I think spring is finally here! Gardening!

[Winchester]

Karen, I just love your garden! I really like how it's laid-out. We always enlarge our garden just a bit every year. I told Rick that next year I think I'd like to start an asparagus patch. Our neighbors have asparagus, but they don't like it and never use it; the patch was there from the previous owners.

Krazy Kat 2, I've seen those toilets planted with flowers, but never with cucumbers!!

 

[MoochNNoodles]

We have what the neighbors, snooty horsey types, call a redneck garden. We have red potatoes, onions, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and a complete herb garden. Flowers for days, all over the porch and in the front yard.

Fluffy patrols the garden for "varmints" and pulls the moles right out of ground when they go by her.

I think what really bugs them is the old toilet that sits in the backyard, just as a joke we planted cucumbers in it, boy were we surprised when not only did they grew, but they were very tasty. I's not as if anyone had used it for many years, it had been there 30 years that I know of, probably longer.

I always get a good giggle when I see it, so dh promised he will always plant cukes in it. Ain't love grand.

I love it!!  

  That is just tooo funny!!  Tell them its up-cycling!  Going green!  That's all supposed to be trendy these days! 

I know my Grandma had a pair of my cousin's old work books (construction work, so steel toed) that she spray painted red and put flowers in for the front porch.  I dont think she would have gone for the toilet idea.  Some neighbors down the street are remodeling their bathrooms and set 3 sinks out by the road.  The formica kind with the counter attached.  I could see turning something like that into a fountain focal part of a flower bed.  Hmm...  

 

[AbbysMom]

We have what the neighbors, snooty horsey types, call a redneck garden. We have red potatoes, onions, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and a complete herb garden. Flowers for days, all over the porch and in the front yard.
Fluffy patrols the garden for "varmints" and pulls the moles right out of ground when they go by her.
I think what really bugs them is the old toilet that sits in the backyard, just as a joke we planted cucumbers in it, boy were we surprised when not only did they grew, but they were very tasty. I's not as if anyone had used it for many years, it had been there 30 years that I know of, probably longer.
I always get a good giggle when I see it, so dh promised he will always plant cukes in it. Ain't love grand.

That's pretty funny! :lol3:

Karen, I just love your garden! I really like how it's laid-out. We always enlarge our garden just a bit every year. I told Rick that next year I think I'd like to start an asparagus patch. Our neighbors have asparagus, but they don't like it and never use it; the patch was there from the previous owners.

Thanks. Our asparagus was from the previous owners also. The patch is over 25 years old and it getting tired. We've been getting less and less every year and last year something, maybe a mole?, dug through all the roots disturbing them. We've been talking about getting some new crowns.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Well, our bunnies have moved on.  But my bush beans are having problems.  The leaves are turning brown!  I see no spots but it does look like something has nibbled at even the new ones.  I'm not sure what to do.

One leaf on my summer squash has turned yellow too.  Not like splotches of yellow; but from one edge out.  It's in a different bed than the beans.  I need hands on instruction I think.  

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• MoochNNoodles
• May 28, 2013

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• MoochNNoodles
• May 28, 2013

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• MoochNNoodles
• May 28, 2013

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• MoochNNoodles
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[Winchester]

Hmmm, I have no idea. Have you googled any images of the leaves, just to see what you might find? I did that last year with the cukes; that's how I found out it was blight.

Not that it's any consolation, but my cucumber plants are not doing well.....again.

 This is different, almost like your leaves. I have no idea what's wrong, unless it's just that we planted....and then got a ton of rain. Zucchini plants don't look all that great either. It's frustrating. I went up last night and sprayed them again (had sprayed them just before it rained on Tuesday, so we had to spray them again).

However, we have strawberries! Only three, but Rick and I shared them. They're turning quickly now, so we'll have to go out and check them every night. We may have enough for shortcake this weekend!

 Bean plants are poking through the soil now and so is the corn. (But I'm really disappointed in the cukes.)

 

[MoochNNoodles]

A friend added me to a local gardening group on facebook for her area and they are looking at the same pics.  It appears it could be blight, a pest, over or under watering.  Apparently ALL of those can cause leaves to do this.  I guess after naps today I need to head to the garden center for a soaker hose and some kind of SOMETHING to put on them and the soil.  

My cukes are looking good but are still small; no vines yet.  I removed one stem from my summer squash the other day and so far they all look ok.  My carrots look fantastic.  The peas are doing ok but not as tall as I expected.  I think I will be modifying the trellis next near; the twine is a little far apart for them to reach.

 

[AbbysMom]

Did you find anything athe garden center? I took a walk out to the vegetable garden this morning. I hadn't been out there in a bit :anon: Everything is looking good except for the watermelon and some of the leaves on the basil are brown.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

I printed off 2 5x7 pictures and took them to Lowes today. The top 2 basically, except a closeup of the 2nd one.  One of the employees in the garden center went through this big book they have there with me and we didn't see anything like that.  He took my pictures over to the person who is their "plant expert" (something like that) while I kept looking though the book.  The plant expert said he thinks its both bug damage and heat stress.  I did pick up an organic fungicide to use just in case.  But also something to help with whatever bugs.  Since I haven't seen anything beyond ants its hard to say what.  But one girl who saw the pics said it looks like its something that eats a lot at once.  

One of the products said not to use when it's going to be over 85; so I have to wait a few days to apply it.  I'm hoping this takes care of it though.  My Grandpa was the one who told me to go look through that book at Lowes.  He said if these plants don't make it; rip them out and start again.  In pots even if I have to.  So I just might!  

I did pick up some potted herbs and lavender because the ones I planted from seeds either haven't sprouted or are just starting to after weeks and weeks.  So I get to plant those this weekend.  

 

[Winchester]

Well, if these plants don't come back, I'm not going to re-plant. I'll buy a bushel or two of cukes and make my pickles that way, I guess. Although I did think about growing cucumbers in large pots on the back deck! And the zucchini, too. But we'll see....we're going to Lowes today, so will check on another kind of fungicide.

The corn is really coming along and so are the beans. We have a whole row of baby lima bean plants. 

 Never did limas before, so it will be interesting. The green beans are doing well, too. We're going to have to start sprinkling the bean plants to keep the bugs away. Our local bugs seem to love our bean plants.

We're due for some t-storms tomorrow, so that will help.

Mooch, we have lavender in our back flower bed. It's just beautiful! And it smells wonderful. I love to run my hands through the leaves of the herbs...everything always smells so good. I made mint tea again this morning from the mint leaves out back. Yum! (If you plant mint, make sure it's well-contained or it will go all over the place. It's like a weed. I have mostly spearmint, which makes a great tea. My DIL had a lemon mint that was really pretty.)

 

[MoochNNoodles]

I'm putting all the herbs into pots until I have space for an herb garden!  My mom has mint that went wild in her front beds against the house!  She had to have planted it well over 10 years ago now.  She had lavender there for a few years too. It was right under my window so I could smell it if they were open.  It got quite large.  I loved it!  I love the smell of lemon balm!  I picked spearmint this time; but I was looking at the chocolate mint too.  It looks pretty.  My Gram always kept a nice herb garden and dried her own in the kitchen.  To me; that smells so homey.