23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening
I haven't seen bore holes yet but I've seen moths twice. Tried to whack the bastards with a trowel but missed.
I had success injecting BT at the first sign of stem damage last year. My squash all produced to the end of the season, though one had a heavily damaged stem-->
Believe it or not that squash was still producing.
This year I'm also spraying weekly with neem. Supposedly it does give some systemic effect, though I doubt it's enough to kill borers once they're in the stem.
For vining squash, melons and cukes (which are, it is true, more SVB resistant than vertical squash) I been trying BURYING the main vines in mulch. That has the beneficial effect of holding in water, and also seems to prevent SVB infestation. That is, if the SVBs can't get to the vine, they can't do bad stuff to it. Just throw a load of mulch over the plants, and brush it off of the leaves.
The pesto basil is pesto perpetua or something like that right? It's actually a shrub type basil that doesn't bolt.
I bought one but haven't tried mine so I'm not sure what the flavor is like.
Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.territorialseed.com/product/Pesto_Perpetuo_Basil_Plant/Drunken_Botanist_Plant_Collection
Hi there, I posted a reply and it didn't show up. I hope it doesn't show up later lol... ok so I'm new to gardening and I have zukes and crooknecks. For me, I found that with my plants they wouldn't bloom the females until the plant itself was big or mature enough. I started my plants indoors and they've been of size now to produce fruit. I've harvested about a half-dozen zukes, but no crookneck. They seem to be fruiting a bit later and slower than the zucchini.
So from what I've seen with mine, when the plant is of mature size, the flowers on the end of fruit will begin blooming. Sometimes a female on the end of a fruit will just sit there for a few days. I guess it's just gathering up energy so if it does get pollinated, it will have the stuff it takes to grow a mature fruit. For me, the zucchini flowers were on zukes at least 3" long, and the crooknecks finally bloomed when the bulb at the base of the female flower was about the diameter of a nickel. I hand pollinate, as I don't see many bees around. I don't know about other pollinators, but since It's my first garden, it's kinda in my nature to go gung-ho about it. I'm sure if I plant next year, I'll just let them do their thing lol.
The flowers open for me in the early am, probably around 5 or 6. They stay open until about 4 or 5, and then they begin to wilt. I know many people say they're an early morning flowerer, but what I think that means is that the peak of their fertility is early. The flowers are all bright and crispy. It's obvious that they're past their prime later in the afternoon.
When you first notice your female flower, take note the date and look every day. On pumpkins, after you see the first formation of the female, 10 days or so. Good luck.
You can tell when it will open the next morning when the flower looks real yellow. You can also watch the males and the females will follow the same time frame.
Looks like rat to me. Watermelon seeds are too small of an incentive for squirrels. Get a cat or two! They are much better than dogs at deterring rodents because they are proactive. I have 3 of them and they spend 90% of their time napping in my garden: squirrels stay at bay, possums also ( except for one that they tolerate on the fence only - not on the ground-) birds do not pick my fruits or vegetables, no rats, no mice = peace of mind. With nectarines, apricots, grapes, plum, pears, tomatoes, cantaloupes, watermelon etc, in my garden, there would be rodents all over the place if it wasn't for them!
If you do not want a cat as a pet, associations are giving "barn cats" they are neutered microchipped and vaccinated, they live in barns/sheds and they do their hunter job. But you need to provide a safe place where they can go when it is too cold or too hot, water, food, vaccines, and vet care.
Mine are well fed and are spoiled pets so they don't "over hunt" and sleep on our beds. They run after pests but stop the chase as soon as the critters are out of the garden. Good balance. Squirrels are staying high in the trees ( I like squirrels as long as they don't eat my fruits) I keep a stepladder in between my tomato plants, the cat lays on the upper stair and the birds do not even think about my tomatoes: problem solved.
This is the third post in so many weeks showing angular leafspot as a likely cause of cuke decline. It's a bacterial disease that gets established in soil, after which you need resistant varieties forever.
Here is a link that might be useful: VA tech cuke ALS
Thanks, I guess I will try the Immunox and hope that the new growth stays green. I've never seen any powdery stuff on the leaves. It would just start as a small yellow holes....almost like holes were burning in the leaves and eventually the leaf would just completely dry up. What are better resistant varieties that I could plant next year? I used the straight 8 because I like the more slender cucumbers with smaller seeds. Are there any resistant varieties that are like the straight 8?
