23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

GRAPEFRUIT sized? Good golly!

Hmm.... I see from your list of what does poorly that your soil is more waterlogged than I realised:(.

I suppose part of the problem is that I cannot really conceive of summer rain (we don't have that, here) so I assume wet soil gets drier as the season goes on. But maybe that is not true for you?

I am starting to think the rice farming sounds good :/.

Storm passed us completely by, though there were some beautiful thunderheads to the east. Not even a drop. Yay!

I'm on the other side of the same coin, NJ. I can't conceive of it *not* raining in the summer. I frequently read in gardening books and even on GW here about not getting the leaves of certain plants wet. I've scratched my head for years. Doesn't rain get them wet all the time?

We just got back from a road trip to Victoria, BC a few days ago. It doesn't really rain in the summer there either. It was extremely strange to see brown grass (where it wasn't irrigated) and occasional falling leaves and I was told this was normal in the summer. That just doesn't happen here except in drought years. We saw farms all over BC baling beautiful hay. They could cut and bale at the optimum nutrition level because they totally controlled the irrigation. Time to cut? Just stop watering. Take as much time as necessary to dry in the swath; heck, take a couple extra days to flip the swath and dry it through. It's amazing. We just can't do that here most years. Usually, when it looks like there's going to be a rash of a few days with no rain, farmers are dropping everything - even 9 to 5 jobs in town - to 'make hay while the sun shines'. Even then, it's unusual to get hay off with no rain at all on it. Most of the prairies here support "dry-land" farms with no irrigation setup at all.

In an average year here, I only usually need to water the garden at the beginning, when seeds are close to the surface and yet to germinate. After they've established, I rarely need to pull out the sprinkler. There's at least an inch of rain per week or so and when there's not, the roots dig deep enough that they're good for a few more days until it rains again. This is only my second year doing dry bush beans, but I'm finding it difficult to mature them on the plant because of the short season and because the rain still comes in the fall, though less. Same for the pole beans, though, they're up in the air and do dry off a little faster.

No rain in the winter - just snow, cold and more cold. We can go into the -30s Celcius for a couple of weeks at a time and -40 and below is not unheard of. I don't get to do cover crops. Typically, last frost is within the first week of June (or late May in a good year) and first frost is usually early to mid September (but can come as early as August in a bad year). We can extend harvest into early October by covering on nights where there's frost forecast. Crops mature, but don't really grow much by then.

I've tried mulches a few times, but have discarded the idea. I know it's a great thing for many gardeners, but I find it cools the soil too much and there's not really a need to conserve moisture. Should we go back to drought years, I'd see about trying it again. Right now, though, I need heat heat heat to reach my soil. :)

Squash vine borer

Look through the recent threads and you will find a lot of information about this pest.

Does the main stem look like its rotting away? From the picture that is what it looks like, That is a sign of SVB damage. Read up on it. You may be able to save the plant.

If you had enough voles to do that kind of damage, you would be feeling squishy places underfoot, and running into their tunnels when you cultivate your beds. I'm wondering about rats, who can set up housekeeping in soil cavities beneath trees and shrubs. If anyone near you leaves pet food out at night, rats will come. One night of snap traps might yield some surprises. A week of snap traps will get rid of them.

Thank you all for the comments. I had the squash on my counter so i could take it with me to the garden center to get help there but i won't have time until the weekend so i threw it out w/trash .... It was pretty big (10 inches ) i tried to take good pictures - it looked like something with sharp fangs or claws. - maybe one critter started eating and another came behind to get their dinner!?

I did put out some snap traps a couple weeks ago - inside a milk carton so birds and friendly creatures wouldn't get hurt - and both traps were tripped by morning with no critters but the apples were gone..... That method didn't seem to work well for me and i just don't want to hurt the wrong ones.

Thanks again for all the helpful suggestions!

I will try the netting over new growth as recommended- THANK YOU!

Superb beans. Clearly you have little or no problem with MBB. Maybe winters are cold enough that it doesn't exist there?

pnbrown - Did not know about MBB until you mentioned it, thanks for the heads-up. I did some quick research, will research more in depth to learn if this problem is something I should be looking for in the future. Have never seen signs of them here, do not know if they can survive up here or not at this point. Really prefer not to have to deal with another insect problem...

