Terminalcoffee discussion

I've planted a few tomatoes, squash, okra, peppers, and herbs. The peppers and herbs are fine so far, but the bugs are sucking the life out of the rest. I wanted to go organic again - never needed pesticides before - but at this rate, it'll be more like going without. Suggestions?

What type of bugs? Thousands of aphids? Larger bugs that eat big holes in things?

Try baking soda?

Or am I thinking of Vinegar...

Phil, I've seen tiny red spiders and tiny winged bugs, as well as tiny black ants. Visible, but really small creatures. My plants are looking sick, and some leaves are deformed.

Do you mean sprinkling baking soda on the plants, Rachel?

Spray vinegar, Scout.

Bun, the leaves are kind of humped up instead of flat. Any idea of what disease this could be, and if there's a cure? I'm gaining respect for real farmers who do this for a living.

I use diatomaceous earth too, for bug control. It’s supposed to be safe for animals and kids and completely natural. I think it works? I use it all around the foundation of my house and around the edges of my garden. Not sure if it works for all bugs, I got it for centipedes, ants, slugs and earwigs.

Rachel, are you sure about that vinegar? Cuz I use it to kill off stumps of trees and weeds that grow in the cracks of my walkway.
Diatomaceous earth is good for the bugs Helena mentioned but it doesn't work on all of them.
Try spreading some Borax (laundry booster) around the base of your plants, it won't hurt your plants and it gets rid of the bugs.
It doesn't sound like the leaves are diseased to me, more like there might be an imbalance in the acid or alkaline levels. There are fertilizers that will help to balance things out. If you want to keep it all organic, you can use compost specially made to help balance the PH levels in the soil.
One more thing, don't over water your veggies, that can cause drooping leaves and eventually kill your plants.

Well, I wouldn't stake anything on it, because I'm not a gardener, but I heard someone told me once it was a good pesticide. Scout, try what everyone else has suggested first!

Oh. Crap, I hope Scout hasn't tried vinegar. I'm sorry.

I think it's okay, Rachel. I didn't know you could use vinegar as a fungicide. When I use it, I use it without dilluting it, maybe that's why it kills off the weeds?

I really hope Scout hasn't tried vinegar yet...

At least you can garden in April. Quit yer bitchin'.

That's what I say, RA. I haven't been able to do a thing yet.

I planted outside yesterday! Heed my words: Bo will not defeat my garden this year.

Thanks for the suggestions. I haven't tried vinegar, so that's OK.

Thinking about what you said, Bun, about bugs being a symptom, I decided to apply more fertilizer, since I filled my raised bed last year with a combination of topsoil, sterile manure, and potting soil, which isn't a natural mix. Last year, there were no problems, but maybe the nutrients are depleted. The fertilizer seems to be helping. As for the humping (ha), imagine that the veins in the leaves have contracted - a kind of gathering effect.

RA, fucker! I'll think of you when I eat my first zucchini:)

BunWat wrote: "Yeah okay, that's probably not bugs. That's probably withering. Could be a reaction to a cold snap, a dry spell, inadequate nutrients, over watering, under watering."

Harsh words, the evil eye...

Bengal or siberian? Sometimes the pee from a bengal can stimulate plant growth, but the siberian is acidic as anything. :->

What happens to the plants RA pees on?

Ha. Watch him dance as he pees on the electric fence:)

My mom's going to show me how to cook fried green tomatoes. I will grow some fuckin' tomatoes this year. We're in that in-between time, where she's still able to teach me things, but maybe not for long.

Thanks to the advice here, my garden is doing well and is bug-free. Appreciate the replies, all.

Hopefully, others will come here for gardening advice.

The zucchini looked really good for about a week, and then the big ones began yellowing and softening at the tips. Advice?

I find zucchini to be much better when not allowed to get too big anyway. The small ones are more tender and flavorful.

I stomped the Japanese knotweed today. Very therapeutic.

