24,795 Garden Web Discussions | Vegetable Gardening

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

How do you plan to support them? Be sure to take that into consideration. And you will also need to allow for easy access to them for pest patrol and harvest. So 2 sq. foot spacing is considered ideal for most all pepper plants. If you have room 2.5-3' is even better. If you don't have room then it is possible to do them in 1 sq. foot each but they will need much more careful monitoring and feeding.

Dave

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katyajini(z6 NYC)

Thank you Dave, as always.

K.

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Miss_Moose (Winnipeg, Canda. Zone 2)

Oh my... herbicide drift has this kind of effect on tomatoes? That's incredible, very informative!

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

Agree with bcomplex that what you are seeing is severe exposure to herbicides. In this case, more than drift. The leaves in the first few pics are classic photos of that issue. The subsequent pics are both damage resulting from that expose and the plant's efforts to recover (the split stem with the adventitious roots growing out of it.

So source needs to be ID'd if possible to prevent further exposure. If you used any herbicides then you will know the type/brand. If not check with neighbors and ask for advance notice so you can cover your plants. Any yard care companies working the neighborhood? Lastly, if all of those source don't pan out the source can be any mulches or other additives in your bed (community compost is an increasingly common source).

The plants - remove any and all affected foliage that is showing yellow/brown - leaves and stems both - leaving only the good green stuff. They will look bare and naked. Then give the plants a well diluted mild feeding of a well balanced fertilizer and cross your fingers. In most cases, depending on the chemical used, indeterminate varieties will recover enough to produce some fruit. Imidacloprid or clopyralid has a fairly good chance of recovery, anything with 2-4D not much.

Dave

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exmar

A little off topic, however..... Getting old and tired and now have back issues, have discovered I now like to pick beans. I plant them in double rows about 8" apart, then about 2' between the double rows. When they're really loaded for the first picking, I pull out the entire plant and toss them in the cart and haul the entire crop to the front porch, under a tree, etc. Sit in a chair, and enjoy pickiing in the shade. The vines are then returned to the garden, mowed and rototilled in and that's it.

OK, that's heresy to a lot of you, but a lot of folks around me have decided that's the way to go. Bean seed is cheap, plant an extra row or two and life is good. Obviously if you're "space impaired" in the garden, you couldn't do this.

Been gardening for almost 60 years and gotta be creative to keep doing it.

Ev

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bcomplx(z6VA)

Two pickings for Blue Lake and most other varieties, three for Royal Burgundy.

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chigardenlady(5b)

I never tried fortex. I will have to get some.

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Miss_Moose (Winnipeg, Canda. Zone 2)

Woot woot! :D

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Joe B

Bent cukes could mean irregular soil moisture, like super moist to super dry, or poor pollination. They like heat so that shouldn't be a huge issue. I would agree with heavy feeding, I feed mine with a 4-7-7 mix of blood meal, bonemeal and whatever else every 2 weeks. That seems to work well for me. I try to keep the soil moist, don't ever really let it completely dry out, and i pick the cukes pretty small. Seems if I let them get bigger than my hand there is a bitterness I don't care for. Could be the variety though....

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pennypond USDA 10 Sunset 21 CA

Hi Lauren, mine had similar symptoms until I started heavy feeding with fish emulsion. The nitrogen makes happy leaves, and happy leaves make happy cucumbers.

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booberry85(5)

I've had good germination rates with the peat pellets. I too, learned from trial and error. What I do now is after the peat pellets are good and wet and have expanded, I cut off the bottom netting before planting the seeds. Once the seeds have germinated and I'm ready to pot up, I cut off as much of the netting as I can without disturbing the roots.

Also keep in mind that peat does not have any nutrients for the seedlings. You're either going to need to give them plant food and or repot them in potting soil.

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Lee James

Thank you the information. I wasn't happy when I see the white fuzz on the top on some of the pellets. If a seed didn't sprout and stay vigorous, the next thing I see is the white fuzz. Maybe the white fuzz is why it didn't continue growing. Hummm, I work too hard to have issues like this using such a small short cut. I have the individual cells...I will use them next year. Thanks..

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grubby_AZ Tucson Z9

Just as an idea starter: this car wash thing, or something with its three main features of dispenser, aim-able nozzle, and hose connection, could work very well and also do extra duty as a car wash wand, a dog washer, a window rinser, and daughter's unsavory boyfriend repeller. Put a detergent-soaked wad of cheesecloth in the cup, extend the tube, aim the nozzle up, and just stand up straight and walk past the plants, spraying firmly (but without violence) underneath everything.PS: if you don't want heavily loaded household detergents on your plants, try TSP (tri-sodium phosphate) if you can find it in a pure formulation. It works in extremely tiny amounts as the necessary wetting agent.

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

<So those rules ...>

There are no "rules" about pruning. It is nothing more than a personal choice. No pruning police come to call either way so do it if you wish. Don't do it if you don't wish to. Either way you get tomatoes and the sky doesn't fall down.

But don't tell folks trying to learn that they must do it or must not do it or that some sort of rules apply to it. That is unfair to them.

