23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

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.

Snap Traps. Big ones baited with apple slices and peanut butter. You'll find your critter real fast. lol

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?

hi all, thanks for the replies and information. now i know what it is and ways to prevent it.

@hamiltongardener - Thanks for the tip. I shall do this often to stop the spread!

Thanks.

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.

I like seeing these followup posts

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.

Having read the article I mentioned to my wife that the Zucchini rotting was probably due to calcium deficiency. She suggested calcium tablets, so I have dissolved two tablets in water and fed it to the plant on two occasions.and it seems to work.

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

A spray of insecticidal soap will also work, better if the beetles don't cooperate

Thank you very much for your replies. I'm pretty sure they are pigweed flea beetles because they jump like fleas. They're fast and difficult to hand pick. Spraying will be easier. Thanks again.

amaranth, a potherb.

Mine is grown near tomatoes too!
I harvest the top, and cook it (leaves and stems) for 2-3 minutes with a little oil, garlic and salt. It tastes like spinach. The bottom will soon grow tall and bushy, so you can harvest every few days. IMO, certainly a great plant to have in a summer garden - pretty, no fuss, productive, and good tasting.

Try some coffee grounds... I am sure how good or bad they are for potatoes - but since they are so less potent - it might be ok. I am not saying that it will work ... but it seems to have worked for me. Just sprinkle a good 1/4th inch layer of coffee grounds - and water it well. For the next few days water it almost every day to keep it moist.
This is what i did and they are no where to be seen :)

I guess I keep aiming to just allow the ecology of my garden to balance itself out and I try not to step in at all, unless it's out of balance to the point of making major damage. What do I know about ants and aphids and what their role in the ecosystem needs to be? If I am experiencing major damage, I may need to nudge the balance a little in another direction.

I like the idea of the watering and coffee grounds because it nudges the ants to move to another location where they won't be in your way. Just as I leave the aphids to multiply to the point that they draw in lady bugs looking for a meal. If there aren't enough lady bugs and there's more damage than is acceptable to me, then I'd hose them off the plants. Which I haven't had to do in years.

Sherm, in Massachusetts, we do get down below zero here but not all that often. Last winter we were in the single digits more than we usually are. The average number of days we fall below freezing in a year, is 98 days. Compared to an average of 12 days at 90 degrees or above. Although, that number seems low to me.

I would not have thought they could keep chickens in an unheated space in Alaska. Does that mean an outdoor shed, with no insulation and nothing for a heat source, I wonder?

Sherm........most of them quit laying much after about 9 years. I have one that laid a couple eggs last year.
No, I never used supplemental lighting. I figured they needed the break. I have the feeling they wouldn't have lived as long, had I used extra lighting.
Also, I'll bet those hens who get extra lighting have more ovary problems later on. Ovarian cancer is pretty common (along with the eggs going into the abdominal cavity, etc.) among hens, since they get worked so much!
My easter-eggers seemed to be the most prolific layers. I sure do miss those home-grown eggs! I don't know if I will get more hens. I'm 64 and getting tired. :)