23,821 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening


I know!! I thought the caterpillar I saw was a result of an egg hatching!
I pluck off all of the eggs from the kind that eat the basil and parsley (the butterflies are black/blue and beautiful and make a pretty darned cool looking caterpillar). Those hatch and turn into little suckers quickly! I just thought this was some unknown version!


It's funny you say that tulle tears easily. For me, it's exactly the opposite. Tulle and similar materials let the wind through, whereas row covers (especially AG-15) can rip very easily if they are too taut. Too saggy and they don't let rain in properly. However, small aphids can penetrate tulle but not row cover.

It does work. I used some over dino kale last year that was interplanted with eggplant and both plants did remarkably well. It was nice not rinsing aphids out of all the crevices. When things do get aphids, when I harvest, I often soak in a bowl of water first and that helps to loosen many.
Here is the big caution though, if you over time end up with aphids under the cover, take the cover off, even if there are lady bugs in there too. The aphids will proliferate and the lady bugs cannot keep up.


they are not over mature, they are only 2-3 inches long at moment and just starting out. i usually cut em off when they get about 8-9 inches. they were fine in the morning, just must have missed the plant watering when i left for work. just dont know if the lack of water affected the fruit and if it will return to normal. i guess i will see next few hours


I think the slope is probably okay, but I'm not sure the cucs' tendrils will hold on to wood slats. You might need to put some wire fencing or netting over the trellises. And you would want the openings to be at least big enough so your hand can fit through.

O ! I forgot to mention corn. First I had to deal with squirrels, digging the seeds. Then because of small quantity/space they did not bear enough ears. And when they did, they were selling at 4 for a Dollar at the sore which were far better than mine.

I am not growing squash at home because of squash bugs. I am hoping a year off will cut the population enough to try again next year.
Here is a link that might be useful: My garden blog

It looks quite harmless on the MSDS.
I've used it for years to spot clothing. It just seems those sprays and other spot removers don't work well. I wet the bar, wet the spot, rub the bar in and scrub a bit by rubbing together with my hands. Let sit a few minutes, then put in the washing machine. Might not be good to let it sit too long. Spots almost always come out.

@ Dave: "known carcinogen" are you positive on this?
I just started using a Fels Naptha based spray for my aphid problem on veggie plants so I really hope this isn't accurate.
I did google around and found that Naptha is NOT the same as Napthalene (moth balls) which IS a carcinogen. However Wikipedia states that some forms of Naptha MAY contain carcingogens. The wikipedia for Fels Naptha states that it only really contains some irritants.
I could not find any source outside of random forums stating that Fels Naptha specifically contains carcinogens.


Buds can be at different stages. And may take a week to bloom. Then if the flower is pollinated, you will see a growing zuke in 3 days or so. If not pollinated it will shrivel and die. So from pollinated flower to harvestibe zuke can take about a week, if you want it to be tender.



I like the velcro. The quality is not so great but you end up getting more lenght for your money than regular velcro. TomatoGrowerSupply had a better quality that lasted for years and eventually broke down...but no longer have it. The thinner stuff looses its grip pretty quickly so you will want longer lengths so it overlaps more.
The nice thing, once you find a standard size like 8-10 inches, you can pre-cut an extra dozen or so and attach them to your support system so they are handy right next to your plants. And as your plants grow, you can easily move them to other locations on the plant.
I also use the green stretchy non-sticky tape. I like the extra support when the toms get so big. Panty hose works great...but i would have to get white and dye it green like someone posted...looks too much like an underwear drawer.
I always think that an absorbent fabric like t-shirt strips might stay too wet in my damp climate...



in the span of 30 seconds and no research. Yay me.
==>> i am with you .. wing it.. lol... live and learn. and experiment ...
dont know where you are... but the weather has not been conducive to seed starting here in MI .... in the last few weeks ... incredible heat.. drought... and damp soggy nights...
there are reasons.. success is greater in spring.. with warm days.. and cool nights ...
you said: It wasn't too late to start
who said that??? .... and thats part of your winging it problem ...
whether mature plants are prospering.. really has nothing to do with germination... or making recently germ'd plants thrive ...
and i think that MAY BE.. where the lack of research failed you ...
be sure to understand.. pre WWW .. i learned NOTHING.. except thru experimenting ... you will.. for sure.. never forget this lesson .... whatever it may be ...
ken
ps: there might also be an issue with what vermin might be eating your seeds now.. that werent around and didnt eat them in spring ...
I think the bean seeds were sitting in excessive moisture. Unlike many other seeds, beans are easily injured by oxygen deprivation during germination. If you soak bean seeds in water it will kill at least half of them, but if you let them soften in lightly dampened paper towels they will do just fine. The diff is oxygen availability. Peat pellets are cute but not a good choice for a big, fast-growing seedling like a bean. Once the soil is warm, direct-seeding is the way to go.