24,795 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

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donnabaskets(Zone 8a, Central MS)

I actually prefer to grow eggplants in pots. There are fewer (but not none) flea beetles that way. They produce extremely well. Digdirt is right about the fertilizer. Half strength miracle grow (or other liquid fertilizer) weekly and osmocote once a month. I use the same regimen on pepper plants in pots too.

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lucillle

Thank you for your answer. I kind of had the notion I'd try out some square foot gardening this year so there are two small raised beds which will be mostly just peppers, so no peppers in pots this year.

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woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a

pnbrown:

So is red meat. But you don't see on the side of a package of cheese, for example, "beef free."

Eat some veggies in one's diet and maybe he/she can digest more properly.

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pnbrown

No, the grain digestibility issues are not related to other plant foods for the most part. Eating greens does not solve the problems around using wheat (whether whole or white) as the diet staple. It is simply good to eat greens, but not magic.

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dave_f1 SC, USDA Zone 8a(7b)

Just assumed they were just very small Yukon Golds with some creative marketing.

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nancyjane_gardener(Zone 8ish North of San Francisco in the "real" wine country)

6 zuks for 2 people? Hearty laugh! Most years 1 zuk and 1 yellow crook neck do the 3 of us just fine! We don't have the dreaded SVB though!
Squash doesn't freeze very well except grated for stews, soups, breads etc.
We get along with just a few chard plants, but they grow year round here and I don't freeze (don't they get soggy?)
Be sure to seed radishes every few weeks so they don't all get to size at once! I guess you could make a radish slaw if you got too many at once! Hmmmm, that sounds good!
WHAT! No tomatoes???????? Nancy

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robert2014 zone 5b(5B Central IL)

gjcore, kathy and nancy thanks a lot for your valuable inputs.

gjcore.. i thought I need to plant the taller plants on the north side and shorter on the south. I will take your suggestions and change the layout.

kathy .. last year we planted 3 rows of chard (in the same spot) and we ate it without much problem. We also gave some to our friends.

Nancy, we lost our zuks last year to svb and squash bugs. It was very disappointing. And we love zuks. Thats why I was thinking to plant more, so even if we get hit by the svb, we still will get some before it hits.
regarding tomato, I have a 12x12 feet space just for tomatoes.
I also have another 10x20 feet bed, which I need to plan as well.

This post was edited by robert2014 on Sat, Feb 22, 14 at 21:48

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Lots of 'favorite mulch' discussions here and even more over on the Soil & Mulch forum. Several contain long lists of things to use for mulching and plastic/landscape fabric isn't very high on the list.

While plastic mulches can work ok on some crops it's is only on specific crops (like melons) and in the northern zones where soil warming is required. And once full summer arrives it can cook the plant roots unless removed or covered.

I agree with lacey that you must have been mowing grass that had gone to seed or a lawn with lots of weeds that had gone to seed. Pretty hard to get seeds from grass clippings otherwise.

Straw, chopped or not, is often touted as the perfect mulch with old hay and compost close seconds. Other good alternatives are leaf mold or shredded leaves, cardboard, newspaper (shredded or multiple layers), pine straw, etc. but regardless of what it used it has to be applied thickly to work and to remain in place.

All of those have the added benefits of soil improvement. Plastic doesn't contribute anything to the soil.

Dave

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emorems0(PA - 6a)

We have a large, hilly yard and my husband works 60-80 hours a week... I'm not skilled/confident enough to handle the steep slopes with a riding mower, so yes... the lawn doesn't get mowed nearly as often as it should. I often pull tall, seeded grass by hand from around the planting beds and other areas that are hard to reach with the riding mower (we're finally getting a trimmer this year). When I did try mulching with grass clippings, I tried to make sure there weren't any seeds mixed in, but it was just too much trouble.

I hadn't really considered straw, sounds like that might be a good option for me.

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

What variety are you growing specifically? The wall thickness in bells is primarily determined by the genetics of the variety.

Another contributing factor can be very INconsistent soil moisture levels after fruit set.

Dave

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charlieboring

With heavy clay soil you need to add compost every spring and fall and maybe a bit of lime. For my clay soil in the spring I add lime, humus and manure bought from HD on sale and leaf compost obtained from the county recycle center for free. Finally when the plants are up, I mulch them with free leaf compost. In the fall I add a layer of leaf compost and if no crop is growing turn the compost under. Seems to work well. The soil in dark and fertile. Plants grow well.

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woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a

Charlie: lime will raise ph. Not a good thing for alkaline soils. Especially since most veggies like it a bit on the acidic side or neutral.

If one wants to lower ph, one would add sulfur. Gypsum won't raise it or lower it.

Kevin

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antipodean(10b)

just wait till you try the yellow and orange ones as well, you'll be in heaven!