So no, I am not having any problems with MBB that I can see. I see occasional beans with bore holes and a handful or so are getting chewed on by what I think are field mice. Some are half eaten hanging on the plants with a nice clean cut - have chased a few bunnies out that are getting past my electric fence so I assume they are the culprits of the last problem. All in all losses are minor so far, hopefully things will stay that way.

Blossom end rot is mostly common in tomatoes, which seems to affect certain types more (Roma, San Marzano ...my experience). But Calcium deficiency seems to be a hypothesis. I read a lot a lot of discussions (here on GW) that IT IS NOT really CALIUM DEFICIENCY BUT PLANTS" INABILITY TO TAKE IT AND DISTRIBUTE IT properly. The common consensus is that irregular watering (from too much to too little, from too wet to dry ..) is to blame.

Normally, calcium is one of the abundant elements in most soils(NOT talking about soiless potting mix). Calcium can exist in many chemical compositions that some are not readily available to plants. It is also most common soil sweetner(in Lime, gypsum, ...)

IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING that ROTTING is the outcome of bacterial action(fermentation, infection ...) Most bacteria grow and thrive in moist environment where also the air is stagnant. it is also a fact that MOST(not all) BACTERIA CANNOT SURVIVE AND MULTIPLY IN ACIDIC ENVIRONMENT.
So, then it is more likely that roting starts in an environment of prolonged wetness, and where the environment is also alkaline.

When I weigh all of these, I can say that growing atmospheric environment is also crucial, in addition to the soil chemistry. I would take the following precautions:
1- keep the plants reasonably pruned near the ground, to prevent wetness, to provide air circulation.

2- Always water my pepper plants, tomatoes during the day(preferably early in the morning) so that it will have a better chance dry up fast. But then we cannot do anything about rain and wet weather

3- Avoid sprinkler/spray watering . Because if pepper fruits are dry, there will be a less chance for rotting.

In effect, in lieu of knowing the actual causes, all we can do is try to improve our odds.

This post was edited by seysonn on Tue, Jul 16, 13 at 4:14

Thank you bunches! I will do this!

@ IL-gardener,

ONE: I use NEEM oil spray(buy concentrate and make my own mix). There are several manufacturers. They clearly say on the package what it is: e.g. 60% neem oil, 40%(other..)

TWO: Now that you have sprayed with both Neem oil and milk/water, please report the results. This way is better than "Somebody said such and such.."

Either one of those, even the chemical fungicide is NOT a complete cure all. They just keep the fungi at check. Then of course it depends on the state and stage of PM. At certain advance stage, even if you destroy the fungi , the plant is not going to recover.

Could you not cut off the infected areas and treat with something like neem oil or Azamax? Not sure if Azamax specifically helps powdery mildew. I had it on my tomatoes last year due to high humidity in my greenhouse and it took out my whole crop despite all measures to keep it from spreading. Luckily it was late in the summer this started. Not sure if this would work but appears organic. I've used TKO many times for other uses but not gardening sprays. Good luck!

I have been picking my cukes that look like that- they taste just fine.

Here is a great article that I found that might explain this.

http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/opp4556

I've read the first few inches of the plant the fruit should be trimmed to allow for proper growing and nutrient intake. Fruit should taste fine though. I wish I could find the other article I had about cucumbers as well that showed pics but can't.

WooHooMan, This is my second year. Last year I tried mini watermelons which were very hard to tell when they were ripe. I don't allow insects into the greenhouse so I pollinated by hand. They grew to be 4lbs and had 3 per plant. For my zone it was not nearly long enough to support that amount of fruit. I am trying honeydew & cantaloupe but thinking I incorrectly tagged them as the one & only fruit growing should be honeydew but it has veins like cantaloupe. Can I cross pollinate these two with the male flowers now that I am not sure which plants are which? They both look identical... I'm going to stick to 2 melons per plant and see if that works. Currently the plant is expelling a majority of the female blossoms by turning yellow before even growing as Laceves mentioned.

DigDirt, I had someone post reasons for blossom drop with my peppers and I'm seeing many things I could be doing wrong. Thanks for your input!

