tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53467991508742840632024-03-13T09:33:38.387-07:00Christian Cabal's Garland GardenDecided to start blogging my gardening adventures in my back yard of our house in Garland, TX.
Now, its not a very big area I have for gardening, but I love trying to grow a variety of things.ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-27006525570188163302020-06-16T14:00:00.002-07:002020-06-16T14:05:26.499-07:002020 Garden Update<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Summer 2020 Update</h2>
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The garden has done pretty well overall this year. We had a very mild winter, and the cool weather stuff did pretty well for the most part.</div>
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<li>Planted spinach in several batches through the winter and it did pretty well.</li>
<li>Kale planted in fall overwintered well</li>
<li>Cabbage didn't do to well, mainly because it was attacked by aphids, and I neglected it.</li>
<li>Lettuce did very well too, most of it was protected by a glass cover "hotbed" that I create during the winter for it.</li>
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I started a bunch of tomato seedlings early January, both Rutgers and Beefstake. I also started some Cindarella Pumpkins (Rouge Vif d'Etampes) plants in early March in pots too, along with some Cocozelle zucchini, and some round zucchini too. I also started some bell pepper plants.</div>
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Tomatoes</h2>
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I've had the best tomato harvest ever, mainly because I planted so many plants, and I started so early. I planted both Rutgers and Beefsteak varieties, both hierloom. I started them from seed in early January, under grow lights. I nurtured 18 plants, and would bring them out on nice days, and kept upgrading their pots, until late March, when they were quite big. I gave 6 plants to my sister, and planted 12 myself in late March, hoping for no late season freeze. They grew very well and started producing like crazy. Unfortunate the birds found them so I had to cover them with some netting to help reduce the damage, as the dumb bird will peck out holes in many of them.</div>
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Despite the bird damage, I've picked lots of tomatoes, most when they just start turning reddish, so to prevent losing some. But we've had more than enough, and given a bunch away to friends. The plants dont look so good now, they are pretty spent, plus its getting real hot, so I will probably pull them out in a few weeks.</div>
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<b>Pumpkins/Squash</b></h2>
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I started my Rouge Vif d'Etampes pumpkins pretty early too (late Feb.) from seed, and put them in the ground in mid-March, being prepared to cover them in case we got frost, but we didn't fortunately. This is the easiest way to get around the bad pests such as the squash vine borer (SVB), and squash bugs. Usually the squash bugs show up first, in later April, and the SVB in late May. By this time the plants are strong and are already producing. </div>
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My pumpkins did very well. The plants got huge, with the vines over 35 feet long!</div>
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Here is what it looked like last week. They are growing along the side of the house, which in late spring and summer gets pretty good sun during most of the day. By the time I took this picture, I have picked 2 already. There are around 5 more on the vine, at different stages.</div>
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The biggest one is 31lbs:</div>
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Here are the first 2, along with a mongrel pumpkin:</div>
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The mongrel pumpkin is actually from a Round zucchini plant I grew last year . Last year I had some round zucchini and sugar pie pumpkin plants that I grew together and I cross pollinated, and then I saved a override zucchini to use as fall decoration, and then saved the seeds. I planted some of those seeds.</div>
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Whats interesting is that the plants are basically 2 types. A couple of the plants were very similar to the original pure round zukes. They were bush-type with the normal fruit. The leaves were also very pretty with the silver streaks. The other plants started off looking very similar, but then as they matured, the started running and became more pumpkin-like. The fruit were similar when young, and I picked the "zukes" from both, but as the fruit got bigger in these "viney" plants, they looked more like pumpkins. I let a few mature. One got big and orange, and is pictured above, and looks like a regular pumpkin. Another one is a bit smaller and yellowish, more like the mature Round zucchini. These are also winding down now too. I've gotten tons of squash from these and have given much away, along with a couple of Cocozelle zuke plants which have also produced very nicely.</div>
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So as expected the squash bugs showed up in mid-April, a few at a time, but I would kill them on sight, so I kept their numbers, and impact down. Only recently are they getting out of hand, but thats because I've been busy with other projects and plus the plants are so big that inspection is not very practical or fun. But the easy way to find them is to spray the plants. When the bugs get wet, they usually walk up to the top of the plant, and are easy to see. Then I just crush them with my fingers. No big deal, very quick and easy and the leave a "Dr. Pepper" smell, which I don't mind. </div>
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This year has been a very mild SVB year, surprisingly! I have only seen 3 moths this year, and I was able to kill them all. I have seen a few eggs, but believe it or not, I have not seen any major damage from them, so they have been fairly inconsequential this year. That's so nice! Again, the key to defeating them in general is to start EARLY. They really only have a big impact late May usually, and by that time your plants and withstand them.<br />
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Upcoming...</h2>
My pepper plants are on the small side, but I expect them to keep growing through the summer, since they like the heat. I also planted a few Okra plants, and they should also thrive. I will probably also pull out and clean out all the squash, pumpkins, tomato, and leftover surviving cool weather plants soon too as it gets stinkin' hot around here. I might try some cantaloupe later this summer for a fall harvest, and maybe a second round of squash, maybe crookneck.<br />
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-58599460056398355182019-05-18T08:31:00.002-07:002019-05-18T08:31:33.995-07:00May 2019 Garden Update... Yes I'm Still Alive and Still Gardening!!<br />
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Its been about 2 years since I updated this blog! But I am still gardening, just had gotten too busy to blog. <br />
So here is the state of my garden as of mid May. I am transitioning from cool weather plants to the summer veggies.<br />
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My co-worker had started some "Biker Billy" jalapenos from seed, and he had a few extra seedlings that he gave to me, so I planted them about a week ago. Here they are below. We have a new puppy this year, a black Lab named Missy. Maggie,our old dog, died last year. Missy likes to jump into the garden area, and so the white small fences are an attempt to provide some protection to the small plants<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7UMbW3F3qfUXrytQqEYKpbuJlg2aGb-xxmd7T-rygMOGbNP37x-bwWGTh4Qc_UpD5NmbAHzH19XN1PweHb_qIpNMxzDPOnin0YeWLQ_kRbXKQZYSkBZJwKrcktA0hPEQotTnyGQ2-dA/s1600/IMG_4309.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7UMbW3F3qfUXrytQqEYKpbuJlg2aGb-xxmd7T-rygMOGbNP37x-bwWGTh4Qc_UpD5NmbAHzH19XN1PweHb_qIpNMxzDPOnin0YeWLQ_kRbXKQZYSkBZJwKrcktA0hPEQotTnyGQ2-dA/s320/IMG_4309.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Biker Billy's Jalapenos</td></tr>
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I had saved some squash seeds a few years ago, but forgot to label them, and so I planted some of the mystery squash this year. But I think it was actually sugar pie pumpkins. I can see a few small female flowers present that look like pumpkins. I also had save some cucumber seeds last year, and planted a few this year. Here they are below, along with some garlic plants in between<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cucumbers on left, pumpkins on the right<br /></td></tr>
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<br /> Last year I planted 5 asparagus plants in the spring. This year they came up again, but I didn't pick any because I want the plants to get strong for next year. So here they are now, and they have flowered and have berries on them.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8F-TioAgS5IALfOX-u2eLlCILNhfHc47ghxbBN0BFO0yvOij2-wTyKACkp_dGiadLeQ9PRCP60FIpSPDR_2n2tHqzfJtUh_obColwshXZKcveks6cuEImihQ23bLmzP0cKxSXs_Un2-w/s1600/IMG_4358.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8F-TioAgS5IALfOX-u2eLlCILNhfHc47ghxbBN0BFO0yvOij2-wTyKACkp_dGiadLeQ9PRCP60FIpSPDR_2n2tHqzfJtUh_obColwshXZKcveks6cuEImihQ23bLmzP0cKxSXs_Un2-w/s320/IMG_4358.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">asparagus plants</td></tr>
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One problem I've been plagued with in early spring is the explosion of spider mites. This year was pretty bad. Many of my cool weather plants were severely infested. Here are some beet seedlings that had been affected, and haven't really grown much.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdFmLVInWEe6pHKn7xzXvhgFH4UT-chW04pv2RojKhIuQay7Hz7zOkAu7I9IDqrgDLY-Ag8j3MZEZW-f1CQNjVRZWR9c3AL56EzX8WkuXJxIc_irzwkZS5ZVikiMpa6jvJh8O-O5TImm0/s1600/IMG_4359.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdFmLVInWEe6pHKn7xzXvhgFH4UT-chW04pv2RojKhIuQay7Hz7zOkAu7I9IDqrgDLY-Ag8j3MZEZW-f1CQNjVRZWR9c3AL56EzX8WkuXJxIc_irzwkZS5ZVikiMpa6jvJh8O-O5TImm0/s320/IMG_4359.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sickly looking beets</td></tr>
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Some of my spinach, and cilantro, and peas all got hit hard. I also had a huge explosion of aphids on my cabbage and kale. The lady bugs came, but it was too late. So my kale did ok, because most of it was planted in the fall, and we got some good harvests, but the cabbage didn't.<br />
Anyway, the cool weather plants are on their way out. Below are some lettuce that are bolting, some spinach and cilantro that are bolted, and some old remaining cabbage and kale. It needs to be pulled out soon. I'm saving alot of the spinach seed for this fall.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1kDQuQQ-w8UmwOgUWQMrqNfaOj1uzw4VIklZgpRXb7h5Hz14zTaZxlHdpm2YAh5U8ixAJX8rbepB7cyS1dHbqPHDD5DpODmC07OJfhc72SJZDovKtvUk2BwreaodToTauj97gxC_3K1s/s1600/IMG_4364.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1kDQuQQ-w8UmwOgUWQMrqNfaOj1uzw4VIklZgpRXb7h5Hz14zTaZxlHdpm2YAh5U8ixAJX8rbepB7cyS1dHbqPHDD5DpODmC07OJfhc72SJZDovKtvUk2BwreaodToTauj97gxC_3K1s/s320/IMG_4364.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">bolted and dying letuce and spinach,along with some cilantro</td></tr>
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Last fall I also put in some garlic again, mainly elephant garlic. Its done well, and probably another month until it can be harvested:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">one of two garlic patches</td></tr>
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<h3>
Hubbard Squash</h3>
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Wanted to try Hubbard Squash again this year. I got a late start unfortunately, and the plants are not as far along as I would like them to be in order to beat the inevitable Squash Vine Borers (SVB).</div>
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I put them in early April. Two set fruit pretty early. One of the fruit has matured some but is small, and the plant has not grown much. </div>
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The other plant, its first fruit died but the plant is growing well,and it has another female flower that will open tomorrow.<br />
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There are no signs of SVB yet in my yard. But I know its any day now. I saw a moth at a community garden this past week on my way to work. (I bike to work,and sometimes stop and see what's happening at some gardens about 4 miles north,on my way to work). But none here at my house yet. Unfortunately the Squash Bugs have made an early appearance. I've killed quite a few and crushed some eggs. At the community gardens, i've seen lots there too. I think some of those folks may be oblivious, and don't know what's going on with their plants.<br />
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<b>Tomatoes</b><br />
I planted from seed three varieties: Beefsteak, Rutgers, and Roma. All heirloom types. All are fruiting now, but the plants have been attacked by spider mites. They still look decent though. Some of the fruit are splitting unfortunately.<br />
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<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-58418835378314577172017-06-12T20:26:00.000-07:002017-06-12T20:26:23.611-07:00Jumbo Pink Banana Squash HarvestToday I picked the rest of my Jumbo Pink Banana Squash that I have been growing since February.<br />
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In early February, since we were having such a mild winter, I decided to try and start some banana squash very early. The previous planting in the fall had been a bust because of the hot weather we had in the early fall, and by the time the plants started to produce, we had very short days, and a freeze in late November. <br />
So I started the seeds in some plastic cups, and would set them out in the garden on during the day, and bring them in during colder nights. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Banana Squash, acorn squash, and spaghetti squash seedlings enjoying a mild winter day<br /></td></tr>
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On March 1, since we were still having such mild temperatures, I decided to put them in the ground, and then cover them up with plastic covers whenever the temps at night got below 40. It was a bit of a hassle, but not too bad... I just had to keep a careful eye on the forecasts. There were actually 2 in pots, and I also direct seeded the third plant a few days later, because one of my seedlings had died, and the soil was not very cold. <div>
The plants grew pretty quickly, and by April 1st, were already vining. I had mulched the area very deeply with lots of leaves, to keep weeds out, and to try and bury the vines with the mulch as they grew to help prevent the squash vine borers from laying eggs on the main parts of the vine. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the banana squash plants by April 1. </td></tr>
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With the warmth of April, and the longer days, the plants started growing very quickly, and started producing flowers. By mid-April, the plants had gotten pretty large.</div>
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And a couple of female flowers had gotten pollinated, and the fruit had set. </div>
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They start off yellow, and look very much like a banana. You will get many female blooms, but most of them abort. You can pretty much tell when a fruit will abort because it will stop growing. Banana squash grow very quickly, so if you notice they stop growing, they will get aborted. It seems that once they get the around twice the size of a real banana, they have a good chance of making it. </div>
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Like I mentioned, they grow very quickly. When they are getting ready to pick, the will get pretty fat, and look more like a blimp than a banana. They will also start developing faint stripes, and the color will start changing from yellow to pink. </div>
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By early May, a couple of the squash were almost ready. I had to cover most of them with some tulle netting, because in the past I have had bugs, or slugs bite holes into the fruit, or even squash vine borers lay eggs on the fruit, and the larva bore into them. </div>
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We picked our first around May 11th, and then a few more shortly after. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The plants kept producing, and I gradually picked more as they were ready.</div>
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The vines started getting really affected by powdery mildew, and were also getting hit by squash bugs. The vines are so large that I didn't have time to go in and try and find or kill the squash bugs. Also I have noticed some squash vine borer damage. The combination of the three are pretty much killing the plant, so I decided to pick the rest of the squash, which pretty much looked ready anyway.</div>
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Today 6/12 I picked the last few, making a total of 11. The first one above is not in the picture since we already opened it. </div>
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I had 5 that were more than 20lbs, the biggest around 25lbs. The first one I opened, I baked about 2/3 of it, and pureed it(for pies, bread, pancakes, etc). The other third, I broke up into pieces and wrapped in saran wrap, for use in cooking. We have used it for various things such as cubing it, baking it, and sprinkling it with sugar/cinnamon, and for some other concoctions, such as in stews, and curry dishes. It has a surprisingly good and natural sweetness for a squash. Eating a piece of it raw almost tastes like a very firm cantaloupe. </div>
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Out of my 11, 2 did get some deep holes in them due to bugs, and I dug into the holes with a wire, and pulled out a small couple SVB grubs. Most others had some shallow holes, probably caused by slugs, but those healed up well. So I will have to check those two fruit with the SVB holes, to see if they will heal, or if not I may have to process them pretty soon. With so many squash, we'll need to get creative on how to use it.</div>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-39057571343298133522017-05-20T20:44:00.001-07:002017-05-20T20:44:28.268-07:00May 20th Update<br />
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May 20th Update</h3>
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<b></b><br /><b></b><b>Flowers</b></h4>
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Every spring, I leave a little space for some flowers. The ones below are actually in a bed that created for my daughter. We sowed a bunch of Papaver poppy seeds after her spinach and lettuce had bolted and we pulled it out in early April. They all started blooming this week and look very beautiful.</div>
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We have also had many volunteer sunflowers every spring. There were a clump</div>
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of them that I have let grow, and now they are huge. The tallest one is probably 8ft tall now.</div>
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Veggies</h3>
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The cherry tomatoes are doing quite well. They just started ripening, so I picked about 8 so far this week. I need to start looking out for tomato hornworms soon. I saw something that looked like eggs under one of the leaves. </div>
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My onions are still there. I still don't see much in term of bulb formation. The plants look healthy though. Probably be mid-June until some of these are ready. In front of it is a yellow crookneck squash. Its gotten a lot of SVB eggs laid on it, but I have picked some off, and have injected some of older leaf stems with BT as preventative. I've picked one squash and more are on the way. The smaller squash plant on its left is a round zucchini, which I also intend to inject with BT.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxBbP_w0OXqTMgGKB6kmJtuH0JSbwDVu19p0-rjkmpPEvVwWdVyZcKXGUv_oklZg2SjhbAFChdc4BnfdTxtFX8VUyGHLX_kFnVO4WeZh99FS9rXI-velmSvZ4xeUjIlF1GwPIdq1IaIY/s1600/GEDC0868.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxBbP_w0OXqTMgGKB6kmJtuH0JSbwDVu19p0-rjkmpPEvVwWdVyZcKXGUv_oklZg2SjhbAFChdc4BnfdTxtFX8VUyGHLX_kFnVO4WeZh99FS9rXI-velmSvZ4xeUjIlF1GwPIdq1IaIY/s320/GEDC0868.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">So I guess I am doing an experiment of sorts. I have two of the round zucchini plants out in the open, and will try to inject them weekly as a preventative. And then I have two other plants that I recently put under tulle netting. These plants had recently been in pots, but I cleared out some space in the garden for them. We'll see how they do, in terms of yield, and work involved.</span></div>
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The Jumbo Pink Banana squash are doing great. I've picked three huge ones, of 28, 25, and 21 lbs.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKShZAP7PDeoCgzseMA_m04LFA9eNh_0ifJqK-c0XHqmCgnnUq8LKYBz7jkdjt9X8YkEtr1nfrM2kTiXzIaNptFHE3nFo429TXnW7CvxW-I3ygZu9jmPofxkwvP8lLxNyb-F7Nk4APv9c/s1600/GEDC0863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKShZAP7PDeoCgzseMA_m04LFA9eNh_0ifJqK-c0XHqmCgnnUq8LKYBz7jkdjt9X8YkEtr1nfrM2kTiXzIaNptFHE3nFo429TXnW7CvxW-I3ygZu9jmPofxkwvP8lLxNyb-F7Nk4APv9c/s320/GEDC0863.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And the crazy thing is that there are about 5 other ones that are growing pretty quickly. They are mostly on secondary vines, so I don't think they will get as large as my first one. But I think I will have so much, I am not sure what I am going to do with it all! I will break open the 25lb one, which is the first one I picked, pretty soon.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNRKpFSzmD-1C5HiAzu9g14O7fo4Ygd0SApnqfmTM-9zUA5BhxwpaZs57g9-cjiNjQj4rl9QumiqWMkelGfYe-2nQNfK_tUVeDXQM9Qx_Iy9ZfJunIWJ4ChpKQDVHft_kmqWxndyOZco/s1600/GEDC0865.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNRKpFSzmD-1C5HiAzu9g14O7fo4Ygd0SApnqfmTM-9zUA5BhxwpaZs57g9-cjiNjQj4rl9QumiqWMkelGfYe-2nQNfK_tUVeDXQM9Qx_Iy9ZfJunIWJ4ChpKQDVHft_kmqWxndyOZco/s320/GEDC0865.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here are two on the same vine segment</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji6XoI3Mp89t3XrlBSPMVCK4puigmBX8MHsSVGS6YGznHfZk0cHIVvdTtlE4p6dKW13ztBK7SX6Icmt8o8aOFqKJSPdNP-p5WHu6ukFMIGizHEY4LejGDrPX0ovJbE04dKdMZ5JMtwESY/s1600/GEDC0864.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji6XoI3Mp89t3XrlBSPMVCK4puigmBX8MHsSVGS6YGznHfZk0cHIVvdTtlE4p6dKW13ztBK7SX6Icmt8o8aOFqKJSPdNP-p5WHu6ukFMIGizHEY4LejGDrPX0ovJbE04dKdMZ5JMtwESY/s320/GEDC0864.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another banana squash growing</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNRKpFSzmD-1C5HiAzu9g14O7fo4Ygd0SApnqfmTM-9zUA5BhxwpaZs57g9-cjiNjQj4rl9QumiqWMkelGfYe-2nQNfK_tUVeDXQM9Qx_Iy9ZfJunIWJ4ChpKQDVHft_kmqWxndyOZco/s1600/GEDC0865.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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I do find some SVB eggs on these but have not seen any damaged vines yet. The vines are very thick, so it would take a lot to bring these plants down. I did pick some small ones to eat as summer squash. They were fairly good, honestly not as good as the yellow crookneck. But I'll continue to do some of that too.<br />
