23,948 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

It's definitely not too late to start again from seed in Utah. I am also in Utah (Spanish Fork) and my zucchini just barely sprouted a week ago. Put some seeds in the ground and you will have a stronger plant than putting a transplant in.

Thanks everybody for the confirmation. I am not quitting now, I'm having to much fun.

I am planing on growing a single stem and thus the stake.

Example: http://www.mysquarefootgarden.net/pruning-zucchini/

Here is a link that might be useful: Single stem zucchini

I'm in zone 7 or Chattanooga, TN. It rained last week a bit and I checked the soil and I didn't water them because the soil was quite wet. But Friday they were getting to the watering stage and I thought about watering then the rain started. So it's been raining a lot these past few days.

The peppers have been gradually getting light green, but I didn't notice how much until I planted some Red Savina's beside them and noticed the completely different green. I'll post a photo of the Red Savinas to see.

Well I planted them almost a month ago on May 6th. I watered them and gave them a bit of fertilizer to start off, it was Miracle grow All Purpose. So that was the last time I fertilized them.

Once I noticed the peppers changing I did a home soil test, one of the ones that tests pH, Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Potash. The Nitrogen and Phosphorous were low so that's when I figured I was about to have something happen.

I started using an Epsom Salt spray about a week ago to see if it was something easy to fix quick, but sadly not.

My watering before was the first two days I planted them I watered them with a gallon can so I put about 2 gallons over the 220 sq. ft. Did this for two days.

So once I got the water levels when I wanted them I left them be.

So,
pH 6.5 - 6.8
Nitrogen - Low
Phosphorous - Low
Potash - Medium

The soil I am using is compost i've made from bagged leaves, grass, small sticks, and let it sit, that's it. Each bed has about 9 inches of this compost before it meets regular ground.

Jean, Sorry did not see your post. Someone had sprayed some weeks and weeks ago, but nothing recent, it had killed all the grass around but the grass is growing back no problems

Row covers, row covers, row covers. Easy, cheap, reusable, organic, effective--what more could you want?

Row covers would be useless in my backyard. Row covers are for people who have space.

Kevin

Like ltilton says.........it's healthy. Rejoice!

I WISH I had that problem! I need to keep amending our soil. It's only the first year though, so who knows what will happen! Enjoy!

Yes. I agree. I live in Zone 8 and I just planted my okra about ten days ago, and that was pushing it with the late cool weather we have had.

If the plants die, just plant more when the soil warms up. If the soil is really warm, new seeds will take off and out grow these by far, even if you baby them along.

Agree. Far too early for okra. It is a heat lover and responds poorly to fluctuating spring weather and temps. No one ever plants it here until late June.

Dave

Thanks Dave, I never thought about ventilation. Having said that, I don't think cooking the plants will be an issue. I live in Ireland. We don't have an abundance of heat or sunshine here. Quite the opposite! Thanks also to fruitnut, that info is handy to know for next year but since I've already bought this roll of poly, I might as well use it this year.

This post was edited by Growing-In-The-Dark on Sun, May 19, 13 at 16:34

As long as it's think enough, your plastic should hold up for a season. If you decide you want to grow under plastic next year, you would be better off getting UV-resistant greenhouse plastic. Do be careful, though - just a few hours direct sun can cook plants if there's no ventilation.

From what I've read, the western spotted cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata), sometimes called a "green lady bug," is a major problem in California. It may be different from the one I've dealt with in Ohio.

You can drape something light over your remaining plant during the hottest part of the day...I used a semi-sheer curtain. My plants were on the west side of our building(when we were in Wisconsin)and it got very hot. The fabric kept the plants cooler but I still had to water the containers twice a day.

Totally agree with Dave.

Ok, thanks for the input. That's kinda what I was thinking!

EricEngelmann... We have 8x9" (approx.) timbres boardering parts of our garden. The quackgrass goes not only around, but through the wood. I'm liking the vertical concrete paver idea (with bigger pavers), but how do you handle the seams? Doesn't the grass target those spots and get through anyway?

Currently, we pull as much as we can by hand and spot treat with glyphosate here and there. I've pulled two full wheelbarrows of rhizomes this week (my hands are sore!) from the front flower bed (2x50') and I haven't even gotten into the main veggie garden yet. It doesn't matter how much I pull - and I'm getting right down at least a foot, loosening first with a garden fork and then searching every square inch of soil for bits and pieces - it's a never-ending cycle. I think the stuff is unkillable.

I hate to say it, but that's pretty much the only solution for a bed in use-removal over and over again. I was lamenting how 3 years in I am still finding roots in the middle of some parts of my garden... Then we broke some new ground nearby and I got reminded how much worse it was when we started. :) Get something like a hori hori (sometimes sold as a soil knife or garden multi tool) if you are going to tackle it by hand. It makes the job much easier!

I've been told that a good dense planting of soybeans will shade it out, which is great if you are a farmer, and also that sweet potatoes and winter squash plantings will do the same. Haven't tried those methods, though I'm playing with the squash this year. If you want to start a new bed, get the plastic out now and solarize a new spot for about a month around the solistice. We're going to give that a whirl this year too, since we have a honking big sheet of plastic left over from building the hoop house.

And I've taken to rototilling a moat around my garden- a single pass around the perimeter every couple of weeks to help keep the stuff from invading the edges. Since it is already trying, and failing, I feel like maybe I won't be spending a hot august cursing the stuff again. Good luck with whatever method you choose, it will probably be an ongoing battle for life. My goal is just to turn it into a managable chore.

are they eating my plants?

Normally, no they do not but only you can determine that for sure.

Dave

Sound like isopods. I use them in my humid tarantula tanks as a "clean up crew" (I get them out of my yard) Very handy little bugs to keep around, and they shouldn't bother your plants.

Sounds like it might be a cutworm. You can put a cutworm collar around the base of the plant. Use a toilet paper tube or a paper towel tube. Two or three inches inches high. Put it around the base of the plant and push it into the ground. Diachenous (sp) earth will kill snails and slugs. It is make of crushed shells, so it isn't a chemical. Try not to inhale the dust if you do use it. It can hurt your lungs. Good luck! I lost several kale seedlings to those boogers.

Last night I went out to the back yard with the new puppy and STEPPED on a big squishy slug on the deck, it was so disgusting. Thank you all who guessed slugs because there were several out there.

My brother gardened on Cape Cod back in the 1970s and got very good results. As soon as you scuffed the surface, you got sand. He used eelgrass as compost and mulch. If nothing else, I'd focus on crops like carrots and parsnips - they'll grow great. Anything that likes good drainage shouldn't need a lot of soil amendment.

Keep adding organic material--year after year, season after season. It works and will give you fine soil eventually.