A couple of weeks ago I mentioned my zucchini seemed to be infected with some type of fungus, as did those of my neighbor. All of the plants came from a single package of seed, so I'm wondering if the seed itself could have carried the infection.
The infected plant.
Fungicides don't stop it.I tried several applications of cornmeal tea, and my neighbor tried a commercial fungicide. Neither product alleviated the problem, so yesterday I cut off the really infected leaves, and today I applied double strength fish emulsion to my plant. My neighbor did the same to hers, only with regular strength. It's do or die. I have harvested two nice little zucchinis from the plant, so all is not lost. In the meantime, I planted another hill of zucchini from a different supplier.
The first "Small Sugar N. E. Pie" pumpkin is growing like a weed! The following photos were taken a week apart.
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There won't be photos of my "garden dinners" until we finish eating all of our leftovers. Nachos and leftover corn aren't that pretty ;-)
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Geez! That pumpkin is growing fast. When do they start to turn orange? When did you start your pumpkins? My pumpkin plants still have baby leaves on them. lol Congrats on the 100lb. milestone. I can't believe it, then again, I can because you're AG. Who else? lol Had a good 4th?
ReplyDeleteKalena Michele, Mr. H is fascinated with that pumpkin! You can almost see it grow in front of your eyes. It's supposed to be a SMALL pumpkin! I planted three seeds directly in the hill on April 19th., thinned to the strongest two. I counted 7 pumpkins the other day.
ReplyDeleteWe had a really nice 4th. The family always comes to our house for food and drink, then we watch (from our driveway) fireworks that are shot from a barge on a nearby river.
Wow that small sugar is proving it can be big! Squash plants are amazing plants anyways, but that week differential comparison shot is very dramatic!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on reaching the 100 pound milestone. I am betting you zoom by many more milestones before the summer season is completed.
I sure hope you find something that works because it would be a shame to lost the plant as big as it is.
ReplyDeleteKitsapFG, I followed your advise with the double strength fish fertilizer today, unfortunately neither neighbor nor I had Epsom salts. Keep your fingers crossed for the zucchini!
ReplyDeleteSugar Pie pumpkins are supposed to be small, about 6 lb. I put a scale under mine the other day, and it already pegged my 5-pound scale.
Ack! There's a mouse in the garden! teehee. That's a lot of growth for only a week! ...hope my melons do that when they get big...
ReplyDeleteCheryl, it sure would, as it was the only one of three seeds that survived. I still think the disease was in the seeds. All the other varieties of squash in the same patch are just fine.
ReplyDeleteMomma_S, Ya...I should have planted some CATtails!
ReplyDeleteYou were right about that pumpkin! Fantastic, and I hope your new zucchini does well and matures before you run south.
ReplyDeleteBut you did get crook neck squash!!
Wow! Congrats on the 100 lb mark. That is just amazing. We always plant tomatoes and a few cukes, but this year we got a little more serious with it. We will plant fall and winter crops as well.
ReplyDeleteRibbit, yes I got three crooknecks and two zucchinis so far! And there are quite a few butternut squashes developing now. The three new zucchini plants popped up today, so hopefully they will mature in time to give me a crop. I think they take about 60 days, which means around September 1, and we don't get our first frost until mid-late October.
ReplyDeleteMissyM, the only thing "bad" about already harvesting 100 pounds, is that it's too much for us to eat! I'm sure I've given at least 50 pounds of that away. I guess that's really not "bad"....somebody else gets to enjoy the fruits of my labors. I only have 2 cucumbers that are nearing pickable size, and no ripe tomatoes yet, but both will increase the harvest poundage considerably when they get into full production. Next year I'm going to be more conservative with my plantings. This year was an experiment in just how much I could grow in the space available.
ReplyDeleteWow, and all I've managed is two cukes and one tiny tomato that split when it rained the other day...but I do have more tomatoes ripening, and a couple more cukes almost ready. Doubt very much I'll hit 100 pounds any time soon!
ReplyDeleteWow, that small sugar sure isn't very small at all. I wonder just how big that baby will get!
ReplyDeleteWait until the potato harvest-that amount will REALLY jump. Great harvest so far. It's nice to give some to neighbors too, isn't it? I hope to have enough strawberries, etc., next year to freeze AND give away.
ReplyDeleteWOW! 100 lbs?! I would be so grateful! (not that you're not) How wonderful! I still envy your carrots. I still cant get more than 3 to grow at one time.