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The spaghetti squash plants seem to be dying, mostly from powdery mildew. We picked two big ones, and there are around 6 smaller ones that are on the vines, that are almost ready to pick. The pic below shows a part of the smaller plant that is still fairly healthy. I did find a spot on the other vine that had an SVB grub in it, and I removed it from the vine with a wire. But the powdery mildew is real bad on it. Its all good, because they have produced well, and its been a success.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwDEzXiZW3qbLe9LASKU7aCJ7L1r3HzSNhBzmBJMqiS__8KEgz_61-hD1e-Y6b_3ljYPAj3CPE5KAMJDoQKHZrxGcI37cRYkADtoML8gEuntWYGea9KYThC81AwofJ0W0ID13tMf8Wn70/s1600/GEDC0869.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwDEzXiZW3qbLe9LASKU7aCJ7L1r3HzSNhBzmBJMqiS__8KEgz_61-hD1e-Y6b_3ljYPAj3CPE5KAMJDoQKHZrxGcI37cRYkADtoML8gEuntWYGea9KYThC81AwofJ0W0ID13tMf8Wn70/s320/GEDC0869.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The golden acorn squash have also done very well. I've picked around 12 of them of various sizes. Below are a couple nice sized one before picking. The vines are doing well, except they are getting powdery mildew too. No signs of SVB yet, although since the vines are very short, I have been injected some BT into the leaf stems as preventative. So far I have done it just twice, just takes a few minutes. The vines tips are getting pretty small, so I think the plants are probably going to give up soon.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_zV-c7qqnAx8uPFqUshIQ1UVSduy-4TmaqEOJSyK5IVlw5QRXHfQAW0RDAq8MGgeOpQLC_ErkseOOcIcjdbaWB2uhrsJbUzRa5m2FQXNTa7yxXk2vxFeeVMst40qNanGbU195u_cZj4/s1600/GEDC0871.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_zV-c7qqnAx8uPFqUshIQ1UVSduy-4TmaqEOJSyK5IVlw5QRXHfQAW0RDAq8MGgeOpQLC_ErkseOOcIcjdbaWB2uhrsJbUzRa5m2FQXNTa7yxXk2vxFeeVMst40qNanGbU195u_cZj4/s320/GEDC0871.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3NW9q3S7x99OWdC-RAhcF8kO22W0NaPnQTlbDEKcoqTK4hKOoy0LYe-Ea7xxxKFd5qufRRxK-2ccEjAbTtVu7awjf382IZID3FG35sd2sSxmzYUhh2EuCsHb8wNPyYMqqOyxoi_nXpJk/s1600/GEDC0872.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3NW9q3S7x99OWdC-RAhcF8kO22W0NaPnQTlbDEKcoqTK4hKOoy0LYe-Ea7xxxKFd5qufRRxK-2ccEjAbTtVu7awjf382IZID3FG35sd2sSxmzYUhh2EuCsHb8wNPyYMqqOyxoi_nXpJk/s320/GEDC0872.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice golden acorn squash</td></tr>
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<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-18362179845533604022017-05-03T06:03:00.000-07:002017-05-03T06:03:00.267-07:00Early May Update 2017The beginning of May is here, and we've had some fairly good weather this spring... a good amount of rain, and temperatures that have fluctuated between nice and cool, and pretty warm. It was in the upper 80s on Saturday and then upper 60s on Sunday. <br />
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Squash</h3>
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Since we had some very mild weather this winter and early spring, I had gotten a very early start on squashes. My Jumbo Pink Banana squash are doing very well. The vines are huge and sprawling everywhere, and there are three squash on it. Two are probably full size already, and one is growing quickly.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jlXHnRb3kOI/WQf4Ys5GKII/AAAAAAAAHQw/quZjn-V1Yd0IXd7fT6mDhHYdUStLn2BXACPcB/s1600/IMG_3180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jlXHnRb3kOI/WQf4Ys5GKII/AAAAAAAAHQw/quZjn-V1Yd0IXd7fT6mDhHYdUStLn2BXACPcB/s320/IMG_3180.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have them covered up in some netting to try and avoid anything from damaging the fruit. The dreaded Squash Vine Borer moths are already out. I have killed two, and have picked off a few eggs from the tips of the vines. The bases of these plants are buried in leaf mulch, along with a lot of the major vines. So I don't expect the SVB to start having a big impact on the plants until probably early June, when these three squash will hopefully already have been harvested. The two big squash are huge, I suspect they are around 30lbs or more each.</div>
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My golden acorn squash plants are doing well too. They have started vining some now, and have lots of small squash on them. I picked the first three yesterday.</div>
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And regarding my Spaghetti squash, one of my plants has 2 big fruit on it, and a smaller one. The other plants is a runt, and doesnt really have anything on it. </div>
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The plant with the squash hasn't really grown that much recently and has gotten hit by powdery mildew. Its probably because its spent all its energy producing the fruit. This one above is almost ready for picking.</div>
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Peas and Beans</h3>
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My snap peas are not looking very good. They got hit hard by powdery mildew, and I didnt try to stop it, so most of the plant is dying now, and the new pods are pretty small. We've been able to pick enough for three good meals, but that's probably about it. There are some volunteer pole beans (from last year's bean vine) that grew next to them and they will probably take over the area soon</div>
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I started another area of pole beans by the area where the gourd trellis is. Here are the plants, with the squash vines in front of them. I planted a bunch of there beans, but unfortunately only about 5 of them are growing well. </div>
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Tomatoes</h3>
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Here are my cherry tomatoes. We had major wind the past few days, which damaged some of these plants, so I had to create some reinforcement for them, as the vines have really grown long and tall.</div>
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There is a bunch of little green tomatoes on them. Will have to keep my eyes open for the arrival of the tomato hornworms. I'll have the BT ready for them.</div>
ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-88592821591636492992017-04-16T07:25:00.001-07:002017-04-16T07:25:27.515-07:00Mid-April Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Mid-April has brought some very nice weather, mostly in the mid-70s to lower 80s for highs. The garden is ahead of normal schedule due to the extremely mild winter we had. Here's what been going on since my update earlier this month.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzwa46YDN2pmlw7f9Y2-woQRqZvXmdmVzj0J7GjS9NOXXdt1LKDNqq9UX4ENFKB8JPdeMN8FLSC0K3fuEkrqhIl5BqxlDjO-ayHYX76Kcsl94ZfnTcPYzNlfVYqDS2YPGmuVNtOWCwQF4/s1600/IMG_3143.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzwa46YDN2pmlw7f9Y2-woQRqZvXmdmVzj0J7GjS9NOXXdt1LKDNqq9UX4ENFKB8JPdeMN8FLSC0K3fuEkrqhIl5BqxlDjO-ayHYX76Kcsl94ZfnTcPYzNlfVYqDS2YPGmuVNtOWCwQF4/s320/IMG_3143.JPG" width="320" /></a>Here is my Jumbo Pink Banana squash, with my 8-yr old son. There are 3 plants there,in 3 hills, and they have been producing many flowers, both male and female. There are about 4 tiny squash that seem to be forming... one seems like its swelling pretty well but the others I am not so sure about. Last year in the fall, I had so many that just withered and never grew, so I really hope these set well and get going. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfLkkgyZ5ZF6pQgjqY-P7RdLLBDzEzllecDOM4phDR5mN6-9ccIx2JtfzQqiqjAzbFI41Kg3mbttc7PCgx8zro3a-dvmJiq-sP7UaZCwQ0mqae5dGPr3IMbCvXHaO1CMvPGkw25bKn5Q/s1600/IMG_3144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfLkkgyZ5ZF6pQgjqY-P7RdLLBDzEzllecDOM4phDR5mN6-9ccIx2JtfzQqiqjAzbFI41Kg3mbttc7PCgx8zro3a-dvmJiq-sP7UaZCwQ0mqae5dGPr3IMbCvXHaO1CMvPGkw25bKn5Q/s320/IMG_3144.JPG" width="320" /></a>Here is another view, with the banana squash in the front of the picture. Behind it you can see a tall patch of snap peas. They snap peas are blooming like crazy, and hopefully I'll be picking a bunch soon. Unfortunately a big part of the lower parts of the plants have gotten powdery mildew badly. The spider mites have not hit them as I have typically see, but instead its been the powdery mildew. I wonder if these plants just weaken a lot as they start producing, and naturally just succumb to pestilence.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5cB5ENWQTYxIx6v_fwqqK4sg7lNe8GlfpKFmheDKEBXbSomLCBVr7ebidSrQhJTvE7eFWXie-col1hrtmW55K5olF11C380P9kJb2CDjcgR5H3HQX82hLCCmfjkr0kLLL2w7Lcztvnyw/s1600/IMG_3145.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5cB5ENWQTYxIx6v_fwqqK4sg7lNe8GlfpKFmheDKEBXbSomLCBVr7ebidSrQhJTvE7eFWXie-col1hrtmW55K5olF11C380P9kJb2CDjcgR5H3HQX82hLCCmfjkr0kLLL2w7Lcztvnyw/s320/IMG_3145.JPG" width="320" /></a>I have two spaghetti squash plants growing, one plant has gotten pretty big, but the other is still pretty small. The large plant has been blooming for a couple of weeks now, but it was all females at first. When some males started appearing, I started hand-pollinating, and one squash has set and is growing. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOPrZWoY44T2dFQW03oROrAbQgIivgGYuKclteYB_vJPmN-1GE5Kb2SsdY7lsmhUvgUJPmyYvVItLz5KWNbudEIXJMiaaKA4MAKc5NpiEHPTTM9PwpI_cyMQdBRvxWotgt2xZNwrKwQo/s1600/IMG_3146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOPrZWoY44T2dFQW03oROrAbQgIivgGYuKclteYB_vJPmN-1GE5Kb2SsdY7lsmhUvgUJPmyYvVItLz5KWNbudEIXJMiaaKA4MAKc5NpiEHPTTM9PwpI_cyMQdBRvxWotgt2xZNwrKwQo/s320/IMG_3146.JPG" width="320" /></a>I have two cherry tomato plants, and they are doing very well. They are close to outgrowing their cages,and a few tomatoes have started growing. I'll mention about the heavy mulching I have done, with the leaves. Most of the picture show the heavy leaf mulch, and it has been very effective at preventing weeds. But the drawback is that it has prevented some volunteer plants I have enjoyed such as the German Chamomile, and a few others, that normally have come up by themselves.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRyE5U-bVEd2HL41C7RM387kLaAcEQBvBewNMt6fyoqc89gmmw0t42z1FOYWYBC9vtqzxY8uV7Ln9bRgV1dJRmJnV3a8lEab-mC0QFpPHyfr_ncKnGOjhVbr5l72YhhczKoJh7kI129vo/s1600/IMG_3147.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRyE5U-bVEd2HL41C7RM387kLaAcEQBvBewNMt6fyoqc89gmmw0t42z1FOYWYBC9vtqzxY8uV7Ln9bRgV1dJRmJnV3a8lEab-mC0QFpPHyfr_ncKnGOjhVbr5l72YhhczKoJh7kI129vo/s320/IMG_3147.JPG" width="320" /></a>The onions and garlic are still growing. I have checked the onions, and I still don't see any bulbs forming yet. But the plants look healthy and are doing well. In the middle of the picture is a single yellow squash plant. I sowed about 6 seeds but only one came out. In the right is the spaghetti squash, and on the left, and in many other pictures, you can see some blooming spinach plants, being kept around for seeds to keep.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZsSw4zXTZ7hks9Z3O1p5HvaMYXouobtltK0J1Wbp_ewytZJd_gFAaKgCDH95GaHNb8nYuYCZ7yRVjHsjvo3B0NbGBqYEruclIS8Ajs81ULgBAsePsH24Z1tujO2ieDSjCWi2CTz0KWH4/s1600/IMG_3148.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZsSw4zXTZ7hks9Z3O1p5HvaMYXouobtltK0J1Wbp_ewytZJd_gFAaKgCDH95GaHNb8nYuYCZ7yRVjHsjvo3B0NbGBqYEruclIS8Ajs81ULgBAsePsH24Z1tujO2ieDSjCWi2CTz0KWH4/s320/IMG_3148.JPG" width="320" /></a>Here is another view of the garden. You can see the peas again, and on the bottom you see some turnip plants, a red mustard plant, and some cilantro that is in full bloom, plus a cabbage head.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvjqtLXh2uJU0J1HQSb_q3knw054Y9gvjETyKhc9mg-emlkhwTpWBKDAvnWefvEhZhsnpUYWAwefhd9T6R4DKg_H-D4j3FsF-XfsxcsVp7uSk4CoQ9J4wSuS6rZHWqkvCB6YAOTxwQKM/s1600/IMG_3149.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvjqtLXh2uJU0J1HQSb_q3knw054Y9gvjETyKhc9mg-emlkhwTpWBKDAvnWefvEhZhsnpUYWAwefhd9T6R4DKg_H-D4j3FsF-XfsxcsVp7uSk4CoQ9J4wSuS6rZHWqkvCB6YAOTxwQKM/s320/IMG_3149.JPG" width="320" /></a>There are still a few cabbages around, but they are riddles with some holes, mostly from slugs. I have not seen too many caterpillars, because the wasps have been controlling them. Speaking of beneficial, the lady bugs got an early start too, and they have kept the aphids under control. The picture also shows on the left the golden acorn squash. There have been tons of females and most have died due to lack of pollination, But a few have set recently because some male flower have started appearing too.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitVnZPmrThwEvn-rLngWrhO6gN2fjnyLDjHuGcGKG0hmXyKj26jtYLT94QeX1CMZodSW7p9a1bNT-d9FhWRX_Y962RNq9FNzLkEGr8ymaweqAtYaXw-1bPnEGAUI7j_1GLk59_wEH9GHI/s1600/IMG_3150.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitVnZPmrThwEvn-rLngWrhO6gN2fjnyLDjHuGcGKG0hmXyKj26jtYLT94QeX1CMZodSW7p9a1bNT-d9FhWRX_Y962RNq9FNzLkEGr8ymaweqAtYaXw-1bPnEGAUI7j_1GLk59_wEH9GHI/s320/IMG_3150.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-45106692958305460402017-04-01T19:48:00.002-07:002017-04-01T19:48:18.492-07:00April 1st UpdateToday is April 1st, and the garden is doing very well. We finished off winter with very mild weather. It was probably the mildest winter that I remember. Our last hard freeze was in early January, and we had barely had 1 frost in early March, where I had to lay out a tarp to protect some plants. <div>
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<b>Squash</b></h3>
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In my post from late February I talked about planting some squash plants in pots for a very early start. I had planted spaghetti squash, golden acorn squash, and jumbo pink banana squash. I had transplanted them to bigger pots, and then around the first week of March, I put them in the ground.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jumbo Pink Banana Squash</td></tr>
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I put in 2 banana squash plants, and later direct seeded 1 more. I planted 2 of the spaghetti squash plants and gave 3 plants to my sister, which we planted in her yard. I also put in all the golden acorn squash.</div>
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The banana squash are doing very well. I have mulched the area like crazy with lot of leaves as you can see. They already have flowers developing, and the vines are running. </div>
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The golden acorn squash came from some seeds from a store bought squash. So I was not sure if they would fruit true to seed. Surprisingly these are not vining, but are growing more like zucchini! They are even developing some female flower which look like they will open soon. Unfortunately there are no male flowers, so they wont be able to develop. They plants are still fairly small though, so I am surprised they are doing this!</div>
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Below is a picture of one of the female flowers. You can see how the plant seems to be a busy variety. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female flower that looks close to opening </td></tr>
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One of my spaghetti squash plants is doing very well and vining, also with some soon opening flowers. The other one looks like it will be a runt of a plant. Shown the big plant, shown growing next to some lettuce that is bolting soon, and some cabbage, and garlic. </div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Tomatoes</h3>
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After transplanting to bigger pots, I put my cherry tomatoes into the ground in mid-March. Here they are today. I got 4 good plants, and gave the two other ones to my sister. They are starting to have some blooms. Next to them you can see some of the spinach that is bolting. The spinach was awesome this year. I have frozen a bunch of it because we had so much. I am hoping to let a bunch of it go to seed so I can collect seeds for this fall. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cherry tomatoes</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">variety of onions: red,yellow, white, planted from onion sets</td></tr>
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Onions and Garlic</h3>
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My onions and garlic are also doing very well. My onions are pretty dense... hopefully not too much so. I dont see any bulbs forming yet, but the plants look very healthy. As you can see I have the whole garden area very heavily mulched with leaves. So weeds have not been a problem. This winter I would go around the neighborhood with my truck and pick up bagged leaves for this purpose. </div>
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And here are my garlic plants. They also look very well. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8T5-MTTz6ck/WOBdk9qi1iI/AAAAAAAAHL4/NstnhND7W0UT5RToOTFPQ1fQhc7n1IpXgCPcB/s1600/IMG_3102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8T5-MTTz6ck/WOBdk9qi1iI/AAAAAAAAHL4/NstnhND7W0UT5RToOTFPQ1fQhc7n1IpXgCPcB/s320/IMG_3102.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">garlic</td></tr>
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Cool Weather Crops</h3>
There is a mixture of the cool as well as warm weather stuff growing now. I still have a few heads of cabbage growing. Once again, the cabbage was great this late winter. Probably harvested about 12 heads at least, and have three in the fridge. The red mustard shown below is also doing very well. My red mustard I had planted in the front flower beds have gotten powdery mildew and aren't looking as nice.<br />
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The peas I had mentioned in the previous post are doing very well. Here they are shown in the back. There are some flowers blooming, and a few pods have started. The plant are about 5ft tall now.<br />
These are shown growing behind another spinach patch. In front of that is a small turnip patch. <br />
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-59084080916899676402017-02-19T08:05:00.002-08:002017-02-19T08:05:33.570-08:00Early 2017I might have called this post "Late Winter 2017" but the weather has been so warm here lately that the word "winter" doesn't even come to mind. I heard that the last freeze we had here was Jan 8th! We did have frost last week one morning, but otherwise its been lows in the 50s and highs in the 70s on average. I read that a lot of the South is experiencing and extremely warm winter this year, and many trees are budding already.<br />
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I meant to do a final post last year, but forgot to. One of the disappointments was the Jumbo Pink Banana Squash. It never had enough time to produce. By the time the weather cooled enough, the plant was in a lot of shade, and it had two growing, but not enough time to mature. I think the problem was the very warm fall.<br />
The sugar pie pumpkins did come through at the end, and I had at least 15 pumpkins.<br />
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Early Starts for Warm Weather Plants</h3>
Well, since we are having extremely mild temperatures, I'm planning on getting a very early start this year with some warm weather plants. In those yellow pots (Dickey's BBQ cups with holes punched underneath) I have planted three Jumbo Pink Banana Squash, around 6 Spaghetti Squash, and 5 Golden Acorn squash (saved from a store bought squash a number of years ago, I just hadn't had a chance to plant it). I plant to give 3 Spaghetti squash plants to my sister, and keep 2. I will keep them in pots (and move them to bigger pots) probably until early March( if mild weather continues), and then put them in the ground. Then I'll have covers handy if we get frost or a late freeze. Same thing with my tomatoes. I also have some Cherry Tomatoes going in those small jiffy peat pots. In the meantime I have to monitor the weather,and bring them in on cold nights.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfz98lhzSyUDwKe-bmgSm5AcSXur8wzFph0z-ota_EMXIb8LqIf3OqeL3zouA-t7iMEJQNyZe1lAZWBVWaXJY8Nc3bQep-cjLC45RZ9mTYZVzTnJL0XcB7Oyz0J2oq_qWWCq8dMfkMUA/s1600/P_20170219_085307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfz98lhzSyUDwKe-bmgSm5AcSXur8wzFph0z-ota_EMXIb8LqIf3OqeL3zouA-t7iMEJQNyZe1lAZWBVWaXJY8Nc3bQep-cjLC45RZ9mTYZVzTnJL0XcB7Oyz0J2oq_qWWCq8dMfkMUA/s320/P_20170219_085307.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Cool Weather Plants</h3>
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I have lots of cooler weather crops growing now. The picture above also shows some Bibb lettuce, and some Spinach. I had built a makeshift hot-frame in early January, and seeded them, They got off a to good start, but with the warm weather I keep the glass off. Also in the back, is some garlic. I also planted it in early January. </div>
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In last year's final post I had shown some cabbage I had started in pots. I put them in the ground shortly afterwards, and they have done very well. Its the "Flat Dutch" variety. I've only had to cover them twice, in mid December and early Jan. when we had some temps in the teens.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbpH3zN1xfaiHwZgeGfoPn9mCu-JG9yN5S03xS_Rz13XxVRD9s_djP1BZv0tnPCslqgRB66Rlto6AiHFIBxKGBOQI1TY8-s8Nr2FMDVqcEi_vufd7jqRuRcJQGOiffDIAeDitwNLlKW8/s1600/IMG_3022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbpH3zN1xfaiHwZgeGfoPn9mCu-JG9yN5S03xS_Rz13XxVRD9s_djP1BZv0tnPCslqgRB66Rlto6AiHFIBxKGBOQI1TY8-s8Nr2FMDVqcEi_vufd7jqRuRcJQGOiffDIAeDitwNLlKW8/s320/IMG_3022.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cabbage picked early Feb.</td></tr>
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We've picked about 4 good heads now, and there are about 8 more developing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb7iO3UT-NdDNBr5Nefct11_-bbmgTfvAA5QKtaNQ_i4XzJ7I6kT2syKbdveE0MsX8ckwjo8u2sQX15meC8_ojPZndfRH4Zymi16rHx2u5vNIH3uaOkcIYHc3D-jILmahQku9-E7ZG_M8/s1600/P_20170219_085314.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb7iO3UT-NdDNBr5Nefct11_-bbmgTfvAA5QKtaNQ_i4XzJ7I6kT2syKbdveE0MsX8ckwjo8u2sQX15meC8_ojPZndfRH4Zymi16rHx2u5vNIH3uaOkcIYHc3D-jILmahQku9-E7ZG_M8/s320/P_20170219_085314.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">some remaining cabbage,with onions in the back</td></tr>
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I also started some onion sets in the end of January, and those are coming up now. Its a variety of red, yellow, and white onions. </div>
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One of my favorite cold weather crops in Spinach. I have 3 small beds growing now. One was shown above. They do great in the winter here in North Texas, because they are very cold tolerant.</div>
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In the picture below is one of my patches. with some pea plants behind them that recently sprouted. Those I started from seed at the end of December,and had them in small pots until their secondary leaves came out.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMvxOswnlBPyXjru-VXeL15Y-QDUnbLYKARU7scgmlJwvxdW0yDayemGn0j6p5VDskUM20WvrMALn2W0mkksAgBHh9YLs_DRW4tPQCDj9IPVbpuPTiueDbVq10Xcn6tmSTH0NELOqsD8/s1600/P_20170219_085241.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMvxOswnlBPyXjru-VXeL15Y-QDUnbLYKARU7scgmlJwvxdW0yDayemGn0j6p5VDskUM20WvrMALn2W0mkksAgBHh9YLs_DRW4tPQCDj9IPVbpuPTiueDbVq10Xcn6tmSTH0NELOqsD8/s320/P_20170219_085241.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">spinach, with peas behind them</td></tr>
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And below is a small patch that my daughter Elizabeth had started back at the end of October. It also includes some lettuce and cilantro.<br />
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Below are some more plants: Some turnips (which have big roots now that are ready to pick) and a few red mustard. I actually have a bigger patch of red mustard in my front yard, which are very pretty and I am treating them as ornamental plants (that are edible too!)</div>
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I'm starting to see aphids on the turnips though. :(</div>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-22398056435074882462016-10-01T20:20:00.002-07:002016-10-01T20:20:37.254-07:00Oct 1st UpdateThe first day of October was a very pretty sunny day, with temps in the low 80s. September ended with some stubborn heat, where we actually hit 100 again in the 3rd week of September, but then the last week we got a nice cool front and some good rain too. As has been the past few years, but big thing going on in the garden ( and literally BIG) are the pumpkins and winter squash. In the past posts I had mentioned the sugar pie pumpkins, jack-o-lantern pumpkins, and the jumbo pink banana squash plants I had going. <br />
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The sugar pie pumpkins have run into and gone through the banana squash, and both type of plants are not growing across into the area where the round zucchini squash are, and overtaking the remnants of the cherry tomatoes (which are still producing some tomatoes, but the vines look pretty sickly), and overtaking the basil bushes too. I'm concerned about my peppers too, but have managed to keep the vines from covering them so far.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uJq2i8sPaQf67Ppivk0dGU7n5FU6LIGkcdVjVOY1s_FjHaUXZh8JJnX5VD98uPGedAc3Odwi0MNp_QlAFlkMTXxfxmAQsMOUtOZnYnC_FaPInEfqQaOzAZfexN8XIzg78r1eXOfmflQ/s1600/P_20161001_105909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uJq2i8sPaQf67Ppivk0dGU7n5FU6LIGkcdVjVOY1s_FjHaUXZh8JJnX5VD98uPGedAc3Odwi0MNp_QlAFlkMTXxfxmAQsMOUtOZnYnC_FaPInEfqQaOzAZfexN8XIzg78r1eXOfmflQ/s320/P_20161001_105909.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pink banana squash in the middle, with pole beans in the background.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIWPsznv1EcxA_kvpOPKBJlprZuKUYrMapxupsnriicLSmGRIYdHFwqtJcorvQmJhjhcoFPr5QbAi6sc0lFmkFdSOXRhgLwbIfbAptRPiFZBLfpJqeOj2BICrCU-gYK1K3ilqw1aYmD5U/s1600/P_20161001_105903.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIWPsznv1EcxA_kvpOPKBJlprZuKUYrMapxupsnriicLSmGRIYdHFwqtJcorvQmJhjhcoFPr5QbAi6sc0lFmkFdSOXRhgLwbIfbAptRPiFZBLfpJqeOj2BICrCU-gYK1K3ilqw1aYmD5U/s320/P_20161001_105903.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">huge area of sugar pie pumpkin vines</td></tr>
