The game is on.

I have a very fancy-pants plant light installed and that I use for
seedlings in the spring. Well, I decided that I will grow tomatoes
this winter. I have planned to do cherries, figuring they'd be
easiest, but I discovered a 16", well developed volunteer in one of
the deck pots as we were tidying up for end-of-season.

Problem is that I have no idea what it is. I can tell from the leaves
that it is an heirloom, but I grew several in the vicinity. I hope it
is one of the yummier ones.

We tend it carefully, using a cheap battery toothbrush to move around
the pollen. It is working. Right now there are about a dozen tomatoes
growing.

I have much to be thankful for.

On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 09:54:09 -0500, Boron Elgar wrote:

The game is on.

I have a very fancy-pants plant light installed and that I use for
seedlings in the spring. Well, I decided that I will grow tomatoes
this winter. I have planned to do cherries, figuring they'd be
easiest, but I discovered a 16", well developed volunteer in one of
the deck pots as we were tidying up for end-of-season.

Problem is that I have no idea what it is. I can tell from the leaves
that it is an heirloom, but I grew several in the vicinity. I hope it
is one of the yummier ones.

We tend it carefully, using a cheap battery toothbrush to move around
the pollen. It is working. Right now there are about a dozen tomatoes
growing.

I have much to be thankful for.

I've long wondered whether this would be worth doing. Please keep us
informed as to your experiment's outcome, and what you've learned!

{and I hope your volunteers are better than mine}

On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 21:30:40 -0000 (UTC), Frank Miles
wrote:

On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 09:54:09 -0500, Boron Elgar wrote:

The game is on.

I have a very fancy-pants plant light installed and that I use for
seedlings in the spring. Well, I decided that I will grow tomatoes
this winter. I have planned to do cherries, figuring they'd be
easiest, but I discovered a 16", well developed volunteer in one of
the deck pots as we were tidying up for end-of-season.

Problem is that I have no idea what it is. I can tell from the leaves
that it is an heirloom, but I grew several in the vicinity. I hope it
is one of the yummier ones.

We tend it carefully, using a cheap battery toothbrush to move around
the pollen. It is working. Right now there are about a dozen tomatoes
growing.

I have much to be thankful for.

I've long wondered whether this would be worth doing. Please keep us
informed as to your experiment's outcome, and what you've learned!

I'll be happy too.

{and I hope your volunteers are better than mine}

In season, I have a bed that is mostly volunteers. I have had
excellent luck with them - many varieties, although I cannot say that
any of the volunteers has bred true.

On 11/23/2015 5:15 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:
On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 21:30:40 -0000 (UTC), Frank Miles
wrote:

On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 09:54:09 -0500, Boron Elgar wrote:

The game is on.

I have a very fancy-pants plant light installed and that I use for
seedlings in the spring. Well, I decided that I will grow tomatoes
this winter. I have planned to do cherries, figuring they'd be
easiest, but I discovered a 16", well developed volunteer in one of
the deck pots as we were tidying up for end-of-season.

Problem is that I have no idea what it is. I can tell from the leaves
that it is an heirloom, but I grew several in the vicinity. I hope it
is one of the yummier ones.

We tend it carefully, using a cheap battery toothbrush to move around
the pollen. It is working. Right now there are about a dozen tomatoes
growing.

I have much to be thankful for.

I've long wondered whether this would be worth doing. Please keep us
informed as to your experiment's outcome, and what you've learned!

I'll be happy too.

{and I hope your volunteers are better than mine}

In season, I have a bed that is mostly volunteers. I have had
excellent luck with them - many varieties, although I cannot say that
any of the volunteers has bred true.



Our best tomato crop this year was from volunteers from last years toms.
Tasted pretty good too and were very prolific. I hope those come up
again next year or something even better.

We planted basil when we moved here in 2012, stuff comes up every year.
Don't need to seed it, fertilize it, or do anything but pick it. Now
that's something good and cheap.

On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 17:32:31 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 11/23/2015 5:15 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:


In season, I have a bed that is mostly volunteers. I have had
excellent luck with them - many varieties, although I cannot say that
any of the volunteers has bred true.



Our best tomato crop this year was from volunteers from last years toms.
Tasted pretty good too and were very prolific. I hope those come up
again next year or something even better.

We planted basil when we moved here in 2012, stuff comes up every year.
Don't need to seed it, fertilize it, or do anything but pick it. Now
that's something good and cheap.

I am, in many ways, a frugal gardener, but that frugality is always
part of my respect for nature. If Mother Nature wants to give me back
some annuals as perennials, who am I to complain?

