2022 Gardening Thread

[Geezy Rider]

Dang grasshoppers are eating up my melons. I made a jalapeño and garlic sauce to spray on the melons but it isn’t fazing them.
What can I do to stop them?



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[BLACKFINTURKEY]

Picked a few cantaloupe the other day..


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[SaltwaterSlick]

Originally Posted by Geezy Rider

Dang grasshoppers are eating up my melons. I made a jalapeño and garlic sauce to spray on the melons but it isn’t fazing them.
What can I do to stop them?



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They did the same to my maters... I sprayed (or rather my wife did) with Monterrey's Bug Buster II and after the second spraying about 5 days apart, they seem to be gone... My trouble is, my garden is surrounded by hundreds of acres of pasture land and I have the world's captured supply of grasshoppers!! It's a never-ending battle... Hoping for less pressure come Fall!

[Muskles]

Our cucumbers are still making pretty good, but they're real skinny. We started slicing yesterday to make pickles, and my wife took a bite of one and made a horrible face. It was very bitter. I tried bites from the other 9 and all but one was nasty. A couple of them made my mouth tingle. Any idea what's causing this? Some were picked a little shorter than the recommended 10-12", but none of them really had many seeds in them. Even the couple that I missed for a few days that were 14"+.

[locolobo]

Originally Posted by Muskles

Our cucumbers are still making pretty good, but they're real skinny. We started slicing yesterday to make pickles, and my wife took a bite of one and made a horrible face. It was very bitter. I tried bites from the other 9 and all but one was nasty. A couple of them made my mouth tingle. Any idea what's causing this? Some were picked a little shorter than the recommended 10-12", but none of them really had many seeds in them. Even the couple that I missed for a few days that were 14"+.

From the net
Answer: The bitterness in cucumbers is produced by the compound cucurbitacin. Cucurbitacins are normally found in the leaves, stems, and roots of cucumber plants. The cucurbitacins spread from the vegetative parts of the plant into the cucumber fruit when plants are under stress.

[ladrones]

Originally Posted by Geezy Rider

Dang grasshoppers are eating up my melons. I made a jalapeño and garlic sauce to spray on the melons but it isn’t fazing them.
What can I do to stop them?



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Buy a bag of soap nuts and make some soap nut water. Add your mix to the soap nut water then spray both sides of the leaves with mixture.

[El General]

Originally Posted by El General

If night time temps aren't getting below 70 degrees, full size tomatoes put on fruit.

That should say full size tomatoes won't put on fruit.

[Muskles]

Originally Posted by locolobo

From the net
Answer: The bitterness in cucumbers is produced by the compound cucurbitacin. Cucurbitacins are normally found in the leaves, stems, and roots of cucumber plants. The cucurbitacins spread from the vegetative parts of the plant into the cucumber fruit when plants are under stress.

Thank you!

[Geezy Rider]

Originally Posted by ladrones

Buy a bag of soap nuts and make some soap nut water. Add your mix to the soap nut water then spray both sides of the leaves with mixture.

Interesting, never heard of them but I’ll check them out.

[eradicator]

Originally Posted by El General

If night time temps aren't getting below 70 degrees, full size tomatoes put on fruit.

Tomatoes rarely set fruit over 94-95 degrees

[Muskles]

Ever seen a squash plant do this? Pics don't do justice. Looks like a flattened out 4" cobra head with tons of blooms on the end.

[txtimetravler]

Yup^ I had one do that but not 4 inches.
Interesting.

[Tex_Cattleman]

Cantaloupes are KILLING IT! Can't believe I've never grown them before. With auto drip system, they take zero effort and the bounty is incredible.

Question on a serano plant. Looks great and lots of peppers, but they are super skinny. What would make them beef up a bit?

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[eradicator]

Originally Posted by Muskles

Our cucumbers are still making pretty good, but they're real skinny. We started slicing yesterday to make pickles, and my wife took a bite of one and made a horrible face. It was very bitter. I tried bites from the other 9 and all but one was nasty. A couple of them made my mouth tingle. Any idea what's causing this? Some were picked a little shorter than the recommended 10-12", but none of them really had many seeds in them. Even the couple that I missed for a few days that were 14"+.

Missed this earlier, when you pick your cucumbers, scrub the blossom end of the fruit. This will help them keep longer and somewhat help with the bitter taste. It's just hot and they are stressed a little bit.