Sounds therapeutic. I'm picturing you weed-stomping, and it should be good for a laugh, too, which is also therapeutic:)

The zucchini problem is solved. The thing is, I don't know what worked. Internet sources said the problem might be lack of calcium uptake or lack of pollination. So I mixed two tablespoons of lime (as it turns out, the bag I bought should last at least three generations) with one gallon of water and applied. You must keep stirring, as the lime settles quickly to the bottom. I don't know if this solved the problem, though, since around the same time the abelia began to bloom and attract the bees.

As a side note, if abelia thrives in your zone, it's a wonderful attraction for bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.

Now, here's a question about growing from seeds. I planted mine in a mix that contains fertilizer, and they seemed to have a hard time getting started. Maybe this wasn't the best medium for starting seedlings?

What kind of seeds?

Container gardening. Flowers. Do people really cram them in there, or give them space? I was told by the woman I bought them from I should cram them in, but I kind of did that last year and it seemed like the plants got too big for the space and would have flourished with more breathing room.

Long term seed viability (beyond one year). I read that keeping seeds in a cool, dark place will extend their life for several years. The veg crisper in the refrigerator is described as a good place. Has anyone done this? Do you keep old seeds and use them in subsequent years?

I planted seeds of white daisies, African daisies, zinnias, marigolds, jalapenos, okra, basil, parsley, and rosemary in a potting mix with fertilizer already added. They all sprouted and grew, but slowly, except for the rosemary, who never showed her face. As I said, I'm wondering if there might be a better mix for starting seedlings. Advice?

Lg, I'd say that two healthy flowering plants per twelve-inch pot would be the max. I have one geranium in its own 12-inch pot, and she's a diva, flowers all over.

Here's a good article about spacing and number of plants in container planting.

http://www.provenwinners.com/garden/a...

I’m ok with my vegetable garden, but I’m hopeless with flowers & flower beds and such. I have the following problem.

I have a very large maple tree with a large built up planter box around the bottom. I have lilies of the valley and periwinkle growing in it. The plants do very well on one side, but not the other- I’ve noticed that much of the soil has eroded on the barren side exposing all the tree roots, so I’d like to build the box up a bit higher and put fresh soil in it. I’m not sure how to go about that with the periwinkle there. Do I try to remove the periwinkle and replant it?

Do I try to remove the periwinkle and replant it?

I would. I passed someone's yard yesterday where the periwinkle had totally taken over as a ground cover around their tulips and daffodils and it was quite nice. I guess it's an "invasive" plant. I've grown vincas in containers, which are the same plant, and they never spread, but perhaps they were a different strain, or the container was too confining.

LG, you may also be growing the annual vincas, as opposed to perennial vinca.

Helena, you can just build the box and put in the dirt--perennial vinca is, as LG said, invasive and pretty hard to kill.

Interesting, Jammies. That might be it.

I found a useful and funny gardening blog.

http://grumpygardener.southernliving....

"Pruning is one garden task that scares the All-Bran out of people. They're afraid that if they prune something at the wrong time, they'll ruin it, kill it, or look like a dolt. Relax, my children. The Grump is here to help."

Wow, Grumpy says two houseplants in a 15x15 room will cleanse the air of all VOCs.

If you'd like more information about naturally purifying indoor air, Grumpy highly recommends How To Grow Fresh Air (Penguin Books). It's written by Dr. B.C. Wolverton, whose research for NASA on ways to purify air for future moon bases revealed what great additions to the home houseplants are. Besides telling which plants remove which pollutants, it also supplies a wealth of easy information on how to grow many of the most popular houseplants.

Thanks LG & Jammies!

Philodendron is a great indoor plant. It can thrive with little light. Water it once a week, feed it once a month, and enjoy a green space in your home.

Most pruners are far too timid.

Scout wrote: "Philodendron is a great indoor plant. It can thrive with little light. Water it once a week, feed it once a month, and enjoy a green space in your home."

It also has "Phil" in its name, making it even more a garden star.

An inflorescence from Philodendron cannifolium.

Garden star, indeed.

What does it mean when a plant has what looks like a big ball of spit on it? An infestation of some sort?

There is some kind of insect that lays eggs in that "spit." I can't recall the specifics.

Ugh and thank you.

Jammies, it's a spittlebug and, according to this site, isn't destructive.

http://gardening.about.com/od/insectp...