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charlieboring

My wife grows red bell peppers. She makes a spaghetti sauce by roasting the peppers and removing the skin and seeds. Then in a blender she places the peppers, an egg yolk, olive oil, and garlic cloves and liquifies it. She places the sauce over hot spaghetti which cooks the yolk. Delicious!

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seysonn(8a WA/HZ 1)

I built mine from 5/8" - 6" by 6' cedar. I stacked two boards. I figure for a 3' by 6' bed that is fine. Plus, the price (@ about $2.50 per board) is very reasonable. Not counting labor, each bed costs about $18. Not bad.

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Vesparina

Please HELP!
My husband and I are at a difference of opinions about preserving the wood for our vegetable garden raised beds. He has already painted part of the beds with a white paint to preserve them. I would've rathered him not do this. My belief is that the chemicals will leach in to the soil then in to the veggies. Can this be remedied? I was thinking that maybe we can then either cover the painted part with garden sheeting plastic or apply a more non-toxic preservative over the painted part of the raised beds. Can someone please give me your opinion? He's moving faster than I can type!

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Agree, although i don't think it is all that rare when one grows lots of plants from seed. Sometimes fasciated plants turn out ok but usually not worth the space and care so in the greenhouse we usually just pitch them as we find them.

Dave

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Wildpixie87

Yeah, I am definitely going to keep it, I am really want to see what it grows into!

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wayne_5 zone 6a Central Indiana

Yes, keep morning glories out.
For me I have absolutely no problem with nasturtiums.

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sunnibel7 Md 7(7)

Nancy, I have seen some impressive nasturiums in California, for sure! They don't overwinter here and never sprawl that much. They are so pretty, especially with heavy dew on them. No clue where the OP is, but somewhere that they have winter, so probably no trouble from the nasturtiums.

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quone(10a Sunset 21)

I have pocket gophers. I read as many threads as I could stand, then went to work. I started with Juicy Fruit, the cheapest option. Nothing. Then moved on to pellets, gas and flooding. Nothing. The neighborhood cat tries, but is hit or miss. I ordered Cinch traps, and have a 100% success rate! Some are caught within an hour, but most are overnight. Minimal digging, traps don't get pulled in the tunnel, no need to block the hole after setting, proof that the pests are DEAD--what more could you ask for? The neighborhood cat has gotten better since I give him the dead ones, too. He has a taste for them now!

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mckenziek(9CA)

Thanks quone!

I use Macabee style traps. I will look into the cinch traps on the strength of your recommendation. The gum thing is a known myth. There is a researcher in UC Davis who was able to feed captive gophers juicy-fruit for an extended period. He observed no obvious ill-effect. Apparently they do eat it, though. It just doesn't hurt them.

--McKenzie

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Gurnoegardens

You're right that many kinds of lilies can be toxic... If enough is ingested. Unless you're planning to eat that soil there is absolutely nothing to be concerned about. In fact the flowers of Hemerocalis sp. (a.k.a. daylilies) are edible and with a mild unobtrusive flavor. You could actually plant vegetables immediately adjacent to Agapanthus or Hemerocalis without any fear whatsoever it's not something they exude which may then be taken up by other plants.

Besides that part I'm going to suggest a thorough amending of the spot before planting your veggies. Agapanthus and daylilies are famed for their ability to grow in horrible soil which is generally not so for vegetables.

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laceyvail(6A, WV)

I have been using salt on my asparagus bed ever since it developed fusarium crown rot which I discovered 4 years after I put in the bed. I use about 1/2-3/4 lb food grade rock salt late winter on a bed maybe 20 feet long. I have quick draining sandy soil.

Asparagus is one of the most salt tolerant plants known and for generations, growers controlled weeds by salting. When chemical pre-emergents entered the market after WWII, growers switched and then fusariaum crown and root rots began to invade beds. Salt prevents the fusarium rots, and as I can attest, also cures it You might want to take a look at the following:

â Rock Salt Supresses Fusarium Crown and Root Rot of AsparagusâÂÂ: openagricola.nal.usda.gov/Record/IND92009783

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another_buffalo(6)

Wow! Thank you so much for that information. I'll check out the article, but your advice is just what I needed.

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digdirt2(6b-7a No.Cent. AR HZ8 Sun-35)

Looks pretty normal to me. I also grow the purple varieties and they are PUR-ple. That one isn't nearly as purple like they are.

Assuming your soil has adequate P in it, which most all do, then the cooler springs temps can often create the look of pink/purpling of many varieties of young plants as they have a bit of difficulty absorbing phos when the roots are cool. Usually disappears normally as the weather warms and the plants mature.

Dave

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glib(5.5)

Due to a series of accidents I have three types of 'gus in my bed. And one of them is purple. My FIL used to have a giant bed of white asparagus which, my wife says, was ten times better than my own. so you just have a little mix in there.

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