I came here looking for answers of this as well. Mine wilted and some type of inchworms were chewing leaves. They were much smaller than hookworms and almost a vibrant green color. Even after I removed them all on several plants in different pots in different properties, they all declined a slow and steady death. I assumed it was more due to it being 90+ here in Florida and a bunch of rain. Will Swiss Chard last the summer in a hot and wet environment here in Florida?
I happened to see this post on "Most Recent Posts" listed on the right. In San Antonio, TX cilantro comes up in the fall, grows very well all winter getting big and bushy, even with a few nights in the teens, and it bolts in late spring. I let it go to seed, and when I can no longer find lower leaves to use the plants are pulled and the seeds sprinkled around. None germinate until fall.
Years ago when I first started gardening I bought a pkg of cilantro seeds and sowed them in the spring. Nothing. Bought another pkg and sowed them. Nothing. Hmmm, must be bad seed. Bought another brand of seed and still none came up -- that is until fall and then I had cilantro EVERYWHERE ... LOL. How seeds know the time of year they are supposed to germinate is beyond me! There is probably a term for plants that do this.
I bought mine early in the season expecting to have a big bushy cilantro plant through the summer. To my surprise about 3 weeks later it flowered and turned into the most bitter nasty tasting stuff. Guess I'll be buying it from the market! I'm not latin or asian, so food wise we don't keep our fridge stocked with cilantro, I only use it for salsa and maybe to put in Pho when I feel like cooking something exotic. :)
We harvested some of our Broccoli Saturday. I was a bit surprised that the varieties we planted were so much alike. We will have to try some of the other varieties listed on this thread. I think we liked the Super Dome the best of the three that we planted. They seemed to have tighter/larger heads when compared to Packman and Sun King. Please post photos of your harvest so we can compare and select varieties for next season.
An overload of melons can hurt size and quality. You have some medium melons and one/ones unknown which doesn't help giving help.
I have seen a medium or so melon like Sangria have 5 melons in the first set. They tended to be 18 or 19 pounds apiece and not top quality as Sangria can be about the best there is. two 25 pound Sangrias are better than 5 only fair ones.
In your case, it is partly a matter of how healthy the plants are. If they are vibrantly healthy, they can handle 3 at a time. If average, only 2.
For small varieties...let them set what they will. Very healthy vines can make a nice second setting too.
Hi Keren,
I didn't hazzard a guess, because I really didn't know specifically, beyond that all the plants in your photos looked diseased to me. That was the reason I suggested you post a separate post with the photos, because the subject line of this thread is only about organic gardening tips and doesn't alert another member that you were asking for help with tomato plant problems.
I am posting a link below that another member posted to a thread on the Tomato forum the other day. It has photos of what certain diseases look like, but I think even this doesn't cover them all. If you don't see a photo of what yours look like, I'm sure someone here or on the Tomato forum would have a better idea. Also I believe you can send a sample to your local extension and they can test and tell you exactly what disease it is for the cost of the test.
Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato Diseases
Prariemoon -- yes, I saw the pics when I came back on. Turns out she was posting while I was writing :)
Keren, I'm wondering if it's one of the wilts -- verticulum or fusarium or walnut? (From looking into my disease handbook) It doesn't seem like blight because your fruit still looks fine. I'm sure the tomato forum will be of more help if you post the photos there.
Also, I know copper spray can burn squash plants if sprayed in mid day sunshine. Are tomatoes also sensitive? A bacterial spray like Serenade is gentler.
At any rate, for sure either soak or spray down your cages before next year with a bleach solution (10:1 water to bleach) as some of the diseases last on the cages and start right up again the next year.
I was in Hawaii and my daughter was in charge of watering end of may, first week of june. She kept the plants alive.....just. The first several zuks showed signs of BER, then when I got home and consistant watering started happening, I started getting PLENTY! (want some?)
I know pollination wasn't a problem, cause with my herb garden right across the path and herbs interspersed within the garden I have PLENTY of bees!
And GUMBY "Have the words soil test before" sounds a bit rude to me. It's not always possible or affordable! I have 10 different raised beds that may have 10 different soil mixtures in them. CA no longer does the cheap soil tests and sending off 10 soil samples could run a couple hundred $$! That doesn't make my veges more affordable! Nancy
Why not just leave them as bait for the buggies so they don't eat the rest of the plant?
yep. I do what jwhittin suggests.