Hey Fellow Floridians - Year 2

[DocBrock]

This is my first year in Florida. I'm going to have to round up some supplies this weekend and try all of these great ideas. There was a product I saw at the hardware store that contained BT, but I'm going to have to double check that it doesn't contain any other harmful chemicals. I'll probably go ahead and order gnatrol online. Also, there's a hydroponics store in town that supplies pro-mix. All I saw on the shop floor was the hp, which I see is more expensive, but I'm sure he can get me the BX. Is BX the best choice, or would HP work better if money isn't an option?

[Barb_FL]

Originally Posted by DocBrock

This is my first year in Florida. I'm going to have to round up some supplies this weekend and try all of these great ideas. There was a product I saw at the hardware store that contained BT, but I'm going to have to double check that it doesn't contain any other harmful chemicals. I'll probably go ahead and order gnatrol online. Also, there's a hydroponics store in town that supplies pro-mix. All I saw on the shop floor was the hp, which I see is more expensive, but I'm sure he can get me the BX. Is BX the best choice, or would HP work better if money isn't an option?

Welcome to Florida and Florida gardening.

I would just use one product at a time and go with Marsha's recommendation for the aphids.

For pro-mix, I buy it from the local hydro store and buy whatever type they have. I haven't seen any difference between the HP / BX. They usually stock the newest variety. You want it in the 3.8CU compressed bale. It's 41.99 at our store + 7% tax, but may be cheaper where you live. In S. Fl it is much cheaper.

Like Marsha said, Lambert's is decent too; there is never any junk in it. I add more perlite. Sometimes you can find the 1.5 CU at Walmart.

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by ginger2778

I buy Gnatrol granules and put just a pinch mixed into my potting mix. It's BT colony forming units so you don't need much because they multiply to form a colony once wet. BT kills the fungus gnat larvae, mosquitos too. Perfectly natural.I get it on eBay or Amazon, 8 oz lasts a whole season.

You are so right, Marsha. I completely forgot about BT. It works great. I usually get at Home Depot or Lewis BT Mosquito dunks at about $10 for six.

[DocBrock]

All I could find were the mosquito dunks locally so I held off. I'm going to order gnatrol. It's been 2 days since I sprayed the plants with soap and neem and it looks as though the aphids are gone. Problem is some of my leaves have burned spots on them, a few new leaves fell off, and the bell pepper dropped some blossoms and buds.

On a side note, how long does it take for a seedling(tomato or pepper) to start growing after transplant? I've got a few tomatoes in 20gal storage tubs that don't seem to be growing but appear healthy. I planted them about 10 days ago. Same with a few mini bells I have in buckets. They just seem to be stagnant. I did buy a cherokee carbon plant last weekend at lowes and it's already dead. Like withered and dead overnight. I've cared for it and planted it the same as the others so I'm going to return it and get one from somewhere else.

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by DocBrock

All I could find were the mosquito dunks locally so I held off. I'm going to order gnatrol. It's been 2 days since I sprayed the plants with soap and neem and it looks as though the aphids are gone. Problem is some of my leaves have burned spots on them, a few new leaves fell off, and the bell pepper dropped some blossoms and buds.

On a side note, how long does it take for a seedling(tomato or pepper) to start growing after transplant? I've got a few tomatoes in 20gal storage tubs that don't seem to be growing but appear healthy. I planted them about 10 days ago. Same with a few mini bells I have in buckets. They just seem to be stagnant. I did buy a cherokee carbon plant last weekend at lowes and it's already dead. Like withered and dead overnight. I've cared for it and planted it the same as the others so I'm going to return it and get one from somewhere else.

That is how I learned about aphids. My seedlings few years ago germinated just fine. They looked ok but were not growing or changing for about 2 weeks. I discarded them and started a new seedlings. I did not know about aphid gnats then.
Now I know not to do that. As Marsha mentioned BT will kill the gnats. And your tomatoes will start growing. Gnats do not kill your plants, they eat roots and that prevents them from growing. Use BT.

[DocBrock]

I went to one more store this afternoon and they had a product made by the same company as mosquito dunks, but it's granules. I think it's called mosquito bits. The active ingredient is BT Israel. The label says kills fungus gnats in potted plants. I bought it and sprinkled it all over the surface of my containers, stirred up the soil to bury the granules a little bit and then added one more layer. The instructions say to cover soil with granules and water as usual, so I have my containers out on the driveway for a bit to soak up some of this unusual rain we are having. I spilled a few granules on the driveway and when they got wet they started to dissolve into an opaque liquid and smell like some sort of cereal grain. I hope this product is similar to gnatrol or I may have just made a big ole boo boo! Only time will tell. That makes absolute sense as to why my plants aren't growing. There's gnats climbing around all over the surface of the soil in every container. Yesterday I had to pull my best watermelon seedling because it fell over. When I examined it, the stem looked like someone took a rasp to it. Hopefully this will help with whatever did that as well.

[DocBrock]

Yikes! Went to pull them out of the rain and this bug I've never seen is crawling out of the soil. Any idea what it is?

