23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening
Could be amount of light exposure - they are bending to reach more light. Could also be that the stems were lanky/leggy/too weak to begin with so they bend back and forth in an effort to support the top growth until the stems can strengthen up some.
Could also be excess N stimulating too-rapid top growth for the plant to adjust to.
Dave
They are in full sun except where there might be shading from other veg plants. I change beds every year and every year it is the same. I will do some soil tests. Just read they have opinions about pH. The stems are very hefty -- the base gets so big around I have to use a saw to cut it.
Also read they want a lot of feeding during the season. I must admit that except for compost at planting and the odd drizzle of fish/kelp solution, I'm not good at fertilizing.
Just took a walk through the community gardens and past the farm. BS plants left standing through a hellacious winter are STILL standing up straight and tall. My one remaining plant (left for late fall harvest and then ... whammo, way too much snow too soon) is laid flat out.
Looks more like ultraviolet damage to me (the first pic anyway). The lights may be too close or they may be getting light when it is too cool. Ensure that it is at least 70 degrees during the photoperiod.
The leaves also look very tender. On warm days, try exposing them to some sun and wind to harden them off a bit.
I had this problem with eggplants in the past and it went away when I exposed them to some sunshine to force some hardening off.
This post was edited by Slimy_Okra on Mon, Mar 31, 14 at 11:02
ok. that makes sense. I keep my house on the cooler side...I don't run the furnace unless it gets below 60. I thought the lights would keep it warm enough. I can set them out on the porch this week since the weather will be in the 70's all week here.
Thanks!
If you sowed it last spring then it should have been harvested last year. This year it would have flowered and the elongation of the stem in your picture indicates it was about to. Onions can be tricky and in less than optimal conditions often don't 'bulb up' giving you a thin stem as in your picture. Unless, of course you planted what we call 'Spring onions' and I believe you call scallions, which are not meant to bulb up.
Hey y'all, don't know how many of you know there is a mid-atlantic forum here too and those folks are planning a meetup/plant swap for spring. Don't know if I can make it to Burtonsville, but maybe some of you are interested?
Here is a link that might be useful: Maryland swap thread
Lights are blue or white LEDs (I'll have to look for specifics in the morning). I typically keep the lights very close to the plants once they start to come up. The containers I use are 4-pack cells bought from the local garden center.
I think I'll just stick to direct sowing or using volunteers for my brassicas from now on. It's too much work and space to have these things keep dying.
The pot pictured above has a bottom that is approximately 2" smaller in diameter than the top, so it's 23" at the top and 21" at the bottom
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So it has over 23 DRY GALLONS of volume.
I rest my case with digdirt (Dave) . He wrote :
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" ...You have a 9-10 gallon pot so you could do 2 plants in it but they will be smaller than normal and will require more feeding and more watering than if just 1 plant was in it. .."
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Now how many peppers you want to plant int it, it is your choice.
This post was edited by seysonn on Mon, Mar 31, 14 at 5:12
This is my first try with tomatillos, too, and mine started out a bit leggy as well. I potted them up, burying the stem as with tomatoes, and now they are happy as can be. I have kept the lights so low they almost touch since then and that seems to be helping as well.
You've asked this question before and it has been answered. See the link below. As I said in your other post, all garlic grows well here (I'm about 20 miles SW of Detroit). It's just a matter of your personal taste preferences and whether you like them hot and garlic-y or if you like them more mild.
Rodney
Here is a link that might be useful: Garlic
i'm in a similar zone to you and i planted my garlic on the 15th of october. it has really taken off now (we have had a warm spring):
but the time for choosing your variety is in the fall. perhaps you could find some later in the summer at a farmers market and then save the largest cloves of ta type you like.
This post was edited by jonathanpassey on Sun, Mar 30, 14 at 22:07
I would like a built in screen to use with compost or worm castings. I would put a container underneath to capture the sifted material. This should easily lift out for cleaning. That would be on one end. On the other end of a long table, I would want a sink with a sprayer. I would also want a shelf above the main work area with cup hooks for having my tools within easy reach. I would not include garden tools as that is a very personal thing, everybody has their own favorites. I think the power strip is an awesome idea.
