2017 Container Garden-Tijuana, Baja California Norte, México

[Deborah]

I knew it!

[Jimbotomateo]

Originally Posted by Gerardo

I'll get on it Carolyn, when I get back. Down in Baja California Sur.

You were spot on Deb, at this beach called El Requeson.

Jimbo: this is more or less the same desert, just as mystical as back in your day.

G, it's so hard to explain the beauty of the desert to those who haven't spent a lot of time in it . When we drove thru all that sand and cactus on our way down from Denver in 75 we were so disappointed and kept saying hey, this it be ok. . Of course leaving the wonderland of Colorado had our feelings a little skewed.. We spent 14 months in Arizona and made so many friends and really learned to love th desert! Being 22 years old was a big plus though!. We loved to cruise the desert on our Honda three fifty four. Mexico , tombstone, Tucson, Bisbee. It was all good. Party?. One night we counted 16 couples in our little apartment and they were all good friends! . Our Irish setter Buffy thought she was human and would party with us. All our friends said they wanted her. She was very calm and lived to be 15. Jimbo

[nancyruhl]

As usual, Gerardo, I am doing research after reading your thread. The area looks amazing. Is this a road trip for you?
Last fall we went to Baja for the first time. Yes, we stayed in the very touristy Los Cabos area, which was much nicer than I was expecting. The highlight, though, was the few days we rented a car and explored. Loved the La Paz area. Would have liked to spent longer there. Certainly different beauty for us mid-Westerners.

Hope your gutters are behaving while you are gone.

[Gerardo]

Gutters behaved great.

Thrips really pummeled my garden yet again. Witnessed massive
blooming on my citrus trees and in hopes of promoting pollinators,
I held back from sterilizing the flowers. While on vacation, flowers
dropped on the citrus trees, so the thrips hopped onto my peppers
and tomatoes. At least ½ of the initial plant-out has been
pulled—I expect most others to start showing virus symptoms shortly.

With my sincere apologies to pollinators, Kobra Kai rules are in effect.

Diazinone at 4x the max recommended dose was sprayed copiously
on all green living things on the property (with emphasis on flowers)
and tomorrow I ask my neighbor for access to a few of his hedge
trees. Diatomaceous Earth was also part of this initial batch of poison.
The flushing poison will be deltamethrin, and the death blows will
be delivered via Diazinone and Chlorpyrifos. I’ll be experimenting
with sugar to see if it encourages them to Footloose their way to
death’s door.

Just ordered a variety of Marigolds from Harris, my hope is to use
them as sentinels-death traps.

Many exotic, much anticipated, last-chance seeds, and other
special plants went down in this most recent attack.

Kind of a bummer.

“Defeat does not exist in this dojo, does it? No Sensei.”

PS. Tomorrow I'm heading all the way to Ensenada for Cal Nitrate and specific poisons (endosulphan, d-phenothrin). Die Die Die!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[heirloomtomaguy]

Bummer Gerardo. I hate thrips with a passion only people with tswv can appreciate. I too was a bit late in dusting and spraying my garden but so far i have yet to see any signs of tswv. Hang in there buddy im symbolically feeling your pain.

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by heirloomtomaguy

Bummer Gerardo. I hate thrips with a passion only people with tswv can appreciate. I too was a bit late in dusting and spraying my garden but so far i have yet to see any signs of tswv. Hang in there buddy im symbolically feeling your pain.

I hope they stay down here so I can kill them all, that way they steer clear of you guys up there. Yeah, TSWV sure puts hair on your chest. I was popping open some citrus blooms and each had 10+ thrips on it, between both trees there were 5,000+ blooms, so the math is a bit mind boggling.

Putting on the protective gear for another evening poison session.

[heirloomtomaguy]

I hear you with the citrus blossoms. We have a original orange grove tree in our yard and the neighbor has a lemon tree hanging in my yard. After the rain this year the orange tree in my yard was so white with blossoms it looked like it was covered in snow. I dust the tree with DE whenever I hit the garden with it.

[nancyruhl]

Aw. Go get em, tiger. That is a struggle us folks up here don't have to wage. All those cold winter days do have there upside. I'll try to remember that next time I have to shovel snow. Good luck with your salavaging battle.

Any trip report to share?

