Trying to be successful, any help appreciated; Sub-Irrigated Planter, ET, &raised bed

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by Dork Fish

None of the squash, zuch, or cucumbers are doing good Not sure what to do.

If Florida is anything like AZ, which I think the planting seasons are, you might be a bit late on the squashes and cukes. Also, discover long beans for summer. And, southern peas, okra, will love the summer.
Try some Armenian cucumbers. They love the heat. Mine are just getting started.
You can probably find a planting calender for your county put out by the Extension Agency, online. I try to stick to that, as our subtropical temperatures make normal gardening calendars obsolete.
Also, I think there is a Florida group on T-Ville that can help, with they're own thread.
Good luck!

[Dork Fish]

Oh, sorry. I am in Illinois. I will do a little more research on them Foote my area. Thank you

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[Crandrew]

is that some red bark in the planter box as mulch?

[Dork Fish]

Yes, it is rubber.

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[Dork Fish]

Okay, I am starting to worry about a couple of my tomatoes. My Black Krim looks like the leaves are starting to curl. The brandywine in with it looks fine. So, I decided to take a picture of each one so the trained eyes can take a look. The Big Zac is really droopy.

Just a heads up: There was an error with my email address for the shipment of the: Brandywine, Carmello, Black Cherry and Big Zac. I didn't get notification that they were shipped. So when I got home at 6:30pm they had been sitting in the sun in the box. They didn't look good when I took them out of the box.

Black krim (2 pics)




Here is the Paul Robeson in the same container


Carmello


Black Cherry (2 pics)






Pink Brandywine



Big Zac

[Rockporter]

How hot does that rubber get in the sun? I remember us using some in the neighbors flower beds and it was weird stuff and seemed to get hot in the sun. If this is the case you may need to replace it with regular mulch.

[Dork Fish]

hmmm, i don't know. What kind of mulch

[Rockporter]

Originally Posted by Dork Fish

hmmm, i don't know. What kind of mulch

I would use regular wood chips if the rubber is getting hot. Test it out tomorrow at the hottest part of the day and see how hot the mulch is.

Another thing is the roots need to establish themselves to really drink alot so if those are young seedlings they may still be struggling to get the drink they need. Give them a shot of water in the morning and again in the evening if that is what they need.

[amideutch]

Welcome to Tville. Looks like you have been doing your homework. Not familiar with the SIP and if you could, give us a link where we can get information about it. Everything you did so far including the plant out DIP, ferts and your disease/insect control program are looking Good.

One concern is your "Rubber Mulch". For me the only place I would use Rubber Mulch is where I DO NOT want anything to grow. Organic mulch not only helps the soil retain moisture but also is there to break down and feed the microbes in the soil. Here is a link concerning rubber mulch.

http://www.natureswayresources.com/D...ubberMulch.pdf

I would replace the rubber mulch with organic mulch. As the new mulch breaks down it will increase the fertility of the soil in your beds and make a better environment for worms and other good guys that reside there.

As far as the leaf curl on the Black Krim I would not get overly concerned as it is probably stress related and should out grow it. I can't help with the moisture meter readings as I do not know what the readings are based on as to percentage of moisture the numbers represent. Otherwise your setup is looking pretty good. Ami

[Dork Fish]

Thank you! I have done a lot of research. I can't find a link to the specific SIP that I built. It was in my Family handyman magazine. You can google Sub irrigated planter. They work a lot like the Earthtainer.

Well then, I will remove all of the rubber mulch today. I will run the Home Depot to see if they have any organic mulch.

Well that is good to know about the black krim. You know, I haven't started fertilizing yet with the seaweed emulsion. When shoud I start? After they start to flower?

Thank you to everyone who has posted!

UPDATE: I changed out the rubber mulch for a hardwood mulch today!

[amideutch]

You know, I haven't started fertilizing yet with the seaweed emulsion. When shoud I start? After they start to flower?

You can apply it as a foliar or as a drench. Seaweed has algenic acid, hormones, emzymes and other elements that your regular ferts don't have. Go ahead and apply it as a drench now at half strength and wait a week and see what happens. Ami

[RayR]

That rubber mulch is downright nasty stuff

[JamesL]

Ami,
I went looking for the planter the minute Andrea mentioned it. Apparently it is in their April magazine issue and will be on the web, but not for another month at least.
I did find some photos of a build on this website.
http://larksperennials.com/forum/gre...-self-watering


Andrea,
You wrote that you swapped out the rubber mulch for hardwood. Huge step up from the rubber, however - Hardwood isn't supposed to be good for tomatoes. Someone brighter than I will need to explain though.

[amideutch]

James, thanks for the link.

The problem with hardwood mulch James was referring to is if it is made out of Black Walnut it can cause problems with tomatoes. Otherwise you may need to supplement the nitrogen in the soil as the microbes use nitrogen to break down the mulch which will later become available to the soil. It can acidify the soil but if you have added lime to the soil it shoudn't be a player as tomatoes like soil on the acid side anyway. Ami

[Dork Fish]

Originally Posted by JamesL

Ami,
I went looking for the planter the minute Andrea mentioned it. Apparently it is in their April magazine issue and will be on the web, but not for another month at least.
I did find some photos of a build on this website.
http://larksperennials.com/forum/gre...-self-watering


Andrea,
You wrote that you swapped out the rubber mulch for hardwood. Huge step up from the rubber, however - Hardwood isn't supposed to be good for tomatoes. Someone brighter than I will need to explain though.

Wow you are a good researcher...that is also my link. LOL

Oh wow, i can't seem to get this right.

Originally Posted by amideutch

James, thanks for the link.

The problem with hardwood mulch James was referring to is if it is made out of Black Walnut it can cause problems with tomatoes. Otherwise you may need to supplement the nitrogen in the soil as the microbes use nitrogen to break down the mulch which will later become available to the soil. It can acidify the soil but if you have added lime to the soil it shoudn't be a player as tomatoes like soil on the acid side anyway. Ami

hmmm, well not sure if it makes a difference but I have plastic under all of the mulch except the small bed next to the SIP. The only tomato that I have in that bed is the Big Zac. I am almost positive that I put lime in the bed also.

Going forward...which mulch (big box stores) do you recommend?