Gardeners: how's it looking?

[Kron3007]

Lettuce and kale doing well.  Peppers still indoors for next 3 weeks. problem:  one variety of tomato has leaves that are quite yellow. Everything else in same potting soil w same fert is fine.  On advice bought Epsom salts and painted some leaves with dilute mixture and watered one with same mixture.  No change

Advice welcome.

Which leaves are yellow old or new growth)?  Is it the whole leaf or just between the veins? 

Could also be pH.  Do you know your water?

The seedlings are in potting soil in 4-inch pots and the yellowing was working its way up. Veins were still green but the remainder of the leaves was yellow. Each leaf would then die.   Oddly this affected only 1 variety of seedlings; the others were fine.  I gave them a full strength shot of fert late yesterday and they seem somewhat better.

I've never tested the ph; that's a great idea, and Mamselle's comment on stray metals is interesting. (Everything is in potting soil and still indoors for the next 3 weeks, so no garden soil).

This type of yellowing in the lower leaves could be magnesium deficiency.  This can be caused from a lack of magnesium (which is why you were advised to give epsom salts), but can also result from other things such as over watering or even over fertilizing (especially with high K fertilizers).     

[spork]

Neighbors up the street had their brick front stairs and stoop demolished. The core was a bunch of fairly large rocks, which they gave to me, and I'm building a low free standing border wall along one side of my front yard. Also I've moved a bunch of ostrich ferns into a circle around a wild apple tree. Have not gotten around to putting in a daylily yet.

I've moved the two potted Thai chili plants that I kept alive all winter outdoors to the back porch. Some of the old, large leaves are wilting and turning brown but there is new leaf growth. I think this is because nighttime temperatures are dropping below 50 F.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Neighbors up the street had their brick front stairs and stoop demolished. The core was a bunch of fairly large rocks, which they gave to me, and I'm building a low free standing border wall along one side of my front yard. Also I've moved a bunch of ostrich ferns into a circle around a wild apple tree. Have not gotten around to putting in a daylily yet.

I've moved the two potted Thai chili plants that I kept alive all winter outdoors to the back porch. Some of the old, large leaves are wilting and turning brown but there is new leaf growth. I think this is because nighttime temperatures are dropping below 50 F.

Free stuff is wonderful and reusing it also keeps it out of a landfill.

I've overwintered chilies before and they tend to do well inside.

[Harlow2]

Lettuce and kale doing well.  Peppers still indoors for next 3 weeks. problem:  one variety of tomato has leaves that are quite yellow. Everything else in same potting soil w same fert is fine.  On advice bought Epsom salts and painted some leaves with dilute mixture and watered one with same mixture.  No change

Advice welcome.

Which leaves are yellow old or new growth)?  Is it the whole leaf or just between the veins? 

Could also be pH.  Do you know your water?

The seedlings are in potting soil in 4-inch pots and the yellowing was working its way up. Veins were still green but the remainder of the leaves was yellow. Each leaf would then die.   Oddly this affected only 1 variety of seedlings; the others were fine.  I gave them a full strength shot of fert late yesterday and they seem somewhat better.

I've never tested the ph; that's a great idea, and Mamselle's comment on stray metals is interesting. (Everything is in potting soil and still indoors for the next 3 weeks, so no garden soil).

This type of yellowing in the lower leaves could be magnesium deficiency.  This can be caused from a lack of magnesium (which is why you were advised to give epsom salts), but can also result from other things such as over watering or even over fertilizing (especially with high K fertilizers).     

It's now looking much better!  Fertilized and added a small amount of extra magnesium.  All plants now have lush dark green foliage and, weather gods willing, can begin the hardening off process in a few days,

[AmLitHist]

It's been a busy couple of weeks here!  Between alternating days of cold/rain and windy days in the 80s, we've managed to nearly all of our projects done since Easter.  We're both recovering from the aches and pains (and I think we spent as much time sitting and taking breaks some days, as we did actually working--being 60+ and creaky in the joints is a bitch for getting work done!), things look good.

In the garden:  I replaced my tomatoes that froze in the late snow, planted okra, cucumber, watermelon, and cantaloupe seeds; sowed kale, and planted a row of beans and another of peas (both to be followed up with weekly/biweekly plantings). I also set out six butter crunch lettuces.  All these join my colored bell peppers, leaf lettuce, carrots, beets, onions, and snow peas.

