*pm, Jeff Thies wrote:
* *I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

* *I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

* *Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about care?

* *My Swiss Chard, which did nothing when I put it in last fall, is
starting to take off.

* *Gardening, what a mystery!

* *Jeff

My wife let the kale overwinter here in Maryland and it survived quite
well, even with four feet of snow in one week. I have a picture of the
kale plant sticking up through the snow at

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...5&l=cd281053e5

The snow kale not only survived but was highly edible. So did a couple
heads of cabbage.

Paul

In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about
care?
Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is there.
Kale
may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep the water up to it and
the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is hot. My idea of cold is -5C and
no
snow. If you have -30C and heavy snow I don't know. I have also noticed
some variation between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs.

David

Here in region 9, kale and Swiss chard are almost impossible to kill.


Summer or winter?

How should I water the Kale, can I drip it like everything else, or
should I get some of those spray emitters? If so, I won't plant it with
the cucurbits.

Jeff

Jeff

I can't think of anything in a vegetable garden that would benefit from
overhead watering, and quite a few that would suffer.
Go drip (irrigation, that is).
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Arn3lF5XSUg
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/HZinn_page.html

Jeff Thies wrote:
Billy wrote:
In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs
of Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a
harvest, or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn?
What about care?
Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is
there. Kale may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep
the water up to it and the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is
hot. My idea of cold is -5C and no snow. If you have -30C and
heavy snow I don't know. I have also noticed some variation
between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs. David

Here in region 9, kale and Swiss chard are almost impossible to kill.


Summer or winter?


It is nominally a biennial whether it goes for the full two years will
depend on your conditions. As Billy says it is very hardy.

David

Billy wrote:
In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about
care?
Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is there.
Kale
may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep the water up to it and
the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is hot. My idea of cold is -5C and
no
snow. If you have -30C and heavy snow I don't know. I have also noticed
some variation between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs.

David
Here in region 9, kale and Swiss chard are almost impossible to kill.

Summer or winter?

How should I water the Kale, can I drip it like everything else, or
should I get some of those spray emitters? If so, I won't plant it with
the cucurbits.

Jeff

Jeff

I can't think of anything in a vegetable garden that would benefit from
overhead watering, and quite a few that would suffer.
Go drip (irrigation, that is).

Thanks. I had wondered about carrots and wasn't sure about greens.

Jeff

phorbin wrote:
In article , says...


It is nominally a biennial whether it goes for the full two years will
depend on your conditions. As Billy says it is very hardy.

Our experience has been that kale that germinates in the late fall and
overwinters will bolt the following growing season.

In our climate it seems that winter sets the biological clock to year 2.

Thanks. If it grows, I'll put a new crop in next year. I think I
should have had it in weeks ago...

Jeff

In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

Jeff Thies wrote:
I was down at the local K-Mart (Atlanta 7b) and they had 9 packs of
Kale. (I struck out last fall growing from seed)

I found that a bit strange, but took it home.

Is it crazy to put this in this time of year? Will I get a harvest,
or will it live to thrive in cooler weather in autumn? What about
care?
Hard to say as I don't know where you are or what season it is there.
Kale
may grow in hot and cold conditions if you can keep the water up to it
and
the cabbage moth grubs at bay when it is hot. My idea of cold is -5C
and
no
snow. If you have -30C and heavy snow I don't know. I have also
noticed
some variation between cultivars in dealing with the heat and grubs.

David
Here in region 9, kale and Swiss chard are almost impossible to kill.

Summer or winter?

How should I water the Kale, can I drip it like everything else, or
should I get some of those spray emitters? If so, I won't plant it with
the cucurbits.

Jeff

Jeff

I can't think of anything in a vegetable garden that would benefit from
overhead watering, and quite a few that would suffer.
Go drip (irrigation, that is).

Thanks. I had wondered about carrots and wasn't sure about greens.

Jeff

Carrots, beans, onions, garlic, potatoes, greens, lettuce, and maybe
peppers, probably wouldn't be hurt, but there wouldn't be any benefit
from overhead watering. Cucurbits, melons (including cucumbers),and
tomatoes, you may as well dance on them, as water their leaves. In the
fall, the mold will go why-ild. Drip is convenient,and thrifty. I turn
mine on when I get the morning paper. When I'm done with coffee and
paper, I turn it off, and I'm watering on parts of 3 lots. On the
week-end, though, I do enjoy watering by hand. I have the cane (wand) to
a long necked hand sprinkler attached to a spray gun so that I can put
the water at ground level without splattering on the leaves.
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Arn3lF5XSUg
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/HZinn_page.html

In article , says...


