Here we are not quite 3 months into this. Around April 23 I planted the first things in the new beds. Here is a before picture taken:
And after, about 10 weeks later:
Soon to be eating artichokes:
Carrots:
Bell Peppers (and jalapenos) are almost ready to salsa:
We’ve been eating the beets and harvested the last of the first round of arrugula from the brussel sprout bed in the background. The mustard has bolted and needs to go onto hamburgers this weekend and there is another round of arrugula started in that bed already.
The cucumbers are getting larger and the first of the fall squashes are showing up daily – butternut, acorn, jack-o-lantern and sugar pie:
I have this romantic image of all the neighbor kids coming to my yard to pick out their jack-o-lanterns this year. Maybe we can give red wagon rides and drink Rockridge apple cider.
Now, for my dirty little secrets. I saw something on the zuchini plants today that stopped me in my tracks. The plants are amazingly healthy, full of young fruit but there was this one that I’m hoping is a fluke:
In my heart of hearts I think it’s blossom end rot. It could be I don’t have enough lime in that bed, or it could just be that one fruit didn’t get pollinated. I’ll know soon enough if more of the fruit yellow at the end and rot away. If you have any insight I’m all ears. Of corn that is – seriously, my corn is over 6 feet tall! What happened to knee high by fourth of July?
And here is another skeleton:
Every year after the first big push of peas is over the plants suddenly wither and die. True, the backyard is clay and not well amended. I let it dry out and generally ignore it until the plants look like this. Any insight here? Suddenly the plants are overrun with black aphids but that could be because they are in such ill health. From what I hear the secret to keeping pests under control is really great soil health. I’m still working on that, especially in the back.
This one takes the cake:
Cabbage aphids suddenly. They are on my cardoons, kale and deep inside the brussel sprouts and cauliflower. I’m not sure what to do about them. You can’t really pick them off when they are so deep inside a plant. I know BT is somewhat controversial and I’ve never used it. It seems that most organic gardeners like the Modern Victory Garden do actually say it’s ok to use BT but not BT enhanced seeds.
I’d love any ideas, suggestions, or musings. I’ve not a clue what to do on this one…
9 responses so far ↓
1 kitsapFG // Jul 10, 2009 at 12:36 am
First, let me start off by saying that your garden is enchanting. You have done a great job of creating an efficient and pleasing to look at set up. I am particularly enamored of the diamond bed in the larger rectangular bed.
Zucchini – It would appear this fruit just did not get pollinated.
Peas – When warm weather arrives so do the aphids and they carry disease – specifically pea enation which is the primary reason most pea plants wither and/or fail after the first spring crop is in. There are enation resistent varieties and planting very early to get the crop in before high summer is another strategy.
Cabbage aphids – Bt is not the right product to use for aphids. Bt is for leaf eating worms. Aphids can be attended to by using an insecticidal soap or by waiting for your lady bug population to catch up to the new abundant food supply.
Garden looks great – keep up the good work!
2 Rebecca // Jul 10, 2009 at 2:02 am
Wow, your garden is looking really great. I’m so impressed by everything you’re growing.
I have always had the same problem with peas, even with the enation resistant varieties, so no help there. However, I have had some good luck with spraying the aphids off of plants with a strong jet of water.
With the zucchini, if you keep on having the rot problems, try taking the old flower off the little fruit right after the little fruit starts to grow. That has helped me with squash in the past – gives it more air, I think. Hopefully it was just a bad pollination, though.
3 admin // Jul 13, 2009 at 1:11 am
Kitsap FG, thanks for everything! There are a series of diamonds – my attempt to make it look a little more interesting in the dead of winter since we are the only little house now without it’s perfect front lawn. It looks great now but we’ll see how it looks in the winter. It will taste good if nothing else!
Rebecca, thanks for your kind words. I took the peas out over the weekend and am feeling better. It scares me to move them out front next year where I have so much other important things growing. I’m hoping those aphids won’t jump to other things. In the back they’ve jumped to the cardoons and I found some in the front on the zuchini already – which I’ve never seen before. I’ve sprayed them with water before but on squash it knocks the flowers off and I’ve literally watched them climb back up onto the plant after spraying. I guess I’ll stick with the soap since the lady bugs don’t seem to be keeping them under control yet again and the praying mantis either haven’t hatched or are hiding out somewhere.
4 Mary // Jul 13, 2009 at 10:15 am
If I don’t get my peas in by February, they go south with the first heat wave. I didn’t get them in this year until April. So.. not good. I picked for two weeks and then, they started not doing well.
I use insecticidal soap (or even dish soap) in a sprayer for aphids.
I’ve also used BT before, but have also used diatemaceous earth.
You probably know this, but make sure to rotate your crops in your beds each year. The bugs and disease have an easier time finding the plants if they are in the same spot.
5 Justine // Jul 13, 2009 at 8:16 pm
Hi, I enjoy reading your blog, everything looks great and what a successful gardening year!
I can’t tell how bad your aphid infestation is, but don’t forget you can just scrape them off by hand, or spray them off with water – or pick off the really infested leaves and dispose of them. It won’t eliminate but will helps keep them under control and the natural predators can do the rest. Also, I add crushed egg shells to areas I plan to plant squash and tomatoes, I can’t say if it really helps yet, but I’m hoping it will add calcium slowly to the soil to help with blossom end rot. I’ve had little bouts of it in the past but never enough to spoil the whole crop… (knocking on wood).
Happy Gardening! ~Justine
6 admin // Jul 14, 2009 at 12:32 am
Hi Mary, I am planning to move the peas to the front yard next year to rotate – hopefully the aphids won’t follow! And maybe I’ll try to put them in earlier. I usually take until April to get organized but I have a feeling this year I’ll already be itching to get some things out f the house.
Hi Justine, I had been squishing them by hand and thought I had done ok and then let it go for a week. By the time I looked at the plants they were already dying. Those little guys work fast! I’ve been saving a big tub of egg shells for the garden as well. I know liming will also provide calcium but I read that it really takes a year for it to work. I found more zuchini like that the other day but we are still getting lots of new healthy ones so hopefully it was a lack of pollen. My fridge drawer is filling up with them!!!
Are you the one who had the Tilth fundraiser in your garden? If so I still need to come over and visit!!!
7 brittney // Dec 3, 2009 at 5:22 pm
Just want to say, my jaw literally dropped open when I saw your before and after photos of your garden! Beautiful!!
We’re in the process on suppressing our grass in the front yard and turning it into more gardening space. I’ll be poking around your blog for inspiration.
8 admin // Dec 3, 2009 at 6:22 pm
Brittney – I can’t wait for your garden to start! How exciting that you know it’s already out there converting mulch and nutrients in preparation for feeding you next spring and summer and fall.
9 Diana@Spain in Iowa // Mar 30, 2010 at 4:47 pm
Annette, You garden is BEAUTIFUL!!! I so wish I had all of my plots in one place!! In due time
Love your setup!!
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