Gardening can kill you

[tlwagg]

Wow! They'll try anything.

[Abigayle]

Tlwagg, There is actual black lung spot you can get, from working in the soil in Missouri.  I have it.  My friend and physician explained it to me forty years ago.  I have had it checked a few times over the years.  It has never changed, nor is it dangerous.  I was very athletic, both in high school and as an adult, non smoker.  This spot has never interfered with my life.  My great-grandparents gardened until they were almost 100 years old...no gloves; this was Iowa.  My grandparents didn't use gloves, gardened into their late 70's and early 80's.
Don't leave your brains at the back door, when you go to the garden.  Just because something says organic or natural, doesn't mean you should inhale it.Case in point diatomaceous earth, don't inhale it.
Gardening is good for the soul, it fights depression, it is your friend when no on is around.  All you have to do is compare food in the store to what you grow and the truth will set you free.  Maybe some things look perfect in produce.  What did they spray and powder it with to keep it that way.  No you can not wash it all off, plants are sprayed as they grow.  New tactics are being used daily to scare the hell out of us.

[Starlady]

I'm surprised they haven't talked about 'chicken lung' yet.   From the dust in the coops.   It really is a thing, but not very common.   As is most of the stupid stuff they are trying to scare us with. 

[Abigayle]

O.K.....new research, gardening can kill you.  I worked all day yesterday, taking a break for lunch.  The wind was terrible.  I started out just putting more supports in tomatoes.  Then I saw a week...At nine last night, I was finished.  I could hardly move.  Sleep came off and on, mostly off.  I could not get comfortable.  Stretching in the greenhouse to top off the tall plants, crawling under plants, shoveling dirt.  Yep, it can kill you.
Every spring, we use muscles we have not used.  We just use our bodies differently in serious gardening.  Most of us are doing all we can this year, to prepare.  Keep it up.  Use it or loose it.
Thor finished another spot for more medicinal herbs yesterday and planted twelve wild lettuce plants and lovable.  I still have feverfew and chamomile to get out.  Some of my outdoor tomatoes are baseball size.  I am already dealing with aphids and whitefly.  Last year, they were really late, and not as thick.  They love the new leaves and my organic army is having trouble keeping up, with all the rain.  I used my Jimmy Nardello pepper seed from last year to plant in the greenhouse, then set out.  The peppers are about four inches long.  We had a few bees early, before the cold returned. I have left the carpenter bees alone, along with the wasps, since they are the only pollinators I have seen. Cleaned out about fifteen of the outdoor tomato plants, all the time reminding myself that I want big tomatoes, not lots of extra greenery.  Now watch, it will turn bloody hot, and I will worry about their blistering, and covering them!  You lucky campers will miss out on all this fun for a few days.  I am so jealous!

[RWS]

I too have been working in the garden.  And yes the wind has been terrible the last couple of days.  I am trying to get caught up in the garden from being gone almost a week to region 2.  I want to get my garden in order before I go on my next camping trip this weekend.  I planted too many tomatoes.  I normally plant from 12 to 14 in one row.  This year I have three rows of tomatoes.  I ran out of tomato cages so I staked up the third row.  I have one row of "Legacy" tomatoes a determinate variety I am trying out this year.  Then I have two rows of "Rutgers" tomatoes which are indeterminate.  All this talk of tomatoes being short later this Summer and Fall gave me incentive to over plant.  Looks like we will be canning lots of tomatoes and tomato soup this year.
I also have some yellow squash and zucchini squash plants with buds on waiting for warmer weather to bloom.  The tomatoes are blooming, but with night time temperatures below 50F they will not set fruit. 

[Abigayle]

This week, I became convinced that gardening can kill you.  I was determined that this year, I would cook several of the vegetables that I pick, while canning and caring for the plants.  I have pulled it off, but each day I am out there at day break.  Now, at 10:45 a.m. on Sat morning, I have had it.  I am only going out there to keep the chickens comfortable and collect any late eggs.
My Granny Cantrell tomatoes have had their best year.  I will can some later and make some Bloody Mary Mix.  I will need to dump a dirt bag with horseradish, so I guess that mean getting sweaty and dirty again... broken promises from me to me.
My Jimmy Nardello peppers are amazing.  I am keeping the early seeds from the biggest healthiest peppers again this year.
Bragging time is over, now for my failures.  My Candy Roaster squash is struggling.  Bugs have gotten it.  Usually, another much takes it down.  My granddaughter planted the seed for me and I think we needed more space.  The spaghetti squash planted on a hillside in poor soil, is doing great.  I have about a dozen nice squash and more coming (there's that bragging again).  I don't like the looks of my Cherokee Purple tomatoes this year.  They were all planted at the same time as the Granny.  They are cracking and cat facing some.  I planted string eggplant.  It was prolific, but I miss the standard plant.  THE BABY SWEET CORN WAS A NO GO!  Don't waste your time on it.  The stalks are spindly and the ears have barely started to form.  I am loosing patience and may pull it....plant some "real corn".  Planted some Soldier beans as a second crop.  There were said to be bush.  Right now, they are about six feet tall.  Taste is different.  My contender beans produced four great pickings and flavor was great.
My new seed file has been very helpful in knowing what I have. Starting to look through for fall crop...someone shoot me...  Please let us know what has and has not worked for you.  Since we are all in the south, things that do well in the heat may work well for most of us.  Oh, Anaheim peppers continue to do well right now.

[RWS]

The pictures I posted above were a couple months ago in region 8.  I am now in region 2 and have planted my first garden here;  Just learning with this rocky clay soil.  First picture is yellow squash.  I dug up 4 volunteers from region 8 garden that came up around the edges.  I already had squash well along in region 8 so I brought them up here.  I already have extra squash so that I gave some to the neighbors.  The second picture is of 4 tomato pants that one of the preppers on here gave me.  Wife needed a place to plant a couple dahlias.  They don't do well in region 8, too hot.  The third picture is my one and only American Elderberry.

[Surveyor1]

Y’all be safe out there!  I just checked the temperature and humidity here and it’s 94 with 61% humidity, 111 heat index 😳🔥….

**Update 96/58% heat index 114🔥

[Abigayle]

Surveyor1, Thanks for the warning!  The morning wipes me out for the afternoon, but I look at it as a defense mechanism to move me in doors.  Right now, I am cooking roasted pepper, a new span recipe from my little spam cookbook and green beans I picked early.  I am grilling home grown garlic with the red peppers. Life is good.
I am glad you posted, because I wanted to thank you for two posts.
1. your yeast starter, it got me going again, and I am sure it helped a lot of new people.  The only change I made was on the first step, I used unsweetened pineapple just instead of water.  It is perking away and I will make rolls tomorrow.  Since I could not find the post, I could not see if it reminded people not to use a metal spoon.  Always use plastic or wood when you stir.
The second thing....that can opener you suggested is great.  One valuable aspect of it's design is the little pick that you use to lift a lid.  It does not damage the lid in any way, making it more re-usable.  I am referring to canning flats here.
Your heads up on sales has been very helpful.  We need more stuff like this, in terms of people being able to help themselves a little bit more everyday.