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The production so far has actually been a bit disappointing. I only have 2 sugar pie pumpkins growing. One is almost full size and just starting to get some orange coloring. The other set about a week ago, and grew right outside the fence. I have the fence to keep out the dogs from getting in there and trampling stuff.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Unfortunately I had many promising looking female blossoms a few weeks ago but they all shriveled and died, even though I had pollinated them. This morning I had a fresh new batch of female blossoms:</div>
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I pollinated three this morning, and probably a couple more tomorrow morning should be opening.</div>
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I think tomorrow I'll have my first banana squash female blossom open up. Here is what it looked like today:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq9dTADVjYOWqntb2cn_PStXfyi4JdZpuFZDWAJxCzMdgxgAkX3KifDLO_CN6ZvDb1I3g0QEU4TiNrX7pZGe6evHPxT5chyphenhyphenZDsWe8_OPEakyap7L3PJDVnMhy7I5TXGd3vwEpX4MYWrAU/s1600/P_20161001_105619.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq9dTADVjYOWqntb2cn_PStXfyi4JdZpuFZDWAJxCzMdgxgAkX3KifDLO_CN6ZvDb1I3g0QEU4TiNrX7pZGe6evHPxT5chyphenhyphenZDsWe8_OPEakyap7L3PJDVnMhy7I5TXGd3vwEpX4MYWrAU/s320/P_20161001_105619.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">banana squash blossom almost opened</td></tr>
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The jack-o-lanterns still have not had any fruit set. I've had a couple good looking blossoms that I pollinated, but they died. The vines are still growing though, and there still might be enough time for some, but most probably its too late for Halloween, but still out to be nice fall decorations if we get any. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">jack-o-lantern vines, with bottle gourd in the background, as well as purple morning glory vines.<br /></td></tr>
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Squash Vine Borers</h3>
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To give a report on SVB activity... They are still around, but its not much of them. Towards the 2nd half of September the egg laying slowed down quite a bit. Sometimes days will go by without any eggs found, but then more appear. The past few days I've picked a few off the sugar pies, but have found none on the jack-o-lanterns or banana squash, although I have not been looking very thoroughly, mainly because the vines are so thick I can hardly get in there without damaging anything. I am still trying to dig in and cover the main vine tips whenever possible. </div>
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The older sections of the sugar pie vines are starting to yellow, and I have found a few damaged vines, with SVB frass, but those have been mainly secondary vines which I did not cover.</div>
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I did find some extensive SVB damage on my round zucchini plants though. I ended up extracting some large larva, pulling out some helplessly damaged portions of the plant, and covering up the existing parts of the plant after the surgery I had to do. Some portions are still alive, and are producing a couple squashes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9PvRWPWwjUZsh90_xwXSSw7boXzR0rHGfAbrUMaUPHVfcQdDKm3GXvYg4u6WRIAAJ7rTNyfzrr1j7E0A1Q5h6sbM_4_nJslGuTK35LHZGU3tDGi6swNmGslG_0hqRHfMZ7S0I-BPoMg/s1600/P_20161001_105647.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9PvRWPWwjUZsh90_xwXSSw7boXzR0rHGfAbrUMaUPHVfcQdDKm3GXvYg4u6WRIAAJ7rTNyfzrr1j7E0A1Q5h6sbM_4_nJslGuTK35LHZGU3tDGi6swNmGslG_0hqRHfMZ7S0I-BPoMg/s320/P_20161001_105647.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Aphid Status</h3>
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The aphids have pretty much been defeated by the lady bugs and other natural predators. I still see a few around but they are held in check by lots of ladybugs and larva that are around,so its not really a concern.</div>
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Other Vegetables</h3>
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Since the aphid infestation has been brought under control, the okra are really doing well now. These 4 plants are now about 7 ft tall and producing more than we need. And I get to enjoy their beautiful blooms!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGMeJxaL5m3OhrEEkkYE2uwUVFBUM2kac1UdAN6b5qV4tDW1RFQd80JwWjw4Pt0_18VFSx1x6jKZ4POszvKEDXkllPm3w2n4CxDbQkwOickZ5vxQO7pRkgueoSY_Tctj7lXFUO9Uz_pAE/s1600/P_20161001_105936.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGMeJxaL5m3OhrEEkkYE2uwUVFBUM2kac1UdAN6b5qV4tDW1RFQd80JwWjw4Pt0_18VFSx1x6jKZ4POszvKEDXkllPm3w2n4CxDbQkwOickZ5vxQO7pRkgueoSY_Tctj7lXFUO9Uz_pAE/s320/P_20161001_105936.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Okra blossoms</td></tr>
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The pole beans are doing very well. I saw my first flower open this past few days. I just hope my makeshift trellis doesn't break apart as the plants keep growing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnlo9YCojZAU0qYkH7X4n-q9Nr68nudL7tkDxeY4sXTjdwywDpzBg79VDAuGN8XgrXxcfVJCF_6_sHPOW4fjeuYQ-VkiUclYUmN_ifCrcHsdCZvWf5qWUOHdj_6HJMsJjUojKhMwf4Y7o/s1600/P_20161001_110010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnlo9YCojZAU0qYkH7X4n-q9Nr68nudL7tkDxeY4sXTjdwywDpzBg79VDAuGN8XgrXxcfVJCF_6_sHPOW4fjeuYQ-VkiUclYUmN_ifCrcHsdCZvWf5qWUOHdj_6HJMsJjUojKhMwf4Y7o/s320/P_20161001_110010.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pole beans</td></tr>
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I also have some other fall plants that I intend to grow in pots until some space clears out in the main garden area. Below I have some cabbage, red mustard, and even a few ornamental cabbages for my front flower bed. I also have a couple pots of sweet pea plants. I also have some spinach seedlings too, as well as lettuce. Maybe as some of the pumpkin vines die off I'll be able to find somewhere to plant these guys.<br />
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-26603055383520775662016-09-10T18:53:00.002-07:002016-09-10T18:55:16.438-07:00Early September<h3 style="text-align: center;">
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Its been fairly hot the past couple of weeks, but actually not as hot as it has been in past years in early September. August ended wet and mild, and then its been mostly in the low to mid 90s since. The past few days has seen highs around 96 or so, but this morning, we had a front come through, and it brought some rain, and then cooler temperatures, in the mid-80s today. </div>
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<h3>
Pests</h3>
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Just like last year, the aphids started getting pretty bad towards the second half of the summer. They started mostly around the okra and the bottle gourds (a.k.a birdhouse gourd), and got really bad on both. I've taken the approach mostly of waiting until the predatory pest populations build up. That's what happened last year, and eventually most of the aphids were gone when the ladybugs, lacewings, and hover fly (their larva) populations built up and brought them under control. I have sprayed some soap solution in some severely infested areas, but that has barely had an effect. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gl200bQ-Mzk/V9SQMwfBPMI/AAAAAAAAGsc/lu-gThbGIaMth8yCG-fClNkjMKh1xl_IwCPcB/s1600/IMG_2817.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gl200bQ-Mzk/V9SQMwfBPMI/AAAAAAAAGsc/lu-gThbGIaMth8yCG-fClNkjMKh1xl_IwCPcB/s320/IMG_2817.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ladybug feasting on aphids</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bottle gourds seem to be very susceptible to aphid infestations </td></tr>
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The cucumber beetles surprisingly have not been bad this summer. I do see a few here and there, but its much less than last year. And no signs of squash bugs either. The squash vine borers (SVB) are definitely around. I have killed about 4 moths the past two weeks, on the weekend when I am around during the day. Every day I pick off a handful of eggs from squash/pumpkin vines. </div>
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<h3>
Pumpkins/Squash</h3>
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In my last update, I had talked about my pumpkins and squash that were growing, Except for the Round Zucchini, I had them all under cover to protect them from SVB. All these outgrow their covers, and are now out in the open.</div>
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The Jack-o-lanterns I uncovered about 4 days ago, and started covering exposed vines with dirt and mulch, to help protect them against SVB eggs getting laid on them, and to encourage more root formation. The older part of the vine has been hit pretty had by the aphids, probably because the plants are right next to the bottle gourds. Lots of male flowers, and a few females have shown up but have all died before they had a chance to grow bigger and open. I think its probably the heat we have had. Also the plants are still not as vigorous as are the sugar pie pumpkins, which are growing like gangbusters! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jack-o-lantern pumpkin plants.</td></tr>
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This morning I uncovered the Jumbo Pink Banana Squash plants. They are growing pretty fast now and have huge, beautiful leaves. Like the pumpkins, I covered up the exposed vines with dirt and mulch. It will definitely be interesting (and crazy!) when these start spreading over to the other side, and run into the round zucchini and jack-o-lanterns. Its going to be a huge squash jungle in the garden.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IXJVHao02P8/V9SQWnoVdAI/AAAAAAAAGsc/XgesssSy27ATyheNjhku8clMs9M5GEZpwCPcB/s1600/IMG_2811.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IXJVHao02P8/V9SQWnoVdAI/AAAAAAAAGsc/XgesssSy27ATyheNjhku8clMs9M5GEZpwCPcB/s320/IMG_2811.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Banana squash, with Sugar Pie Pumpkins in the background</td></tr>
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The Sugar Pie pumpkin plants are HUGE. They have taken over their whole area, and are moving into where the Banana squash are growing. Its going to be very tough to get in there, and take care of the vines, help pollinate flowers, and check for SVB. There are some female flowers that have appeared but they have all shriveled, probably due to the heat. There are a couple that look like they might open in the next few days.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eSQeFpCfnZU/V9SQcS6kEkI/AAAAAAAAGsc/7iu7BbCy65EVn3yhjkTN31urKsYRSACngCPcB/s1600/IMG_2810.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eSQeFpCfnZU/V9SQcS6kEkI/AAAAAAAAGsc/7iu7BbCy65EVn3yhjkTN31urKsYRSACngCPcB/s320/IMG_2810.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sugar Pie Pumpkin plants</td></tr>
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Wow its been a struggle with the Round Zucchini! I think planting them in the heat of the summer was not a good idea. I should have waited another month before planting them. The plants are all very long semi-bush vines. I have not seen any signs of SVB damage, but I did do some pre-emptive injections with BT in the main vines. The big problem has been the onslaught of aphids. They have cause the new leaves to be small and curled up. They have attacked the blossom very badly. I do see predatory insect populations building though. And the other problem has been that almost all of the female flowers have either shriveled and died while still very small, or if they have gotten big enough, they have gotten eaten by rats, or have died shortly after I pollinated them. I did get one to grow, and that one I have let to "ripen" so that I can use it for seeds, (because I am out of seeds for these) and use it for a decoration I guess. It looks like a small yellow pumpkin. So I am not sure whats going to happen with these. I'm not sure if they will get to produce much before they succumb to SVB, and powdery mildew eventually.. or they might get overrun by the pumpkins and banana squash.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gnRjdEMmkGQ/V9SQRLKjGEI/AAAAAAAAGsc/8yRGX1CKvpUL127YF-XFf3e6JtWpNOVFACPcB/s1600/IMG_2814.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gnRjdEMmkGQ/V9SQRLKjGEI/AAAAAAAAGsc/8yRGX1CKvpUL127YF-XFf3e6JtWpNOVFACPcB/s320/IMG_2814.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Okra in the back, and Round Zucchini in the front.</td></tr>
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<h3>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Okra, Beans, Peppers</div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">The okra started blooming and producing despite the heavy aphid infestation. I've picked about 10 pods now, and there are plenty of flowers coming up, although those are heavily covered by aphids, which I sprayed this morning with soapy water to see if that helps. (See picture above).</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Kentucky wonder pole beans are doing very well. They are now training up on the old cucumber trellis, and I bet by next weekend I will have to grow the trellis more to accommodate their growth. They are about 5.5 feet high now.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TT3IEY-5jCg/V9SQPvdLqEI/AAAAAAAAGsc/1HtJSv8QstkkklpfURY3r7U49Ao3OoJAQCPcB/s1600/IMG_2813.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TT3IEY-5jCg/V9SQPvdLqEI/AAAAAAAAGsc/1HtJSv8QstkkklpfURY3r7U49Ao3OoJAQCPcB/s320/IMG_2813.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pole beans</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> <span style="font-weight: normal;">The sweet bell peppers are doing well too. The plants have not grown very tall, but they are producing flowers now, and I did see a small pepper forming now. That area is about to get overrun by the banana squash, so I am hoping they get a bit taller so they can stand out above the vines.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-u_Gkd-uZWRI/V9SQUp2xcOI/AAAAAAAAGsc/dSHhAjM-CEM9hQCjEQ4aIbLVZFnr2LxkgCPcB/s1600/IMG_2812.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-u_Gkd-uZWRI/V9SQUp2xcOI/AAAAAAAAGsc/dSHhAjM-CEM9hQCjEQ4aIbLVZFnr2LxkgCPcB/s320/IMG_2812.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">bell peppers (excuse the finger in the shot)</td></tr>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-92108481187546554272016-08-27T11:07:00.003-07:002016-08-27T11:07:58.557-07:00Late August UpdateAlmost the end of August here in North Texas. After a typically hot mid August, the temps have been a lot more pleasant lately and we've had some rain, so everything is green. <br />
<h3>
<br />Okra</h3>
The okra plants are pretty big now, almost 5 feet tall. I see flower heads starting to form now too.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkepgHNoyfOqquaxB8P5_4T302EvHgtCgEFlY5ZmdLMjh4rSzbGhW9dm8F2Vedy9V2Do_m_U6WyAYUQdkLKjRDmwkQDYPY-KxbIuispuyVaNdEUzCQEwiUD8kpPYEAbFCncpWMn3Kdl8/s1600/IMG_2751.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkepgHNoyfOqquaxB8P5_4T302EvHgtCgEFlY5ZmdLMjh4rSzbGhW9dm8F2Vedy9V2Do_m_U6WyAYUQdkLKjRDmwkQDYPY-KxbIuispuyVaNdEUzCQEwiUD8kpPYEAbFCncpWMn3Kdl8/s320/IMG_2751.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The problem is that some of the plants have gotten hit pretty hard by aphids. There are thousand and thousands of aphids on some of the newer leaves and forming flower heads. I've started spraying with some soapy water to try and knock their population down a bit. I am really hoping the beneficial bugs get established soon too. Unfortunately I have not seen any ladybugs around. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTxHDG7N1SDFtRTB22m-BPT1aFjq5WFXSKqE3tdxuHMq4DA37xoVBtB83LKRDIPpNYO9_s83UknvOZigKOQzcuGEWLGR7EVxAck2vb6Pwp2vDufumD22cLFAlF9zHNmuAQ2ce1BnsLIYs/s1600/IMG_2750.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTxHDG7N1SDFtRTB22m-BPT1aFjq5WFXSKqE3tdxuHMq4DA37xoVBtB83LKRDIPpNYO9_s83UknvOZigKOQzcuGEWLGR7EVxAck2vb6Pwp2vDufumD22cLFAlF9zHNmuAQ2ce1BnsLIYs/s320/IMG_2750.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aphids attacking the okra</td></tr>
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The aphid infestation happens almost every time I've grown okra. They don't kill the plants but limit the prodiction, and slows them down. Usually with some spraying of water, or some soapy water I can bring down their population.<br />
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<h3>
Squash/Pumpkins</h3>
The round zucchini has been a disappointment so far. The vines have been very dense with leaves,and they have toppled over, and many of the older leaves have gotten damaged, and have died. So parts of the plants look ugly. I've had to set out rat traps to kill the rats that have been eating my female flowers. I've killed 4 so far! Since my last update I have hand pollinated 2 flowers, but they both have shriveled and died. Many others have withered while still small. On top of all that, powdery mildew has tried to rear its ugly head, but I've beaten it back with some potassium bicarbonate that I've sprayed on it. <br />
I've picked off a few squash vine borer eggs, but actually haven't seen that many. The plant is so thick with leaf stalks that I don't think its feasible to find and pick all the eggs. So my plan is to inject with BT at the first signs of frass, and hopefully I get some fruit to set before the SVBs start killing the plant.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBmlsgrdI_DGZDYh9ebWHLnCLSaKNVs5rWy5kKm4uJbpY5_AKQdeno0QTfSuV1oIlLrbb9DE5Uc_x0nuho2XoUMVg_06dN48WekmwIaB6OlqjBA0ZVLSUbVlmE4DZWuPeLrLLmx65bWwc/s1600/IMG_2752.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBmlsgrdI_DGZDYh9ebWHLnCLSaKNVs5rWy5kKm4uJbpY5_AKQdeno0QTfSuV1oIlLrbb9DE5Uc_x0nuho2XoUMVg_06dN48WekmwIaB6OlqjBA0ZVLSUbVlmE4DZWuPeLrLLmx65bWwc/s320/IMG_2752.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">round zucchini has grown very dense</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7rS3CVqbh3RfB6T3PeF3UpRWtnp7-Kc5qJNZ0jh96Nk7WrmicvsMpwuxYpijehuJCB7tC8svvXkHhS8sElVI_UruIW0l6VDVGW7vYeLYjCCvZ7TVEULCcKXqreRmmYw5rdSjsXFrOEBk/s1600/IMG_2753.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7rS3CVqbh3RfB6T3PeF3UpRWtnp7-Kc5qJNZ0jh96Nk7WrmicvsMpwuxYpijehuJCB7tC8svvXkHhS8sElVI_UruIW0l6VDVGW7vYeLYjCCvZ7TVEULCcKXqreRmmYw5rdSjsXFrOEBk/s320/IMG_2753.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">round zucchini sprawling on ground.</td></tr>
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My pumpkins are coming along pretty well. I still have them all covered with netting so I don't have to worry about bugs, especially the borers (SVB).<br />
Here are the jack-o-lanterns. They are starting to vine out now, and growing pretty quickly. The one tiny female flower has died, but some of the first male flower are about to open. Hopefully I can keep these covered for a few more weeks and then remove the covers, and start burying vines.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmGB2v49nyJbJWaz23Leb2Z1M59G1aBC_8wcfr0IdZOSBPu82kdSOvxZSivVQi5X6cKXITVPhoh3aK-6ag-nFlOrmBBBCad0xG9VSK3jRVjhgvgBvvv2q19MJ6nSPdf7EZrI8Nqm23xc/s1600/IMG_2755.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmGB2v49nyJbJWaz23Leb2Z1M59G1aBC_8wcfr0IdZOSBPu82kdSOvxZSivVQi5X6cKXITVPhoh3aK-6ag-nFlOrmBBBCad0xG9VSK3jRVjhgvgBvvv2q19MJ6nSPdf7EZrI8Nqm23xc/s320/IMG_2755.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jack-o-lanterns under netting</td></tr>
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My Jumbo Pink Banana squash came up too. All 4 seeds did, and I put the cover that was formerly on the jack-o-lanterns on these plants. <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRW6XnpHzys7b0LOUDB5-YwzfYFUWRK6uJhdy6TAyIoSwsI6SXxzz3fIspykarUmFAly-kCJGZksNaMfnNjIbsuEhA8e18AgU91E69hpqMDXqsNbOCrLg3J6JO6Z7X_KLsFk1hrQ92DQA/s1600/IMG_2756.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRW6XnpHzys7b0LOUDB5-YwzfYFUWRK6uJhdy6TAyIoSwsI6SXxzz3fIspykarUmFAly-kCJGZksNaMfnNjIbsuEhA8e18AgU91E69hpqMDXqsNbOCrLg3J6JO6Z7X_KLsFk1hrQ92DQA/s320/IMG_2756.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jumbo Pink Banana Squash </td></tr>
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Here are my sugar pie pumpkins. I didn't get around to thinning them out. I hate doing that, but I know I should. So there are probably 7 or 8 plants there, with 4 seeming to be going very strong. I still have them under cover, but have debated taking off the covers. I just feel lazy and dont want to spend the effort checking them for eggs and covering the vines with dirt. But they are about to overgrow the netting so I will have to soon.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgccFjrj4EvuXin9axKi5kUbK2MAtrGPH2p-dKzFiHsPOguQ-mFoubCSMpfhyvk6yt8c0AZt0tmQoqSs1dlwPaRiWyXB1gjbX6A771mJJCzfsDJ0_0JwTf5ReGbhIlcl4rCcygNs9e41qY/s1600/IMG_2757.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgccFjrj4EvuXin9axKi5kUbK2MAtrGPH2p-dKzFiHsPOguQ-mFoubCSMpfhyvk6yt8c0AZt0tmQoqSs1dlwPaRiWyXB1gjbX6A771mJJCzfsDJ0_0JwTf5ReGbhIlcl4rCcygNs9e41qY/s320/IMG_2757.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sugar pie pumpkins.</td></tr>
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I still don't see any flowers about to open on these. They seem to be just focused on vining out.<br />
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<h3>
Some other stuff growing</h3>
Here is my trellis/arbor from last year. The volunteer birdhouse gourd, and the volunteer morning glories are doing very well and starting to grow up on it. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Nc4t-dvNach5bj9OFuLbaKSTmKkuXo4MSNSIfJY1PfcTggDiz-QtB-7X4Cfq8xb0aEFoywPbCn_U64PRoWRfvLQSpyKnCv8ptveCy-ndmrxwJQ0D9xRIpbOeVFbfhlSWbcObOC22Y4E/s1600/IMG_2760.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Nc4t-dvNach5bj9OFuLbaKSTmKkuXo4MSNSIfJY1PfcTggDiz-QtB-7X4Cfq8xb0aEFoywPbCn_U64PRoWRfvLQSpyKnCv8ptveCy-ndmrxwJQ0D9xRIpbOeVFbfhlSWbcObOC22Y4E/s320/IMG_2760.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Most of the gourd vines are actually on the ground. They are growing very fast, and rooting along the ground too. I've picked some young immature gourds, because they are edible. They actually taste very good, almost a nutty type taste. I made an Indian-style curry with them last week and it was very good! I think they are called "lauki" in India. Google it, and you'll see many recipes and drinks and other stuff people make with these.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlO-PuBPrE7xxYtHM8a7ttJdBw5F35dZdPtlra3ZNw2v170NEABYyA1TDprrkAlS9_q9drwBlo2Tl0BbWj_LD-YNmyi_7MvPv0m8r1EYdmFqWUjyXFZhVJIoVLatCNjvDLdQFkWXmFzpg/s1600/IMG_2754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlO-PuBPrE7xxYtHM8a7ttJdBw5F35dZdPtlra3ZNw2v170NEABYyA1TDprrkAlS9_q9drwBlo2Tl0BbWj_LD-YNmyi_7MvPv0m8r1EYdmFqWUjyXFZhVJIoVLatCNjvDLdQFkWXmFzpg/s320/IMG_2754.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The calabash, bottle gourd, or white-flowered gourd. This variety produces gourds that can be used for bird-houses and other decorations</span></span></td></tr>
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Here are my sweet bell pepper plants. They seem to be doing pretty well. I see some flower heads forming. Some are starting to lean over so I had to put a few small stakes to hold them up<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSVhscBtG1z7VXETJd0Fh6KseCvvhXIzV0dEDe68U8WQBT8wgsgZ1xQihk0FsYwACTzmKBl2nR3Ec9eV9Rkvu_Z6kR3QQD_Qz9gkQ1n1FgvVWDA2rgh4khISp1BkwlvxtE0poYkrQABRg/s1600/IMG_2759.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSVhscBtG1z7VXETJd0Fh6KseCvvhXIzV0dEDe68U8WQBT8wgsgZ1xQihk0FsYwACTzmKBl2nR3Ec9eV9Rkvu_Z6kR3QQD_Qz9gkQ1n1FgvVWDA2rgh4khISp1BkwlvxtE0poYkrQABRg/s320/IMG_2759.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sweet bell pepper plants</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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And here are my young Kentucky wonder pole beans. They are looking good. I have that fence to keep out small dog out, since I sprinkled some slug/snail bait close to them. Slugs really like the seedlings. These are growing by the trellis I had made for the cucumbers earlier this year.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaFMLKX3QkC2D8HEEYghC33WFrpLXD_Hm2e4wnmKryUXRALeugFs5fjTsAWVz61QQR3qalOc8lBlVZccn-iuZChJQiv_vaL2N1OwSlXp938S0UZQBveTGkcieEk_D5v2d3o-tUxEA06Og/s1600/IMG_2758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaFMLKX3QkC2D8HEEYghC33WFrpLXD_Hm2e4wnmKryUXRALeugFs5fjTsAWVz61QQR3qalOc8lBlVZccn-iuZChJQiv_vaL2N1OwSlXp938S0UZQBveTGkcieEk_D5v2d3o-tUxEA06Og/s320/IMG_2758.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-39243363051601936662016-08-16T22:01:00.000-07:002016-08-16T22:01:00.974-07:00Mid-August Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We just went through a few weeks of typical early August weather here in N. Texas, were we were at around 100 most days, and last Thursday we hit 104. But this past Saturday the weather started changing, and since then its been a lot cooler and more pleasant. Since then we've been in the lower 80s, and its been lightly raining on and off, and surprisingly, the forecast calls for mid-80 for the next 10 days! That's pretty rare here in August. So I am expecting things in the garden to really start doing a lot better and producing more. </div>
