23,594 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

I don't know your conditions or zone, but if you're new to gardening, I'm going to guess you're over watering. I live in SE Texas and I only water twice a week. I could get away with even less if I wanted to. Every other day definitely seems excessive. Over watering is just as bad as under watering, if not worse, and it can cause the wilting.

This post was edited by IAmSupernova on Sun, Apr 28, 13 at 11:28

I'll second the diagnosis of overwatering. There should be no problem growing in that medium. But you have a mixture that will hold water tightly. It's supposed to save you the effort of frequent watering! A more sandy mixture with regular soil would drain more readily. That being the case, when you water often, you'll end up with a medium that is continuously soggy. Push your finger and inch or so into the soil. Don't water until that inch or so is dry. It certainly shouldn't be kept moist on the surface, at least after your plants get more than an inch or so tall.

Watering as infrequently as possible is a strategy to encourage your roots to grow deep. Keeping the top layer moist doesn't do that.

Wertach,
Thank you so much for posting, I was not going to grow corn but this corn is so beautiful I just had to get a packet.
Edymnion, I'm sorry they treated you that way. I hope you say something to them so that they can track down why you were not notified.

I've ordered mine. Like Lucille, I hadn't planned on growing corn this year, but can't resist this.

I think you could plant without hardening off if you cover them.

Use fabric not plastic. First put in stakes that are a bit taller than the plants. Make sure the weight of the fabric is on the stakes, not the plants.

Cover the plants completely. Your goal, in part, is to protect them from light. After 2 days, uncover for 2 hours, early or late in the day (not midday). The next day, 4 hours, the next day 6, etc. Nighttime covering at your discretion, depending on temperatures :).

In Chicago, you won't want to plant your tomatoes and peppers until Memorial Day, maybe even June 1 for the peppers given the long, slow spring we've been having. You need to wait until the nighttime LOWS are in the 50's (mid-50's for the peppers), not the highs.

The lettuce and spinach can take much lower temperatures, so they could go out now ... but only after they are hardened off. Enjoy your vacation and plan to start hardening them off properly when you return. :)

As for the carrots and beets, I've only ever direct seeded them. But since this is the time to plant them, I would start hardening them off with your lettuce and spinach when you return.

Good luck!

I think I might have figured out the problem. I have some younger corn plants that were planted in buckets. One of those younger plants appears to have gray leaf spot on a leaf. Does anyone know of a way to cure my plants of this?

Who diagnosed GLS? IF your corn has gray leaf spot, and that is a big IF since it is

1) a disease of the Midwest and East coast, not California and

2) there is no sign of it in your pictures, and

3) it primarily affects mature plants and yours are young seedlings

4) yours is a new raised bed not an old possibly soil contaminated one nor a no-till farm

then the only treatment is fungicide sprays such as Daconil. It does not cure the disease it only slows it down hopefully enough to harvest the crop.

Dave

You're just planting a potato, no oleander. They don't poison the ground or anything else like that.

no potatoes will not contaminate, unless they get blight, unlikely though, they will improve soil and decontaminate.

len

Here is a link that might be useful: lens instant potato patch

I looked up "reptile light" as most would have no idea what they are - myself included. Apparently they are CFL (compact fluorescent bulbs) and the Reptile 100 is not 100 watts it is only 26 watts. None of the ones I looked at indicate the # of lumens.

Dave

What you want to look for is maximum lumen rating, and the temperature needs to be "Daylight", not "soft white" or anything else, "daylight".

Lynda: the critical points probably are that you need a container that is at least 20-25 gallons; full sun; fast draining potting mix (not soil); at least a 120-day growing season; and regular fertilizing with a balanced fertilizer containing all the trace minerals. Pumpkins need a lot of moisture and food. I suggest you read the most popular thread in the Container Forum.

Here is a link that might be useful: Container Soils

For fertilizer, its important not to give them too much nitrogen. Too much N and you'll get tons of vines, and no pumpkins at all (female flowers don't set if there's too much N).

Also, pumpkin vines will want to root along the vine, and that will greatly help pumpkin development. Don't just give it one pot at the base, have a couple of extra smaller pots that you can put the vines in for secondary rooting.

Thanks, nc-crn - will follow your advice. I think they are likely saveable.

Something I have used for years and it really works. If you take a plastic laundry basket and invert it over a flat of plants you are trying to harden off, it gives them just the right amount of sun and wind exposure. After a week or so, if it's not too windy, I am able to remove the basket. I usually put the flat and basket on my east facing front porch.

Steve

You may have to adjust your demands somewhat, make them a bit more realistic.

You want only a local source, already pre-tested by someone who has used it, only a small amount, really good stuff, AND delivered? All that wouldn't be possible in many parts of the country. Is cost a consideration too because all that is going to cost you.

Bagged compost from one of the big box stores may be your best bet for many reasons.

Dave

I get compost from Fischettis every year. It is very good quality. They sell it by the cubic yard.

I left a couple of my leeks from year before last in the ground just to see the seed stalks--and were they impressive! I saved the seed and those now-4"-high babies will go into the garden this year!
Last season's leeks (I left 2 again) do not seem to have survived the winter--though I have not checked for a couple of weeks.

@florauk: In my experience, they vary from plant to plant. I think some get tougher, younger, and some stay cookable.

Y'all know what's really funny? If you forget about a few leeks and don't pull them even AFTER they drop their seeds, they resprout from the base. In clumps. I should take a pic and post it. I am leaving those to see what they do next :).

Also, for me, leeks reseed themselves. So far I have not needed my backup tray of starts.

I would want to know more about the topsoil and more about the compost. Topsoil is very generic. Some venders sell good topsoil and others sell a mixture of sand and composted horse manure and call it topsoil.

Compost is also very generic. Composted sewerage sludge is commonly sold as compost and you probably shouldn't be using that in a vegetable garden. Or it might be green waste which can also be suspect.

Ask the sand silt clay and organic content of the topsoil. Ask about the ingredients in the compost.

Zeuspaul

I always use just compost in my raised beds.

So have you seen any recovery? Like where the poly wasn't touching the plants?

I'd say I lost 85%