24,795 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

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

I'd quit spraying the leaves with anything as coating the leaves only makes the problem worse.

It is one thing to spray plant leaves when the plant is outside exposed to the elements but indoors the spray coating only builds up and plugs the leaf pores.

And dish soap sprays unless carefully mixed and very weak can kill plants all on its own.

Instead just make up a diluted Neem and water mix in a bowl and gently wipe the underside of the leaves with a soft cloth dipped in it. That wipes off the mites at the same time.

But please understand that mites are very difficult to control/eliminate unless you use the chemical pesticides that are effective on them. So the plant may be a lost cause.

And yes, if you have other plants that are not yet infected, then I would toss this plant before the problem spreads.

Dave

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thecoolestone

Dave, thanks for the suggestion. I guess I am better off tossing off the plant and starting afresh.

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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

Colored flagging tape.

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

people has told me that I have to mark them

I would assume they meant IF you wanted to save the seeds from them. That is the only reason to mark them.

Dave

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

Both varieties are currently only available wholesale to commercial growers (minimum order 1000 seeds). You can contact the distributors at the phone numbers on the link below.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Outstanding Seed distributors list

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groall

I had contacted and bought some other seeds from one of the growers dealers to whom they sell, they didn't have either pumpkins and that is where I saw the listed two types and just had to get some seeds for them......sadly the price I would have to pay for a thousand seeds from the growers would break my piggy bank and I couldn't buy seeds for the rest of my gardens......I was hoping there was another dealer who might sell the seeds in a smaller amount.....though I think your right, I should call the distributor and ask if there is one of their dealers to whom they sell which might have them available to a "small" grower, in a "smaller" amount....thanks again "digdirt"....

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

You can't separate plants grown in rock wool since they quickly incorporate the wool cube right into the roots and base of the plant. One reason why onions and other root crops aren't commonly considered a rock wool crop since you have to sacrifice part of the edible root to get rid of the wool cube..

Are clusters bad? If you plan to harvest and use them as scallions, yes. If you don't care if they look like bulbs of garlic or shallots and are willing to sacrifice the immature ones attached around the core, fine.

Dave

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jackblasto

Thanks for the info everyone. Very good to know.

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zzackey(8b GA)

I saved rosemary seeds and basil and holy basil seeds last year. I'd love to trade with you. I am just learning how to save seeds. I want to grow mostly heirloom plants. I didn't have much luck on the seed exchange here. I got alot of seeds that didn't germinate.

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cousinfloyd(NC 7)

Zackey, my wife grew holy basil for the first time this past year. I really liked the flavor. I wouldn't have thought any kind of basil would make a nice tea, but I thought the holy basil made an outstanding tea. I just saw in Southern Exposure's catalog that holy basil is supposed to be a different species from other basils (O. sanctum instead of O. basilicum.) I wonder if that means it won't cross with other basils. I also wonder what kind of isolation distance is necessary to prevent cross-pollination in basils that can cross-pollinate. Zackey, if you (or anyone else) wants to e-mail me directly, I'd be glad to hear about your interests, idea, recommendations, to explore potential for trades, etc.

Anne, thanks for the suggestion. I am familiar with CFSA. As one of the farms that gave a pre-conference farm tour my wife and I got free passes to the annual conference one year, and we certainly hear about other things that CFSA does. I haven't, however, seen/recognized much in the way of opportunities with CFSA to connect with other seed savers, especially not the kind of small-scale seed savers that would presumably be more open to non-commercial kinds of information sharing and cooperation, etc. I think they host an annual seed swap, and I used to think seed swaps would bring a bunch of seed savers together, but my impression now is that seed swaps (speaking generally here about seed swaps everywhere) mostly just involve leftover and surplus commercial seed.

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sweetquietplace(6 WNC Mtn.)

It will draw critters if you just dump it on top. If your compost pile is large enough, you could dig a hole in it and bury the chowder. Or, you could dig a hole/trench in your garden bed and bury it there. I sure wouldn't waste it. None of my leftovers go in the garbage can or down the disposal.

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charlieboring

It will not harm your compost; it will decompose and become a part of the pile. As it decomposes, there will be a little more stench caused by the gasses released by the milk and fish. I would bury it in the middle of the pile to help control the smell. If critters get to it, they may mess your pile up, but other than that, I see no reason not to compost it.

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floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

That's interesting that you don't get them on your iPad sunnibel. If you look at the bottom of this screen you will see 'Learn more about in-text links on this page here'.
What you see is certain words within posts in a different colour and if you are unfortunate enough to hover your cursor near them an ad fills the middle of the screen making it impossible to continue reading the post until you click the x to close it. Even then often clicking the x makes it continue and you have to click again elsewhere to really get rid of it. For example a post about garden 'clean' up will cause an ad about a floor polish to fill your screen. They have annoyed plenty of other people.

Here is a link that might be useful: In text ads.

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emmers_m(9a/Sunset 7 N Cal)

One thing annoys me about this 'sticky':

1. That it is on every page of each forum, not just page one.

Actually two things annoy me about this 'sticky':

2. That it is essentially an advertisement, not relevant to the topic of each forum and certainly not an attempt to preserve some of the valuable information or sage wisdom that drops off beyond 'page 67' every day, or even to be helpful to newcomers.

