23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening
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
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. :)
Cucumber and zucchini plants tend to get diseased after a few weeks of production, no matter what you do. Both are susceptible to mildew, cucumbers will get bacterial wilt from cucumber beetles, zucchini can get attacked by vine borers. You can check the base of your zucchini plants for holes and an orange frass. Dig inside and you'll find the larvae.
I succession plant every 2-3 weeks and when the plants look bad i tear them out. You may want to try a fungicide on your plants, especially in the type of wet weather you're dealing with. Liquid copper or Serenade, or some have had luck with homemade fungicides made from baking soda or milk. It won't cure the disease, but will help protect any new growth.
If it's bacterial wilt, there's no cure for that. Infected vines will die. It's very common with cucumbers; one bite from a cucumber beetle is all it takes.
In FL at this time of year there's also the dreaded pickleworm in addition to all the other problems. This just isn't the time of year for most of us to try these plants because of all the disease/insect problems, also production slows way down when the heat and humidity really kick in.
If you haven't seen it, the U of F's Agricultural department has an excellent guide to vegetable gardening in FL, including when best to plant:
Here is a link that might be useful: IFAS planting guide
Arugula (rocket in the UK) is not a type of lettuce at all. It's in the Brassica family along with cabbages and the like.
You can cut back bolting lettuce and you will get a little more crop but you can't stop it bolting for more than a few days. If you are pushed for space pull it and plant fresh lettuce seed/plants or something else. The bolting habit is why it is sensible to sow lettuce little and often in suitable climates. This is 'succession' planting or sowing. Otherwise it all matures at once and the crop is over.
Looks good!
Rodney