23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening
I raise Black Swallowtails (as well as Monarchs, and other swallowtail species) and usually have a few black caterpillars each year.
The Monarch caterpillars can have more or less black in their striping too. There is a theory that they are blacker in cooler weather - to absorb more solar heat.
Hawaii doesn't have more diverse climates than CA. HI doesn't even have diverse seasons. There's no place in HI that has high chilling and a warm growing season. That rules out all crops and fruits that need chilling and summer heat.
CA has blazing deserts and the biggest trees in the world growing in a cloud forest. It also has all combinations of cool, warm, and hot summers/winters except truly tropical, ie warm all year. And the elevation extremes in CA are as large as in HI.
This post was edited by fruitnut on Sun, Oct 6, 13 at 17:52
Yep: just going up the Palm Springs Tramway, one goes from desert to alpine in a 15 minute ride. I went on it one time in April when the temps at the bottom were in the 90's and there were people cross country skiing at the top.
Kevin
One thing to keep in mind is that all vegetable plants must not suffer any stoppage in their growth, or they will turn bitter. Usually it's too little or too much water, lack of nutrients, or wild temperature fluctuations. Using the methods pioneered by Alan Chadwick, the so called, French Intensive method, helps a lot. See the descriptions here:
Alan Chadwick
Click on "Techniques", then on "Kale" for more on that plant also.
Here is a link that might be useful: Alan Chadwick
I grow Red Russian Kale and Dino Kale and leave them all winter. The only fear is the overwintering baby slugs. You definitely want to check under the leaves to get rid of them, because it will give them a nice supply of food once we get near Spring!
My favorite cherry tomato is the Chadwick Chrerry, sold by various outlets, but I get mine from SEEDS OF CHANGE. This is a strain developed by the famous Alan Chadwick. More about tomato culture can be found at the following website:
Here is a link that might be useful: Alan Chadwick
Certainly covering what threatens my garden's bok choy.
I have never quite understood the idea of a "catch crop" unless the grower returns and destroys all of the pests, as well as sacrificing the plants.
Left to themselves, something like flea beetle larva will feast on the host plant roots then mature into mobile adults. I would assume that these adults would be happy to move on from the radish, a real flea beetle favorite, to the other garden plants.
Steve
I had one plant that out did anything I have ever grown. It covered an area about 10' x 20' . the vine branched off 40 + times, I lost count because it was a tangled mess. It was like a fish net. When I pulled the leaves fo the side there was blossoms every 2 to 3 inches. I have no idea how many cukes I picked. Lots over a 6 week period. I gave the neighbor a couple of bushels to feed the chickens.
I grew straight eights and Eurekas last year and this was a volunteer.
In my opinion, seed tapes aren't worth the effort. It's not worth the time of making the seed tape and I found that it's easier and quicker to just plant the individual seeds than it is to fiddle with planting the tape.
As long as the beets aren't woody inside, then there's nothing wrong with them getting big. However, it sounds like you're wanting baby beets. So yeah, 2-3 inches should work for that purpose.
Rodney
Thanks Rodney! And I agree that planting the tape might be fiddly, but not as wiggly as my son, who wants to "help" next year. He is really in love with beets, so if I get his hands in the dirt, maybe fiddly tape is worth the learning time!
And we have been enjoying all sizes of beets this year. Both these varieties have remained very nice even when large, and maturing in warmer weather than I was told beets prefer.
Hmm, this question has been floating unanswered for a while. I'm not an artichoke expert, but maybe I can begin an answer. Yes, there are different types. Two main types are the Green Globe type and the other is the Imperial Star type. They do have distinctive, but slight differences in shape. I'm not sure about the heart size being related to type, though. It could be, or it could just be natural variation in the plants. Artichokes don't seem to have undergone the same intensive breeding as some other vegetables, or maybe they just don't lend themselves very well to standardization. When you buy artichoke seed, there is great variation in whether the seeds germinate and if they do, how they grow. And another thought is that maybe the ones with bigger hearts just had better fertility and water during growth.
So, I don't know the answer to your whole question, but there's a bit of what I do know and a couple of guesses. Cheers!
https://www2.ag.purdue.edu/hla/fruitveg/MidWest%20Trial%20Reports/2012/01-01_McGrath_Cucumber.pdf. Marketmore 76 was developed for DM resistance, but a new strain has developed which renders M 76 susceptible. At present there does not appear to be any variety with good resistance.
I have grown Diva, Johnny's two years in a row. Last year in unheated greenhouse, this year in GH and outside. I have had only minor problems with Downy Mildew, markedly less than Lemon Cucumber (outside). I have been overrun with cucumbers both years, despite having half as many planted this year as last.
Do I need to be concerned about a new strain of DM for next years crop?
KateQ
If by leaf cabbage, you mean a non-heading cabbage, in North America they are called collards. Most vendors will have several varieties to choose from. Some of the "Chinese" cabbages are sometimes refered to as leaf cabbages. Collards are exceptionally cold tolerant.
My experience matches that of Mark above. In northern California you just sow it direct without any cold treatment or sanding the shell and it generally germinates nearly 100%. A good description of the process can be found at the following link:
Alan Chadwick
Click on "Techniques", and then on "Spinach".
Here is a link that might be useful: Alan Chadwick
Plant survival and edibility are two things. Small spring radishes are just good fro a few weeks for eaeting. Then they will bolt or tubers will crack and get wood. But some of the green can be edible. But it will never grow another tuber.
Last fall Iplanted some chinese winter radishes. They did not bulb because I think I planted them too late. Anyway, the overwintered an I kept a few of them to go for seed and the did. They were still live after first set of seeds and were flowering more . the I just pulled them, since I got the seeds I wanted. Now my winter radishes are growing. If I let them they will keep on going till the end of next summer.
The point is that, they wont just die off fast. They are sort of like carrots.
As a general rule of thumb, root crops do not do well with transplanting. This includes: beets, carrots, turnips, radish, Swiss chard (I know, it's grown for its leaves, but it has a deep tap root), parslely (for the same reason), etc.
Here is a link that might be useful: Alan Chadwick
Ah, thanks for the clarification and information. Pests, here I come!
Regarding whether to eat the holey leaves. I would certainly eat the one on the right but not the one on the left. Nothing to do with the holes but the left one just looks too old to be palatable. If those holes are representative of the type of damage you're getting I personally wouldn't do anything except give the plants a good shake and maybe a blast from the hose.
I don't know what Bt costs in the States but here it is extremely expensive and almost impossible to find for sale. I don't know why. It has to be ordered from the US and the postage at least doubles the cost. I wouldn't bother going to that amount of effort unless I had a massive problem and my livelihood depended on a perfect crop. A few holes are par for the course and will do you no harm.