Philadelphia area gardening thread

[gorbelly]

Originally Posted by PA Wolf

Anyone harvesting in PA? I've had a few super sweet 100s and some strawberries. Peppers soon and would've had edamame too until something ate it...ALL of it, plant and all. Happy gardening.

I've been harvesting my Korean green peppers for weeks. Tons and tons of them. The plants are totally loaded with them. I just harvested my first Hungarian Black pepper, but I think I'll let them develop more and get some red on them. I've heard they get a much deeper flavor that way.

I've been harvesting herbs and greens all along, of course.

As for tomatoes and eggplants, I planted out late this year, so all I've harvested are some Red Robins (microdwarf). Everything else is happy and has set fruit, but it'll be a while yet for me.

[Fiishergurl]

Gorbelly - I googled the Korean green peppers. They look and sound delicious!

Thanks for the advice on pruning. I already did prune some this morning (but not all). I only pruned the stems way down low or more towards the inside of the plant that were mostly shaded anyways. Heres a picture of some after pruning.



Thanks to everyone for the advice and help... :-)

Ginny

[gorbelly]

I think pruning off the lower foliage is a good idea, though. Those leaves don't get a lot of sun, and diseases usually start on those older leaves. I just don't know whether pruning to a single stem is going to work for you or against you.

[Jonnyhat]

i harvested well over 75lbs of squash and zucchini today from my other garden, most thicker and longer than my forearm. I am exausted

[Fiishergurl]

Originally Posted by Jonnyhat

i harvested well over 75lbs of squash and zucchini today from my other garden, most thicker and longer than my forearm. I am exausted

Thats a good kind of exhausted.. :-) Awesome harvest!

Ginny

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[Fiishergurl]

What are these?

Ginny

[PhilaGardener]

Lightning bugs! Did you see them blinking in your garden last night? Don't know if you have them in FL.

[gorbelly]

That is the charming Photinus pyralis. As PhilaGardener say, we call them "lightning bugs" around here, but they're the "common eastern firefly". They make the little lights you see blinking in the air at dusk. As kids, we used to go out at dusk and collect a bunch in a jar to keep by the bed for a night, then we would release them the next day. They fly slowly and are easy to catch by just scooping your hand underneath them, but they release a slightly unpleasant soapy odor when you do catch them.

They are neutral/beneficial insects. There's some uncertainly about what the adults eat, but it's thought to be mostly nectar and pollen and sometimes, in the case of some females in the genus, other fireflies. The larvae eat the larvae of snails and slugs, which is an activity every gardener can get behind!

[Fiishergurl]

Oh cool!! Yes we have them in Florida and I see them here every night but I never saw them in the daylight. I just love them!

Thank you! !

Ginny

[Fiishergurl]

I got my first ripening tomato. I picked it early because of the rain that was coming through.



And so far my plants are setting about half the blossoms which I would freak out about at home but considering the lack of sunshine, I will take it. One plant (Costoluto Genovese) has about 25 little tomatoes on it and more coming. Its setting about 5 to 6 tomatoes so far on trusses of about 12 blossoms.




Some hearts on a Wes plant... :-)


Thank you to everyone for all the help!

I think you are all too busy harvesting loads of yummy veggies to share any pictures... :-)

Ginny

[PA Wolf]

Red bell pepper is doing great! A couple baby watermelons have appeared also. My super sweet 100 has lived up to its name producing a tone of cherries so far (ripening now). The other tomatoes are struggling, thought I had anthracnose, but now think it's BER:-( A bunch of tomatoes set but most are infected, I think it's under control now.

[PA Wolf]

Puttin some peppers out

[Fiishergurl]

That watermelon baby is the cutest! I have never geown watermelon. Thats a ton of peppers on there. Cool!!!

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[Jonnyhat]

am am growing watermelon for the first time this year; do you self pollinate like squash?

[PA Wolf]

Originally Posted by Jonnyhat

am am growing watermelon for the first time this year; do you self pollinate like squash?

This is my first time gardening and was going off advice from my local nursery, which was "this watermelon plant will thrive under the right conditions, let it spread out and it will produce." I haven't done anything to it other than help it climb a 2x6 to keep the fruit off the ground (just a sugar baby). What type are you growing?