[ginger2778]

Oh Crap! Gerardo, I hate reading this, and I can empathize. I have had minor issues with thrips, but I was getting more problems from the suck bugs. Oddly, expensively, but happily, lightning struck and killed my bishofia tree in the back yard. $2200.00 later, tree gone, stump ground, and not a single engytatus modestus this year, plus lots more full sun area to plant things in. Yipee!
The local Rare Fruit Council had their annual sale this past weekend, I got a Cacao for under the mango tree, thanks for the suggestion, plus a Nam Doc Mai- (Siatung cultivar)Mango, and a pomegranate.
Your comment about hair on your chest cracked me up. And I can understand! I know that resolve well.

I have to look up some of those poisons you mentioned, I confess I haven't heard of them. When your whole crop is threatened, it's amazing how quickly organic methods can go town the flusher. People who live with frost and cold don't really get just how many insects live in paradise.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorpyrifos

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Gerardo

I hope they stay down here so I can kill them all, that way they steer clear of you guys up there. Yeah, TSWV sure puts hair on your chest. I was popping open some citrus blooms and each had 10+ thrips on it, between both trees there were 5,000+ blooms, so the math is a bit mind boggling.

Putting on the protective gear for another evening poison session.

Not good at all but I just read that San Diego is the craft beer capital of the WORLD, so that should cheer you up at least a little bit.

Carolyn

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by heirloomtomaguy

I hear you with the citrus blossoms. We have a original orange grove tree in our yard and the neighbor has a lemon tree hanging in my yard. After the rain this year the orange tree in my yard was so white with blossoms it looked like it was covered in snow. I dust the tree with DE whenever I hit the garden with it.

I have a lemon and orange side by side. Orange blooms in waves, lemon in constant hiccups, so there's flowers opening up offering up new real estate.

Originally Posted by nancyruhl

Aw. Go get em, tiger. That is a struggle us folks up here don't have to wage. All those cold winter days do have there upside. I'll try to remember that next time I have to shovel snow. Good luck with your salavaging battle.

Any trip report to share?

I miss snow, hearing my footsteps and the crisp nights.

Originally Posted by ginger2778

Oh Crap! Gerardo, I hate reading this, and I can empathize. I have had minor issues with thrips, but I was getting more problems from the suck bugs. Oddly, expensively, but happily, lightning struck and killed my bishofia tree in the back yard. $2200.00 later, tree gone, stump ground, and not a single engytatus modestus this year, plus lots more full sun area to plant things in. Yipee!
The local Rare Fruit Council had their annual sale this past weekend, I got a Cacao for under the mango tree, thanks for the suggestion, plus a Nam Doc Mai- (Siatung cultivar)Mango, and a pomegranate.
Your comment about hair on your chest cracked me up. And I can understand! I know that resolve well.

I have to look up some of those poisons you mentioned, I confess I haven't heard of them. When your whole crop is threatened, it's amazing how quickly organic methods can go town the flusher. People who live with frost and cold don't really get just how many insects live in paradise.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorpyrifos

The white stuff holding the beans together becomes the bottom picture: Suco de cacau. I'm envious.

cacau.png

suco de cacau.jpg

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Not good at all but I just read that San Diego is the craft beer capital of the WORLD, so that should cheer you up at least a little bit.

Carolyn

For years it was difficult to get good beer south of the border. The craft has spilled over and Tijuana is the tip of the spear for the microbrew movement in MX, borders are cool that way, with things drifting in both directions. Lots of good flavors on both sides, when on foot or Uber I partake.

[Gerardo]

Thrips embrace the highland way, their hit run hide has been tough to counter. Diligence will pay off.

War Horse Gribovsky doesn't seem to mind the scorched earth battle.

Looks about the same on the other side.
gribovs 4.28.2017.jpg

gribovs3 4.28.2017.jpg

gribovs2 4.28.2017.jpg

Decent fruit set here and there

decent fruit set.jpg

decent fruit set2.jpg

decent fruit set3.jpg

decent fruit set4jpg.jpg


Topped a bunch of pepper plants, my hope is they'll bush out and get over these latest insults.

[Deborah]

I'm lost. What is the pod thing, the white goo and the drink?

[Deborah]

What are. Sheesh.

[Gerardo]

@ D: CHOCOLATE!