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Last post, I mentioned my Round Zucchini plants that I had under some netting. They have been growing huge under the netting, almost completely filling the area, and sprawling like vines. There have been lots of male and female flowers but they have all withered and died before any have opened. I think that was because of the heat. I decided to remove the covering because the plants have gotten so big. I hope that after a number of week of there being no place to lay eggs available that the SVB moths have left the area, but I know its still too early to think they are done for the year. But I think the plants are so large and well established now that they should be able to survive some infestation for a while now, and hopefully produce well. I am really hoping some of the flowers open and set fruit this coming week with the better weather. There are 4 plants. They are sprawling and I can see many roots forming along the main vine and rooting down into the ground. As I mentioned before, I am hoping to let at least 1 of the fruits grow to complete maturity, in order to use it as a fall decoration and ultimately for collecting seeds. These are the last of the seeds I had for this variety, and heirloom variety, so I would like to replenish my seed supply.</div>
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In the picture below you see them, with the okra plants behind them. The okra are really doing well too. No flowers have bloomed yet, but the stems are getting real thick, and I think they will start producing soon too. I have thinned them down to 4 strong plants.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkWiJbCcHSzyM31g70dXg6JAXGBUCletGSZrBukXMhkbRv4MfDque8Ewm2ghX3-u_xdAAJt5BZuC6suCQ5_WYRj3p-1mSGrutaKiA-IQuHK60tD2_hHqm4V2dDEoQDzrOfBdJEwnNXnQ/s1600/IMG_2719.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkWiJbCcHSzyM31g70dXg6JAXGBUCletGSZrBukXMhkbRv4MfDque8Ewm2ghX3-u_xdAAJt5BZuC6suCQ5_WYRj3p-1mSGrutaKiA-IQuHK60tD2_hHqm4V2dDEoQDzrOfBdJEwnNXnQ/s320/IMG_2719.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Round zucchini plants, with Emerald Okra in the background</td></tr>
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<h3>
<br />Pumpkins</h3>
Last post I mentioned some Jack-o-lantern pumpkin seedlings. Here they are today.. so they are about 1 month old now. They have been kind-of struggling, but I am not sure why. Maybe the heat. Some of the lower leaves have mysteriously shriveled and died, and the plants looks wilted in the heat at times. I suspect I might have over-watered them trying to compensate for the heat. But today they are looking pretty good. I see male flowers forming in them, and they seem to be starting to vine out. I'll keep them under these covers until they outgrow it. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqDUX_f0H4Gm3caWTt9X9BdDrselFfnyT4-gBtEeOg99C1HWguxMNGg7HNVtcpO0579uDJOajWPWvWkvSidgD1XKP4vGOHTkdTt_KEN4LVlVr7nniEw07uDxvS-MPPiBv0wgBnh7Aje1E/s1600/IMG_2720.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqDUX_f0H4Gm3caWTt9X9BdDrselFfnyT4-gBtEeOg99C1HWguxMNGg7HNVtcpO0579uDJOajWPWvWkvSidgD1XKP4vGOHTkdTt_KEN4LVlVr7nniEw07uDxvS-MPPiBv0wgBnh7Aje1E/s320/IMG_2720.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jack-o-lantern pumpkins after a month old</td></tr>
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I was reading about commercial pumpkin varieties, and there is a good chance these might be seeds from hybrid varieties... so I might not get what I expect. Will be interesting to see what this produces. There are actually 6 plants there, but I'll need to thin them out to 4. (two are pretty small actually).<br />
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I also mentioned the Sugar Pie Pumpkins I was planted. Those came up and have grown very well, and very quickly! They are vining now, and just look a lot better than the ones above. Here is what they look like, about 3.5 weeks old!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaezx7a8WQYtUNAttGst_qLQBZMqisH-iNY5vSZzp_GLIRARskQE1icMR_GV1XRbmeXSU1TZS5rtqQQ3VHgmFRb1mZlOnYF1pta3DVjlUpq-ZQA-d1D2i7Sj33LYc6VsrNb1aQ3YhsQ2k/s1600/IMG_2724.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaezx7a8WQYtUNAttGst_qLQBZMqisH-iNY5vSZzp_GLIRARskQE1icMR_GV1XRbmeXSU1TZS5rtqQQ3VHgmFRb1mZlOnYF1pta3DVjlUpq-ZQA-d1D2i7Sj33LYc6VsrNb1aQ3YhsQ2k/s320/IMG_2724.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sugar pie pumpkin</td></tr>
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There are about 10 plants there, and I should really thin them down to about 5 or so. I hate doing that though when the plants all look healthy.<br />I'll plan on keeping the pumpkins covered as long as practical, especially if I see my Round Zucchini getting hit by SVB. <div>
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I got some Pink Jumbo Banana Squash seeds from someone at GardenWeb forums, and she sent me a few seeds. I soaked 4 seeds and they just sprouted, so I planted them in this area. I know I will be cutting it real close because they are getting a pretty late start, especially for C. Maxima varieties, that take about 100-110 days to maturity. Hopefully we don't have a freeze until very late November this year.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNMva0VUE8vxG0vcDySD-V7int5NiNu67GrryE0acxE-dyn2fdthKSYZFul8XxML1J9mxUvKBT51W_kI-YnnFupa377mmTqGyp-dauqFUAGY9DX9FW0SAM7XbjkTbkH6sammx0UVSwY_s/s1600/IMG_2726.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNMva0VUE8vxG0vcDySD-V7int5NiNu67GrryE0acxE-dyn2fdthKSYZFul8XxML1J9mxUvKBT51W_kI-YnnFupa377mmTqGyp-dauqFUAGY9DX9FW0SAM7XbjkTbkH6sammx0UVSwY_s/s320/IMG_2726.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jumbo Pink Banana Squash planted here.</td></tr>
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<h3>
<br />Tomatoes and Peppers</h3>
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My tomato plants are still alive for the most part. They are still huge and sprawling. and look rather crispy from the heat, but still growing. Below are both Rutgers tomato plants, and Super Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes. Really hope the mild weather gets these producing again, otherwise they are a huge waste of space. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHbaH_R8JLEr60fPQBw1KFG5baOjWzBqTum_Un7vk1_QYcE_OKIGmubyFOaGClbU6o0UKOGERc8Bwe67cnKgi6N6MuHyrsbiuEfe7aBBbdqLiSe2FHOJfAkZLW3OpyiFjwWGRF0ReDW18/s1600/IMG_2721.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHbaH_R8JLEr60fPQBw1KFG5baOjWzBqTum_Un7vk1_QYcE_OKIGmubyFOaGClbU6o0UKOGERc8Bwe67cnKgi6N6MuHyrsbiuEfe7aBBbdqLiSe2FHOJfAkZLW3OpyiFjwWGRF0ReDW18/s320/IMG_2721.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most of these are the Super Sweet 100 cherry tomato plants</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgm-dsNaUs2FGcSeiLtczjXj1eQfCyhVLICGtLshABV6DZltTV5-hiySaIyV0sqN4foAOMB1-5dlsc4yOWkbaRnh9eP6dRw2esGjtxK8uYBaabwzHbE3dRZyIGu-4JLoWDBA6FCsSXf9o/s1600/IMG_2725.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgm-dsNaUs2FGcSeiLtczjXj1eQfCyhVLICGtLshABV6DZltTV5-hiySaIyV0sqN4foAOMB1-5dlsc4yOWkbaRnh9eP6dRw2esGjtxK8uYBaabwzHbE3dRZyIGu-4JLoWDBA6FCsSXf9o/s320/IMG_2725.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">some Rutgers tomato plants from the spring that survived the summer</td></tr>
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For these Rutgers shown above, I had bent over and dug most of the long vines into the ground, so many of the tomatoes should have some good root systems in place. I have not done a good job weeding the area, so they are getting overgrown by grass.<br />
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The sweet bell peppers are still coming along. Its been pretty slow going, but the plants look pretty good today. There are 5 good plants,and a tiny one that almost died but is showing signs of trying to come back.<br />
I think my timing was good on planting these. These should starting producing a lot around late September when the weather cools down.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sweet bell pepper mixture</td></tr>
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<br />Beans</h3>
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I pulled up all the remaining cucumber vines, and this area has been clean for about three weeks now. So I decided it was good area to try and plant a fall planting of pole beans. So I just planted some Kentucky Wonder beans there, and a number have just started coming up. The wire netting is to discourage varmints from eating the new seedlings. Fall is usually a great time for pole beans here, the trick is timing it so they produce well during the cool months of Oct and early November before the freeze. Some years I have waited too long to plant, and have had so see beautiful plants killed by the freeze just as they were starting to produce.</div>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-21763649051455322632016-07-26T16:45:00.002-07:002016-07-26T16:45:51.772-07:00Mid Summer Update<br />
Its almost the end of July, the hottest part of the summer. Here is an update of what's going on in the garden.<br />
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Last year I had one of my dry birdhouse gourds break open at the end of the season, and some of the seeds scatted in the area. This spring they sprouted, and since we've had a pretty wet spring and summer, they have grown well without any care. I did start watering it a little a few weeks ago. Here it is today, growing very nicely. <br />
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Speaking of the gourds, the ones from last year are mostly completely dry now. I cut a hole into a couple yesterday, and will try to start using some of them for crafts. <br />
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A few days ago we planted some jack-o-lantern pumpkins (saved seeds from a store-bought one someone gave me). Here is what they look like today, under their protective tulle tent. Hopefully these will have good pumpkins by Halloween. These don't stand a chance if it wasn't for the netting, unless I spent lots of time checking for SVB eggs, which is not fun.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">jack-o-lantern pumpkin seedlings about a seek since seeds were soaked</td></tr>
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Today I also just planted some sugar pie pumpkins in this other area of the yard. I pulled out a huge sunflower plant to make space. There are some of the tomato plants that are still alive... the pumpkin vines will grow around them if they still alive later this summer. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">just planted sugar pie pumpkins here</td></tr>
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Below are the sweet peppers that I mentioned starting from seeds in the last post. About 7 seedlings came up, and I put them in the ground. One is dying, so there are 6 plants that are looking like they might make it. They are pretty slow growing... as I remember from past experience, peppers start off slow. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sweet peppers a few weeks old</td></tr>
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Here are the cucumbers. They have been hit by SVB, as I have found some of the vines wilting, and have found grubs in them. But the main trunk doesn't seem to have been hit, so many portions of the vines are still alive and producing still. Cucumber beetles have been bad, but have not caused a big problem yet. Next to it are some of my basil bushes. These are regular volunteers in my garden. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CLCXJO8O7-s/V5fFbh7H0YI/AAAAAAAAGcM/onon9PkAF6E0dhwA2_Ry5-Qf1idElaMKwCKgB/s1600/00006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CLCXJO8O7-s/V5fFbh7H0YI/AAAAAAAAGcM/onon9PkAF6E0dhwA2_Ry5-Qf1idElaMKwCKgB/s320/00006.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the cucumber are hanging on for life</td></tr>
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And here is my tomato jungle. The "sweet 100" cherry tomatoes have produced well lately, but seem to be taking a breather with the recent very hot weather. The Rutgers vines are also still alive, but have not produced anything in about a month. Its just been way too hot for them. The vines I had buried have certainly been helped, as I have seen fresh new growth, but no flowers or fruit though.<br />
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From the previous post, I had mentioned I was planting some round zucchini, and that 1 seedling had come up. Well that was the only one that came up. I suspect my seeds are getting old. So I sprouted and planted 3 more seeds, which did come up (out of about 8 soaked seeds). So these plants are about 2 weeks behind the first one. One of my goals with these plants is to let one squash grow to maturity so I can get seeds to replenish my supply. When these mature they are like small yellow pumpkins. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Round zucchini under protective netting</td></tr>
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To report on my experiment using aluminium foil, I can say it didn't really "foil" the SVBs. I've had lots and lots of the moths flying around trying to lay eggs, (the second generation this year that came from my spaghetti squash) and I did find a few eggs on the leaves, despite the foil. So I think it did help a little bit, but not enough to prevent infestation. I did pick off those eggs I found, and then covered the plant with tulle netting. When the plant got bigger, and the newer seedling started outgrowing their smaller individual tulle nettings, I erected my bigger netting set-up shown above. Flower are starting to appear on the big plant, but haven't opened yet. I did see two female flowers forming. Hopefully we get a dip in the heat when those are open, and the fruit sets. This week should be in the mid to upper 90s. <br />
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In my last previous post from July 3rd, I had shown my okra seedlings. They have grown quite a bit since then, and are close to 2 feet tall now. I thinned them down to 4 good plants (about 7 had come up).<br />
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<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-9532134526274926472016-07-03T14:09:00.002-07:002016-07-03T14:09:13.696-07:00Summer in North Texas <div dir="ltr">
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Summer is here, and in Texas, it mean extreme heat and dryness, which make it very hard to maintain a garden. Its been in the mid-to-upper 90s most days, and haven't had any good amount of rain in about 2 weeks (while we were on vacation).</div>
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Pretty much all the stuff I planted in the Spring is done with. The onions, squash, garlic are all picked. The rutgers tomatoes are done producing too. But the cherry tomatoes, being much more heat resistant, are still producing. The plants have gotten huge, and very long, so I have started burying many of the tomato vines so encourage more rooting, so that they might produce more later on.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9hQXz0HaDKmn1KxWPCwTa7O_sEeFbeeF690RC-Q2jMTnWwy5Ar5Rz0ytAMCexk1LBQSmRysE6Kiz08cShvxuJnTgSvdUCUvlfOcDMmHuddLfd5Kmoy9FXDpifGR5hoSrgZy_k1FKEZGI/s1600/P_20160702_130238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9hQXz0HaDKmn1KxWPCwTa7O_sEeFbeeF690RC-Q2jMTnWwy5Ar5Rz0ytAMCexk1LBQSmRysE6Kiz08cShvxuJnTgSvdUCUvlfOcDMmHuddLfd5Kmoy9FXDpifGR5hoSrgZy_k1FKEZGI/s320/P_20160702_130238.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cherry tomatoes can take the heat better</td></tr>
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These cherry tomatoes have been great. The ones that escape the mockingbirds, I often pick and eat them as a snack, as they have a very good flavor. The rutgers tomatoes are all done producing, Unfortunately the mockingbirds ate a lot of them, in spite of that we still got a pretty decent amount of tomatoes from the plants. <br />
I have layed down their long vines and dug trenches, and dug in the vines to encourage more root production. Hopefully if the plants stay alive they produce more in the fall. ( may be foolish thing to do considering the water I'll have to spend to water them) but we'll see what happens.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">buried tomato vines under a sunflower (being propped up by a stick)</td></tr>
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In late spring my son Andrew wanted to plant something so I helped him plant some cucumbers. It was kinda late in the season but I thought was worth a try. He seeded them in a large pot, and later he transplanted the plants once this space was available( where the snap peas has been growing). His plants have grown pretty big now, and are producing. These are the "straight eight" variety. We have picked 3 nice ones, and a few more are growing. There are lots of cucumber beetles on them, and a few squash bugs too, but I have not wanted to spray anything on them. Hopefully we can keep getting some more until they succumb to the heat and bugs. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNkPxILwiNmRvimku26Dn3ybn_kttwkaJ7JGyW3hmTbgFxCkiCkGeBulp9uiLEEfN9TBdolIuy4aP8S66GdnfCKMYFs7ZdtM8BufmpL5sypHN14LUpOoRzgKn3U1SYy__bWhrTcgr0yMw/s1600/P_20160702_130409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNkPxILwiNmRvimku26Dn3ybn_kttwkaJ7JGyW3hmTbgFxCkiCkGeBulp9uiLEEfN9TBdolIuy4aP8S66GdnfCKMYFs7ZdtM8BufmpL5sypHN14LUpOoRzgKn3U1SYy__bWhrTcgr0yMw/s320/P_20160702_130409.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cucumbers with some basil nearby.</td></tr>
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There are many volunteer basil plants and some milo plants around which I water occasionally. I very much welcome the basil. They have been coming up every year, and I just let them grow where-ever they pop up. <br />
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New Plantings</h3>
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One of the reliable hot-summer plants is okra. I seeded a few plants a couple weeks ago, and they came up.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvJAWZ8UiOWwIyTh_WssTLSOdY5UnCFmTSLsx23Oq3YwAwWgTz6YRCqa3rcTykcO-17OxhlbjcQi-z94myiImwBswt16lzkFxLbN-3Pq2FPb0WW1i5kDgOIIM31BiHiiRf7Dpyo15Rylo/s1600/P_20160702_130249.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvJAWZ8UiOWwIyTh_WssTLSOdY5UnCFmTSLsx23Oq3YwAwWgTz6YRCqa3rcTykcO-17OxhlbjcQi-z94myiImwBswt16lzkFxLbN-3Pq2FPb0WW1i5kDgOIIM31BiHiiRf7Dpyo15Rylo/s320/P_20160702_130249.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emerald okra from seeds saved from last year</td></tr>
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I have the chicken wire over them for protection since we have a small dog that sometimes goes into the garden has tried to make holes. This is to give them a little protection until they get a bit bigger. I have 7 seedlings, but once bigger may thin down to 4 since that should provide more than enough for our needs.<br />
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I also planted 4 "Round Zucchini" seeds last week, and 1 has come up. Not sure what to expect since it will be growing maturing during both the hottest part of the summer where the pest are in full force too. But my plan for these is to:<br />
- While small, monitor every few days for SVB eggs, and keep area clear to prevent squash bugs.<br />
- Put some aluminum foil around base and as mulch to see of this keeps SVB from laying eggs, (I've read about this but have not tried it.<br />
- Once plants are bigger (maybe 2 weeks from now) do a good inspection for eggs, then cover all the plants will tulle netting. (not doing it now since I want them to get full sun so they grow fast and strong in their early life)<br />
- Once female flowers appear, then hand pollinate, as long as aphids don't start being a problem and force me to remove the covers to deal with them. Eventually just remove the covers.<br />
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The other thing I am hoping to grow during the summer is peppers. Last week I bought a packet of sweet peppers:<br />
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I just planted 10 seeds in small pots a couple days ago. Hoping they come up soon. I thought about just direct seeding them, but thought it would be easier to keep the soil moist by planting them in pots, and putting them in the shade, until they germinated.<br />
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-34779103282453196102016-05-28T16:55:00.000-07:002016-06-09T09:40:53.319-07:00Onions<h3>
Growing Onions </h3>
This year was my first time seriously trying to grow onions. I say "seriously" because in the past I have buried store-bought onions that were sprouting leaves into the ground, and have pulled them up and split them later, and have then grown a few new bulbs from that. <br />
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But this year I decided to give it a serious try. As soon as they were available (around early February) I bought 2 bunches of onion plants from Home Depot. They were about pencil-wide small stalks. I planted them immediately. A few weeks later I noticed onion sets (miniature onions) at a local feed store, so I bought some of those too. I bought a variety, including white, yellow, and purple onions.<br />
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They came up quick, and were pretty unaffected by any cold we had. I planted two patches of them.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QNXgjZzpAW0/V0RTw9Nah1I/AAAAAAAAGCs/yg8xtIpeOKYznmJpJlERABxFIpkP83lAQCKgB/s1600/IMG_2405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QNXgjZzpAW0/V0RTw9Nah1I/AAAAAAAAGCs/yg8xtIpeOKYznmJpJlERABxFIpkP83lAQCKgB/s320/IMG_2405.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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They got pretty big, and a few of the plants started to send up flower heads. I cut those stalks off because that can sap the energy off of the production of the bulb. But most just grew, and week by week I could see the width of the stalk growing, and a bulb starting to form.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FMVaE4KB1rY/V0RTm80pfII/AAAAAAAAGCs/d7U7i8uQNQUW9sxcMRPbPUZdZzebXei2gCKgB/s1600/IMG_2446.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FMVaE4KB1rY/V0RTm80pfII/AAAAAAAAGCs/d7U7i8uQNQUW9sxcMRPbPUZdZzebXei2gCKgB/s320/IMG_2446.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These are almost ready to pick</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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When almost ready, the bulbs get bigger and seem to push themselves out of the ground. So half of the bulb is above the ground. And when ready to pick, the neck gets very soft and the greens just flop over. <br />
I picked a few already but there are still a lot of them at various stages of development. None of the purple ones have formed any good sized bulbs yet...not sure why, but the yellow ones seem to be doing the best. <br />
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<h3>
Harvesting</h3>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First ones picked in late May</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">About 2/3rds of them have been picked already and are drying in the garage (June 8th)</td></tr>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-8645203748839771782016-05-07T17:28:00.001-07:002016-07-03T13:33:55.750-07:00Spaghetti SquashAlthough I had mentioned my spaghetti squash in various posts before, I wanted to do a topical post this time describing my experience growing spaghetti squash in the spring. I got the seeds from a store-bought squash from a year ago. Last year I tried growing it in the fall but it didn't do to well because I didn't plan the garden very well, and it got too crowded, plus I was not able to protect the vines from squash vine borer as well as I normally am able,due to the crowded condition. I got a few though, but this spring I wanted to give it a better effort.<br />