[SaltwaterSlick]

Originally Posted by Tex_Cattleman

Cantaloupes are KILLING IT! Can't believe I've never grown them before. With auto drip system, they take zero effort and the bounty is incredible.

Question on a serano plant. Looks great and lots of peppers, but they are super skinny. What would make them beef up a bit?

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That’s looks like a cayenne. I have several just like that. Leave em on the plant and they’ll turn a bright red. Great peppers for drying/grinding.

[eradicator]

Originally Posted by SaltwaterSlick

That’s looks like a cayenne. I have several just like that. Leave em on the plant and they’ll turn a bright red. Great peppers for drying/grinding.

I agree with cayenne

[ctom87]

I feel lucky the heat hasn't killed off everything, but I am also hanging on by a thread. "Watermelons" quit growing shortly after they changed they transitioned Everyday right about now if I am home I go out and water the garden and within about 15 minutes they quit wilting. That seems to be the crutch to get them through each day. Not sure how many more 100+ days they can endure, but we'll keep plugging away! I should have enough Okra tonight for a meal. Good Luck everyone keep at it!

[Muskles]

Originally Posted by ctom87

I feel lucky the heat hasn't killed off everything, but I am also hanging on by a thread. "Watermelons" quit growing shortly after they changed they transitioned Everyday right about now if I am home I go out and water the garden and within about 15 minutes they quit wilting. That seems to be the crutch to get them through each day. Not sure how many more 100+ days they can endure, but we'll keep plugging away! I should have enough Okra tonight for a meal. Good Luck everyone keep at it!

Our cucumbers are still producing, but they're so stressed that they're bitter. Everything else is just kind of hanging on. Getting a few tomatoes, okra, peas, peppers, and squash each week, but it's slow. Like you, I'm just trying to see if I can get them to hang on until cooler weather. I think mom wants to throw in the towel. She keeps telling me that it's OK if I want to pull it all up.

[SaltwaterSlick]

Tilled under my corn patch yesterday evening... will add compost, then cover it with a silage tarp until 1st of September. Then uncover and plant... Not sure what all I'll pant but by then, the pea patch will have ended and I may plant more peas. Will turn under the peas soon as this second planting is done producing. The second planting produced really well and we probably have 1 or 2 more pickings... I cut a 5 gallon bucket full of okra and peppers yesterday evening... Okra is off about a 30 foot row and peppers are all in grow bags... Had the best jalapeno peppers I've had in a long time and they are still doing well. They're on the automatic drip system that gives them a drink every morning at 6AM and every evening at 6PM... Maters are just hanging on with the same water... only the golden delicious cherry tomatoes are baring and they are small... Wish I could find a full size tomato that tasted like those little yeller fellers!! DANG they're good!!

[Man]

This was my first year planting purple hull peas. Are these plants a 1 and done deal with regards to production? I already picked everyone of them and haven't seen anymore produced in 2 weeks, but the plants look healthy. Do I yank?

[tps7742]

Originally Posted by Man

This was my first year planting purple hull peas. Are these plants a 1 and done deal with regards to production? I already picked everyone of them and haven't seen anymore produced in 2 weeks, but the plants look healthy. Do I yank?

From my experience they aren’t one and done. But this late you may be done especially with these temperatures unless you have some shade and water regularly.

[Muskles]

Originally Posted by Man

This was my first year planting purple hull peas. Are these plants a 1 and done deal with regards to production? I already picked everyone of them and haven't seen anymore produced in 2 weeks, but the plants look healthy. Do I yank?

First year for me also. Ours made pretty good in early June. I wasn't sure if they were done and almost pulled em all up. Several weeks later they started putting on new blooms and we're getting a few now.

Ordered a drip system yesterday. Should be here Friday. Actually got 2 of em, and that should be enough to water every plant except the peas. Going to pull the soaker hoses from the tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers to put on the peas.

[eradicator]

Thinking about planting purple hulls instead of green beans this fall. Are you guys planting bush variety or a vining variety? What are some popular 'models' for North Texas?

[Muskles]

I think mine are pinky purple hulls. That's what the guy at the feed store told me most people here in East Texas plant. They didn't get as big as I remembered the bushes getting when I was a kid, but they're bigger than the people's up the road. We didn't fertilize or water in the beginning, like we should have. I've got 2 50' rows of them and a row of zipper creams. Not sure how much we've gotten off of them, but it's less than I was expecting. I'll probably get the same, if we do it again next year and try to do a better job on my part.

