Posted on 06/19/2015 12:32:09 PM PDT by greeneyes
The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you. This thread is non-political, although you will find that most here are conservative folks.
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“Heat can be a factor in fruit set. Is it hot in Texas right now?”
Not 100 degree hot. But it is hitting 80’s.
They make a spray that can be a help when the weather is too hot. Do you side dress your tomatoes with a high potassium fertilizer when they start blooming?
Used the spray on the tomatoes. They are doing ok. It’s the peppers that are giving me fits. I am also using something from Ortho that gets sprayed every couple of weeks. If it clears up tomorrow will spray again.
My tomatoes (krims) are loaded with HugE, HUGE maters. So much I’m having to tie the branches everyday. A bit of wilt setting in but another FReeper has put me on the path to remediation..
Fordhooks are starting to bloom.
Roma green beans have small fruit and popping with blooms.
Alabama Black Eye Butter beans have reached the top of their
(12 feet) poles and are blooming.
I’m pulling both crimson and Alabama Red okra.. (gunna fry up a batch tonight with my BBQ chicken and rice..)
Shishito peppers are rocking. Pulling them almost everyday.
My secondary planting of hybrid tomatoes are going to town, too.
Perilla is going to have to be thinned because it’s taking over everything..
I put some Korean white cukes (three) in the ground earlier this week and they got the memo..; grow, grow, grow... (I couldn’t get excited about growing cukes this year..sigh)
Putting more okra in the ground in the AM..
It’s going to be a good year here in Atlanta..!!
I was thinking that since tomatoes and peppers are related that the spray might work on them too.
You are right. It sounds like a banner year in Atlanta.
ping
It is 100 degrees in Lewisville, TX, 20 miles north of Dallas and has been 100 degrees every time it stops raining. Tropical storm Bill left 5.5 inches of rain here and we had already had so many inches all the lakes in the large Dallas County and points west and Denton County (I'm in that county), and other counties to the east and south, are flooding roads and houses and all points south through Houston and in deep south Texas.
I can't bear 100 degrees, so I stay in the house.
About Johnny:
He hasn't posted on FR since June 11. I had one email from him Wednesday and nothing else. His email said he was getting some sleep now. I sent him an email after that, and have had no answer.
He knows he can email me at any time and we will go there to help him. He also has a brother and he can get help from him.
Phones don't work with him since his speech cannot be understood on the phone. One of the two brain tumors has caused that speech defect.
When I know something about Johnny, I will post it.
Your name got left off my post 28.
We *were* getting a few blueberries & raspberries; but the birds swooped in and made hogs of themselves, so no more blueberries. Snails ate on the strawberries; but we washed ‘em & ate around the snail bites. It’s too hot here to even go out and pick anything; so I send my husband, the resident organic gardener.
Tomatoes continue to be the big producer along with the corn which has done well even if a little beat up looking as it's in the path of a lot of run off.
A couple of tips with the warning I have no idea if they work, perhaps someone can verify.
Instructions with my new pump sprayer said to use vinegar to kill weeks.
Had a leak in the string trimmer fuel line that I couldn't figure out and told the counter guy at the repair place I'd ignore it but with the price of the canned gas I've been using I had a heart attack when I spilled a drop. One of the repair guys overheard and suggested aviation fuel. He said the lead wouldn't hurt a 2-cycle and it had a shelf live far longer than ethanol based stuff even if you use an additive. He said most small airports would gladly sell to the non-flying public.
Anyone with first hand experience with either?
Wow, I had no idea it was so hot up there. We’re in the 70’s in the TX Hill Country.
Thx for the sorta an update on Johnny. Prayers for him everyday, and Arrowhead, too.
Thanks Marcella. Still praying every day.
Hi, I am trying shishito peppers for the first time. Don’t know anthing about them, how are you using them??