Laceves - Check this out: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/pepper/msg0716012119853.html?2

I too was amazed at how fast my early prolific straight neck yellow squash began to yield. I harvested my first squash 36 days after seeding. If you can keep the SVB at bay, they are wonderfully gratifying.

I have two kinds : (1) Straight neck yellow and Striped/mottled green globe.
They both have started growing male/female flowers. I am doing about 3 pollinations a day now, Luckily, I don't have to do it real early in the morning. They stay open well passed noon. Because, I think, the weather is not hot and they don't get much AM sun.

VIVA La Squash !!! hehe

The leaves are probably falling from too much water and the flowers may also. But the flowers/pods will also fall because of high and low temps, amongst other things. that's whay with more months of extreme heat coming, mulch is the way to go. Mulch will also help extend your season some when the temps start to drop. I'm all about the mulch-- the benefits far exceeds the drawbacks.

Kevin

Thanks, Kevin for the mulch info! I am going to put some more down as mine has melded into the soil. Not enough I guess. But this site is great. I've already learned so much.

Bacillus thuringiensis kurstaki is used against caterpillars but isn't active against beetles.

For beetles use Bacillus thuringiensis aizawai.

Wasn't recommending it for the beetles Jean but for the beetle larvae, which are caterpillars. They are what is doing the damage.

Dave

I use the 85 degrees in a small room thing. When I added moisture, I had some sprouting trouble after a few days.

Thank you all for your replies, and suggestions on curing sweet potatoes.

I thought I would share what I typed up and handed out to the people I gave slips to. I've collected tips from various sources (y'all included), and am not taking ANY credit for this (except for copying and pasting into a document). Just sharing the wealth. :)

"Curing Sweet Potatoes
Although large amounts of soil clinging to roots during storage is not desirable, sweet potatoes are easily damaged during the washing process when freshly dug. Allow roots to dry and cure before removing excess soil.

Cure** sweet potatoes by holding them for about 10 days at 80-85°F and high relative humidity (85-90 percent). In the absence of better facilities, they can be cured near a furnace to provide warmth. If the temperature near your furnace is between 65-75°F, the curing period should last 2-3 weeks. To maintain the required high humidity (85-90 percent relative humidity), stack storage crates or boxes and cover them with paper or heavy cloth. Packing in perforated plastic bags will also keep humidity high, yet the perforations will allow excess moisture to escape.

Once the sweet potatoes are cured, move them to a dark location where a temperature of about 55-60°F can be maintained during storage. Sweet potatoes are subject to chilling injury, so keep them out of the refrigerator. Good results can be obtained by wrapping cured sweet potatoes in newspaper and storing them in a cool closet.
Exposure to low storage temperatures for several days will cause the sweet potatoes to develop a hard center and reduce their eating quality.
When the roots are stored at high temperatures for a long time, they begin to sprout, shrivel and become dry, stringy and pithy.
**Curing ideas
• If humidity can’t be achieved, place on a closet shelf with a space heater below and left the door open a crack and monitored the temperature. Kept it about 85 degrees for 10 days or so.
• Cure by, "letting them bask in the sun for a day, and then removing them to a shady area that remains above 80 degrees for 7-10 days." from Vegetable Gardener's Bible by Edward C. Smith
• Cure the sweet potato for 10 days in a room that remains around 80 degrees, or for 20 days in a room that remains around 70 degrees. If you live in an area with cool fall temperatures requiring use of the furnace, place the sweet potatoes near the furnace for the curing days. In the south where fall temperatures are still in the 70's and 80's during the day, a sunny porch during the daytime can be used to cure the sweet potatoes, but you will have to bring them indoors when the night time temperatures drop or the sweet potato won't cure properly and will rot before winter ends.
• Place a space heater and a humidifier (not necessary, and if not monitored, the humidity may encourage sprouting), and the newly harvested sweet potatoes, and shut the door as much as possible.
• Some people suggest dampening a piece of burlap or some old towels to drape over crates containing the sweet potatoes, and place in a warm location for 10 days. Rewet cloth occasionally, and rotate sweet potatoes, being careful not to damage the skin of potato."

This post was edited by commgardener11 on Mon, Jul 15, 13 at 21:40