ReplyDeleteThat pumpkin! AMAZING! I had a female bloom that I thought was a pumpkin but I dont think it was fertilized because I can't find it now. I remember seeing the knot at the bottom "deflate" but now I cant find it. But I do have another one!
Sorry about your zucchini. I know that has to be frustrating but your garden has been such a success! Congrats!
Jen
I'm a first time gardner here...I was debating whether to plant my zucchini now or not, then I read your blog. I will go ahead and plant and hope for the best.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
Anonymous, why not give it a try? What do you have to lose...three seeds? I planted a yellow crookneck on July 26th last year, and it had just begun to develop tiny squash when frost killed it mid-October. I don't expect to get much of a harvest from the zucchini, but it will have a full month more to grow than the crookneck did.
ReplyDeleteSB, I haven't had a cucumber OR a tomato yet! But I have a couple of cherry tomatoes showing color today. When those ripen, I don't think they'll make it as far as the kitchen ;-)
ReplyDeleteAmy, all the other pumpkins seem to be growing normally. I think that one is on steroids!
Sue, wait until the tomatoes from nearly 30 plants ripen! That should really increase the poundage. Heck, the way that pumpkin is growing.....LOL!
JenGC, I just planted four squares of carrots yesterday, and it looks like they are germinating just fine. It's still too early to tell, but I'm seeing some green. I glued the seeds to cheap napkins and mixed up soil half and half with vermiculite to cover the carrots. Tamped it down gently with the rake, misted lightly with water and covered it with a board for a few days until I saw the first green shoots.
ReplyDeleteJust looked over your post yesterday, Alicyn is adorable!
ReplyDeleteI too planted 4 nasturtiums per square and ended up pulling some out last week and planting them elsewhere. I agree, 1 per square is plenty.
I got some NE sweet pumpkin seeds yesterday, maybe I'll have time to plant them before the girls wake up from their nap. I know it's super late getting them started, but I'm cool with harvesting in October. :P
MommyAmy, thank you, I think she's pretty adorable, too! And a very good (but hyper!) baby. She's never still a moment, unless she's asleep.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the pumpkins. All of mine, except Mr. Humongous, are growing at a normal rate.
Wow, 100lbs, congratulations. I am hoping to go over 100lbs this year but that probably will not be until the late season potatoes are harvested.
ReplyDeleteDan, since I've passed 100, I think I should aim for 200...what do you think? LOL
ReplyDeletemy cucumber plant is infected! the leaves look like yours but much more brown and crunchy. i cut off all the infected leaves...i was thinking of buying a fungicide...i really don't know what to do. what does fish emulsion do for it? i have a bottle - how much is double strength? how much is regular strength???
ReplyDeleteplease help me!
*paces nervously back and forth, waiting for granny's reply*
Kelli, first of all is it getting too much water? That can cause it to look that way, too. If not, the fish emulsion is just a quick acting, non-burning fertilizer that might just give it what it needs. It's worth a try! Read the directions...mine says 2 tbsp. per gallon of water, so I used 4 Tbsp. per gallon. I drenched the plant, pouring some right on the leaves and the rest around the base. KitsapFG says to add 1 tbsp. Epsom salts to the gallon of fish fertilizer, but I didn't have any.
ReplyDeleteBTW, it stinks to high heaven!
I hurried as fast as I could for ya, honey!
thanks granny! that was fast! was it ok that i cut off all the crispy leaves? i just posted more garden woes with pics. i don't water them too often but i noticed the soil never really dries out. it's really shaded, ao i guess i should water less.
ReplyDeletei will try the fish emulsion and epsom salt tomorrow. i have fish emulsion but no directions so i normally just add a capful to my watering can. i have heard to use epsom salt for a yellowing plant before. it's definitely worth a try!
thanks for your help. i knew you were the gal to go to! =)
Kelli, I've cut my leaves off before with no problems, but I suspect it could leave them open to insect infestations, since they are hollow tubes. When they look that bad, I want them GONE!
ReplyDeletethat's how i felt. then i got all itchy and scared that i infected myself with the fungus so i rubbed hydrogen peroxide all over.
ReplyDeleteoh, what a very interesting day today was!
LOL, Kelli. I don't think plant fungi are transferable to people. Although with my white hair I kinda look like I have powdery mildew ;-)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the NE pumpkin is taking over the north west ;>. I can't believe how big it is. They have never grown that big for me. For me the borers get them right around the time they set so it is always a race between pumpkin and the nasty borers. I almost always lose.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your 100lbs.
Daphne, you should see it now! I have five or six regular sized ones and the one big guy. It's turning orange...I'll go take a picture and include it in my next blog
ReplyDelete