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Early Start!</h3>
I started my seeds around mid-February. It was very early, but the winter this year seemed very mild at the time, and I thought I would start some seeds very early and see if I could keep them in pots until at earliest mid-March, and put them in the ground then. Our average last frost here is late March, and I thought I could just cover them whenever we had frost. I started them indoors, and when we had nice sunny weather I would bring them outside, and back inside into our sun-room when it was cold at night.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBFwgQFvdnR0f7rkwchJ9ohHr0UmZdoge8YQbbMuI9EYH55HV7cAMt5zPxhyYVVOpUDDApkdnSZoB26xebU1cxPM52sJ22FI_i6QnCygVIvtrlje8_YOufLFfI-NMGU_9MCFYoRSLAkQU/s1600/sseedling.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBFwgQFvdnR0f7rkwchJ9ohHr0UmZdoge8YQbbMuI9EYH55HV7cAMt5zPxhyYVVOpUDDApkdnSZoB26xebU1cxPM52sJ22FI_i6QnCygVIvtrlje8_YOufLFfI-NMGU_9MCFYoRSLAkQU/s320/sseedling.JPG" width="302" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">in late February</td></tr>
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I started two of these cup "pots" with two seeds each, which would become my two hills. Around early March, I decided to risk it and just put them in the ground. If they died due to a cold snap, I could just plant more, since I had plenty of seeds. So I made a large double-wide hill, which is basically a mound of dirt, and some compost from my chicken coop (I use the deep-litter method where I throw leaves and other compost in their coop, and then later after its composted use it in the garden). After mixing the dirt from the garden, some of this compost, and some bagged "garden soil" I had a good rich soil for starting them. Once planted in the garden, I did have some plastic tarp handy, and I did have to cover them a few nights when we had frost, but they survived.</div>
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Hail!</h3>
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After a pretty mild March, the spaghetti squash were off to a great early start, and were actually just starting to lean over and start "running". Then one night at the end of March, we had a pretty violent hail storm. It left lots of small dents on our cars! Some of the hail was a bit bigger than quarter size! It did a number on my 4 spaghetti squash plants. One had the main vine broken off but fortunately right above the first node where there were side runners starting to form. Two other ones had the main runners bent badly but not completely severed. So I gently piled mulch and compost around the damaged vines, to help support them and encourage more rooting. The leaves were all ripped up too. I was worried they were not going to recover well so I sowed a couple more seeds in the hill nearby just in case. The original vines recovered very well the following weeks, I think for most of them the secondary runners took over as the main vines, and some just healed up. The extra seeds I planted came up too, but I think were overwhelmed by the original plants.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuDlMdjg2mRQt9-6-b3kIHtluWJpUuYBOOm0XIOnifR0yl6PNjc4MjrCelCSP6114z3pzTKJZKPE1KnqK9veHGWwNXxFo6mwqXfnIlPCwhV_jMVVQuCZOjePKPYo5XBkeddN8OvDc1UOQ/s1600/IMG_2328.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuDlMdjg2mRQt9-6-b3kIHtluWJpUuYBOOm0XIOnifR0yl6PNjc4MjrCelCSP6114z3pzTKJZKPE1KnqK9veHGWwNXxFo6mwqXfnIlPCwhV_jMVVQuCZOjePKPYo5XBkeddN8OvDc1UOQ/s320/IMG_2328.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few weeks after the hail the vines had recovered very well</td></tr>
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In order to both protect the main vines from future squash vine borer egg laying, plus to encourage rooting along the leaf nodes of the vines, I also began to cover up the main vines with dirt and compost, or just leaf mulch, whichever was a hand. Every few days as the vines kept growing, I kept covering them up. This also helps develop very large root systems at different point along the vine.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Early Flowers</h3>
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Around mid-April. I was very surprised to see a female flower forming already on one of my vines. I was a little worried because I could see a bunch of female flowers developing but very few males. This is opposite of what I am used to! Usually the plants produce bunches of male flowers first.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2CsQupxIu6vvVmwvmYrt_1sZT55mblB6oNRso4MCz3e4_8D3T3UfK8lzsSWxo67LbqZYuq5Fa_q_gymWuALmb5vCmbc1z0W7ZsMclP6t6CmXaXMq_ePJbJmHbbxQsos0OCk1V9a2OKZY/s1600/IMG_2361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2CsQupxIu6vvVmwvmYrt_1sZT55mblB6oNRso4MCz3e4_8D3T3UfK8lzsSWxo67LbqZYuq5Fa_q_gymWuALmb5vCmbc1z0W7ZsMclP6t6CmXaXMq_ePJbJmHbbxQsos0OCk1V9a2OKZY/s320/IMG_2361.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">female flower view from top</td></tr>
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The female flowers have a small squash below the blossom. I did find a male flower that had opened just in time, and was able to hand-pollinate the first female blossoms. Below is a female blossom the day after its been pollinated. The small squash will begin to swell, and a day or two later, the dried up flower falls off.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxEIhWBTfVUzr68g8bhWbrx5QbOwX6CKuiBtgMgC_33QE1nJYCbPBlBQFcyPMU-3-FR4t9w6xENuxsIvstVUcV_Ys9-0XR3w5jc1jsdRAZ_jJSvwBN6qQiLsl2fKSkGDR5NqOrVK52dN4/s1600/IMG_2388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxEIhWBTfVUzr68g8bhWbrx5QbOwX6CKuiBtgMgC_33QE1nJYCbPBlBQFcyPMU-3-FR4t9w6xENuxsIvstVUcV_Ys9-0XR3w5jc1jsdRAZ_jJSvwBN6qQiLsl2fKSkGDR5NqOrVK52dN4/s320/IMG_2388.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pollinated flower</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Maturing Squash</h3>
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In the past, I've had damage to my squash either from bugs or maybe rats or some other pest, so I have made it a practice to cover my maturing squash and pumpkins with some netting to help protect them from getting chewed on. I have about 8 squash forming now, at different sizes and stages. The female blossoms that come since these had shrived up and died, probably because the plant cannot support too many. The plant stopped producing female blossoms for about a week and a half, but just the past couple days more started appearing again.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2MuFA2v4cdFNOItQlFApMh93IHL1-6ec8Hb3TG3cxx0_WKpMTZJ6_MTV-2dJG28pOmWl4hdx4oHqAQqRppN8MRZkhYv2a8fPjuvI2yOo9AV4gH0-j8M362gfFPDCGjE1__9A3KfE6a7Y/s1600/IMG_2387.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2MuFA2v4cdFNOItQlFApMh93IHL1-6ec8Hb3TG3cxx0_WKpMTZJ6_MTV-2dJG28pOmWl4hdx4oHqAQqRppN8MRZkhYv2a8fPjuvI2yOo9AV4gH0-j8M362gfFPDCGjE1__9A3KfE6a7Y/s320/IMG_2387.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Three medium size squash maturing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8JThmvLnWfuR6T6QmRxlTCjmfLBYTgSWgomstbjtDEpseRQJp-VUlNVTQznyzfTErSfhybx7j2cHgrGgN9Cxg6lOdMBDMIff3E8L6-FpKN6FHDVQZxnZnjLSyzH13T-rK_bXYEDIdkkE/s1600/IMG_2386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8JThmvLnWfuR6T6QmRxlTCjmfLBYTgSWgomstbjtDEpseRQJp-VUlNVTQznyzfTErSfhybx7j2cHgrGgN9Cxg6lOdMBDMIff3E8L6-FpKN6FHDVQZxnZnjLSyzH13T-rK_bXYEDIdkkE/s320/IMG_2386.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the first one to develop, and its also the biggest one I have so far. Its almost ready.<br />
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I'm hoping as these first fruits start maturing the plant will then think it can produce a second batch. I've been very pleased so far though with what I have.</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Pests</h3>
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Since I got a very early start, the vines have not gotten attacked by anything yet! This is certainly the best way to beat Squash Vine Borers (SVB) if you can start them very early. The typical pests I have to deal with are the SVBs, squash bugs, and cucumber beetles. Have not seen any squash bugs yet. Have seen one or two cucumber beetles so far. Unfortunately I've seen that the SVBs have also gotten an earlier start than usual. I've actually seen a few moths already (first one was end of April). I think this is due to the very mild winter. I've picked off a few eggs off of the tips of a couple vines, but their heavy egg-laying has not begun yet, since I have only seen and picked off about 6 or so eggs the past couple of weeks. With my vine covering efforts ongoing, its not a big concern yet. I typically start injecting BT into the leaf stems and exposed vine areas as a preventative when I start seeing damage, but I have not started that yet.</div>
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Harvesting it</h3>
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I decided to start picking some of the ones that seemed ready. From reading about it, most recommended a hard skin ( resistant to fingernail puncture) and a yellow or buff coloring. They also recommended the stem starting to brown, but I decided not to wait that long since the vine is still growing a lot, and I have also picked pumpkins and other squash with green stems before and they finish riping quite fine anyway. I also want to encourage the vine to keep producing, so maybe removing the fully grown ones might help. So I picked the first two. Their skin was definitely hard, and the coloring was right, plus they have stopped growing for a while now. These are around 5.5lbs each.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J7o_XAosFrs/VzSchY6a1gI/AAAAAAAAGCQ/7RtunLu5puQuRJ7nXuBZBQGJz0SJOmccQCKgB/s1600/IMG_2419.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J7o_XAosFrs/VzSchY6a1gI/AAAAAAAAGCQ/7RtunLu5puQuRJ7nXuBZBQGJz0SJOmccQCKgB/s320/IMG_2419.JPG" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First spaghetti squash of 2016, picked May 11th</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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As of June 8th, picked 11 so far (we ate two of the smaller ones already).<br />
There are about 4 other on the vine at various stages of development.
The vines are getting hit by SVB, and much of the original base of the
plant is dead or dying, but the vine tip and runners are about 20ft from
the base, still growing and looking good. I've been occasionally
covering up exposed vines with dirt, and checking for SVB eggs
occasionally but I'm not too worried since I've gotten such a good
harvest so far. The acorn squash have not done bad either. Those are
Table Queen acorn squash.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vfeIiG7JHVw/V1YrF6NVauI/AAAAAAAAGEA/G7K9TL_1F4E_i1C5D6vIoUpZ-DRd_JqQwCKgB/s1600/IMG_2486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vfeIiG7JHVw/V1YrF6NVauI/AAAAAAAAGEA/G7K9TL_1F4E_i1C5D6vIoUpZ-DRd_JqQwCKgB/s320/IMG_2486.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<h3 style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<u>Postmortem July 3rd</u></h3>
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<div>
Just today I picked up my last spaghetti squash, which bring the total to 17, of which 6 have already been eaten. They have been of various sizes, some very nice size, and some smaller. Been extremely please with this harvest. The one I picked today was on the last remaining vine, which has long since separated from the main base, but has been growing through roots along the vine. The rest of the vine I have pulled out, and have seen much evidence of SVB, but also of Squash bugs, which I think are also a major reason the rest of the vine died off so much. I have squashed lots of squash bugs and found many eggs on part of the vine that I have pulled off. Aphids were never much of a problem, but there was some powdery mildew, especially since we had such a wet spring. </div>
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So I think the key for success for this was:</div>
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- Started early to beat the pests to the punch. </div>
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- Covered vines with dirt as they grew.</div>
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I never really spent much time ever picking off eggs, or never sprayed anything for the pests, or tried to do much else. </div>
ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-78033349551638922622016-04-26T18:20:00.002-07:002016-04-26T18:20:38.461-07:00Late April UpdateWanted to give a quick update of my garden:<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Volunteer Flowers</h3>
<div>
This year I had 3 poppies come up. I had spread some seeds a couple years ago, but some seeds must have been dormant and woke this late winter as I didn't remember any last year. I looked these up on Google and saw they are called "Peony Poppies". They are also called Opium poppies! These are very beautiful flowers. I intend to save a bunch of seeds again from these.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMrHqATvKltRk8kFypH6oxtruqYZvsIBA1hJAdWgWADW4juRvyeIRz3oaObDvtBNxJWzaXGnsgqqekfU3s_Fxz5nyc3qIF372r7lkMGcBG0FQSLxaePh5PU9e1hUUd3smU06aFQOhmu4E/s1600/IMG_2345.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMrHqATvKltRk8kFypH6oxtruqYZvsIBA1hJAdWgWADW4juRvyeIRz3oaObDvtBNxJWzaXGnsgqqekfU3s_Fxz5nyc3qIF372r7lkMGcBG0FQSLxaePh5PU9e1hUUd3smU06aFQOhmu4E/s320/IMG_2345.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">volunteer peony poppies</td></tr>
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A few years ago we grew some German Chamomile, and the cool thing is that every year since they have always reseeded themselves. Here are some from this year. These are so pretty,and smell so wonderful. We had some fresh chamomile tea last night from some of these. When they first come up they are tiny plants, but have very distinctive foliage, so I recognize them, and weed around them. This year they grew mainly around my lettuce and spinach.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMqh1m_1lEbkShrI-LOUe9ReWx4wy0cAo79N-IHKvgiFrhW0wxxJmtXy3-WC62iRYYNs9kqe3aMgqlcv4mAfRSRauooh13dLWs4TbSzeK7S7EB_zIMNdp8UWY8EJs_ctU4U1jIUVzsQu8/s1600/IMG_2353.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMqh1m_1lEbkShrI-LOUe9ReWx4wy0cAo79N-IHKvgiFrhW0wxxJmtXy3-WC62iRYYNs9kqe3aMgqlcv4mAfRSRauooh13dLWs4TbSzeK7S7EB_zIMNdp8UWY8EJs_ctU4U1jIUVzsQu8/s320/IMG_2353.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">German Chamomile</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Squash</h3>
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My spaghetti squash is doing very well! But what is really surprising is the amount of female flowers that have shown up first! Usually with squash, the male flowers come up first, and then later the female flowers come. But this time I've had tons of female flowers, and just a few male flower. But there are about at least 4 squash now that are pollinated and have set fruit, and more on the way. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitEHp1ijtUC5_Tsa19rsP_uingqXJFiPCY4o0gJz7jmSKfiUaYAwK7x8CHqEun8oYlCh8-1Q2ALUQMjB9OoGxjeIvMi_kRb1alNzVxrQQpJ-Ooi3vJCwyqP4h8oRRT6vh2mhyphenhyphenTutQUbeE/s1600/IMG_2360.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitEHp1ijtUC5_Tsa19rsP_uingqXJFiPCY4o0gJz7jmSKfiUaYAwK7x8CHqEun8oYlCh8-1Q2ALUQMjB9OoGxjeIvMi_kRb1alNzVxrQQpJ-Ooi3vJCwyqP4h8oRRT6vh2mhyphenhyphenTutQUbeE/s320/IMG_2360.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">lots of female flowers on my spaghetti squash</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQhVEyJX6655BzDswhdS3pBtss5Yg-lQK20e9IVS7DqFm6ZdV0xutUwqoebCBJC6bO8z9qhkLmQ1Aye7SaY72tx69QYnKk4pBS8DLlxJWxh5OYl6aIYAEE6nZ73F3O4WXx0x_WF6KRwrk/s1600/IMG_2361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQhVEyJX6655BzDswhdS3pBtss5Yg-lQK20e9IVS7DqFm6ZdV0xutUwqoebCBJC6bO8z9qhkLmQ1Aye7SaY72tx69QYnKk4pBS8DLlxJWxh5OYl6aIYAEE6nZ73F3O4WXx0x_WF6KRwrk/s320/IMG_2361.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">female blossom</td></tr>
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My acorn squash has not done as well. I have three hills planted, but two hills are on a low area of the yard, that collects a lot of water during rains. I think these got drowned out with the last heavy rains, because the next day after the rains, many of the leaves were wilted on many of the plants.<div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZnFjk3ohZfUo63SSibScI8PrO-0plJmOqH8Ttw8MllfeyU4uJX-vuwEEuRhN9QwNFIfiI0M8pj4Ar8iHVKGD2yB2cd1vi3C_lpjd-SZtHZK3tPT6BGQkhBg6h9ZN-QoiAOpYvuf0beg8/s1600/IMG_2363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZnFjk3ohZfUo63SSibScI8PrO-0plJmOqH8Ttw8MllfeyU4uJX-vuwEEuRhN9QwNFIfiI0M8pj4Ar8iHVKGD2yB2cd1vi3C_lpjd-SZtHZK3tPT6BGQkhBg6h9ZN-QoiAOpYvuf0beg8/s320/IMG_2363.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most of this acorn squash is showing signs of drowning due to poor drainage in this part of the yard.</td></tr>
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The other hill is on a raised bed, so is doing much better. Here is the plant, with a female blossom open. Like the spaghetti squash, surprisingly there are female flowers first. I am thinking this is because of the time of year and cool temperatures they experienced earlier on.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9TIia9UkTp9TBLxX677CNLgNPr8uLZogg5OgYkylplKiZjB02DnJxqDOpUMX7DOEbMDsrJ5zYfJ9ZDZPJeL3AY9ZUxtJmmiJqujYA2Huh6NwZKGEHlaWHYLAjwEDHllZvij-zsoX03xQ/s1600/IMG_2362.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9TIia9UkTp9TBLxX677CNLgNPr8uLZogg5OgYkylplKiZjB02DnJxqDOpUMX7DOEbMDsrJ5zYfJ9ZDZPJeL3AY9ZUxtJmmiJqujYA2Huh6NwZKGEHlaWHYLAjwEDHllZvij-zsoX03xQ/s320/IMG_2362.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />Regarding the SVBs (squash vine borers) I actually saw one resting on my pea plants, and killed the moth. But I have not seen any eggs laid yet. (I have been checking since I saw the moth last week).<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Other Veggies</h3>
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Here are my snap peas. They have gotten very tall, and are producing well, but as expected, are beginning to get hit by spider mites, and also powdery mildew, due to the rain and wet weather. Every time I plant these they get afflicted once the plants start producing pods. Must be that the plants get weaker focusing their energy on producing the pods. Also we are mostly in the lower 80s now... getting a bit warm for these plants. I wish I would have planted more. They are so tasty, I always wish we had more. Next time I will hopefully plant 3x more plants.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhimZiWDfUUM-ZDxj1RCBDtV_fFt3L3ih1iHc_YNFVoXnopE1KpsjQ65DBjeUaYf6GcHu-BgnfeqVNw9fhWSEy6IMxiCgZc0G8E1LTPT5y5pKJQHvgImw_MTSUfu5DA8i1DMBL5HDg1JmQ/s1600/IMG_2352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhimZiWDfUUM-ZDxj1RCBDtV_fFt3L3ih1iHc_YNFVoXnopE1KpsjQ65DBjeUaYf6GcHu-BgnfeqVNw9fhWSEy6IMxiCgZc0G8E1LTPT5y5pKJQHvgImw_MTSUfu5DA8i1DMBL5HDg1JmQ/s320/IMG_2352.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sugar snap peas</td></tr>
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My tomatoes are doing pretty well, but don't look quite as healthy. I notice some of the leaves have a few spider mites. I do have lots of ladybugs around, so I hope that they start attacking the spidermites too. There are a few tiny tomatoes forming on them now. To their left are the sweet-pea flowering peas. They should start blooming soon. I really like them as cut flowers since they have a wonderful fragrance.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvLM__oUFc8WZ9Sc_dhP2s_OjS9IAzkn7z4kahlTiItEgfA7ZcymQXFu7FEFQfLCL_XN_EPBp9Ku8RpWmgmKB_7_KO9mTK9tNFCbGjG9Jo2wGQ4_QbmsQ0c_WjLBG15TMCD2aSyVmE86U/s1600/IMG_2349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvLM__oUFc8WZ9Sc_dhP2s_OjS9IAzkn7z4kahlTiItEgfA7ZcymQXFu7FEFQfLCL_XN_EPBp9Ku8RpWmgmKB_7_KO9mTK9tNFCbGjG9Jo2wGQ4_QbmsQ0c_WjLBG15TMCD2aSyVmE86U/s320/IMG_2349.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sweet peas (left) and tomatoes (right) in the back, behind the spaghetti squash</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVw31lA-Q_KojSC17xuFoNVyCxy34oyaJBOjIU_ha32WZQq7oGRYzviXQ9VpLfKQMwTwAIsaYjSbfo5_5qApaCHfeYjFWEaVQxyYFSJQnCz98plrpghRz6vwsQ5FGDNW_98F1LENEj3Co/s1600/IMG_2351.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVw31lA-Q_KojSC17xuFoNVyCxy34oyaJBOjIU_ha32WZQq7oGRYzviXQ9VpLfKQMwTwAIsaYjSbfo5_5qApaCHfeYjFWEaVQxyYFSJQnCz98plrpghRz6vwsQ5FGDNW_98F1LENEj3Co/s320/IMG_2351.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The onions are almost ready. Some of the bulbs are about golf-ball size now<br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMCVQElEBHfOC2astaSl2ZUiOxbzYvtuZ_vB6utod-1Ybe5Kb84-8OOkZDoACInybpHDJiWXvjhZOPnFRkzZIjLgy_x58fWyNOGXi1dYxfIMVlOgU-8hk69I4zp2VfNPUCzclPZkWU2HY/s1600/IMG_2347.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMCVQElEBHfOC2astaSl2ZUiOxbzYvtuZ_vB6utod-1Ybe5Kb84-8OOkZDoACInybpHDJiWXvjhZOPnFRkzZIjLgy_x58fWyNOGXi1dYxfIMVlOgU-8hk69I4zp2VfNPUCzclPZkWU2HY/s320/IMG_2347.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Broccoli still growing. But getting hit by aphids. Some small flower heads have formed.</td></tr>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-51185263939597284202016-04-13T19:04:00.000-07:002016-04-13T19:08:35.506-07:00Early April 2016Hello again!<br />
Being early April, wanted to give an update of my garden. It was a pretty mild winter as I said in my previous post. Since my last post back in the end of February, we've only had a couple days that were barely below freezing. I took a risk and planted some of my warm weather plants into the ground real early (the tomato and squash seedlings I had shown before that I was growing in pots). I'm glad I did because that let them get a great head-start. I've only had to cover them twice, due to the threat of frost, but that's all behind us now.<br />
There was one set-back back in the end of March. We had a big hailstorm! Some of the hailstones were quarter-size, and they really tore up my onions, spinach, and my spaghetti squash, and busted a few heads of cabbage. The other stuff was not hurt much fortunately. Since then the weather has been very nice, lots of sun, and rain occasionally. <br />
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One thing I noticed this year is that as the aphids showed up, many of the beneficial insects I had towards the year of the season last year have been showing up in good numbers too! I've seen lots of ladybugs and ladybug larva around, plus some hoverflies, and lacewings too. Its nice they have shown up early because last year it was a struggle with the aphids!<br />
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Below is a picture of the broccoli patch. Last post they were just a couple inches tall, but now they are getting pretty big. Still no flower heads forming, though. Also the cilantro next to it has bolted already. Right next to them are three "Popaver" poppies. These came up by themselves (I had spread some seed early last year, but none came up then!). They are about the bloom. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi71Th29ZFdiKoVO1Sz2i5sHPoEZDeHYWEWpklFmR5AG-Wp-NIjvG62MNWQWnKTKOQrWbni7ZRq35J_OkmIT8Uhk-zBFb48PhwYaHujtm6H3FL2a5V5pB_7_xG9fm0r6K4XDIh0sEohuTs/s1600/IMG_2327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi71Th29ZFdiKoVO1Sz2i5sHPoEZDeHYWEWpklFmR5AG-Wp-NIjvG62MNWQWnKTKOQrWbni7ZRq35J_OkmIT8Uhk-zBFb48PhwYaHujtm6H3FL2a5V5pB_7_xG9fm0r6K4XDIh0sEohuTs/s320/IMG_2327.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here are the onions I planted this winter. I didn't mention them in my previous post, but they have been steadily growing since late January. There are some garlic in there too, elephant garlic, from cloves I had saved last year. These I also planted back in the early winter. And some more broccoli plants mixed in among them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnvvL4Evo-ARhin68w0Q9SMxOD1geHQOyotDWeaq7MxjLCLplKSVdIxZny8dADnT8BgFI-e7zNwKEENiht1CGjSx-8Ddl_aWdJxKQ-qCovCQfcNBwOt-RMhToh0gLy4jzRm40ZaBurIzE/s1600/IMG_2333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnvvL4Evo-ARhin68w0Q9SMxOD1geHQOyotDWeaq7MxjLCLplKSVdIxZny8dADnT8BgFI-e7zNwKEENiht1CGjSx-8Ddl_aWdJxKQ-qCovCQfcNBwOt-RMhToh0gLy4jzRm40ZaBurIzE/s320/IMG_2333.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Below is the spaghetti squash. And behind them are the tomato plants.<br />