It is nominally a biennial whether it goes for the full two years will
depend on your conditions. As Billy says it is very hardy.

Our experience has been that kale that germinates in the late fall and
overwinters will bolt the following growing season.

In our climate it seems that winter sets the biological clock to year 2.

In article , says...
phorbin wrote:
In article , says...


It is nominally a biennial whether it goes for the full two years will
depend on your conditions. As Billy says it is very hardy.

Our experience has been that kale that germinates in the late fall and
overwinters will bolt the following growing season.

In our climate it seems that winter sets the biological clock to year 2.

Thanks. If it grows, I'll put a new crop in next year. I think I
should have had it in weeks ago...

Jeff

Oh... and we're zone 5 London Ontario... Our climate may be
significantly different from yours.

....and you can still harvest for awhile from the overwintered plants.

Billy wrote:
In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
snip

Jeff
I can't think of anything in a vegetable garden that would benefit from
overhead watering, and quite a few that would suffer.
Go drip (irrigation, that is).
Thanks. I had wondered about carrots and wasn't sure about greens.

Jeff

Carrots, beans, onions, garlic, potatoes, greens, lettuce, and maybe
peppers, probably wouldn't be hurt, but there wouldn't be any benefit
from overhead watering. Cucurbits, melons (including cucumbers),and
tomatoes, you may as well dance on them, as water their leaves.

So, I've noticed! Rain makes wet leaves inevitable. Have I got this
right that the mold comes from the soil. I've got a light layer of cedar
blend mulch, I've heard of the newspaper mulches. Does mulching help
with the leaf problem?


In the
fall, the mold will go why-ild. Drip is convenient,and thrifty. I turn
mine on when I get the morning paper. When I'm done with coffee and
paper, I turn it off, and I'm watering on parts of 3 lots. On the
week-end, though, I do enjoy watering by hand. I have the cane (wand) to
a long necked hand sprinkler attached to a spray gun so that I can put
the water at ground level without splattering on the leaves.

There is something satisfying about hand watering.

I've been hand watering my baby cucumbers until I rewire the lines,
being careful to avoid the early leaves. I have missed a bit, and it's
surprising to see that even a few drops affect the leaves adversely. My
veggie hating girlfriend loves cucurbits, so I'm working on it!

Thanks,
Jeff

In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
In article ,
Jeff Thies wrote:

Billy wrote:
snip

Jeff
I can't think of anything in a vegetable garden that would benefit from
overhead watering, and quite a few that would suffer.
Go drip (irrigation, that is).
Thanks. I had wondered about carrots and wasn't sure about greens.

Jeff

Carrots, beans, onions, garlic, potatoes, greens, lettuce, and maybe
peppers, probably wouldn't be hurt, but there wouldn't be any benefit
from overhead watering. Cucurbits, melons (including cucumbers),and
tomatoes, you may as well dance on them, as water their leaves.

So, I've noticed! Rain makes wet leaves inevitable. Have I got this
right that the mold comes from the soil. I've got a light layer of cedar
blend mulch, I've heard of the newspaper mulches. Does mulching help
with the leaf problem?


In the
fall, the mold will go why-ild. Drip is convenient,and thrifty. I turn
mine on when I get the morning paper. When I'm done with coffee and
paper, I turn it off, and I'm watering on parts of 3 lots. On the
week-end, though, I do enjoy watering by hand. I have the cane (wand) to
a long necked hand sprinkler attached to a spray gun so that I can put
the water at ground level without splattering on the leaves.

There is something satisfying about hand watering.

I've been hand watering my baby cucumbers until I rewire the lines,
being careful to avoid the early leaves. I have missed a bit, and it's
surprising to see that even a few drops affect the leaves adversely. My
veggie hating girlfriend loves cucurbits, so I'm working on it!

Thanks,
Jeff

I'm not sure how it works. I suspect that the spores are on the wind,
and that they are in a dormant stage until the plant gets wet and weak
from the cold, or they get strong from dampness and heat. Empirically
speaking, the plants appear to hold out longer, if their foliage isn't
periodically damp. There have been times when I've ignored this on
occasion, when I've found a plant water stressed from the heat. Above
100°F, about all a plant can do is to pump water for evaporative
cooling, somewhere above that, 104°F (?) it is overwhelmed. If there is
no other immediate relief, I'll hose it down. Best avoided, if possible.
--
- Billy
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the
merger of state and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Arn3lF5XSUg
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/HZinn_page.html