Dave

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Miss_Moose (Winnipeg, Canda. Zone 2)

Oh geeze, you know this is always the problem with online forums. There are a few people who've been here a while and act like patrol dogs of the site, barking at you to shut up when you say something they disagree with. Sorry if I stepped on your well-seasoned toes, I'm not establishing rules, I used the word rules so sue me, I clearly told the guy do what YOU WANT with your plants. Try being nice and not like some pushy high school kid who doesn't like the new kid in town, beating them down with semantics. That's just ridiculous.

There are NO RULES. DO WHAT YOU WANT WITH YOUR PLANTS. the end.

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chigardenlady(5b)

Some of my potatoes. I put three pics idk where one went.

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chigardenlady(5b)

the tall one next to the fence are the purple majesty they are growing good. This is a bed I make every year with straw bales. In the bales I have dwarf purple heart and cyrils choice tomatoes and peppers on that side. Squashes and melons on other side. Hopefully the mice don't get in there this year. That's why I planted 8 30 gallon root pouches of potatoes as well. In past years I only planted in the ground.

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

<How often should potted plants be watered? Also, what's the word on how often to water during a heat wave?>

Agree with Marianne - that is not a simple question and trying to over-simplify will only cause more problems. What size pot is crucial to know. A tomato plant in a 5 gallon container will need watering several times a day while the same plant in a proper 10-15 gallon container may need it only a couple times a week. What potting mix/fill in the pot? What type of plant? Age of plant? Define heat wave? A heat wave in NY is very different from a heat wave in Arkansas. :)

General guideline is when the plants show they need it and the soil down at the root level is dry. So you need to learn to read the plant leaves and stick your fingers deep into the soil. You never use the soil surface as an indication for the need for water. Hopefully it is mulched anyway so you can't see it.

So much more info is needed.

Dave

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Chris B(6a NY)

Haha fair enough - I'll give you a scenario.

I can't speak to the potting mix because I don't remember the name or type. But lets say in southern NY that it had just rained about 2 inches from a severe thunderstorm. The next week it doesn't rain at all and temps are consistently around 90-95 degrees with relative humidity around 65%(which is pretty darn humid for that temperature).

How do I tell the difference between the tomato plants needing water or if they are just wilting due to the temps/humidity?(The tomatoes would have been planted in late May and these conditions could feasibly happen in late July-August, so they would be 60 days-ish old) To be more specific, I'm referring more so to the tomato plants in my raised beds.

I suppose the finger test would cover that.

Oh and I use plastic mulch, but I suppose I should add a light layer of grass clippings around the base, too.

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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

Yep, it's the nymph of a stinkbug. Plug that into Google images and you'll see.

Nice pictures!

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Philip Breeze

Thanks for a quick response! Any way to deter them from the garden, other than plucking the ones I find?

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galinas(5B)

I have a similar issue, may be not as severe as you... Even weeds has same signs. I blame last hard rain - the problem appeared right after it, first as a not that noticeable and then become more and more clear as damage dried out. Either mechanical damage, or something was in that rain... I heard, if clouds come through an air polluted area, they can bring pollution from a very long distance.

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Miss_Moose (Winnipeg, Canda. Zone 2)

Oh man, are we there already where acid rain (pollution) is destroying domestic crops? Yikes, that's scary.

I've never seen such a severe case without browning at the edges as I see on the top photo... that looks serious. I'd suggest going to your local greenhouse or nursery... maybe call first and talk to a professional so you don't get a shrug for an afternoons worth of driving. Bring a clipping with you once you find someone nice enough to help you with a diagnosis. If it was something in the rain, only someone local can help you solve the problem, and it will probably have to be someone well versed in plant care.

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vgkg(Z-7)

So far it looks like only male blooms forming, once the female blooms appear then you'll know for sure which it is from the shape of the fruit. With a wild seed resulting from a hybrid you may end of with a gourdie looking thing.

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Johnny

I'd guess butternut :)

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daninthedirt(Cent TX; HZ10, Sunset z30, USDA z8a)

Not really relevant to the question at hand, but ground up pressure treated wood is, however, not good for mulch/compost, I believe. You get a LOT of leaching from that stuff. As long as you're sticking with whole boards, you're fine.

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jimmy56_gw (zone 6 PA)

exmar, I get the locust boards cut from a local Amish sawmill at a good price, Yes they are usually cut for fence posts, I use them for tomato cages, Posts for grapes and posts for my berries, Had them for over 12 years and they still look good, I used them after people recommended them saying they would last for 100 years, hope their right.

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Peter (6b SE NY)

I just saw a flower head on one of my lancelot leeks and pulled it, and it wasn't woody at all, I just ate a piece raw to test. It is actually stronger tasting than expected... tastes like onion. Very nice. In fact, the scape itself is tender and delicious... you could eat it raw. In fact, googling leek scape, it seems common to eat them.

Some of them have big stalks and are looking like they will be bolting soon. How do I know when to harvest?

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ilodato(6b)

Is the reason that 2-5 new leeks come up after the old one dies bc of the cloves attached to it begin growing?

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