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There are actually 4 plants, 2 per hill. They got clobbered by the hail, and two of them, their stems broke or bent badly, but fortunately above the leaf nodes, so that the plants were able to develop the runners below as their main shoots. So these have fully recovered and have started growing very quickly now. The tomatoes are the "rutgers" variety. They have recently started growing pretty fast, and in fact, one already has a couple of blossoms! I'm sure glad I've gotten such an early start on these. With the tomatoes, its important to be able to get a good harvest before the heat hits in full force. And for the spaghetti squash, to get a good head start on the Squash Vine Borers, which usually show up late May.<br />
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Below is the acorn squash I mentioned last post too, the Table Queen variety. I have 3 hills of these, and they are not quite as far along as the spaghetti squash but they are starting to grow pretty fast now.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6kj_xppqB_8UU5oQ8uYGfWqux-BIo2EBYixRr4eeLR7G2Pi0YDuVITrtS03fCmRfjhx0OAJntzkPPHy10sxotY7gUUDuo0173ME_55TwWLbDAil8HUwTSgu8TQiCPMWvVKCShxksMwao/s1600/IMG_2334.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6kj_xppqB_8UU5oQ8uYGfWqux-BIo2EBYixRr4eeLR7G2Pi0YDuVITrtS03fCmRfjhx0OAJntzkPPHy10sxotY7gUUDuo0173ME_55TwWLbDAil8HUwTSgu8TQiCPMWvVKCShxksMwao/s320/IMG_2334.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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My first spinach patch, which I started late fall last year, has bolted already, and I've let it go to flower, for seed-collecting. Since spinach seed have a short shelf-life, I like saving seeds for the fall or next spring.<br />
Below is the second patch I started in February. They took a hit from the hail but have recovered pretty well, and are ready for picking. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXvwCCZCjciEYEe48OmmZ3XCYiHz5KVkb5ZPyz-oQMsTBjoqOZpwtqqsOBZ1RTKyLhPqBMbmFdivkY_bGKKff2Fcl2HyCG197oOnO7ir5r-YXiUJBrDWOPPSxRR2Q_-iTORFp_TM6qnbQ/s1600/IMG_2329.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXvwCCZCjciEYEe48OmmZ3XCYiHz5KVkb5ZPyz-oQMsTBjoqOZpwtqqsOBZ1RTKyLhPqBMbmFdivkY_bGKKff2Fcl2HyCG197oOnO7ir5r-YXiUJBrDWOPPSxRR2Q_-iTORFp_TM6qnbQ/s320/IMG_2329.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Right above the spinach above are the Sweet Peas. They have been growing slower than the snap peas,but are doing well though. I don't see any flowers forming yet, but I'm expecting some great flowers around early May, and will post pictures. I applied some "Bayer Systemic Rose" fertilizer and insecticide/miticide to them, because since they are not for eating, and they get hit by spider mites often, I'm hoping that will let them last further into the year. <br />
Below are the snap peas. They are in full bloom, and there are bunches of small pods beginning to form. I need to provide some more support as they keep growing because they have surpassed their tomato cages.<br />
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The yellow flowers at the bottom are the turnips which have all bolted. We did get some very nice turnips, and enjoyed some greens too, but I've pulled out most of them except for a few plants I've kept for collecting seeds.</div>
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Below is another section of onions, and the third small spinach patch next to it. And on the right is the catnip plant which survived the winter, and is growing very nicely now. I've also noticed some new catnip plants around it too.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghamWUxGAQ3WFuj7TAYRgoKbj3amvG7X7lNOH86s4O9dAXgHW0K0lAjpDX3RpoMP7ZZpSo9ovXjYfYcKerpbWwHqyApxaT5c0S0tgzIEH_4Eve9hx2Yj3TUfy4IH8iBaLpJEp6z4nX4BU/s1600/IMG_2330.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghamWUxGAQ3WFuj7TAYRgoKbj3amvG7X7lNOH86s4O9dAXgHW0K0lAjpDX3RpoMP7ZZpSo9ovXjYfYcKerpbWwHqyApxaT5c0S0tgzIEH_4Eve9hx2Yj3TUfy4IH8iBaLpJEp6z4nX4BU/s320/IMG_2330.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here is the remaining Cabbage. It did very well,and we've eaten lots of cabbage. Most of what you see is the remaining plants, what has grown after the head has been picked. I'm planning to use these like collards, if they don't form small heads, or don't bolt. Some of the cabbage has bolted, and I've had to pick it and feed it to the chickens.<br />
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<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-53648670890153988012016-02-27T13:39:00.002-08:002016-02-27T13:39:20.490-08:00Late Winter, 2016The winter of 2015/2016 has been a very mild winter so far, compared to the past years. We're at the end of February, and we've only really had a handful of mornings with much frost, and only about 3 mornings that have dipped into the upper 20's. We've been with highs averaging around 60 lately.. the weather has been beautiful. <br />
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From the fall, we still have the cabbage and spinach:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidtWPG-odl2b902CyBI6gctkeWEWzhvP58hs8MakYTyFBdBka_v9JyywgNmVDld1o0GObzx6Ypf3YSildYBJFAdHXywdn62LbS599Jb1HThrnyHkxwTRQatn7yfiG4GmXModdSlVo6TK4/s1600/GEDC0851.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidtWPG-odl2b902CyBI6gctkeWEWzhvP58hs8MakYTyFBdBka_v9JyywgNmVDld1o0GObzx6Ypf3YSildYBJFAdHXywdn62LbS599Jb1HThrnyHkxwTRQatn7yfiG4GmXModdSlVo6TK4/s320/GEDC0851.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ferry's Round Dutch cabbage and Spinach planted in fall from seed<br /></td></tr>
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Because we've had such mild temperatures, these plants have been doing very well this winter. We've picked about 5 heads of cabbage already, and I've left the plant stumps to see of they form smaller heads later. (you can see at the bottom right one of these, next to the bricks. I haven't had to cover them at all. The spinach has been growing very slowly, and still recovering from the flea beetle damage earlier in the fall, but with the warmer weather recently have started growing again nicely. <div>
At the beginning of February, I had also planted some more seeds, including more spinach, and also snap peas, and flowering sweet peas (not edible, but for the beautiful fragrant flowers).</div>
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In the picture below, you can see the sweet peas, and below it, the patch of spinach I started about a month ago from seeds. These spinach are all from seed I saved from last year, so it might be a mixture of different spinach types. The sugar snap peas are on the other side of the garden and are about the same size too. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiXb65F-5dmUJ_Ovb4T0R5c8dGOCfoiciQVYv3qmPnODr_IupGtzvBrdY0bWb_cka9iamUueW85ssPe8MIwhzvSFjn6EX_PBunLg0FwHJrk3z1bBBSXorbg4zbZH1NLyZ2P-oH4yCJgxc/s1600/GEDC0847.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiXb65F-5dmUJ_Ovb4T0R5c8dGOCfoiciQVYv3qmPnODr_IupGtzvBrdY0bWb_cka9iamUueW85ssPe8MIwhzvSFjn6EX_PBunLg0FwHJrk3z1bBBSXorbg4zbZH1NLyZ2P-oH4yCJgxc/s320/GEDC0847.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sweet peas (top) and spinach seedlings (below)</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNP6HiV9o4f61lt-VKNT8-9gMQeLw_BitcyjKN1r3Z3f8-xpOwAKGvdB73St_fvc7K6eJktIwh3faTrvC8DkDFFSdWi5iyVXD3q_4qTAG7RkLVK3JW7HajdATi6HclWF_Ig-WEMM0dMBM/s1600/GEDC0850.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNP6HiV9o4f61lt-VKNT8-9gMQeLw_BitcyjKN1r3Z3f8-xpOwAKGvdB73St_fvc7K6eJktIwh3faTrvC8DkDFFSdWi5iyVXD3q_4qTAG7RkLVK3JW7HajdATi6HclWF_Ig-WEMM0dMBM/s320/GEDC0850.JPG" width="320" /></a>The turnips I started in the fall have also done very well and have gotten to about baseball size, and we've picked a most of them already. I started a new patch too, just in case the winter would be mild, and it worked out good. These are the newer plants, doing very well, and are definitely ready for picking and eating the greens.</div>
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Here is some lettuce I planted about 2 months ago. Notice the large glass above it. Since lettuce isn't as cold hardy, I had them covered during cold spells, but lately haven't needed to cover them, plus the plants are getting pretty big too. There are some volunteer German chamomile plants in there too that I am letting grow. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Q4J7V0HztslBI6IfzwD8HJBpuhq6ebgk5LFihO7l2hUTA7nvMOaWamVvGwKh4ZoqNcSJmcWVKDy25ChPSZEjk6SJO83HlYAYiKbkcdrEcrycUyaH0Orr-AEyOvXZKC-6Vp4jxO9G1JU/s1600/GEDC0848.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Q4J7V0HztslBI6IfzwD8HJBpuhq6ebgk5LFihO7l2hUTA7nvMOaWamVvGwKh4ZoqNcSJmcWVKDy25ChPSZEjk6SJO83HlYAYiKbkcdrEcrycUyaH0Orr-AEyOvXZKC-6Vp4jxO9G1JU/s320/GEDC0848.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And I'm giving broccoli another try. Last few times it hasn't done very well. (weather problems mostly) But the last time it was successful I had saved a bunch of seeds, so I sowed a bunch of them to see if they would sprout, and they did! I probably should thin these out soon, plus weed some of the area. This is the "di Cecco" variety which doesn't produce the large heads but produces multiple smaller one. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9eH6PV8TU13_fOj6cAq24YXsjS2IlS2a4oRK6MMFUIMaN8QN-8n2mR0ObxewudGmFxd6ysNNi-B-lDZIkTyZv9wGKD1nzJHtXC30odUrSlRmJRkGixiAWlUWG_JINd1U-iKR5iqMenFY/s1600/GEDC0846.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9eH6PV8TU13_fOj6cAq24YXsjS2IlS2a4oRK6MMFUIMaN8QN-8n2mR0ObxewudGmFxd6ysNNi-B-lDZIkTyZv9wGKD1nzJHtXC30odUrSlRmJRkGixiAWlUWG_JINd1U-iKR5iqMenFY/s320/GEDC0846.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Broccoli (di Cecco variety). Can you spot the volunteer cilantro plant?</td></tr>
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Warm weather stuff</h3>
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I started some tomato seeds indoors about a month ago. I'll bring them outside and inside depending on the weather. I probably will wait another 3 weeks until I can try to plant them permanently. These are the rutgers variety. I also planted about a week ago 2 pots of spaghetti squash, and 2 of table queen acorn squash. (the larger yellow "Dickey's" cups...you'd recognize them if you are from Texas) The spaghetti squash has come up fast, but the acorn is coming up too. I'm doing this to try and get an earlier start. Like the tomatoes, I might wait 2 or 3 weeks before I put them into the ground, but in meantime I'll bring them outside on nice days and inside during cold nights.</div>
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Happy Growing!</div>
ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-31962025054490184652015-11-21T21:26:00.001-08:002015-11-22T21:19:08.171-08:00First Freeze 2015Tonight we have our first freeze forecasted, and so I had to go out and pick many of the warm weather crops, including the rest of the green beans, and the peppers. <br />
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Peppers</h3>
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The peppers have done awesome this year. The plants are just huge, and still loaded with peppers. Here is what I picked this morning, and there are a lot more that I need to pick before the day is over. I need to figure out what to do with all these!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kLadhuM7UEM/VlCwy77cprI/AAAAAAAAFwk/b8TJoJL8yAk/s1600/IMG_2088.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kLadhuM7UEM/VlCwy77cprI/AAAAAAAAFwk/b8TJoJL8yAk/s320/IMG_2088.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">hot peppers of 4 different varieties, picked before the freeze tonight.</td></tr>
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I am planning to let the red peppers dry out, and maybe freeze the green one. I may try and pickle the jalapenos too. When I planted these, they grew so slowly at first I thought they were not going to make it. It was only until mid-June that they started taking off, and have grown like crazy. Next time I will thin to fewer plants, since I think it was way too much. I think I will also focus more on sweet peppers, and do much fewer hot peppers.</div>
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Pumpkins/Winter Squash</h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn-DIbfIwIqF_Zpw3eY7wXl5moRd22N7r7qYSg70C3dZGhqk8_HVOkvPHKrleOBOpiPj1WvOFLUQ3fXqEaW73WIOS0B3b4XEiYeAbvw-rDHxcCdLVHEV9WhG2QIkT20OzmeNmCnjoNhCk/s1600/IMG_2089.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn-DIbfIwIqF_Zpw3eY7wXl5moRd22N7r7qYSg70C3dZGhqk8_HVOkvPHKrleOBOpiPj1WvOFLUQ3fXqEaW73WIOS0B3b4XEiYeAbvw-rDHxcCdLVHEV9WhG2QIkT20OzmeNmCnjoNhCk/s320/IMG_2089.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2 Sugar Pie Pumpkins, 1 hubbard squash, and 2 spaghetti squash</td></tr>
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The winter squash and pumpkins yielded much less than I was hoping this year, but at least I got something! Lets discuss what happened and what I learned:<br />
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<b>Spaghetti squash </b>- I had planted 2 hills, right close to 2 hills of sugar pie pumpkins, right at the back corner of the garden. I think the big issue was lack of space. The plants were too cramped together, so I was not able to get in there and take care of the vines, and bury them as I usually do to promote more rooting. So the Squash Vine borers damaged much of the vines. Much of the original vines were exposed, and since they are much thinner vines than pumpkin vines (reminds me of Acorn squash), they were less resistant to SVB damage. Next time if I plant in the fall, I will maybe plant them about 2 weeks later, and give them much more space. Planning on letting them run underneath the peppers didn't work very good either since the pepper plants were very dense. I just need much more space planned for these. <br />
<b>Pumpkins</b> - My 2 hills ended up producing just 2 pumpkins. I think it was the same issue as the spaghetti squash, not enough space! The vines were way to cramped, and I didn't have a chance to bury them and take care of them as I usually do, so they got attacked by SVB and caterpillars, and later powdery mildew. But thankfully I did end up getting 2 very nice pumpkins.<br />
<b>Hubbard Squash - </b>I got one very nice one. I really hoped to get more, and many of them had nice fruit set, to only stop growing a few days later, and then eventually die off. Same thing happened a couple years ago.<br />
I'm not sure that its normal to have low yields on this, or maybe the Texas weather is not really well suited for these. But these are such cool looking squash, that I still want to keep trying in the future, and will definitely be saving seed from the squash in the picture above. I think as is always the case, these also could have benefited from more space, because it seems only after the vines had gotten to 20 feet long did they start making female flowers. <br />
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Beans</h3>
I think I timed my pole beans perfectly this year! Last year I was too late and the frost got them before I had significant production, so I planted a few weeks earlier this year (seeded around 8/19). The plants came up and grew well despite the heat, and then started producing well in the early fall. We've had about three or 4 weeks of very good production, but this freeze will most likely do them in. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlTzO-V4yIea5GJBbi7VG6zyxYLxwO6W0eP99lcHejq5RW-qtaNPolHt3WBqeQAKdgsZUDQ9NSJ_LRnf8ewQqbCwxrwAtUlEKZQUnvzJsNNlbeJtrcrSe2viMWrwM_TPh_EPQ2zOUi_i0/s1600/IMG_2084.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlTzO-V4yIea5GJBbi7VG6zyxYLxwO6W0eP99lcHejq5RW-qtaNPolHt3WBqeQAKdgsZUDQ9NSJ_LRnf8ewQqbCwxrwAtUlEKZQUnvzJsNNlbeJtrcrSe2viMWrwM_TPh_EPQ2zOUi_i0/s320/IMG_2084.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pole beans growing up fence, next to basil bushes</td></tr>
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Cool Weather Plants</h3>
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In the previous post I had mentioned the cabbage, spinach and turnips we had just planted. They are doing very well, except for some holes in the turnip leaves. Hopefully the frost will get rid of the bugs doing that,which I suspect are flea beetles, which are a big pest for turnips for me. The cabbage are beautiful, and I can see the leaves are just starting to form heads. The spinach is doing well, but growing much slower than the cabbage. I have a newer patch of cabbage too ( bottom right of picture.)</div>
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These can all take frost and freezes fairly well, except if it gets down to the mid-20s, then I'll need to cover them.<br />
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-39938681135455446262015-10-03T09:54:00.002-07:002015-10-03T09:54:26.807-07:00Early October 2015 UpdateIts early October (Oct 3rd today) , and today the weather is pretty much perfect... Sunny skies, 80 degree high, and low humidity. The past few weeks the temperature has hovered around 90 degrees, and its been pretty dry, so I've had to keep on watering manually. <br />
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Cool Weather Plants</h3>
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Right in between the Okra plants and the cymlings/yellow squash plants, I expanded yet another area, and put in some cabbage (Ferry's Round Dutch) and some spinach (from saved seeds in the spring) seedlings. I had to pull out a few of the okra plants to make more room. We had started the plants from seed a few weeks before, and put them in. I seem to have a lot of problem with "dropping off" with seedlings in pots. I am not sure why, but I lost many of the spinach. I also sowed some spinach seed directly in that same area too, and those are starting to come up.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ywqhlkEJZxc/Vg_tb5qsv5I/AAAAAAAAFmU/OUqxc90GNzo/s1600/IMG_1989.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ywqhlkEJZxc/Vg_tb5qsv5I/AAAAAAAAFmU/OUqxc90GNzo/s320/IMG_1989.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cabbage and spinach seedlings</td></tr>
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I have noticed some tiny holes in my cabbage plants, and found some tiny caterpillars starting to feed on them, so I sprayed them with BT the other day. As the pumpkins keep growing, I am going to have to keep them from growing over this area and taking over. In the meantime I started another batch of spinach, cabbage, and turnips in small pots. I may plant these in areas where the pumpkin and hubbard squash vines have died back.</div>
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Beans</h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ug1uOm6fNUw/Vg_tUREh_nI/AAAAAAAAFls/U4sIicSFaYI/s1600/IMG_1987.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ug1uOm6fNUw/Vg_tUREh_nI/AAAAAAAAFls/U4sIicSFaYI/s320/IMG_1987.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">kentucky wonder pole beans have reached the top of the fence.</td></tr>
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Earlier in the summer I had done some bush beans, and I did those because they grow faster, and I wanted some beans before the really hot weather came. They did ok, but we didn't really get a chance to get a lot of bean from those plants. I usually prefer pole beans, because they grow vertically, take less space, and they produce a lot. But they are even less tolerant of very hot weather. Last year in the early fall I planted some but it was too late. Just when they started producing well, we had a hard freeze. This year I started quite a bit earlier. They are doing very well now. I can see they are starting to produce flowers now. I have two areas in the garden with pole beans. I am using twine to train them up towards the trellis I made for the birdhouse gourds, and on the other are, towards the trellis I made for the cucumbers which are all dead now.</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Okra</h3>
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We have had so much okra, we're kind of tired of it now. I had frozen some and we've eaten them in many ways. I have not picked much recently, so many of the pods are now mature. I collected a few for seeds for next year. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C7kkwN9-lZg/Vg_tVy0ZMJI/AAAAAAAAFl0/-RD1z1K5kWE/s1600/IMG_1988.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C7kkwN9-lZg/Vg_tVy0ZMJI/AAAAAAAAFl0/-RD1z1K5kWE/s320/IMG_1988.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Okra plants with mature pods<br /></td></tr>
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I thinned out a few plants a few weeks ago to make space for fall plantings. Next year I need to grow less of these, because the 7 or so plants we had were too much, and they took over a lot of space, and tend to shade out other plants. They became like trees, and it was hard to keep up with them. The plants did amazing though. They had no pest problems (Aphids had been a problem in the past years). Next year I should only do 4 plants, I think. </div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Birdhouse Gourds</h3>
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The birdhouse gourd plants are still hanging on. They have produces a lot of gourds. I think there are probably about 20 of them out there of varying shapes and sizes. Its cool that their shapes vary so much. </div>
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My plan is to let most of these dry on the vines. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gH57AZrGVVc/Vg_tPv9LViI/AAAAAAAAFlU/A14VJU7xNe0/s1600/IMG_1984.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gH57AZrGVVc/Vg_tPv9LViI/AAAAAAAAFlU/A14VJU7xNe0/s320/IMG_1984.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">birdhouse gourds maturing</td></tr>
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The plants have been hit throughout the late summer with a huge infestation of aphids (more below) and also powdery mildew. These plants are very susceptible to powdery mildew. Also cucumber beetles like them a lot too. But the plants grow so quickly, they just keep going despite it. Much of the earlier growth has died due to the mildew and pests, but there are plenty of areas that are still growing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oz_scYJOq84/Vg_tRGuSJAI/AAAAAAAAFlc/r2SBBYxWV9k/s1600/IMG_1985.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oz_scYJOq84/Vg_tRGuSJAI/AAAAAAAAFlc/r2SBBYxWV9k/s320/IMG_1985.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">much of the vines are dying but there is new growth too</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vZCECabBjDY/Vg_tak9OKtI/AAAAAAAAFmM/jUcMr3fOARw/s1600/IMG_1982.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vZCECabBjDY/Vg_tak9OKtI/AAAAAAAAFmM/jUcMr3fOARw/s320/IMG_1982.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">gourd leaves heavily infested with powdery mildew</td></tr>
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I have not done much about the powdery mildew on these plants, because there is just so much of it, its out of control. But since I have so many gourds now, I'm not that concerned about it anymore.<div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Aphid Wars</h3>
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This year I had a major aphid explosion in my garden. The war started on the birdhouse gourds. I noticed some of the leaves were getting heavily infested in mid-summer, but I didnt do much about it because I started to notice a few ladybug larva on them. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4GWeev1ARrU/Vg_tDIkuh0I/AAAAAAAAFkE/cRZ9Q87GIr0/s1600/IMG_1983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4GWeev1ARrU/Vg_tDIkuh0I/AAAAAAAAFkE/cRZ9Q87GIr0/s320/IMG_1983.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">birdhouse gourds, with lots of aphids, and ladybug larva feeding on them</td></tr>
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Over time the aphids starting expanding their area, being helped by lots of ants that protect and move them around. But the ladybug population started growing too. The aphids then started moving onto the squash. I mentioned last post that my yellow squash and cymlings that were covered in netting were starting to get attacked. Well it got very bad. Many of the leaves were becoming severely stunted and curled. I took off the covers,and starting moving a lot of the ladybug larvae from the gourd plants over to the squash. Also I stared spraying the aphids off of leaves with water. </div>
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Other help started to arrive. I've been noticing many hover-flies around, and their larva. <a href="http://www.austinbug.com/larvalbug/beast/archbeast7-11.html">(info here)</a> They look like tiny caterpillars but are actually maggots that feed on aphids. I've seen lots of them on my squash. Also lacewings and their aphid-lion larvae showed up too (<a href="http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/NE/green_lacewing.html">info here</a>), I see lots of their eggs. And the the parasitic wasps that attack aphids and make them "zombies" started showing up too. I know because I see some zombie (or mummy) aphids around, which are infested with larval wasps, and become brown and bloated, and then shortly die. (<a href="http://www.utcrops.com/cotton/cotton_insects/biocontrol/Lysiphlebus.htm">info here</a>) So on the squash plants the aphids are finally under control. The birdhouse gourds still have them but in much less numbers, and I see plenty of their predators around. </div>
