23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening
A soap spray can be very effective against aphids... I've used one several times for that purpose with great results. You can use any mild liquid soap (such as baby shampoo or mild dish washing liquid) but an insecticidal soap such as Safers is less likely to damage the foliage. It does not take much soap, no more than a teaspoon per quart of water. If you use other soaps, it is best to rinse the plants off with a spray after they have done their work (about 10-15 minutes later). Be sure to spray beneath the leaf canopy as much as possible.
But before spraying any contact killer (organic or otherwise) I would recommend inspecting the plants for beneficial insects or their larvae, which may already have begun feeding on the aphids. If those are present, all you may need is a little patience, and they may reduce the aphid population to tolerable levels within a few weeks. I have a good native population of predators in my area, and most years - if not interfered with - they control the aphids on their own. It is worth keeping in mind that aphid predators multiply much more slowly than the aphids do; so if you kill them accidentally, they may not return... but the aphids, now free of natural predators, will.
You should also be aware that if the aphids are being farmed by ants, it might be necessary to get rid of the ants to prevent them from re-infesting the plants with new aphids. Since ants perform beneficial functions, I only take action against them if the aphids they carry begin to spread disease from plant to plant.
My bet is what you're calling "last frost date" is really the "average frost date". Depending on who does the calculating, it really only means from a 50-80% chance of no more frosts. I'm also 5b, and our average date (50%) is May 5, (80%) on May 18, but the true "last frost date" recorded isn't until June 7.
General knowledge here says warm season planting after Mothers Day. This year we had 8" of snow and down to 26 that Monday.
The only need for conditioning, it seems, is to get it through any hot decomposition phase before putting plants in it that you don't want to cook. Just wet it and monitor the temps. It's not a fad and can work well, just think of it as container planting. Very messy container planting...
I personally have not, but I have friends who live in the "not quite gentrified" parts of Atlanta where they have had rose bushes, Mums, Hostas, Veggies and even a porch swing stolen. Basically any flower planted at the mail box would be pulled and stolen within a few days.
Yeah it is 'romaine' here but usually the 'cos' is included in the name or label in some way so I think many know what you mean. :) And yes, I have had aphid issues with it as they love any high nitrogen fertilizers like often used on leafy greens. I just wash them off the plants with the hose a couple of days in a row and cut back on the feedings. They seem to especially love my red leaf varieties.
Dave
Can't say without seeing them but Google images of 'leaf edema potato leaves' and see if it matches.
Dave
I have seen edema on another plant before, so that was my first thought. This does look like the photos I found, although most of the "warts" were on the underside of the leaves and these are on top. But this happened overnight to almost all the leaves on 10 different plants. It's shocking. In the other case I saw, a houseplant, the leaves were ruined but the plant was fine. I hope the same happens here.
As Dave said, "But all the wood chip mulch right up against the plant stems doesn't bode well for the future." Is that mulch or did you mix that into your clay soil to amend it? In either case it can rob your soil of nitrogen. And touching the base of the plant can cause disease.
My lettuce seeds all over the place - I currently have more than 40 Rouge d'hiver lettuces planted in beds that re-seeded themselves in my walkway. Sometimes I just get too busy to pull the plants and lettuce doesn't hurt anything. The way I look at it - free food!
Great all that info helps a lot. I too use some Earthboxes - have 9 of them I think - and while I have worked out a method of fertigation with them for later in the season that allows me to use liquid organics I still include the strip of granular fert (10-10-10). They really do need that to begin with but I just don't find it enough for the whole season. Mine are filled with ProMix BX which has Mycorrhiza in it and I top them with plastic like balloonflower does.
Large-Metal-Binder-Clips-Black
work well for holding the plastic in place.
So first, 3" of mulch is too much. Not only can it lead to incosistent soil moisture levels but it means there isn't enough potting mix in the box. They need to be filled right to the brim with the mix. Second, what is recommended is Kelloggs Potting Mixes, not their potting soils. The company makes and sells both. The mixes are soil-less, the soils contain dirt and they compact and drain poorly. So make sure which you have.
<I'm thinking of testing the soil this afternoon, but have heard NPK home tests are not reliable. Should I even bother?> No. When using a bagged potting mix it is already pH balanced. But over the season it can turn alkaline as household water is alkaline.
< have heard of the issues with using organic fertilizers in containers, but I was under the impression that liquids are more easily absorbed/work for containers. > Correct but there are numerous well balanced, low-dose liquid organics available (like fish and seaweed emulsions) without going for the big guns like bat guano.
<I think it's really odd that I have tomatillos next to the tomato plant that are looking great. > Yep they are much more tolerant but will develop excess leaf growth and may have limited fruit set as a result of the guano so I would flush them as well. Just keep in mind that tomato plants aren't big nitrogen hounds, the need low-dose N only.
The leaves that are damaged will probably die and fall off but with a good flush the new growth should appear normal.
Hope this helps.
Dave
That is great information. Thank you so much Dave. I didn't know guano was bringing out the big guns. I have always heard of tomatoes being heavy feeders and didn't think twice about it. I didn't know it would be too much N. I will use something more balanced next time.
I have flushed my plants. I will let you know how it goes. :)