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by DocBrock

All I could find were the mosquito dunks locally so I held off. I'm going to order gnatrol. It's been 2 days since I sprayed the plants with soap and neem and it looks as though the aphids are gone. Problem is some of my leaves have burned spots on them, a few new leaves fell off, and the bell pepper dropped some blossoms and buds.

On a side note, how long does it take for a seedling(tomato or pepper) to start growing after transplant? I've got a few tomatoes in 20gal storage tubs that don't seem to be growing but appear healthy. I planted them about 10 days ago. Same with a few mini bells I have in buckets. They just seem to be stagnant. I did buy a cherokee carbon plant last weekend at lowes and it's already dead. Like withered and dead overnight. I've cared for it and planted it the same as the others so I'm going to return it and get one from somewhere else.

What are they potted in, what fertilizers and amendments did you add and how much?
I don't use neem at all, it just causes leaf burn and you should never spray the blossoms. Also never spray in the heat of the day, only early am and late afternoon, this will prevent leaf burn.

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by efisakov

You are so right, Marsha. I completely forgot about BT. It works great. I usually get at Home Depot or Lewis BT Mosquito dunks at about $10 for six.

Ella these are cheaper. BTW- they last for years and years because the BT is in a dormant form until wet, so buy the bulk, same stuff for cheaper. I use 1/3 of one in My Earthboxes to kill mosquito larvae.
https://www.idealtruevalue.com/store...EaAoRoEALw_wcB

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by DocBrock

I went to one more store this afternoon and they had a product made by the same company as mosquito dunks, but it's granules. I think it's called mosquito bits. The active ingredient is BT Israel. The label says kills fungus gnats in potted plants. I bought it and sprinkled it all over the surface of my containers, stirred up the soil to bury the granules a little bit and then added one more layer. The instructions say to cover soil with granules and water as usual, so I have my containers out on the driveway for a bit to soak up some of this unusual rain we are having. I spilled a few granules on the driveway and when they got wet they started to dissolve into an opaque liquid and smell like some sort of cereal grain. I hope this product is similar to gnatrol or I may have just made a big ole boo boo! Only time will tell. That makes absolute sense as to why my plants aren't growing. There's gnats climbing around all over the surface of the soil in every container. Yesterday I had to pull my best watermelon seedling because it fell over. When I examined it, the stem looked like someone took a rasp to it. Hopefully this will help with whatever did that as well.

Same stuff as Gnatrol, BT Israelensis. No boo boo. If you have fungus gnats they will have eaten the roots, of course they won't grow. The bits should work just fine.

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by DocBrock

Yikes! Went to pull them out of the rain and this bug I've never seen is crawling out of the soil. Any idea what it is?

This looks like those bugs that have florescent green spots at night. Harmless to tomatoes.

[DocBrock]

I should have taken a picture from far away. It was super tiny. After looking at pictures online I was worried it might be a thrip.

[DocBrock]

Originally Posted by ginger2778

What are they potted in, what fertilizers and amendments did you add and how much?
I don't use neem at all, it just causes leaf burn and you should never spray the blossoms. Also never spray in the heat of the day, only early am and late afternoon, this will prevent leaf burn.

All of my tomato and pepper plants are potted in 12-20gal plastic containers with 1/2" holes drilled in the bottom and large rectangular cutouts along the bottom rim like you would see on a nursery pot. I put window screen on the inside before adding soil to keep the dirt in. As far as soil it's that lime green natures care potting mix. I added espoma garden lime, Dr. Earth Home grown granular fertilizer, extra perlite, several tbsp's of Epsom salts, and then planted the seedlings. 2 weeks after planting I started watering weekly, alternating with Dr. Earth Home Grown liquid concentrate and fox farm big bloom on the older plants. I've also water once so far with general hydroponics calmag because a few small tomatoes had BER. My 2 BHN 602 plants that I started with in 5 gallon buckets were planted 3 weeks earlier than my other seedlings and peppers, using the same potting mix. They are 3' tall and full of around 20 developing tomatoes each. My seedlings have barely taken off. Maybe a few inches of stem. Weird thing is my golden jubilee has grown maybe 3" since planting and now has a marble sized tomato on it. Makes no sense that it's fruiting right now. I made sure I picked a plant that didn't have blossoms on it yet when I purchased it, so those developed after planting. The seedlings Im having problems with were planted about two weeks ago. It's gunna bite to get rid of the potting mix they're in if that's problem because I've probably gone through 20 bags at $10 a piece, but I will if it's gunna ruin the joy of having my first harvest.

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by ginger2778

Ella these are cheaper. BTW- they last for years and years because the BT is in a dormant form until wet, so buy the bulk, same stuff for cheaper. I use 1/3 of one in My Earthboxes to kill mosquito larvae.
https://www.idealtruevalue.com/store...EaAoRoEALw_wcB

Marsha, thanks. That is an awesome price.

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by DocBrock

I should have taken a picture from far away. It was super tiny. After looking at pictures online I was worried it might be a thrip.

It could definitely be a thrip, but they like keaves better than soil. Since its tiny it surely could be.