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Squash/Pumpkins</h3>
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The hubbard squash plants keep growing pretty quickly and expanding towards the other side or the garden. The original hill area is pretty much all cleared now as all the older leaves have died, accelerated probably by the powdery mildew and aphids too.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oz_scYJOq84/Vg_tRGuSJAI/AAAAAAAAFlc/r2SBBYxWV9k/s1600/IMG_1985.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oz_scYJOq84/Vg_tRGuSJAI/AAAAAAAAFlc/r2SBBYxWV9k/s320/IMG_1985.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
But there is plenty of new growth going on, and much of it is behind the area where the okra is, around the old cucumber trellis.<br />
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Last week I finally had a good female flower open and set fruit. Here is a Hubbard squash, about 5 days old. I put a metal sheet underneath it so it doesn't sit on the ground and rot, as it grows bigger. These things get huge! I'm really hoping this becomes a nice one. But I have had no other good female flowers yet. I grew these a couple years ago, and only got 1 real good squash too. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zZNjsu-9qXk/Vg_tI62KAfI/AAAAAAAAFkw/E8BSLQMGtfY/s1600/IMG_1999.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zZNjsu-9qXk/Vg_tI62KAfI/AAAAAAAAFkw/E8BSLQMGtfY/s320/IMG_1999.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have really not seen any squash vine borer eggs in at least a week. They seemed to have slowed down a lot by mid-september. I did kill a moth about two weeks ago. I have quit burying new vines, because I think the threat of them is pretty much over. </div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Summer Squash</h3>
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Since my last update, I completely removed the covers from the "cymlings" (Patty pan squash) and the yellow crookneck. As I mentioned above they were severely infested with aphids, but are now under control. Also powdery mildew has gotten on them, and I started spraying with baking soda, and I ordered Potassium bicarbonate to spray on them too, to keep it at bay. I have not seen any Squash borer damage on these plants yet, and with their recent decline, dont anticipate that will be a problem anymore this year. I mentioned last post about buying Tricogramma wasps to help control them. I did release some of them, but its really hard to tell if they had any effect. Hopefully they helped. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lUxLuFnf6eo/Vg_tSUmttLI/AAAAAAAAFlk/ndBShep6jTA/s1600/IMG_1995.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lUxLuFnf6eo/Vg_tSUmttLI/AAAAAAAAFlk/ndBShep6jTA/s320/IMG_1995.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Benning's Green Tint variety of Patty Pan (called Cymlings in the old days)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3YOUJ_PEPdI/Vg_tXTpkzeI/AAAAAAAAFl8/tv-1ICpBmfA/s1600/IMG_1997.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3YOUJ_PEPdI/Vg_tXTpkzeI/AAAAAAAAFl8/tv-1ICpBmfA/s320/IMG_1997.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">some leaves have powdery mildew, some are curled due to aphid damage</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zpBCK_JVaPk/Vg_tB7jvX-I/AAAAAAAAFj4/W4MbUCXUHyc/s1600/IMG_1991.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zpBCK_JVaPk/Vg_tB7jvX-I/AAAAAAAAFj4/W4MbUCXUHyc/s320/IMG_1991.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">very cool "flying saucer" shape of these squash</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YvozHab2334/Vg_tEF8pYDI/AAAAAAAAFkQ/2HTo9Q_yHXc/s1600/IMG_1990.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YvozHab2334/Vg_tEF8pYDI/AAAAAAAAFkQ/2HTo9Q_yHXc/s320/IMG_1990.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">yellow crookneck squash almost ready</td></tr>
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I've picked some squash already, both cymlings and yellow squash, and there is much more on the way, despite the aphids and PM (powdery mildew).</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Spaghetti Squash and Sugar Pie Pumpkins</h3>
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I planted these really too crowded together, and was not able to adequately tend them. The original hills are looking pretty bad right now, but some of the vines have expanded pretty far, past the peppers, and now meeting up with the Hubbard vines in the middle. I can see a lot of SVB damage in the are, but its so crowded in there I cant really step in there. I think there were many eggs laid there, (probably before I release the tricogramma wasps). </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iBeu8nWTu3E/Vg_tH9pjWFI/AAAAAAAAFko/vjxmsLImOV0/s1600/IMG_1992.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iBeu8nWTu3E/Vg_tH9pjWFI/AAAAAAAAFko/vjxmsLImOV0/s320/IMG_1992.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HSl2wVZR7NA/Vg_tZEj3uHI/AAAAAAAAFmE/bwl2t8AaBUo/s1600/IMG_1993.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HSl2wVZR7NA/Vg_tZEj3uHI/AAAAAAAAFmE/bwl2t8AaBUo/s320/IMG_1993.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pumpkins and spaghetti squash vines have grown through the pepper plants.</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: center;"> My first spaghetti squash that was growing up the fence died, due to SVB damage on the vine. But the growing tip of the vine has reached the cucumber area, and that seems to be doing well (having rooted along the ground in various places). Here is a spaghetti squash fruit that set a few days ago, and seems to be doing well. But that is the only one so far.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tDGswQVe3gA/Vg_tGo3pM7I/AAAAAAAAFkg/2vIn-CAqyhc/s1600/IMG_2001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tDGswQVe3gA/Vg_tGo3pM7I/AAAAAAAAFkg/2vIn-CAqyhc/s320/IMG_2001.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
The sugar pie pumpkins have fared a bit better. They have much thicker vines, and can resist SVB damage better it seems. The spaghetti squash vines are much thinner, similar to acorn squash vines. So far I have two pumpkins growing. The one below is one that recently set. Its under the old cucumber trellis.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GZ7J8GmSmHc/Vg_tDS02kqI/AAAAAAAAFkI/TIBhZoIFm7c/s1600/IMG_1998.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GZ7J8GmSmHc/Vg_tDS02kqI/AAAAAAAAFkI/TIBhZoIFm7c/s320/IMG_1998.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Much closer to the original hill, I have one pumpkin that set about 3 or so weeks ago, and seems to be starting to turn orange now. As you can see many of the leaves in that area are dying now. <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v03FIFxUkB8/Vg_tK2ZrYpI/AAAAAAAAFk4/Bl5zuC6eMUk/s1600/IMG_1994.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v03FIFxUkB8/Vg_tK2ZrYpI/AAAAAAAAFk4/Bl5zuC6eMUk/s320/IMG_1994.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Peppers</h3>
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The peppers have been doing great. Tons of pepper on them. I have recently seen a number of leaf-footed bugs on them, and have tried to hand-pick them off. I am not sure what damage they have caused, except maybe a few wilted peppers, but with so many, I have really not cared too much.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nSCG9AzALLM/Vg_tFidBj7I/AAAAAAAAFkY/Wj3iAs6WxDM/s1600/IMG_2002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nSCG9AzALLM/Vg_tFidBj7I/AAAAAAAAFkY/Wj3iAs6WxDM/s320/IMG_2002.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-41726561703136644522015-09-12T11:21:00.001-07:002015-09-12T11:21:29.576-07:00September 12 Update<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Late Summer in the Cabal Garden</h3>
Today is a beautiful day here in N. Texas. Low 80's and dry weather makes being outside wonderful, and I am writing this sitting outside, on my chromebook. <br />
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After a very wet early summer, and very dry mid-summer, we've had a days of rain recently, and lowering temperatures means the garden is kicking it into high gear again. Even through the heat of the summer, the garden has remained very productive. The main things this summer have been the cucumbers, yellow squash, okra, and the peppers, along with the maturing birdhouse gourds.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Pb5MUHaxHLU/VcqyB4D0DLI/AAAAAAAAFfE/SDx8ofgo3hA/s1600/IMG_1880.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Pb5MUHaxHLU/VcqyB4D0DLI/AAAAAAAAFfE/SDx8ofgo3hA/s320/IMG_1880.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">typical harvest, from late August<br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fDKgij2LcQg/VfReTqAWdbI/AAAAAAAAFik/NO8gNP2sIdI/s1600/IMG_1941.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fDKgij2LcQg/VfReTqAWdbI/AAAAAAAAFik/NO8gNP2sIdI/s320/IMG_1941.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From early Sept 5th including the variety of peppers.<br /></td></tr>
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I have been really surprised how well the cucumbers have done. They have been incredible producers, and we've picked, eaten, and given away tons of them... all from 4 plants! The plants are pretty much done now, and I have started cutting them back to make space for the incoming pumpkin vines.<div>
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The okra plants are really now <b>okra trees</b>! They are probably about 7 ft tall now.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I1siYLvWwvI/VfRMJ5hO_XI/AAAAAAAAFh8/4RkLQ5E45i8/s1600/IMG_1957.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I1siYLvWwvI/VfRMJ5hO_XI/AAAAAAAAFh8/4RkLQ5E45i8/s320/IMG_1957.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">our okra trees</td></tr>
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These also produce like crazy, and I've had to give away lots of okra too, in addition to eating it, and freezing some of it. Our favorite is fried okra, although sometimes we will sautee it, although some of the kids don't really like the sliminess. The frozen stuff will be good for soups like gumbo, in the winter.</div>
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Below is a picture of the pepper plants, mixed in there are 5 kinds of peppers, but the poblano-looking pepper is tallest variety, towering over the other ones. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BjEZ3oGmSOQ/VfRMNBIiZSI/AAAAAAAAFiM/-z816DPKBqs/s1600/IMG_1955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BjEZ3oGmSOQ/VfRMNBIiZSI/AAAAAAAAFiM/-z816DPKBqs/s320/IMG_1955.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pepper plants</td></tr>
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<br />The yellow crookneck squash plants are looking pretty raggedy now, but I am hoping they might be able to push out a few more fruit. The squash vine borers have affected them, but with some additional rooting along the ground, it has helped them. They have done really well. I estimate around 25 squash from 3 plants. There are 3 remaining growing tips, with some looking like they might start producing some more.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iZmjgTHyVDE/VfRMFBf91SI/AAAAAAAAFhk/QptFdNnzr-Q/s1600/IMG_1958.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iZmjgTHyVDE/VfRMFBf91SI/AAAAAAAAFhk/QptFdNnzr-Q/s320/IMG_1958.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">remnant of the yellow crookneck squash.</td></tr>
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I've pulled up some wilted portions of the plant, and they have had some SVB grubs, which have become chicken snacks. I'm not surprised cause I haven't been doing much to stop them the last month. <br />
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But their successors are almost ready to go now. I planted some "cymlings" (patty-pan type squash). I read about "cymlings" in an old book about gardening (that's what they called them back in the early 1900s) , and now for fun, I call them cymlings too. Well I planted 3 hills of cymlings, and one hill of yellow crookneck. I made a large frame for netting, out of PVC, to protect them from SVB and squash bugs. Aphids have shown up, but I stuck some lady bug larva and adult lady bugs in there with them (more on them later..)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lwxKCNwpswc/VfRMIPx4NYI/AAAAAAAAFh0/9OFKZMZEs6M/s1600/IMG_1954.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lwxKCNwpswc/VfRMIPx4NYI/AAAAAAAAFh0/9OFKZMZEs6M/s320/IMG_1954.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">more summer squash on the way</td></tr>
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On the picture above you can see the cucumber plants They are just about dead.<br />
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I haven't mentioned these much, but I've had three big basil plants pretty much all summer. They are great because they are constantly blooming and draw in lots of bees and other good bugs. These seeded themselves from last year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FiamddRUKKY/VfRMO_I0-DI/AAAAAAAAFiY/YrXvKmY1kkw/s1600/IMG_1959.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FiamddRUKKY/VfRMO_I0-DI/AAAAAAAAFiY/YrXvKmY1kkw/s320/IMG_1959.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basil plants, with Hubbard squash growing underneath.</td></tr>
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<br />The birdhouse gourds are doing great. The plants have been severely infested with aphids, but there have been lady bugs among them, and they also have reproduced, so now I have lots of them too. I've even put some of them under my netting to help with the aphids in my summer squash. They have also been hit with powdery mildew pretty badly. But they have produced lots of gourds. Here are a few:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VoCV-2xTn-E/VfRMCHmV1TI/AAAAAAAAFhU/E05R_au_LW4/s1600/IMG_1952.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VoCV-2xTn-E/VfRMCHmV1TI/AAAAAAAAFhU/E05R_au_LW4/s320/IMG_1952.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">at the bottom of the picture you can see a leaf infested with powdery mildew.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yCy1_S_I1rw/VfRMAxwuRfI/AAAAAAAAFhM/eZATnlIVEv4/s1600/IMG_1953.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yCy1_S_I1rw/VfRMAxwuRfI/AAAAAAAAFhM/eZATnlIVEv4/s320/IMG_1953.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Portions of the vines are starting to die off too, but other portions are now spreading along the ground. </div>
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For the fall...</h3>
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My main winter squash now growing is the Hubbard Squash, the sugar pie pumpkins, and spaghetti squash. Below is the Hubbard squash. It started close to the birdhouse gourds, and is spreading back towards the main part of the garden, now reaching the basil plants. I've been burying the vines are they grow,but in the cramped space that becomes tricky. The SVB moths are still flying around (just killed one today with a badminton racket.) but the egg laying has slowed down. I do see some eggs here and there but nowhere as bad as it was earlier in the summer. Next to the vines, growing up on tomato cages, are pole beans, Kentucky wonder. I hope these get producing well before the cold weather comes. Last year I started these too late, and they didnt get to produce much before the cold killed them. This year I seeded them a few weeks earlier.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oWWTIFnCugs/VfRMGjHBLbI/AAAAAAAAFhs/kAda0C06NRY/s1600/IMG_1950.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oWWTIFnCugs/VfRMGjHBLbI/AAAAAAAAFhs/kAda0C06NRY/s320/IMG_1950.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pole beans.</td></tr>
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The plan is to let the Hubbard squash grow all underneath the beans, which are growing up the cages, and onto the fence. </div>
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I think once again I got too ambitious with the sugar pie and spaghetti squash. They have already taken over the whole area, and are almost impossible to reach for burying vines are removing SVB eggs, so I have really not done much there. Hopefully the vines are established enough that any damage they cause will just have the effect of "pruning" the vines.</div>
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I also enlisted the help of "trichogramma wasps". I had read that they are effective at parasitizing the eggs of Squash Vine borers. So I bought some wasp eggs, for about $8 online. I released them a few weeks ago, and am hopeful they are out there working. They are very tiny, so it would be impossible for me to see them in action. My hope is that they get established in my garden as natural pest control.</div>
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The vines have reached the pepper plants, and I am trying to train them to grow underneath, so they done cover the plants.</div>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-64987329211391974272015-08-01T14:42:00.001-07:002015-08-01T14:51:31.100-07:00August 1st UpdateIts August 1st, and it been really hot but today we are getting a break, and its going to be in the upper 90's instead of 100 like its been the past few days. (yesterday it officially hit 104).<br />
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Despite the heat all the plants are doing well, probably because I keep them well watered. Its hasn't rained a drop in about 4 weeks, but with all the rain we got this late spring/early summer, the lakes are still full and there aren't any watering restrictions.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Cucumbers ,Okra, Beans</h3>
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The cucumbers are doing great. These are actually called "Eureka Hybrid Cucumbers", and I read that they are very disease resistant. I believe it, because by this time usually my cucumbers collapse and die, but these are still going strong. The kids wanted to help in the garden, so I assigned Andrew to be in charge of picking the okra every day, and Michelle to be in charge of picking the cucumbers.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQDFFutjH_7ynRavdcUaeUkoxYLh3Y6lqeTau9ATEy0GLEOXiNev25QgkDKG__TTBjq6ri3JXYP-ery3XFpYhGl2Php74T4N0rGbZnS0WZHLEmYxx5lmlJiFgKEX9NTfjthrETrjOhLq4/s1600/IMG_1865.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQDFFutjH_7ynRavdcUaeUkoxYLh3Y6lqeTau9ATEy0GLEOXiNev25QgkDKG__TTBjq6ri3JXYP-ery3XFpYhGl2Php74T4N0rGbZnS0WZHLEmYxx5lmlJiFgKEX9NTfjthrETrjOhLq4/s320/IMG_1865.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A day's harvest. Andrew picked about 12 okra pods, and Michelle picked 10 cucumbers.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis4QiMQJ9QOVkcVPsazC1Q6H5M-Kw0jYsDYLkz7TSiuwizew7sJj8EafOpbkJRD1LoANJes0QjqDMSg2VffAyDw-FCGzh0kZa46XgkuAfCR8JCyJTVGyI9Wq7EZy82BwSnKvttpNKZouU/s1600/IMG_1866.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis4QiMQJ9QOVkcVPsazC1Q6H5M-Kw0jYsDYLkz7TSiuwizew7sJj8EafOpbkJRD1LoANJes0QjqDMSg2VffAyDw-FCGzh0kZa46XgkuAfCR8JCyJTVGyI9Wq7EZy82BwSnKvttpNKZouU/s320/IMG_1866.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWawtvhJ5NxMRnhb24Ya7I4R4PqTgqQZQ5-x5Hvd7aBO-_f7Ud6M3VvD_PuCfQpuKiNgYiBJDicK5FeLQ3JvJN-wjlA8BMjRngr7wwQUMNzOHIp4VmoPh4yzUdG5p7-WiaWJAYbPoRsFA/s1600/GEDC0829.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWawtvhJ5NxMRnhb24Ya7I4R4PqTgqQZQ5-x5Hvd7aBO-_f7Ud6M3VvD_PuCfQpuKiNgYiBJDicK5FeLQ3JvJN-wjlA8BMjRngr7wwQUMNzOHIp4VmoPh4yzUdG5p7-WiaWJAYbPoRsFA/s320/GEDC0829.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The vines are now starting to sprawl along the ground too. </td></tr>
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Here are the okra plants. The are getting very big, taller than me now, and they are starting to produce a lot now. These are the same "emerald" okra I've been growing the past few years. I am out of seed so hopefully I'll remember to let a few pods mature and save the seeds for next year.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCI5HwZa5_j8BtlfU_x7-nfAtO8x1E_3iLv1mUqp3td3SNdio4DWrtzplkUds_UXXNk2RLDFEVqZapsdrOhJvJQatByDv74n28DjYtP02JRsoYbQb7DP-CZ0dXeKlxiCUAv47b5hTlot4/s1600/GEDC0828.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCI5HwZa5_j8BtlfU_x7-nfAtO8x1E_3iLv1mUqp3td3SNdio4DWrtzplkUds_UXXNk2RLDFEVqZapsdrOhJvJQatByDv74n28DjYtP02JRsoYbQb7DP-CZ0dXeKlxiCUAv47b5hTlot4/s320/GEDC0828.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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In the picture below between the okra and cucumbers are some bush bean plants. After initially fighting spider mites, they are gone now, and the plants are pretty pest free. I think the neem oil and soap applications helped. But now their greatest enemy is the heat. They have not been producing much, except a few very small pods every day. Occasionally I'll get a few good pods. I might pull them up soon and start planting pole beans there for a fall harvest. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje73HSEky79HODRLw1C3HSQpjIkNS-f0PUdlDgV6n_9L7KN2Rv6mIYedkP4MOiRYI7kaQ83X4jd2L0ui-0I5yMRaylOXz3DrgiNbvMeEipNf_UdVqntUzgyNySYbmOF66O0BbIIMFcgT8/s1600/GEDC0830.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje73HSEky79HODRLw1C3HSQpjIkNS-f0PUdlDgV6n_9L7KN2Rv6mIYedkP4MOiRYI7kaQ83X4jd2L0ui-0I5yMRaylOXz3DrgiNbvMeEipNf_UdVqntUzgyNySYbmOF66O0BbIIMFcgT8/s320/GEDC0830.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Birdhouse Gourd and Milo</h3>
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Here is the gourd arbor I made with the birdhouse gourds, and the milo plants below. I had scattered some seed around the area in the late spring, and now they are close to being ready for picking. I have grown these mainly for the chickens to eat. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjklyTFuBFjSQOpc3bHJ4dqG5TjgnZ4NpiaWcWbn-s3AfniLI2DLpvYmd3drbjpYnRrmbZyLczy9tBZ5d2Ok5Hp1gEU2kmwpN78blloQTcVPzW8cZDHig8H0KE-waRE7exe6zUAqVR9HF0/s1600/GEDC0822.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjklyTFuBFjSQOpc3bHJ4dqG5TjgnZ4NpiaWcWbn-s3AfniLI2DLpvYmd3drbjpYnRrmbZyLczy9tBZ5d2Ok5Hp1gEU2kmwpN78blloQTcVPzW8cZDHig8H0KE-waRE7exe6zUAqVR9HF0/s320/GEDC0822.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A closeup of the milo seed heads.</td></tr>
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The birdhouse gourds are still doing well. Last time I mentioned their wilting, and that I was concerned it was bacterial wilt because of the cucumber beetles, and how they can transmit disease. Thankfully, I don't think it is. I think it was just the heat and dryness. Since I have been watering more, the wilting has not been as pronounced, but it still happens. I think these plants just don't like the dry heat, and are just surviving until the heat lets up. By the end of the afternoon, they look pretty droopy, but they recover pretty well.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4TRVtwegmAH9GZlfd9gLoSXvtrdW7nRaHhyphenhyphen2zV90of6AI2ukayDDUeLMFliLA0MtMAsUjJ6ginZzqbTHTrtETnu0cBrjDu6hTP13UluIh3AZNctkROXqcKwSUSoVyrZxU_4R0dWwrAyU/s1600/GEDC0823.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4TRVtwegmAH9GZlfd9gLoSXvtrdW7nRaHhyphenhyphen2zV90of6AI2ukayDDUeLMFliLA0MtMAsUjJ6ginZzqbTHTrtETnu0cBrjDu6hTP13UluIh3AZNctkROXqcKwSUSoVyrZxU_4R0dWwrAyU/s320/GEDC0823.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The birdhouse gourds. These have not really grown in a while. This might be as big as they get. <br />
(probably due to the heat)<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">
