24,795 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

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theforgottenone1013(MI zone 5b/6a)

Giant Red mustard.

Rodney

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sowngrow (8a)

Thank you Rodney!

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void

I've grown potatoes in grow bags. 14" wide seems a little small, but that pic seems fine. It will look crowded, but you will get a lot of small potatoes. That is okay, you will get potatoes. Maybe 3 small seed potatoes should have been the max. Steal some out of the dirt after they flower, eat them new. You could try pulling up one of the groups after they flower and eat the small new potatoes, with the idea of letting the others have space to get bigger. Not sure it will make any difference, but you could try that and see what happens.

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mphillips1126

I ended up pulling out one of the potatoes so there's 3 to a bag. I'm also growing some in a plastic pot of a similar size. I left 4 potatoes in that pot just to see how it goes.

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jnjfarm_gw(5a)

what "short season constrains " do you have in zone 5b? I am in that zone and my season is from late March to early November, longer with season extension methods

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galinas(5B)

So when do you start picking your peppers - in March?) I don't think so. I start my peppers in late Feb- early March, to start picking at the end of June. I pick them till first frost in October. Keeping in mind I only have 6000 sq foot yard, that also includes house, 2 sheds, 8 dwarf trees, few berry bushes and other veggies I can't plant more then 30 peppers. And I need about 10 5-gallon buckets to be picked by the end of the season for my canning/freezing needs. This is why I start them early, and plant them out in late May with almost every plant having several peppers on it. But that comes with the cost - when I start them, they have all the room and air they need. By the end of the "in house" period, it is jungles there. If weather is not cooperative to move them out to portable greenhouse I set on the deck(only unused space in my yard) like this year - we struggle. But anyway, it worse it, as they start producing much earlier and give me more for the season. Actually, even powdery mildew doesn't set them back much. So short season in zone 5 is comparing to warmer zones, where you can start your plant a month before transplanting without worrying about PM in crowded environment and still get good crop for the season.

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EdwinR

I want to use castor oil to control voles and moles. Here it costs $7US for 3 US fluid ounces. Therefore I would like to make my own by growing the plant, which is beautiful too. Can I make it by boiling the seeds?

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Kathy V

I'm shocked to see some of the comments here on castor seeds being poisonous. Growing up in the Caribbean we picked the pods and laid it out to dry just to hear it pop and see the seeds fly out. Now that I'm older and trying to adopt a much healthier lifestyle I have been using oils such as castor oil, rosemary oil to name a few for my hair. It does wonders for my hair and scalp, no itching no dandruff and promotes great hair growth as it helps with circulation . Picked some pods just this morning. Rastafarians have been using it for centuries in their hair and to oil their bodies after a shower. I also know that fresh pure castor oil can be ingested to purge and it works immediately too. Someone mentioned on this forum it's cheap. Let me tell you good pure castor oil is not cheap you can easily pay a good US$50.00 or more for a liter. I know that pharmaceutical grade is available as well and seem to be a little more affordable but I don't use it.

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void

Thanks. I didn't see what is the point. Why would the pepper plants be stronger? Those are hybrid peppers with disease resistance in the first place. So it really is just that silly? With the possibility of crooked stems?

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theforgottenone1013(MI zone 5b/6a)

For those who don't have soilborne disease/pest problems then grafted plants have no benefit. But for those who do, growing grafted plants could be the difference between having peppers/tomatoes and getting none.

Rodney

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Tsakiroglou Fotis

Hello in Greece there is a variety of White Eggplant that matches your description.

This is it.It grows only in Santorini Island and it is the most delicious kind of eggplant you can find in the country.People cook this for centuries.

I'll try to upload some more in order to recognize it and come to a conclusion.

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Can I ask where you got the plant and what makes you think that vendor would be selling the ornamental (aka inedible) variety? Can't imagine why any 1/2 way reputable vendor would even be selling them much less selling them labeled as White Beauty. If you contact them surely they could easily assure you that it is the standard edible eggplant variety.

Dave

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ilodato(6b)

I am correct in my identification, correct? These eggs are behind every chard leaf. and my poor cucumber plants are being eaten before they can grow :( they ate up all the spinach as well. the chard is thriving and growing, but i worry they will eat the plants before the plants can outgrow them. 1st pic is what i think is the leaf miner. 2nd is eggs and 3rd is my cucumber plant. (pics might post in reverse order) The spinach is all eaten up too.

