Eggplant
Image

Image

Strawberries
Image

Image

Tobacco
Image
[Reply]

I think I can smell those strawberries!
[Reply]

Yep, you can :-)

Oh, I forgot to post the link to a video I put together the other day showing the animated construction of my latest 5 Gallon Compost Tea Brewer.

http://gallery.me.com/tzaddi#100644/BrewerBuild

Give it time to load, no audio.

It's all about the microbes:-)

Wait until I get the digital camera attachment for the microscope then you are really going to say :-)
[Reply]

My 5 year-old and myself sat on the patio today and cataloged the birds we saw on the feeders and in the lagoon behind the house. I, of course, had 2 smokes and a few beer. Here's our list:

Blue Jay
Common Grackle
Tuffed Titmouse
Carolina Chickadee
Brown Thrasher
Mourning Dove
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
American Crow
Mississippi Kite
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Cardinal
Carolina Wren
Snowy Egret
House Finch
Great Blue Heron
Double-breasted Comorant
Mockingbird

She sat there with the bird catalog and was thoroughly amazed.

BTW, we've harvested all the peaches from the tree. The wife has baked 4 cobblers (a couple for the neighbors) and we have 9 gallon bags in the freezer. I must have eaten 3 dozen peaches in the past couple of weeks. Nature took her 30-40% share, too (squirrels, jays, worms, bugs).
[Reply]

Have any of you guys had trouble with bugs and zucchini? Something keeps eating mine. I have yet to find the culprit, but after the zuc's grow ~6" long, they start getting chewed up from the blossom end. I must have lost a dozen so far, only managed to pick one ripe fruit.
[Reply]

No problems here. Seven dust works good for me. :-)
[Reply]

Mark, interesting problem. There are only a few insect culprlts and your description doesn't add up. I would bet a real animal: rabbit, squirrel, or raccoon. My problems have been with the vine itself. Those damnedable squash vine borers ruin everything, even when I spray and look for problems. Much like squirrels to your bird feeders, they have all day to plan their destruction, while you have hundreds of others things to worry about. Here's what I found for you to read:

Zucchini can be plagued with several different pests and diseases so you must inspect your plants for any signs. Cucumber Beetle is green and yellow; either striped or spotted. They eat the leaves of the plant so look for half eaten leaves. Vine Borers will bore into the vine near the base of the plant and chew right through it. Cut worms will attack your plants early in the season and cut them off right at the base of the plant. Spider mites and aphids will show up on the undersides of the leaves and they will eat the leaves.

Good luck, brother. I've yet to see in my 40 years a squash or zucchini plant die of old age. Sad but true. Just planted a dozen more squash and the bugs are already testing me. Neither can grow in a greenhouse as they need pollenators. They're cheap at the grocery store this time of year. :-)
[Reply]

We have to pick our squash at 8-10 inches (about three days growth) or we just have too much squash. They can get really big and still tasty but who needs 100 lbs of squash a week. The first frost melts them to the ground.

Marks problem sounds like a furry critter is getting to them. Sure it's not blossom-end rot? You would see teeth marks from a critter.
[Reply]

i have been growing mint and romas for a little bit now. both have been doing great. One day i looked at the mint and it seemd a little spotted and now with in a few days it seems like its sick. leaves are browning and falling off. its almost has leopard spots on most of the plant. Any ideas any one. the romas are doing great.
[Reply]

Hi Ya, Rob! Long time, no see, Brother. You have anthracnose. It's a common disease with plants. Do a little research. I use Daconil to treat any and every fugus, rust, leaf spot, etc. Works good. Get it at Lowes or Home Depot. Not water soluble, so shake like hell before spraying.
[Reply]

I came across an interesting treatment/food for fungus earlier this summer. I mix 100 grams of dried/powdered Equisetum arvense added, horsetail, with 2 liters of water brought to a boil and simmered 30 minutes, then allowed to cool/rest for at least a few days in a large jar(s) with a loose fitting lid. It can be diluted using 1 part horsetail to 2 parts water and applied as a foliar or root soak .

Although I did not have anything greater than powdery mildew on some crimson sage, Salvia spathacea ground cover this year I have made it a regular staple of my fertilizers and compost additive.

IMHO Equisetum arvense is one of those rare plants many people (have) are familar with and has an interesting back story relating to it's survivability and perseverance.

Since I am not growing any commercial crops and my family doesn't currently depend on me to grow stuff I have the opportunity to explore soil biology.

As I have heard more than once. "You must have a lot of time on your hands." :-) For it it's like going back to school at 55 but being home schooled:-)

BTW I really enjoy popping in and reading how you all are doing with garden/family/life :-)
[Reply]

No kidding! Heading to Lowes now to buy some Daconil! :-) Much appreciated!
[Reply]

I always used to load my backpack sprayer with sevin and fungicide.
Mix the stuff 1/3 of what the bottle says.
It's WAY more than enough to do the job. :-)
I spray my plants right before a rain. Always have. I always do it in the late evening, too.
That's cause plants open their millions of little mouths at night to breathe.
It allows the fungicide to enter the plant and become systemic.
It works 10,000 times better that way.
Then the next day it rains, medicine is in their system, and all is well. :-)
[Reply]

Also, Rob...if the leaves are turning yellow and falling off, watch your watering. Herbs like dry feet, so if the ground is really wet or moist for too long, the mint tends to "drown".
[Reply]

Seeing all these great picture I thought I would post some new ones.

Image

This is one of my Cherry Bomb pepper plants. Lot's of peppers waiting to turn red.
Image

These are my habaneros that seem to be growing pretty nice!
Image
[Reply]

Purple pepper have been doing very well. Eaten quite a few so far.
Image

These eggplants are growing so slow. Hope I get to try one before winter sets in.
Image

Have quite a few of these different variety of bell peppers. I ate one today like an apple. :-)
Image
[Reply]

These are one of my three Italian Burner plants. These bad boys have been growing really fast and are fairly warm.
Image

One of my four jalepeno plants. I think next year I will plant a lot more of these! They grow just as fast as you can pick them and they are great to eat. I have been stuffing them with cream cheese, then wrapping them with bacon and putting them on the smoker for 1 1/2 hours! :-)
Image

This tomato plant has gotten out of hand. You can see where it grew upward and managed to pull the cage out of the ground.
Image
[Reply]

A different angle-
Image


These are my zuccini, cucumber and acorn squash plants.
Image
[Reply]

I tried to find a few good examples of the half eaten zucchini's I'm plagued with, but right now there don't seem to be any. I've got my fingers crossed. I don't think it's a furry critter problem, in the 5 yrs I've lived here (new development), I've never seen a single rabbit, squirrel, or other furry critter anywhere in the neighborhood.

Rotted zucchini. This is what's left of one of the zuc's that got eaten before fully ripe:
Image

Another:
Image

Cucumber Beetle. I've got a few of these guys on the plant, and seen 'em on my tomatoes too, but they don't seem to be causing any trouble:
Image

Stink bug. Found these guys in the plants too, but again, don't seem to be causing a problem:
Image

The whole zucchini plant. Should I prune these in any way, or just let 'em go nuts? It's my first year for these.
Image

More coming after I get the baby back to sleep.
[Reply]

That plant is huge!!!!!! Nice work! :-)
[Reply]