Pumpkins and Squash</span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The lone pumpkin plant which was a volunteer has now become huge,and has now reached past the yellow squash, to where the bush beans are. At first I was not sure if I was going to pull it out because I had this spot reserved for Hubbard squash to be planted later, but I've grown fond of it, and have taken care of it by removing squash vine borer (SVB) and squash bug eggs. The squash bugs have arrived, and I have found some egg clusters and have crushed them. I have crushed about 6 squash bugs too. If I keep checking for them every few days I can keep them under control. But as the plant gets bigger, it gets harder. The SVB have actually slowed down a lot recently. I think we are now between the generations of them (there are supposed to be 2 generations in the summer) and I expect them to show up strong again later in mid-August. I have only seen a few eggs this past week. I have also been burying some of the newer vines to let them take root. So this plant is now pretty well established, and now just waiting for the female flowers to start appearing. So far only males.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNiuxHAkLvlTss9AajJALl0YUMzltvPoGvxNBVv4OOVhqA4m-Y9Q7jDeIrvulWpvw3RzrhTsY-cs8cRPeo0p8Y3HpX4k9Zgjxpwsa14MCg1xJbKN43yr_AXRdLT4Zj__zm92gzJBFVyjk/s1600/GEDC0824.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNiuxHAkLvlTss9AajJALl0YUMzltvPoGvxNBVv4OOVhqA4m-Y9Q7jDeIrvulWpvw3RzrhTsY-cs8cRPeo0p8Y3HpX4k9Zgjxpwsa14MCg1xJbKN43yr_AXRdLT4Zj__zm92gzJBFVyjk/s320/GEDC0824.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin vine has gotten huge. Amazing this is just 1 plant.</td></tr>
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The yellow squash outgrew their tulle covers, so I removed them earlier this week. So far I have gotten about 8 squash from them. When I removed the covers, I piled new dirt and mulch over the base of the plant and parts of the vine laying on the ground, to protect from SVB, and to encourage more rooting. I will begin monitoring the vine, and injecting with BT when I see they are showing signs of SVB damage... but that shouldn't be happening for at least 3 more week, so I should have plenty of time to get lots of squash from these. When I planted them I was worried about the timing,and the heat of July and August affecting their fruit setting. But they have done fine. Despite the 100 degree weather, I have more squash on the way!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfI9CkhdFihOFa0xDEukKvnTvDMNVsLdfNO2JSDtiLMrFnqqyt0WsvRYMM9AvU9VukkMPlgDrxGiH4WIzsYYCF4YRXJWxBaV0Yj5qX64TSeAv77SWZOJ1qe0g8SjrRIpYCKN5NMmbWWK8/s1600/GEDC0826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfI9CkhdFihOFa0xDEukKvnTvDMNVsLdfNO2JSDtiLMrFnqqyt0WsvRYMM9AvU9VukkMPlgDrxGiH4WIzsYYCF4YRXJWxBaV0Yj5qX64TSeAv77SWZOJ1qe0g8SjrRIpYCKN5NMmbWWK8/s320/GEDC0826.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yellow Crookneck Squash</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig8MOzIcqmfXFjBP-UMxJMN-GgpWpqUmzE_2GEBc87aTY2Zo5xCosBrEv1fl1nVHl-w5-4Do-Gjn6a5onSmgdg65vkd7oZbIWTEO2Nwx4IhzAt1ubRlC1J86SDsdAFs-M24vePh4pYDO8/s1600/GEDC0827.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig8MOzIcqmfXFjBP-UMxJMN-GgpWpqUmzE_2GEBc87aTY2Zo5xCosBrEv1fl1nVHl-w5-4Do-Gjn6a5onSmgdg65vkd7oZbIWTEO2Nwx4IhzAt1ubRlC1J86SDsdAFs-M24vePh4pYDO8/s320/GEDC0827.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Small squashes developing</td></tr>
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I still want to pursue growing Hubbard squash again this fall. So I went ahead and started them, and here are the seedlings now. I have them covered to protect from bugs. I am hoping by the time these get bigger and start sprawling around, the pumpkin vine will begin dying off around the base, and these can just grow over and take over that area. If not, its going to be hard to find space to train these vines. These plants are enormous. I need a bigger yard!!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsgrRyIWu3lGIvR-XbQr3-mHNRyg2YXQVpX60Yg7Nzc84D2jOY3K5QJ7GuLmr7_YratZ5QN7NC4fXGfTY9jLdN_y0qQ5Q4kc3GJd1A7mDxVJiX30HrxQ47ViXgYN0nLzLZCe9HYIEi_Sw/s1600/GEDC0825.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsgrRyIWu3lGIvR-XbQr3-mHNRyg2YXQVpX60Yg7Nzc84D2jOY3K5QJ7GuLmr7_YratZ5QN7NC4fXGfTY9jLdN_y0qQ5Q4kc3GJd1A7mDxVJiX30HrxQ47ViXgYN0nLzLZCe9HYIEi_Sw/s320/GEDC0825.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blue Hubbard Squash seedlings.</td></tr>
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I am also trying spaghetti squash for the first time this year. I got the seeds from a squash my wife bought from the store last year. There are 4 hills here, two spaghetti squash and 2 sugar pie pumpkin hills. This is at the opposite end of the garden area, where the tomatoes were growing earlier this year. I also have these covered with tulle to protect from bugs (SVB, squash bugs, cucumber beetles, the big Three...Boo! ). The seeds just came out a couple days ago. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw90R9DtLtir2uZ-QcgMls3xYgvAHrEBUr9R-D-Uj2uNXAgWoObl8rvNkupANhMTclfICDM9J3DX3Ob3wYUBu3ebMq64EcGVsgCsDg8z7ChVhoPGdycvBJHE18ryFZFa0fSnKThEzAGQQ/s1600/GEDC0835.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw90R9DtLtir2uZ-QcgMls3xYgvAHrEBUr9R-D-Uj2uNXAgWoObl8rvNkupANhMTclfICDM9J3DX3Ob3wYUBu3ebMq64EcGVsgCsDg8z7ChVhoPGdycvBJHE18ryFZFa0fSnKThEzAGQQ/s320/GEDC0835.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">spaghetti squash and sugar pie pumpkin seedlings</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Peppers</h3>
My peppers, which had such a slow start, are doing real well. I can definitely see a difference in the plants, not just in the fruit, but in the size of them and their leaf size. Some have gotten top-heavy and I have had to stake up. But otherwise no problems, no bugs bothering them. Pretty easy!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgObPm8KJxpvLPneu7XD51YJysnrog8BCBZdva2U15XCfN_-cTEbOftl7yp9ZiRMUC_7k6bjddDmRS_VvXEgyIlejWHkdpXYbAHumkfLI4Lfh_wlu5XOeP4hb2Q1qP6eya1GPIaz9V2oes/s1600/GEDC0834.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgObPm8KJxpvLPneu7XD51YJysnrog8BCBZdva2U15XCfN_-cTEbOftl7yp9ZiRMUC_7k6bjddDmRS_VvXEgyIlejWHkdpXYbAHumkfLI4Lfh_wlu5XOeP4hb2Q1qP6eya1GPIaz9V2oes/s320/GEDC0834.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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They all now have fruit developing on them, at various stages. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ0M_tQM4jqPfePc2qGDKnnsX9rtzfRlonpXUBT1A56kKy3lN6Vj8Juoc_VtBHmVgQsrMl-Mxrcjvw0GPfvlRQWjLWqmEBccoA6XJw4x64ai_pApxyzWa5OAkSzGPoAPNxDAOB_Gd4pEs/s1600/GEDC0831.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ0M_tQM4jqPfePc2qGDKnnsX9rtzfRlonpXUBT1A56kKy3lN6Vj8Juoc_VtBHmVgQsrMl-Mxrcjvw0GPfvlRQWjLWqmEBccoA6XJw4x64ai_pApxyzWa5OAkSzGPoAPNxDAOB_Gd4pEs/s320/GEDC0831.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Costa Rican Sweet Pepper</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcNaCYYJEOtC6LDB29LEgALoue2ct-ABN6I473H0gKvwUuz_MpTVetWczDjaPn90jOhxYneVaDPaTvBgnFoPLC5E8FFIqjcXnLU12jottvOMdjIi1cIWKo5Fj25g9Db3xat5XpfJNyJg/s1600/GEDC0833.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcNaCYYJEOtC6LDB29LEgALoue2ct-ABN6I473H0gKvwUuz_MpTVetWczDjaPn90jOhxYneVaDPaTvBgnFoPLC5E8FFIqjcXnLU12jottvOMdjIi1cIWKo5Fj25g9Db3xat5XpfJNyJg/s320/GEDC0833.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">small skinny pepper, maybe a Cayenne?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg26LFOsNe8j8RkZ0kV5LRHv4eWCVvrsWFePdaRF4XbtErGtAhDgW2fdbzplmSazBk_UcFccir_pxziBoZpzohwmMfbWIag9Oo0_FgwzgmRRvd7MN4l6Wg6xOUGm_mBcmHUCtJi7MZpxqI/s1600/GEDC0832.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg26LFOsNe8j8RkZ0kV5LRHv4eWCVvrsWFePdaRF4XbtErGtAhDgW2fdbzplmSazBk_UcFccir_pxziBoZpzohwmMfbWIag9Oo0_FgwzgmRRvd7MN4l6Wg6xOUGm_mBcmHUCtJi7MZpxqI/s320/GEDC0832.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looks like a jalapeno or similar hot pepper</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Basil</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1jyJXNMowdEnP-C18nSfQ2hcYSBUYN9DsqJl7n_NVkv1wS_RgTGmcvhxLWYyrWZoPbk_gQS2eb7IeTueLJCU4EKi77uX1bRoL221p53ujnYdCkWpWiL6QVEHAWcx7LCGCzoO_0qWsipY/s1600/GEDC0836.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1jyJXNMowdEnP-C18nSfQ2hcYSBUYN9DsqJl7n_NVkv1wS_RgTGmcvhxLWYyrWZoPbk_gQS2eb7IeTueLJCU4EKi77uX1bRoL221p53ujnYdCkWpWiL6QVEHAWcx7LCGCzoO_0qWsipY/s320/GEDC0836.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Growing among my pumpkin plant is basil. I have three big plants. These become like woody bushes when they are big, and are pretty tall enough to stand out among the pumpkin leaves. They produce tons of flowers, which the bees love! Also every time I go into the patch and rub against the leaves, they produce a wonderful smell. I see some black carpenter bees, and some real small other type of bees buzzing like crazy every morning. These were all volunteers. Last year the plants dropped seeds like crazy, and when I saw them come up this year, I let them grow. </div>
ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-6501794355589909122015-07-24T21:41:00.000-07:002015-07-24T21:41:38.493-07:00July 24th Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Its almost the end of July, and its starting to get pretty hot. Officially I don't think we hit 100 yet, we've been at 99 the last few days, but we might the next few days. After a very wet early summer, we have dried up pretty good. It hasn't rained in about three or more weeks, and I've having to water pretty often now.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Cucumbers</h3>
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The cucumber have done amazing this year. These are the dual-purpose slicer/pickling cukes I got last year from Gurney's. I've had tons of cucumbers and have had to give many way to friends and family, plus have pickled some. I've had to water these quite a bit to keep them producing. The A-shaped trellis I made has worked really good. Its been real easy to see and pick the cucumbers.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wfOowXJxdAc/VbJRek3bDOI/AAAAAAAAFUA/R1nYXql1B8k/s1600/IMG_1827.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wfOowXJxdAc/VbJRek3bDOI/AAAAAAAAFUA/R1nYXql1B8k/s320/IMG_1827.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Unfortunately the cucumber beetles are showing up in good numbers, both striped and spotted. These are very hard to deal with organically. I try and catch and kill them whenever I get a chance but there are so many. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T_ayovy-jJE/VbL-0K8P2JI/AAAAAAAAFVI/Co_uhIxc3B4/s1600/IMG_1844.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T_ayovy-jJE/VbL-0K8P2JI/AAAAAAAAFVI/Co_uhIxc3B4/s320/IMG_1844.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">typical day's harvest of cucumbers</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Squash/Pumpkins</h3>
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My previous post I talked about the yellow crookneck squash started under the tulle netting to keep out squash vine borers (SVB) and squash bugs. They are doing very well now. I had to put a bigger piece of tulle on them, and they are about to outgrow that. Fortunately the aphids have not been a problem yet, so they are pretty much pest free.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XmywNagVq5o/VbJRk7s8noI/AAAAAAAAFUk/hZ8m8Uhz4sc/s1600/IMG_1838.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XmywNagVq5o/VbJRk7s8noI/AAAAAAAAFUk/hZ8m8Uhz4sc/s320/IMG_1838.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">yellow crookneck squash under tulle netting</td></tr>
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The female flower are coming in good now. Since I have them under covers, I need to hand-pollinate them. The past few days every morning when I get up I go out and pollinate them by lifting the cover, and then tucking in the cover when I am done. Despite the heat, they are producing now! Here is the first one, a siamese twin one...one side grew more than the other, so its looks kinda funny. I have another siamese twin one growing that should be ready to pick soon, and there are more on the way. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ENcM9KqJ_B0/VbL-xz5IfSI/AAAAAAAAFU4/Hqga0QIK2-k/s1600/IMG_1845.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ENcM9KqJ_B0/VbL-xz5IfSI/AAAAAAAAFU4/Hqga0QIK2-k/s320/IMG_1845.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my first crookneck squash of the year.</td></tr>
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I had also mentioned before a volunteer pumpkin plant. That plant has grown like crazy. Its definitely a C. Pepo variety, but not sure if its a sugar pie pumpkin. The SVB are definitely around now. They have been laying eggs like crazy on this lone plant. Every other day I will check for eggs, and pick them off, and I have also been burying the vines. The plant has forked into about 5 growing tips, and just started blooming male flowers. I also just started preventative BT injections into the older leaf stalks, just in case I missed an egg. <br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L2GDhbVWx-Q/VbJRjfl7LrI/AAAAAAAAFUc/fibLpnW6wdg/s1600/IMG_1839.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L2GDhbVWx-Q/VbJRjfl7LrI/AAAAAAAAFUc/fibLpnW6wdg/s320/IMG_1839.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Peppers</h3>
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Last post I discussed the peppers I had planted. The plants are doing very well now and starting to produce. Like I said, since the hot peppers were a mixture I am not sure what I have exactly. But the plants do look different. The CostaRican sweet pepper plants have bigger leaves. Here are some of the hot peppers that are now producing.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-inm9xLkZghE/VbJRahxngtI/AAAAAAAAFTg/k3bKZyDC71I/s1600/IMG_1831.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-inm9xLkZghE/VbJRahxngtI/AAAAAAAAFTg/k3bKZyDC71I/s320/IMG_1831.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">this looks like a cayenne pepper<br /><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0zdnqXsvjJc/VbJRhs4NOtI/AAAAAAAAFUU/uwK6pfwl6XI/s1600/IMG_1828.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0zdnqXsvjJc/VbJRhs4NOtI/AAAAAAAAFUU/uwK6pfwl6XI/s320/IMG_1828.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">not sure what this is, looks like a small jalapeno.</td></tr>
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<br />I did see one pepper on the CostaRican sweet pepper. They do have a lot of flowers otherwise. Looking forward to see how these do.<div>
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Birdhouse Gourd</h3>
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The birdhouse gourd plants have grown quite a bit now and have started covering the top of the trellis I made. They have also been producing fruit. I have about 3 good size gourds, and about 4 smaller ones now.</div>
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I've noticed as they have started producing fruit, they have really slower down their growth. They have beautiful flowers that open at night, and in the late morning are pretty much gone. Since its been so dry and hot lately I have had no problems with powdery mildew yet on them. One problem is the cucumber beetles. I have quite a bit on them. Today I noticed the leaves were very wilted on part of it. I am really hoping its not bacterial wilt. I checked the soil underneath and it was very dry so I watered the plant a lot this evening. I pray its just that the plant needed more water.</div>
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ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5346799150874284063.post-7720120609357439322015-06-30T16:16:00.000-07:002015-06-30T16:31:35.819-07:00Summer 2015Been a long time since I blogged on my garden! Better late than never I guess.<br />
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After one of wettest Mays in history for us, and a fairly wet early June, we are now officially in Summer. Its been nice so far, with us being mostly in the low to mid 90's the past few weeks.<br />
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Cool Weather Crops </h2>
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Here is a quick summary of how my earlier spring garden did, and lessons learned. <br />
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<li><b>spinach</b> - Planted lots of transplants from pots which I had started from seed over the winter, but they never did really as well as I had hoped. Some died off, and some bolted too soon. My garden soil was just full of huge grubs this spring, so I suspect these damaged many of their roots. I think next year I will direct seed more, and do some direct seeding this fall too, so they grow through the winter. Not sure what do do about the grubs, except maybe turn over the soils and get the chickens to help me take them out. Despite the difficulties, we did have a harvest, and enjoyed a few weeks of fresh spinach. </li>
<li><b>brocolli</b> - Started late winter from seedlings... it was a bust. Plants produced very little, and died off. Had to fight off lots of aphids too. I think a late snow and ice really set them back, but not completely sure what happened, so I pulled them out. </li>
<li><b>peas</b> - started from transplants I grew from seed. Didn't do very well from transplant, as it set them back a lot. When the finally started growing again, it had started getting pretty warm, and red spider mites started getting them. I had a small harvest... Didn't plant enough plants. Lesson: plant more, protect early from cold, and direct seed instead of transplant. Try fall too. </li>
<li><b>cabbage:</b> (Golden Acres) Planted a bunch from transplants I started from seed in late winter. As soon as I planted them, got some bad ice and snow, then got hit by aphids. So they got a very slow start, and I was worried they wouldn't yield anything. But they did pretty well eventually. I've been harvesting a couple of heads weekly for the past month and a half. They are fairly small, so it takes about 2 heads for a meal. BT and the wasps have kept the cabbage worms at bay. As of today, I still have them out there, despite the hot weather, but they are almost done. I probably have 4 or 6 more heads to pick. Below you can see them right behind the large catnip plant that I also planted earlier in the spring. </li>
<li><b>turnips, mustard </b>- did pretty good, although got hit by aphids again. I left my mustard to go to seed and its still hanging around. Its served as a good trap crop for harlequin bugs which seem to prefer the mustard to the cabbage fortunately, and are easier to pick off and kill on their long flower stalks. So my cabbage plants have been spared from them.</li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">large catnip plant, and cabbages right behind</td></tr>
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<li><b>leaf lettuce</b> - direct seeded a few, and like most of the time, they did very well. Obviously since its June, they are done, and bolted now (you can see them above the cabbage in the picture above)</li>
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Okra, Beans</h2>
I'm growing Emerald Okra again. Seeded these late May, and they are really growing fast now, despite the usual aphid infestation I always get with these. Emerald is an excellent variety because the pods can grow fairly large before they get woody, so I don't have to keep them picked as often as other varieties such as Clemson spineless, which get woody very quickly. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emerald Okra</td></tr>
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Right next to the Okra, I had sown some Bush beans. Here they are, doing OK despite dealing with spider mites, which are the bane of my existence! Seems that every time I plant beans, either pole or bush, they come down with spider mites. I have been spraying them with water and occasionally with neem oil, and I think I have them slightly under control. But I think due to the hot weather they are just not producing a lot. We've just had one meal from them so far.<br />
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Bird House Gourd (<i>Lagenaria siceraria</i>)</h2>
Decided to try something completely new this year, Birdhouse Gourd. I planted a hill with 4 seeds back in the beginning of June. Three plants came up, and almost a month later its incredible how much these plant have grown. I made this trellis structure that is attached to my fence, and my plan is to train the vines to grow over it like an arbor.<br />
I first started with a large tomato cage to protect them. Here is what they looked like just 10 days ago:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iD4GTeKADq2cMHdBkqU_i9l65agh__VtpHzIvjMa2MhyP6UNihVTpeZ-o3fZJqKlmzYwDTcxFNw2sdY2aRxqGiNd6Mkx6cS7QsUcX8wnj4kduVZ7p_w5zOhdl8SU-m6Gf0ESnRI6zFI/s1600/bhg_.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iD4GTeKADq2cMHdBkqU_i9l65agh__VtpHzIvjMa2MhyP6UNihVTpeZ-o3fZJqKlmzYwDTcxFNw2sdY2aRxqGiNd6Mkx6cS7QsUcX8wnj4kduVZ7p_w5zOhdl8SU-m6Gf0ESnRI6zFI/s320/bhg_.JPG" width="209" /></a></div>
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Then I used two of my previously made trellis' to help train them up, and now one of the vines has reached the top. Looking forward to be able to get under that canopy soon! Here are pictures I took this morning. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Peppers </span></h3>
Something I have not planted in a few years is peppers. The previous time I had planted pepper was Anaheim a few years back, and I had gotten tons of pepper, many of which I froze and lasted me a long time. But this year I decided to try and grow some more. I started them from seed directly sown into the ground back in late April, but its taken them a very long time to start growing well, maybe due to the incredibly wet spring we've been having. I also had something chew off some of the early leaves off, so that set some of these back, but they have recovered. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">mixture of costa rican sweet pepper and hot peppers.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Here are the two seed packets I got these seeds from:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM043_rNfi_VLD2ellyybjISGdhqXFjkow7Iv8e6bKxPZ4hdI7HUtSGfmX5zonyF1GCunjapVDYABO8Y-wDFz-uu1mUGBUppqeHicegZpnlcaZk6vs6S6UkI6BAAJP89gJm6bl2LU1urk/s1600/pepperseeds.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM043_rNfi_VLD2ellyybjISGdhqXFjkow7Iv8e6bKxPZ4hdI7HUtSGfmX5zonyF1GCunjapVDYABO8Y-wDFz-uu1mUGBUppqeHicegZpnlcaZk6vs6S6UkI6BAAJP89gJm6bl2LU1urk/s320/pepperseeds.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Funny thing is that I forgot which is which. I believe 1/3 of these are from the Costa Rican, and the rest from the hot pepper mix, so it will be interesting to see what I get from these. Now that its getting hotter and not as wet, I think these will start doing a lot better. </div>
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Cucumbers </h2>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">I had some cucumber seed from last year's Gurney's order, the dual purpose pickling/slicing cucumbers. I planted these back in late May, and they are doing great... they seem more healthy and vigorous than last year's and I see many small cukes starting to form. I think we're going to have tons of cucumbers soon!</span></span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlcgY6dqbUazYXiYhh5ktomJhIdnj_5vAIIGOE2LL2JwwcgfFCmjLxPmCNmNfE0fHa6JpFyXX-TI6ytXazPalGdstpDT18yUirqq1GVcqAlnYEqZ1gG_8O0SLNC7nvpw4hONsL_qMIP1c/s1600/Jun+30%252C+2015+6%253A28%253A17+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlcgY6dqbUazYXiYhh5ktomJhIdnj_5vAIIGOE2LL2JwwcgfFCmjLxPmCNmNfE0fHa6JpFyXX-TI6ytXazPalGdstpDT18yUirqq1GVcqAlnYEqZ1gG_8O0SLNC7nvpw4hONsL_qMIP1c/s320/Jun+30%252C+2015+6%253A28%253A17+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here they are, growing on a makeshift trellis, and next to the bolted mustard plants I am keeping around for seed. </span></span></div>
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Squash </h2>
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I wanted to try and upset the life cycle of the Squash vine borer and squash bugs this year a little by not planting any sort of squash until the late summer, so that any spring SVB moths would fly away to different places in search of food. I do have plans to grow various squash this fall. But I sure miss growing them, so couldn't wait any longer, and a couple weeks ago decided to plant 3 yellow squash seeds, all which came up: </div>
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Its pretty late in the season to start growing these, especially due to the coming extreme heat of July and August, but we'll see if I can get any fruit from these. I have them covered with tulle to protect them from any SVB or squash bugs that may wander in my garden (haven't seen any yet!).<br />
I do have a small volunteer pumpkin seedling closeby that I have not pulled out, to serve as an indicator if they start laying eggs on it. So far have not seen any. My plan is to hand pollinate this and keep it covered as long as I can.<br />
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Later this summer I have plans to start a hill of Benning's Green tint patty-pan squash, Hubbard Squash, and sugar pie pumpkins. But those I am timing so they will produce in early fall, when the SVBs are mostly done with. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coming Fall '15 !</td></tr>
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<br />ccabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012763886707018853noreply@blogger.com0