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

You are right that those might be leafminer eggs but they could also be sawfly eggs and the damage in the first pic is not leafminers but sawfly type damage. Their larve eat the entire surface of the leaf and do not reside within the leaf tissue itself like leaf miners do. Sawfly larvae are much more of a threat than leaf miners.

Sawfly controls include DE diatomaceous earth and Spinosad.

Dave

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Best Corn Flower Protection a Garden Can HaveSpider nest in corn
Posted by Wild Haired Mavens(Zone 10)
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jolj(7b/8a)

There are a lot of wild plant that are not only good, but good for you.

But some are only good in small amounts, others will kill you if eaten uncooked, other are fine cooked. Poke weed young leave have been eaten as cooked greens for 200 years that we know of, but the whole plant is poisonous & the root is deadly.

So you have to know what you are doing to eat in the wild.

Peterson guide to Poisonous plants is a good guide to what not to eat.

Feasting Free on Wild Edibles; A One-Volume Edition of Free for the Eating and More Free-For-The Eating Wild Foods. Paperback – June, 1972

I have this book & it is good.

There are many good books on what to eat raw & how & what to cook.

Dandelion is very high in C, but if you eat it at every meal for months it could make you sick!

When I taught a poison plant class for BSA group.

I would say if you do not know then it is Poisonous.

But to day I say Google it, research it for yourself, buy a book or take a class.

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=wild+eating&tag=googhydr-20&index=stripbooks&hvadid=58586316323&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11648487169483109454&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_zqp4e2e9c_b

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tcgardener

Check out Green Dean's website. He has some great info on edible weeds.

Eattheweeds.com

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Green Thumb

I didn't know what they were called, but yes, they will develop roots if you pull the soil up around them. Or if you transplant them in deeply, these will grow roots. Transplant deeply only if you'rei in the deep south were the soil temps are warm. If not, do like z7_Arkansas said and plant them with the stem horizontally. I've done this with leggy tomatoe plants I bought late and they turned out just great.

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jolj(7b/8a)

I pick the bottom 3 or 4 leaves off my tomato plants & plant them deep to get a better root system & more tomatoes in a long hot season.

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Liz Gallardo(5B/Southeast Michigan)

Growing up we had huge black walnuts around our yard and we always had to mow down the blackberries and raspberries. They loved it. We didn't get much else to grow in the ground.

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Tabatha

Thank you guys so much for responding!

LoneJack I knew someone might say something about the squash and watermelon lol. I know that there's a possibility that they might not do too well :/ However, even if I only get a few squash and an itsy bitsy melon, it'll be a small victory for me. This year is just a learning experience (: Also, thanks for the counter clockwise info. I wouldn't have known.

Digdirt2 Yeah, those are the ones I'm talking about haha. I realized quickly after buying them that they're definitely not going to work for my tomatoes. I might just use them for the jalapeños and construct some kind of trellis with bamboo and twine for the cucumbers.

Container gardening sounded like such a great idea at first..... Next year these suckers are going in the ground.

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jolj(7b/8a)

YES, I grow tomatoes in 24" dia, cages, 48" tall & plant 3 -5 cucumbers around the edge of the cage with no harm to any of the plants & I am an organic gardener, so I can not throw a little more 5-10-10 around the cage. the tomatoes & cukes are all supported by the same 24 inch compost & pine straw mulch all season.

I agree that container garden form is a good one, but this is a good link too.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/vertical

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LoneJack Zn 6a, KC

I seeded the 4 - 15' double rows last night prior to the rain that came in overnight so did not have to water them in. Took about 3 oz of seed with the 4" spacing. Thanks for the advice!

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jolj(7b/8a)

I plant my corn 6 inches apart in beds, so I have 4-5 rows.

The pros say 4- rows for good ear filling out.

This year I have planted a short single row to see if They/the Pros know what they are talking about.

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NewTXGardener (8a Dallas)

I can wait for a surprise. :-D And then I also didn't label 2 different purple tomatoes, I guess I'll find out when they fruit.

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jolj(7b/8a)

I have a family member who is better at growing plant from seeds, then I am.

I bought seeds for peppers,tomatoes for the whole family.

When the peppers grew & fruited I had two golden bell pepper that were HOT because I planted them next to some Hot cow horn peppers.

I do not eat hot peppers,so I gave them away.

Thankfully the rest of the golden bells in the row were fine & sweet.

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