Greeting to all from west Michigan. Picking lots of romaine lettuce which I started under plexiglas at Easter. Also getting lots of nice radishes. Tried a baby bok choi from rareheirloom seeds and just love it. Stalks are skinny and tender and lots of green leaves. I’ve been chopping it up and making stir fry and adding it to homemade chicken fried rice. No broccoli yet or tomatoes. Also picking chard and still getting some asparagus. I have the plot that never seems to end.
Hi everyone! My offering will be a little shorter in length today. Since the prof gave his lecture in the dark with a lot of slides of insects and insect damage, I don’t have as many notes with words! I sought to write down what I could, and then in my notes for you, I did searches in some cases to see if I could find other pictures illustrating what the prof was explaining.
I hope all your gardens are doing well!
I actually planted something this week! We had a sack of potatoes that had sprouted, so I picked out a handful, cut them up and stuck em in the ground just to see if they would grow. I had had a volunteer potato plant and was pleased with myself that I could recognize sucking damage now when I see it! I had to pull up two of them but one was left. I treated it with insecticide soap, and so far, I think it is holding on.
Have a great week now that we are at the Summer Solstice time!
START INSTALLMENT THREE – BUGS
He showed us slides illustrating different kinds of insect injury.
Leaf miners’ “tracks” show a “serpentine” kind of damage, which actually is a sort of pretty kind of filigree-looking thing on a leaf. I did a quick check and found a link illustrating this:
http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/serpentine_mines_in_columbine_leaves_caused_by_a_leafminer
Fly larvae of the apple maggots show a sort of ookie area of squishiness and some dimpling where they are boring.
http://jenny.tfrec.wsu.edu/opm/displaySpecies.php?pn=140
He also showed gall insect damage. The feeding or egg laying activities cause the plant to make structures to protect the insect.
He also showed a picture of a cross section of what wood borer damage looks like, with the worm in it.
There was a leaf with a stippling pattern on it. Stippling damage is a common pattern left by insects who feed by sucking rather than chewing. When assessing damage, always remember to look for the SIGNS such as frass (bug poop) honeydew, and the insect itself. I found a link from Arizona illustrating this:
There was a picture with a leaf hopper. They are vectors for plant disease. Their mode of feeding is also sucking. Just looked up a link to these fascinating creatures that we never want to see!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leafhopper
Sometimes when encountering sucking damage from any of the sucking feeders, you might see a leaf which has been stunted because the nitrogen has been cut off because of the feeding by the insect.
If you encounter a splotchy white area in the middle of a leaf you could at first think it is a bird dropping, but he showed us an instance where a concentrated pattern of stipple feeding points have coalesced into one large drained area. The leaf example he showed was, he stated, likely to have been done by thrips. Found this link:
http://www.naturescontrol.com/thrip.html
Then he showed us some pictures of spider mite damage. I did a quick search and found this link:
http://www.wikihow.com/Get-Rid-of-Spider-Mites
END INSTALLMENT THREE BUGS
texokie’s garden ping for class notes! See above! Sorry...forgot to fill in the ping box.
Ever heard of a cloche ? It will raise soil temperatures and fruit temperatures in a small area, especially if you have only a few hot peppers.
Best bet is to use a 'Hot Frame' , slightly vented for larger areas .
Hot peppers need temperatures of 78-92 degrees even to germinate.
Don't forget that peppers still need pollination to set fruit , even if you have to do it by hand (small paint brush)
Consider : " Protect Vegetable Transplants With Home-Made Glass Garden Cloches " (out of glass 1 gallon jars).
http://www.funinthemaking.net/2009/04/18/apple-jug-made-into-effective-garden-cloche/
Rememeber to remove the cap on warm sunny days , or you will steam the plants when using a gallon glass jug,
or remove the cloche altogether during early mornings on sunny days .
But using cloche will allow you to raise the soil and plant temp in a small area , or a 'hot frame' for a larger group setting.
About Johnny - yes, please do let us know if you hear anything. And If I can help in anyway, I would like to.
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