2024 gardens

[roony]

Question for Dotch the bug man: Have you ever released lady bugs or other beneficial insects in your garden to reduce the number of aphids and other foes.

[KEN W]

Yes Blossom End Rot. Lack of Calcium. Plant decides to get rid of the thing it doesn't need to survive. That's the fruit. Same thing happens to peppers. Usually more often to plants in pots. I have peppers in pots and i have been getting it on them.

You need to put mulch around them. I use straw around them in the garden and grass clippings in pots. Inconsistent watering.

[roony]

My Luscious pear tree is really overloaded

[mike89]

pears are awesome!!! 

[LPS]

Are they like a pear that we are used to from grocery stores?

[roony]

Smaller, sweeter and better.

[glenn57]

so wadda gonna do with all them???????

[mike89]

so wadda gonna do with all them???????

he can send me some!!!   

[roony]

They aren't quite ready to pick. With pears you pick them before they are dead ripe and you let them ripen inside. I will try to find homes for all I can.
I found a couple that were close and I munched on them while I was mowing. Very tasty.

[glenn57]

we are about done with our box of peaches.......but pears will be here shortly!!!!!!

[HD]

I lost a branch on one of our 🍐 trees cause it was overloaded. I should have taken some off to reduce the weight 😕

[tangle tooth]

      Onions did terrible this year. I don't know if it was too much moisture or too little something but the crop was terrible. Planted about 500, we got maybe 100 good, mostly small onions. Most were mushy and smelled bad.
      Seemed like the white onions fared slightly better than the purple ones. We seldom watered them things, just the rain.
      Any ideas what went wrong?

[Gunner55]

We stopped at a veggie stand in GR for some early sweet corn last year & asked the guy about the Blossom End Rot. He was pretty busy, so he didn't really have time to talk but he did say he'd try watering them more, if it was his. So, we did & it did seem to help.

[roony]

I lost a branch on one of our 🍐 trees cause it was overloaded. I should have taken some off to reduce the weight 😕

Yes, I should have removed over half of the pears. This morning I'm going to support some of the branches with boards.

[glenn57]

now.........my onions were the best i've had in 5 years!!!!!!! i did buy the sets from a different place????? normally mine are like yours TT small.........

[HD]

This was my first time trying to grow onions 🧅.

I'm thinking they aren't very big for the effort?

[glenn57]

Look fine to me.

[glenn57]

Hey Leech,  just thought of something for your mater issue. It may have been mentioned but your ground may be lacking calcium.

The last 3  years I buy a bottle of  generic antacid pills. I put 2 in the hole, cover with dirt then plant maters. It really seemed to help me.

[glenn57]

Picked green beans this morning.  There laying o on top of an 8 cu ft freezer. And the size of some of the carrots. 

[tangle tooth]

      Look good to me, HD. Hopefully we'll have better luck next year.

[Leech~~]

Hey Leech,  just thought of something for your mater issue. It may have been mentioned but your ground may be lacking calcium.

The last 3  years I buy a bottle of  generic antacid pills. I put 2 in the hole, cover with dirt then plant maters. It really seemed to help me.

Lol, done deal.  Exactly what I read and did.  Only one plant out of 5 is having the issue but I gave them all a little tab! 

[HD]

I found these in the pantry, can I just stuff these in the dirt? 

[roony]

From what I have read it is not a lack of calcium in the soil that is the problem but it is the uneven watering that affects the plant's ability to utilize it. This is where mulch acts as kind of a dampener to even out the extremes.

[glenn57]

I found these in the pantry, can I just stuff these in the dirt? 

i see no reason why not HD!!!!!

never read that part Roony int he things i've read..........not saying your wrong though!!!!!!

[Dotch]

roony is never wrong. At least that's what he tries to make the warden think!  He is correct about blossom end rot. Especially when soils dry out, taking up calcium becomes a problem for shallower rooted plants including tomatoes. It's bound on the clay particles too tightly for the roots to be able to absorb enough.

https://extension.umn.edu/news/blossom-end-rot-tomatoes-and-other-vegetable-crops

https://extension.umn.edu/plant-diseases/tomato-disorders#how-to-control-blossom-end-rot-3103312

[glenn57]

So... did it ever get dry enough this year for leech to have that issue??

[Dotch]

I'd say the answer is yes. I've even had a few blossom end rot tomatoes here. Keep in mind my garden is on a south facing slope so even though it has been wet, it's more prone to drying out quickly once the rains stop. Parts of it too are prone to sidehill seepage when we get extreme wetness so mulching can be a double edge sword. Too frequently here it also provides habitat for lovely pests such as slugs and earwigs. That said, I may start experimenting next year with wool for mulch where it may fit. It's cheaper than straw, contains no pesticides, it's biodegradable, and I have lots of it. 

[mike89]

so what do you do with all the wool?? 

[glenn57]

so what do you do with all the wool??

sells it and makes millions!!!!!!!!! them tankers of boodles aint cheap ya know!!!!!!!

[mike89]

so what do you do with all the wool??

sells it and makes millions!!!!!!!!! them tankers of boodles aint cheap ya know!!!!!!!

no wonder I can't afford a wool sweater!!!