[Katch66]

I'm m down to my tomatoe plants and pepper plants. Everything else is burned up except two zucchini and they are on their last leg. The tomatoes and peppers are still producing good and hopefully will make it through to the fall.

[Man]

Another thing i done learned is an 8ft row of purple hull initially produced exactly 1 meals worth of peas.

[Ryan.3507.]

This heat has been brutal on everything


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[SaltwaterSlick]

We planted top pick pink eye (purple hull peas)... Our first year trying that variety. They did really well. We planted 6 40 foot rows, then about 4 weeks later, planted 4 more 40 foot rows... The second planting has done much better, but I think that is because I had a drip tape system installed by then. The first planting was hand watered, and when they were small plants, we got a flooding rain so we lost a lot of plants due to that and the rest were stunted. All in all, we've gotten probably 4-5 bushels of peas off them all. They sure are easier to pick than conventional varieties like the Mississippi purple hull peas and such. The peas are produced on a tall stem that sticks up above the main plant making the pea pods much more visible and higher off the ground. Our first planting is blooming and producing still. The second planting is REALLY getting after it still... We fertilized using a balanced water soluble fertilizer injected right into the root area of the plants via the buried drip tape below the plants... I put down the drip tape, then planted on top of it. That will be our standard planting for in-ground crops from now on!

As I posted above, I disc'd up the corn. Beforehand, I had to take up the drip tape... Most of it was on top of the ground so it was no big deal, however the last 4 rows was a second planting and the drip tape was buried and corn planted on top of it... I wasn't sure I was going to be able to get it up without destroying it... I turned on the water system and let the drip tape wet the area really well, then shut off the water and when the drip tape deflated as the water drained from it, I took off the plugged end pieces and was able to pull it horizontally about 10-12 feet at a time and got it up without issue. I was pleasantly surprised how easily it came up.

[SaltwaterSlick]

..double post

[SaltwaterSlick]

Couple pics of the top picks, second planting after they got going good with blooms before we picked the first time... When we picked them the first time, we got over 2 bushels of peas off 2 1/2 rows! They're ready to pick again too (for at least the 3rd or 4th time... They are showing no signs of slowing down so I keep pouring the water and fertilizer to 'em...







5 more pints of sliced peppers on Saturday too... mixed this time, jalapeno, banana, beaver dam, pablano, and a few pimentos... Don't know how they're gonna taste, but they sure are pretty!

[Geezy Rider]

Only my cantaloupe are producing and there’s only one left to ripen. One watermelon got about the size of a softball and then got a big yellow spot on it. Doesn’t seem to be getting any bigger.

[Muskles]

That pink eye may be what we got, instead of pinky. Sure does look like a healthier version of ours. I misunderstood mom, or she misspoke, when we planted the peas. She said they liked hot and dry, so I didn't water them much. She meant they could tolerate it better, but I'm not sure that's very accurate either. Hopefully I'll get my drip system this weekend and get it installed. May look into the drip tape next year, if this works out.

[ctom87]

Got some beans planted and staked. Not sure if the two tomato cages on top of each other with butcher twine will work but we will see.

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[eradicator]

Originally Posted by ctom87

Got some beans planted and staked. Not sure if the two tomato cages on top of each other with butcher twine will work but we will see.

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You better get some shade......it's about to get hot

[waterdog]

hey guys, what some thing e z to grow in the fall? thanks

[ctom87]

Originally Posted by waterdog

hey guys, what some thing e z to grow in the fall? thanks

Couldn't tell you what is easy but I started going off this site this month. Just plug in your zone and month and it tells you what to get in the dirt now and what to prep for next month.

https://www.gardenate.com/?month=7

[BLACKFINTURKEY]

Finally starting to get some fall stuff going just put in 60 plus tomato plants this evening.

[SaltwaterSlick]

Chris, you put plants in the ground or starting in trays? I've been thinking about starting some. I have one of my plots tilled and plan to add some mushroom compost and cover it until first of September, then get some beans n peas, n other stuff going in it... May try maters since mine this Spring didn't do squat and I need some canned for cooking...

[MooseontheLoose]

My plants really seem to be responding well to the shade cloth I put up a few weeks ago. Cukes are still rolling, my pepper plants under the cloth have almost tripled in size, and I picked my first tomatoes of the summer this week. Okra is outside the cloth and doing what okra does.