On 11/24/2015 11:38 AM, Boron Elgar wrote:
On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 17:32:31 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 11/23/2015 5:15 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:


In season, I have a bed that is mostly volunteers. I have had
excellent luck with them - many varieties, although I cannot say that
any of the volunteers has bred true.



Our best tomato crop this year was from volunteers from last years toms.
Tasted pretty good too and were very prolific. I hope those come up
again next year or something even better.

We planted basil when we moved here in 2012, stuff comes up every year.
Don't need to seed it, fertilize it, or do anything but pick it. Now
that's something good and cheap.

I am, in many ways, a frugal gardener, but that frugality is always
part of my respect for nature. If Mother Nature wants to give me back
some annuals as perennials, who am I to complain?

We pretty much do the same thing, if it's free and no problem, let it
grow. We have a small herb garden, sage, rosemary, oregano, chives of
two or three types, Mexican Mint Marigold (tastes like tarragon which
doesn't grow well for us, and a few others, including the basil. At our
old place we had a lot of chickweed, pretty good in salads. Occasionally
I would run into someone who was really knowledgeable about wild salad
greens and would pick their minds. Some pretty good eating stuff out
there if you're knowledgeable and careful. I carry the book with me.

On Tue, 24 Nov 2015 19:05:26 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 11/24/2015 11:38 AM, Boron Elgar wrote:
On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 17:32:31 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 11/23/2015 5:15 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:


In season, I have a bed that is mostly volunteers. I have had
excellent luck with them - many varieties, although I cannot say that
any of the volunteers has bred true.



Our best tomato crop this year was from volunteers from last years toms.
Tasted pretty good too and were very prolific. I hope those come up
again next year or something even better.

We planted basil when we moved here in 2012, stuff comes up every year.
Don't need to seed it, fertilize it, or do anything but pick it. Now
that's something good and cheap.

I am, in many ways, a frugal gardener, but that frugality is always
part of my respect for nature. If Mother Nature wants to give me back
some annuals as perennials, who am I to complain?

We pretty much do the same thing, if it's free and no problem, let it
grow. We have a small herb garden, sage, rosemary, oregano, chives of
two or three types, Mexican Mint Marigold (tastes like tarragon which
doesn't grow well for us, and a few others, including the basil. At our
old place we had a lot of chickweed, pretty good in salads. Occasionally
I would run into someone who was really knowledgeable about wild salad
greens and would pick their minds. Some pretty good eating stuff out
there if you're knowledgeable and careful. I carry the book with me.


I have never had the courage to forage, but I will take any seed or
pit or cutting and try to get it to grow. I had a lovely pomegranate
that I fostered for years as an inside plant.

On 11/24/2015 7:10 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:
On Tue, 24 Nov 2015 19:05:26 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 11/24/2015 11:38 AM, Boron Elgar wrote:
On Mon, 23 Nov 2015 17:32:31 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 11/23/2015 5:15 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:


In season, I have a bed that is mostly volunteers. I have had
excellent luck with them - many varieties, although I cannot say that
any of the volunteers has bred true.



Our best tomato crop this year was from volunteers from last years toms.
Tasted pretty good too and were very prolific. I hope those come up
again next year or something even better.

We planted basil when we moved here in 2012, stuff comes up every year.
Don't need to seed it, fertilize it, or do anything but pick it. Now
that's something good and cheap.

I am, in many ways, a frugal gardener, but that frugality is always
part of my respect for nature. If Mother Nature wants to give me back
some annuals as perennials, who am I to complain?

We pretty much do the same thing, if it's free and no problem, let it
grow. We have a small herb garden, sage, rosemary, oregano, chives of
two or three types, Mexican Mint Marigold (tastes like tarragon which
doesn't grow well for us, and a few others, including the basil. At our
old place we had a lot of chickweed, pretty good in salads. Occasionally
I would run into someone who was really knowledgeable about wild salad
greens and would pick their minds. Some pretty good eating stuff out
there if you're knowledgeable and careful. I carry the book with me.


I have never had the courage to forage, but I will take any seed or
pit or cutting and try to get it to grow. I had a lovely pomegranate
that I fostered for years as an inside plant.

Pomegranate, mango, papaya, and avocado grow fairly well here. But,
alas, we live on a 6500 square foot property with a 1960 square foot
house, sidewalks, driveways, and neighbors on both sides not ten feet
from our home. I guess it is for the best, in our twenties through the
thirties we lived on ten acres and were always busy. Other homes here in
the US had maybe 12 to 14,000 square feet but we have to remember this
is the outskirts of Houston, TX. I finally figured it out that our
subdivision, and a few others, are built on a farm that I hunted deer on
back in the mid-sixties. Saw less deer here back then than I have seen
in one week now. Weird! We ain't in our twenties anymore, not even in
our sixties anymore. It beats looking up at dirt.