This Is My First Garden

trigger 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
Apids are a problem for every gardener Helene

Aphids are the most common garden pest insect and they feed on both garden crops and ornamental plants. There are many different species of aphids that in essence "specialize" in feeding on different types of plants, everything from pine trees to your strawberries. The basic mug shot of an aphid shows a plump, pear-shaped body and two tubes, or cornicles, which project from their abdomens.

Aphids feed in colonies, part of the reason that they are so destructive. Generally, if you see one aphid, there are lots more to be found as well. Aphid colonies may be found on young leaves, new succulent shoots, and twigs or branches. An infestation by a feeding aphid colony often causes plant leaves to curl and dry out.
Ladybugs
Ladybugs are one of the insects we all have in our gardens today that are popular all over the world. In ancient times, ladybugs were one of the indicators of good fortune and a bountiful harvest.

How do I release my ladybugs?
One of the problems that many people have when they release ladybugs is that they don't stay put. We like them to stay around and eat the aphids at our house and not our neighbors. There are a couple of ways to insure that ladybugs stay in your yard or garden.

Releasing Lady Bugs:

Release them before sunrise or after dark - they navigate using the sun.
Cool them off in the fridge before releasing them, they are less active then.
Water the garden or area where you release them, they tend to "stick" a bit better and they will drink the moisture on the leaves.

Slugs and Snails are another problem Helene
As slugs wander about, doing their evil little slug deeds, they leave behind them a trail of slime which amounts to nothing less than a road sign for themselves and every other slug to follow to the grand feast.


Certain herbs (Rosemary, lemon balm, wormwood, mints, tansy, oak leaves, needles from conifers and seaweed will repel slugs. However using a mulch of these plants will only turn the slugs away, in search of other food sources.

Oat bran will kill slugs when they eat it... sprinkle some around

Cedar bark or gravel chips spread around your plant will irritate and dehydrate slugs.

The sharp edges of crushed eggshells around the plants will cut and kill slugs. The calcium in the eggshells is a good soil amendment anyway!

I also use wood ash around the plant base the ash contains silica which is like broken glass to the slugs

Beer traps work well fro me remember to top them off at night and empty them in the morning

trigger 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
What are beer traps?
You can purchase them at a garden center or make one like I do
Take a tuna fish can and bury it in the ground close to the edge of tour garden Bury it so the rim is level with the soil line. fill it with beer. the yeasty smell attracts them to the traps. The Slugs will enter the trap and drown

pointsevenout 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
Here is another recipe for insecticide/repellent

1 cup crushed tobacco leaves (cigar) in 1 gallon hot water for 1/2 hour. Strain.
Add a couple tablespoons of hot pepper powder and make a tea.
1 tbsp baking soda per gallon.
2 ounce garlic juice per gallon.
1 ounce mineral oil per gallon.
2 tbsp insecticidal soap per gallon.
1 cup rubbing alcohol per gallon.
Blend ingredients and use in a spray bottle.
Garlic juice can be bought over the ‘net in gallon containers. Also good as a mosquito repellent.

pointsevenout 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
Yes, I have tried the garlic spray. It seems to work, keeps the neighbors away too, :) but I have no definate proof. The garlicky smell only lasts for a couple of hours for us humans but a whole lot longer for those pests. Mix it up in a 25 gallon sprayer and spray it on the yard and in the trees. I forget how long the literature says it is supposed to last before reapplication. I usually apply it first, then mix up a load of herbicide for the roadside ditch and driveways.

I read up on those gas mosquito things too. The problem I see with those is that they have to attract mosquitoes before they kill them. Same principal as with the Japanese Beetles. They sell beetle traps in all the stores and the traps do work, but they attract beetles. If I were to use that product, I would set it up a couple, four, houses away from ours to attract the beetles away from us.

I settled on the garlic juice after studying all I could about controlling the mosquitoes.

pointsevenout 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
Make it fresh. It should be good for at least 2 months. Make a half batch if its just going to be too much. Reapply once a week or after a rain.

yogalover 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
It probably is too late for the eggplant, but maybe not for the pumpkin, depending on the length of your summer. Here in Missouri, I just put in some pumpkin myself and am sure it will be fine. Eggplants, though, run on a similar timeframe to tomatoes or peppers...if it's too late for those where you live, it may be too late for eggplants! Never hurts to try, though.

linebb956 2 months, 4 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
Thanks Point.. now for the Garlic.. I love the smell...
Don't waste your money on the gas mosquitoe thing... to many drawbacks...

linebb956 2 months, 3 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
How are all your gardens doing? I am looking forward to my fall one. Hopefully all our medical problems will be gone then so I will have time.

GG how is your first one coming?

linebb956 2 months, 3 weeks ago said:
RE: This is my first garden
We can grow just about anything in the fall... Lots of greens, Chard, cabbage.. beets tomatoes.. etc..I will be trying the pole beans again. We do get a cold snap around Christmas time.. lasts from 3-6 weeks.. and that is it. The rest of the time it is like summer up north.. or at least like it was in Michigan.. without the rain. Seems it never rains here anymore. Our citrus picking season starts in the fall... and they plant the 10-15 onions then, they are ready for harvest about the time the Winter Texans start home in the spring.... they take them by the 50 pound bags!

I am going to see if I can find some links in the next couple days from some of our local towns and what they grow.. Give me a day or two to see which town has the best... if I forget, which I am awful about... remind me! Right now they are harvesting the milo and getting ready for the cotton.. that is just about all that will grow here in this heat.. They are bringing truck of Okra across the border.. Have to make me some gumbo!

trigger 2 months, 2 weeks ago said:
Tomato- Leaf Spray Recipe: for defense against pest
Tomato- Leaf Spray
From Organic Magazine
The alkaloids found in tomato leaves are toxic to soft- bodied pest such as aphids. Bonus: This spray also will attract the beneficial Trichogramma wasp, which preys on corn earworm eggs.

Recipe:
1 to 2 cups tomato leaves
4 cups of water

Gather tomato leaves from the bottom of your plants so you won’t interfere with tomato production.
Mash or chop the leaves and add 2 cups of water.
Let steep overnight.
The following day, strain out the leaves and discard.
Dilute the liquid with 2 more cups of water.
Spray on affected leaves especially the underside of lower leaves were aphids congregate. To lure The Wasp spray the entire corn plant.

* Source from Organic Magazine