November 18, 2009: Where Oh Where?

Where have my lettuce seedlings gone? They were there yesterday! Although they were growing very slowly, the germination was close to 100%. Today three of the four varieties are almost completely gone. I got down on my hands and knees (no easy feat for this old lady's body) and examined the plot, looking for signs of damping off, but I found nothing. Nothing. No limp little seedlings anywhere, just empty spaces. I haven't seen any birds in the garden bed, although we do have a few hanging around in the nearby trees. I don't know if lizards eat greens or not.

This one variety (look very closely, they are teeny-tiny) will certainly give me enough transplants to fill in the rest of the garden...that is if they don't disappear too! There is a bare spot or two, even in this wide row planting, that wasn't there yesterday.



Although the radishes are growing as expected, the lettuce is very, very slow. I think it might be wise to start some seeds inside, for transplanting at a later date.

18 comments:

  1. Disappearing lettuce? Now that IS odd.
    I don't think lizards eat greens...but birds, maybe?
    I'd start transplants inside after this. Good luck!

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  2. Sue, I have the six packs and the vermiculite out as we speak, but darn...I wanted my toilet paper garden to grow and flourish, not sprout and disappear!

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  3. I've got your answer: seedling eating UFOs came in the middle of the night and needed a snack. The only sufficient source of nutrition on this planet comes from seedlings of the lettuce that you planted. lol Seriously, I have no clue what that means. Did you find them shriveled up or anything?

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  4. Kalena Michele, nope...no nuthin'. No footprints, no holes, no shriveled vegetation. Just bare ground where yesterday there were seedlings. I think you're right....UFOs!

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  5. How close are you to Roswell? No crop circles? Well in my garden it would be slugs, but I think in Arizona aliens would be more probable.

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  6. Have you seen a brindled Great Dane, about 130 lbs and 6 ft 5 standing on his hind legs around your neck of the woods?

    I'm just saying....I know a chupacabra/dog with an afinity for lettuce seedlings.

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  7. Daphne, not close to Roswell, but we did come really close to Area 51 on our way down, and even traveled a few yards on the Alien Highway before turning south and driving by Nellis AFB. Maybe we picked up a hitch hiker! Hmmmm...were those crop circles in the alley? I thought the neighbors had been burning weed piles again.

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  8. Oh, Ribbit..Gibson wouldn't do that to me, he knows how much I love and defend him! However, it's possible El Chupacabras sneaked across the border, searching for tender young lettuce sprouts.

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  9. Oh, I hope you don't lose anymore. Maybe there is a "Lettuce Bandit" on the loose ;0)

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  10. Noelle, it's a mystery to me! Not to worry though, I just planted some backup seeds. I'm really determined to have an AZ salad garden!

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  11. Ok, I'll admit it. I took them! Sorry, Gran, but I had some extra space in one of my hoop houses to fill.

    My guess is birds...or maybe ants?

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  12. Lizards most certainly can eat small tender plants. Some species are exclusively vegetarian! We used to have a little pet lizard and we fed him lettuce and greens. He LOVED them.

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  13. Thomas, you little thief! You bring them back right now...Gran said!

    No ants near the garden, birds yes. But the Red Sails was relatively unscathed...whatever it was attacked the red and green Romaines and the Buttercrunch. The radishes are OK (so far). Last year I put the radishes in pots, and just before they got large enough to pull the rabbits ate them.

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    Georgia_Peachy, lizards were my first thought. We seem to have more baby ones out there than usual right now. I was successful in growing lettuce there last year, but I didn't direct sow the seed, I started them in pots and then transplanted. Same with the spinach, beets and carrots....I hope whatever it is doesn't eat those too!

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  14. Hi Annie's Granny,

    What a delightful website you have. Sorry about the lettuce, but strange things happen: I planted an entire row of limas last year and not a one came up. Who knows what goes on beneath that soil. ;)

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  15. Best thing I've read in awhile: "I wanted my toilet paper garden to grow" - LOLOL. I still have to get my Charmin from the store. Sigh.

    And my vote is lizards... although I think our FL lizards only eat bugs. I'm sure you have some vegetation-eating AZ lizards.

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  16. Di, thank you for the compliment! Yes, strange things do happen in gardening, but it seems more so here in the desert of AZ than in my native NW soil! I have seen a worm and a bee this winter, although it was the wrong kind of worm. Hmmmm, maybe it was he who ate my greens before I squished him!

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    Kate, it would probably be much more profitable to grow toilet paper instead of lettuce!

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  17. Oh, I do love a mystery.
    Where did the lettuce seedlings go?
    Calling Art Bell or George Noory for unexplained phenomonen.
    This is my first visit here so "hi there."

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  18. Terra, welcome to my blog!

    I have no idea where they went, but the spinach seedlings joined them last night :-(

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