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PaperclipPerfector  1mo ago (text post)   3012 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for June 12, 2026

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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I've been getting into gardening lately. I grew some herbs and small vegetables many years ago, but otherwise I am completely new to it again.

Two months ago I made the rookie mistake of using "garden soil" in planters (garden soil is to be used in the ground, or in raised beds) and unfortunately nearly all of the plants died. But the California growing season is forgiving, and I haven't lost much time. Last weekend I bought a strawberry plant, a cherry tomato plant, a larger tomato plant, and six zucchini squash plants. This weekend I'm setting up a drip irrigation system to keep the plants watered, as I have quickly learned that the plants I currently have will need a lot of water.

AI chatbots have been very helpful for answering every question I could possibly have, and capturing the nuances between different varieties. (Certain strawberry varieties have runners that you should snip off to encourage upward growth! Zucchini squash may need hand pollination when flowers appear! Switch to liquid fertilizer when fruiting!) What could've been hours of searching in the library, or talking with the local gardening club, in the good old days, is now a half hour conversation at my desk. In one way, I am glad that I am able to kick off a new hobby successfully, but in another way, I'm a bit sad that I no longer have a reason to get up with the local gardening folks to figure out what's going on.

I've got a lot of planters sitting around. What should I grow next? What is everyone else growing?

I'm in a similar position to you and made the conscious decision that the only outside help I'm allowed to seek is from my mom. She's far from an optimal resource, but the consistent back-and-forth, sharing pictures and advice, has been really really nice. I enjoy the enhanced relationship with her more than I care about my garden doing particularly well.

That said, I'm having some good luck with my cherry tomatoes and serrano peppers. My other peppers are struggling in the current heat wave and a squirrel ate my one viable poblano. My modest goal is to be able to make a salsa by the end of summer. I just have a few plants so I can take the time to manually check for and remove aphids and other pests on each plant every day, which is helping cover up my inadequacies as a gardener.

I really recommend giant marconi peppers. They taste like bell peppers, but are sweeter, bigger, and easier to grow.

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