Now, my creative juices are running but too bad I have far too many things to do this year.
CoState extension has a nice fact sheet on this. See link below.
This sheet make the good point that seed storage is greatly aided by making them, and keeping them dry. The latter is where a freezer has an advantage, as the air in the freezer is especially dry. But when I store my seed in the fridge, I do so with seed packages in a plastic zipper bag that has some dessicant envelopes in it. Also (and this is important!) DO NOT open that plastic zipper bag while the contents are cold. Water vapor from the air will immediately condense on the seeds. Only open that bag after the contents have warmed up thoroughly. Then take the seeds, zip it back up, and throw it back in the fridge.
It is important to understand that seeds themselves are hydroscopic. That means they automatically absob water, which is certainly a survival trait. So the dessicant is important. You need something to absorb the water vapor at least as fast as the seeds do. Common DIY dessicants are rice grains and powdered milk, but I suspect silica gel works better.
I'm not sure about this, but I think the main trick for freezing seeds is to make sure that they are first well dried. Freezing a seed that is not dried will damage it.
Just throwing a resealed paper seed package in the fridge is probably not a smart thing to do.
Here is a link that might be useful: Storing Flower and Vegetable Seeds
I grow in raised beds too. I do remove the grass, place a sheet of weedblock, and then lay a foundation of cardboard 2 layers thick. I still get 3 or 4 shoots of grass through the year but its easier to manage this way. 8" in plenty. I'm getting along quite will with 6" deep beds :)
Good luck!
LC
Plants usually need more then 8 inches for the root system. So you have two choices - dig in or raise high. When I started my garden where I live now there was no even lawn loam. It was fill - gravel, bricks and clay/sand with 2 inches of top soil on top. I couldn't afford to build high beds and buy all the soil I need for them, so I dug about a foot deep, sifted out rocks and derbies from clay/sand and mixed what left with compost and pit moss I bought. Then I built additional 10 inches wooden beds on top. I placed about 5 inches of gravel I sifted out on the bottom of my holes for drainage, then placed turf I dug from the lawn grass down, roots up and then filled the rest with the soil mix I made. Yea... That was a big job. But at the time I didn't see any other options - I was just starting the garden and didn't want to invest much in the project with unknown outcome).
maynard: Hope you don't feel like you were lambasted here. The 3 posters other than me that replied are 3 of the most knowledgeable and respectful people on GW.
I was confused also. You said, "My tomatoes and pepper seedlings were planted about two months ago," From that, I assumed they were about 4 months old(sow, 8 weeks growing, and then PLANTED SEEDLINGS 2 months ago(key words). LOL... even here in SoCal, 2 month PLANTED seedlings would have been way too early to let the kids out to play.
Anyhow, like rhizo1 said, should have getting them weak doses shortly after the first leaves.
And like others hinted, there can be other factors like temps, light, and pot size. If you're still a few weeks away, you might want to "pot up." Get them into a bit larger pot(scratch root ball first), water thoroughly, and then start hardening them off for the next week on warm days. After that first week of hardening, you may want to give them some weak doses of ferts. For the remaining weeks, get them as much direct sun as possible as long as the temps aren't too cold.
Hope your view of GW hasn't been tainted. There are some really great folk here(especially those that replied) and I don't know where I'd be personally without them.
Happy gardening!
Kevin
If the potting mix has had slow-release fertilizer added, I start supplementing after about 4 weeks. If no fertilizer has been added, I supplement a few days after germination with weak soluble fertilizer.
2 month-old-seedlings would need to be in 4" pots at the minimum, but 1-gallon pots are preferable.
like a fat green onion. But I didnt plant green onions, I starter white onion from seeds.
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To my understanding :
There is no difference between what is called GREEN onion and just onions in early stage. Any onion harvested young and early is called GREEN onions , scallions. Some onions are bred as BUNCHING onions that would not bulb much. BUT they are all ONIONS.
You could try pulling them apart and planting a few and tossing the rest into dinner. Your best source of information would be the seed packet. If it is a bunching onion, you may as well eat them now. If it is a bulbing onion, you could try a few in the ground to see what happens.