Putting up a couple pints of okra per week. I’m about pickled out, so I tried something new and made some sweet relish with my last group of cukes.

[ctom87]

Originally Posted by eradicator

You better get some shade......it's about to get hot

Yeah I took "full sun" quite literally lol.

[eradicator]

Originally Posted by ctom87

Yeah I took "full sun" quite literally lol.

I don't think folks understand how hot Texas is......

[Man]

My purple hulls just turned back on outta know where and are filling back up this week. Thanks for the advise guys...was close to yanking and replanting.

[ctom87]

Don't call it a comeback.

Reminder, this is my 2nd year of attempting any sort of gardening. Year 1 was Okra and basil, and it was fun. This year I am hooked, but I still have a ton of room left for growth.

Planted 3 tomato plants. One never really produced much. Another produced a bunch of cherry tomatoes, which were eaten by birds, and the 3rd was a purple cherokee that completely changed my views on tomatoes. I used to hate them and only liked them on hamburgers. Not anymore. I only got 2 purple cherokees due to a possum eating them before I could get to them, but they were amazing!

It started to die though right after I discovered my watermelons weren't watermelons. That story cracks everyone up BTW. Well I started down the rabbit hole of what makes tomato plants die and discovered that they don't need much water and also they are very susceptible to disease if water gets on the leaves. So, it was not dying, I was killing it! I stopped watering the entire plant (daily) and pulled the other two, but left the purple cherokee.

Lo and behold, it is coming back to life. The pic shows you the blight line and where it is starting new growth. Not sure if it will produce, but neat just to have in the garden.

Speaking of my newfound joy for tomatoes, Charlie posted pictures of some containers with lids that promote a humid environment. I bought some off Amazon and got some potting soil from Calloways. I did 2 sets of 3 seeds of each variety of tomato I have in those containers and when I saw a bit of a plateau in growth moved them to red solo cups. They started taking off again and I am hoping to get them in the ground in 2 weeks. Maybe I can get some tomatoes for the fall.

Last - got kale and multiple varieties of lettuce in the ground as well as Swiss chard, cauliflower and broccoli in those containers. Hoping to plant when it is cooler.

Anyway, I have talked enough here. Happy gardening folks!

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[ctom87]

While we are at it. Anyone know of why my bell peppers off one plant won't get any bigger than a marble?

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[Blood Trail]

Originally Posted by ctom87

While we are at it. Anyone know of why my bell peppers off one plant won't get any bigger than a marble?

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Prolly the same reason my jalapeños get no bigger than strawberries.

When you find out, let me know.


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[eradicator]

It's the oppressive heat right now. They should get bigger in the fall crop as the weather cools

[Man]

Cane home to find 5 of my tomato plants were eatin all up overnight. Found the the little sumbich and am making him pay dearly.

[eradicator]

Originally Posted by Man

Cane home to find 5 of my tomato plants were eatin all up overnight. Found the the little sumbich and am making him pay dearly.

He owes you a couple of filets at the very least

[ctom87]

Originally Posted by Blood Trail

Prolly the same reason my jalapeños get no bigger than strawberries.

When you find out, let me know.


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Found this out... can't say I am watering as much or deep as they recommend.

Water Requirements for Peppers
To prevent flowers from dropping and the growth of small peppers, it’s critical to give them enough water when they’re flowering and setting fruit; they need about 1 inch of water a week. Once they’re established, soak the roots at least 4 feet down with a soaker or drip hose; sprinklers drench the leaves which is an invitation to fungal diseases. If you have sandy soil that drains quickly, water your peppers more often. Give them more water if they’re blown by hot winds that dry them out.

Let the soil dry slightly between watering so the roots can get the oxygen they need. Constantly wet, soggy soil can stress pepper plants as much as not giving them enough water, and either can result in your pepper plant stem turning brown and possibly dying.

Finally, if you cut too deeply when you’re weeding around pepper stems, you can cut their roots and cause water stress, leading to small peppers.

[Muskles]

Everything is trying to kill our veggies. Vine borers about got the squash, gophers/moles are pulling my okra under, aphids and squash bugs are getting the peas. What is getting my cucumber and squash plants? The leaves feel real thick and textured like felt. They get sticky and have a lot of eggs on them. I thought it was aphids, but I'm not sure.