In the herb bed:  I added a German thyme and a chocolate mint, as well as sowing basil seed and planting some leftover onion sets.  All those join my chives, sage, parsley, rosemary, Mexican tarragon, and catnip plants. I left room to put garlic in later in the year.

In the flower beds around the house, I cleaned up and added a few fill-in perennials.  And Saturday, ALHS helped me dig up and divide my 4 old clumps of daylillies--they now cover about 15 feet, three feet deep! I also filled my big whiskey barrel planters (pink double impatiens ringed by white/bronze begonias) and two hanging baskets (purple sweet potato vine ringed by white splash foliage).

ALHS has a couple more bags of mulch to put down (waiting for things to dry out a bit between rains) in the flower beds around the house; he also put down edging, fabric, and mulch all around the new garden beds.

Now I just need to add some flower seeds and a few plants to my pollinator garden, and the real work will be all done (save watering, picking, and making trellises for the melons, cukes, and tomatoes).  From what I hear, I might have to take a mortgage to afford the wood frames for the trellises! I also want to add one more garden bed to make a screen from the nosy neighbors, but that will take only a couple of hours to build, fill, and plant.

I'm very happy and excited to be back gardening after a couple of years off.  (Also very sore!)

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

ALH:

You have been busy!

I love chocolate mint! We have German thyme and lemon thyme (smells wonderful).

I hear you on the being sore part. I went to the garden today and my body hurts.

[spork]

Neighbors up the street had their brick front stairs and stoop demolished. The core was a bunch of fairly large rocks, which they gave to me, and I'm building a low free standing border wall along one side of my front yard. Also I've moved a bunch of ostrich ferns into a circle around a wild apple tree. Have not gotten around to putting in a daylily yet.

I've moved the two potted Thai chili plants that I kept alive all winter outdoors to the back porch. Some of the old, large leaves are wilting and turning brown but there is new leaf growth. I think this is because nighttime temperatures are dropping below 50 F.

Free stuff is wonderful and reusing it also keeps it out of a landfill.

I've overwintered chilies before and they tend to do well inside.

The same neighbors who gave me the free rocks also gave me three lavender plants because they are turning part of their backyard into a patio. The plants are scraggly and I've temporarily stuck them in the ground in a shady rather than sunny area; don't know if they'll survive.

[spork]

I decided to create an edge around my vegetable gardens in the backyard using cobblestones. A visit to a local landscaping company revealed that it sells cobblestones for 40% less than Home Depot does. Waiting to hear back from a second landscaping company about prices before I pull the trigger on a delivery.

[Parasaurolophus]

My empress tree seeds don't appear to have germinnated (or, they did and died of mould?). So I've started again. I also planted the small front garden a few days ago, just with sunflowers and catnip.

The landlords have finished their back garden reno, so I can plant some stuff now. Maybe tomorrow. A late start again this year, but it should be OK!

[Parasaurolophus]

I dumped the failed empress tree seedlings in te front garden, and it looks like one made it! It's inside and safe from the deer now, and we'll see what happens. The front garden has three sunflowers sprouting, too, but I suspect the deer will get them.

I finally planted in the back garden this morning. Potatoes, chives, kale, sunflowers, and even a few corn seeds. We'll see what comes up! It's late, but it was late last year, too.

[Parasaurolophus]

I think my empress tree sprout has withered to death.

[AmLitHist]

It's amazing what a couple of inches of rain, a couple of sunny days in the 70s/80s (much warmer than the dreary weeks of 60s we've had recently), and a couple of good feedings (a general spray with MiracleGro and a good dose of epsom salts and bat guano) can do for a garden. 

[Harlow2]

Flower seedlings planted and tomatoes and peppers need one more day of hardening off before they too will be in their final containers.  So dry here. 90* yesterday; very different from our cold wet May last year.

[Puget]

Everything is in the ground and growing well so far. It is getting hot here too, and I can practically see the zucchinis growing (and am wondering what I was thinking planting four instead of three this year).

I'm trying to set up more automated watering so I can have it come in really early in the morning when it will evaporate less and plants supposedly take it in better-- shopping around for programmable faucet timers.  I also just bought more soaker hoses and a cheap drip irrigation system for the raised beds so we'll see how that works when it arrives.

[mamselle]

Zucchini bread for everyone on the Fora!

Yea!!!

M.