Actually three things annoy me about this 'sticky':

3. That it is just a repeat of a link from the 'What's new' section an inch above it!

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aloha10

Rodney,
I will be interested in reading here of your results. Most of the feed stores and old garden centers here sell the bulbs in the sprig.... figured they knew something.
Victor

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eurolarva(z4 MN)

I grew shallots from bulb last year with good sucess however the bulbs are pricy. I am in Minnesota so fall planting I doubt will work. I want to try these from seed this year. I typically start onions from seed in late February and work them under grow lights till they are ready to go outside. I am wondering if shallots from seed work the same way. If I do start them from seed will they have multiple shallots per plant or only one the first season?

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seysonn(8a WA/HZ 1)

I agree to some extent with lazygardener.
But the subject matter is too broad. It depend on the duration of these classes ; How many sessions? Who are the participants?

So to me you have to start with a brief introduction about plant life and soil chemistry in simple language first. Then get into a more practical aspects, like starting seeds and caring for it.

You wouldn't want to overload the information. Nowadays most people have access to internet. You can encourage hem to do some NET study if they really are serious about gardening. To me gardening is similar to swimming. You cannot teach in a classroom how to swim.

JMO

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floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

I agree totally with lazygardens - you need to hook people immediately with something practical and hands on. Maybe a vegetable id blind tasting or something. If you start with the soil science half of them will not be back the next week.

Since the OP has not returned there's not much to go on. All ideas are speculation without more info.

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lazy_gardens

You will find more information searching for "luffa", its common English name.

It's normal for the first blossoms to be male, and for them to drop off quickly. They are there to get the pollinators in the habit of coming to the plant.

Don't expect every flower to become a gourd. After the female flowers appear, many will fall off unpollinated.

Make sure the pollinating insects (bees) can reach the plant and keep the plants properly watered. Move them outside, or to larger pots, if they need more room.

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zzackey(8b GA)

I never stratified my Malabar spinach. I just planted the seeds in 1 gallon containers in the full sun when it was hot out. It grew like a weed.

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floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

There's a difference between stratification and scarification. ivanbelenjr is doing scarification. The period in the fridge is stratification. But it seems odd to me to stratify the seeds of tropical plants. What's the reasoning behind that?

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jctsai8b(8B)

Try Long squash

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zzackey(8b GA)

I had a great pepper that performed super well. It's called Lady Belle. It had all kinds of bug attacks and tons or rain. It never stopped producing. The only bad thing it got hot when it was baked as stuffed peppers. It got so heavy with peppers I had to stake it.

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lkzz(7b)

Chickens love them - I despise them - but...

Going to make a concerted effort to "harvest" as many pests this spring/summer to feed as a primary protein source for our chickens. Really want to get the chickens off of store bought feed (which I just discovered is GMO corn). Found an excellent book that gives great direction on how to naturally feed chickens.

It is definitely an attitude adjustment to look at garden pests as advantageous when considering them as an excellent food source for our girls. Didn't mean to hijack the thread - just wanted to extend a little hopefulness to those of us bothered by pests such as the hornworm (and the Japanese Beetle).

Posted link to book below.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Small-Scale Poultry Flock

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ediej1209(5 N Central OH)

Yep, we "treat" our girls with the hornworms too. So funny to watch them squabble over them!

Edie

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seysonn(8a WA/HZ 1)

I don't know about willow water but soaking some seeds like, squash/melons family, some beans, onions, parsley, ... can speed up germination. I personally always soak cucumber and squash seeds for about 24 hours in plain water before planting. In ground or in potting soil they might not get enough moisture for a good while, when planted dry. You can even sprout them before planting. We know that it take most seeds shorter time to germinate in warmer environment.
YMMV

This post was edited by seysonn on Wed, Jan 15, 14 at 4:40

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ZachS. z5 Littleton, CO

Very true, and as I said rooting aids have their place to be sure. I am not at all knocking the idea, just saying it's not something that I would personally worry about. It very well may help with germination rate and/or speed. I honestly don't know. I've always left them more or less to their own devices. My theory would be that non viable seeds could not be made viable by adding extra stuff to it, but I've been known to be wrong before (ask my wife, lol).

I guess the margin of error in the experiment would be that it would be hard to tell if the increase in germination speed was caused by the additive or simply the soaking itself.

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keith100_gw(NY 5A)

green mulberry , you are right, I'm planting a 40 foot row for my 85 year old dad. He doesn't bend like he used to, and honestly neither do I, lol .I'm looking for any edge I can get.

Floral, I thank you so much, I have ordered some of them from your suggested search and hope to have some success at making some home made seed tape with them. Hopefully dad can have lots of greens I like the bottoms , lol .

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seysonn(8a WA/HZ 1)

Doing certain tasks is like eating some food that is in front of you:
-- you can use you bare hands.
-- You may use a fork.
-- You can use a spoon.
-- You can use chop sticks( if you know how to use them)

The bottom line is the same.

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