I'm throwing in the towel!

[Anthony_Toronto]

Started seeds a week earlier than normal this year, and still my seedlings were about 1/3 of the size of normal when I set them out. High phosphorous seedling starter fertilizer seemed to do absolutely nothing to promote root growth, and 8 week old seedling had almost no roots to speak of. Planted out a week earlier than last frost date because temperatures were favourable, but cool evenings seem to have delayed growth, espec in tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers.

Cucumber seedlings did virtually nothing for a month (grew from maybe 8 inches tall when planted to 10 inches a month later, despite application of fert), but then exploded with the hot weather in July. Still waaay behind. Eggplants did almost nothing, last year by this time I was pulling huge eggplants off several plants, this year only two plants have a pollenated fruit on them, biggest is smaller than a tennis ball...ugh.

Tomato plants finally started to grow, had a few early fruit settings, but then the heat and humidity hit, and have had nothing but blossom drop. Top half of almost all plants are fruit free but covered in aborted flowers. Hopefully the abundant foliage will provide plenty of photosynthesis for the few fruits that are on there, but also looks like a variety of foliar diseases are taking hold nice and early this year, so who knows if I will even have any leaves left a month from now. I don't think any tomatoes have even reached full size yet, so will be two weeks into august before anything starts to ripen, latest season ever. Hoping the good weather lasts through fall, otherwise wont have much of a crop.

Beans did nothing. Peas were meh. Broccoli flowered too early, when heads were very small. Fava beans were destroyed by aphids, or destroyed by soapy water sprayed on them to kill aphids. Lettuce went in early but I think heat got the best of it and most of it bolted before getting much of a head. Every napa cabbage bolted. Savoy cabbage looks great and tasted excellent, as do onions. Asparagus was great too. Just keeping fingers crossed that tomatoes taste better than theyre producing.

[beeman]

Originally Posted by TNTiger

I don't personally shoot them . . . but that's only because I haven't had a chance! My son however has taken out quite a few! I really didn't want to go this route but one morning I had 4 squirrels on my deck and they strolled by me when I walked out the door yelling at them. They were thumbing their noses and sticking out their tongues. The shooting gallery opened that evening.

My count was 8. I was quite pleased with myself until the next morning and I counted another 8 running around the garden.
Up to date 12 and still shooting.

[Got Worms?]

For me things started out with a hard freeze two weeks after planting out my tomatoes. This had never happened to me before. A heavy frost yes, but it went down to 25* and stayed there for 8 or 9 hours!

I replaced a lot of plants. Then the sun disappeared and the rains came. Then the weeds came. Then the thirps came. Then the woodchucks came and I was undaunted as I took care each and every one.

Then it was nice...for about a week ...as I noticed the foliar diseases starting up...great! What else could happen? Well, the rains came again ... and this time, I thought, they would never go away. I sat in the house drinking Coronas as the rain pounded the roof, typing Rain, Rain, Rain, Thunder Storms... Then the arthritis came. When the rains finally stopped the weeds came back...but the arthritis was still there!

I weeded, I cursed, I mulched with compost, I pruned, I sprayed, I hurt, I cursed some more. It got hotter each day while the garden demanded more each day. The rains knocked all the blossoms off. I wanted to give up.

I gave them phosphate, I fed them some alfalfa, but when I went to water everything, I found that my 550 gal. rainwater storage system was empty. What the ....? After all that rain, how could this be? I found the plastic fitting that was broken during one of the storms by flying debris, and replaced it.

I had blossoms again. I brushed their teeth. I have tomatoes on the plants now.
I took care of the 5 woodchucks that have been harassing my pepper plants, but have since seen another loitering on the property.



When I awoke this morning I could not believe that it was only 51* ... what next lava, ash, tsunami...bring it on!


A few days ago I picked the first of my green beans...they were the best I've ever eaten. I wonder how the tomatoes will taste?

[riceke]

Originally Posted by ScottinAtlanta

Squirrels! Spawn of Satan.

One nice thing I learned this year is that the squirrels don't seem to click on colors other than red and, much less, bright yellow. So my Lime Green Salad have not been touched. Nor have my Jaune Flammee. Anything blushing red for two days is attacked, so I pick the red ones very early, as soon as I see a color change. Just got a 1.1 pound Dana's Dusky Rose with a nice pink on the bottom - been surveiling it for days to get it b4 the squirrels.

Not sure about that Scott. I planted mostly the brown tomatoes: JD Ctex, Black Krim, Choc Stripe and they chomped on a few of them. It's probably from conditioning that since anything round in the garden taste good rather than the color.

[riceke]

GOTWORMS...glad to see it's turning around for you. For the 1st time in about a month we didn't have rain yesterday and none is expectd today. Maybe it is changing. To all of us here on T'ville who suffered as I did let's keep our fingers crossed. For sure at least we don't have to water! (much). Hey how about those skeeters?

[WVTomatoMan]

You can certainly throw in the towel if you want. That's your choice and I understand your frustration. Or you can try to find a way to have at least some degree of success. You can talk to your local extension people or find a local grower that has success and get that person to work with you to see what you can do to address your issues. You might think about growing in containers where you have more control over things and a whole host of other possibilities.

I worked with someone last year that was just like you - ready to throw in the towel. This year he's kiddingly trash talking me. He has some really nice looking plants and couldn't be happier. Last year he had some of the scraggliest most disease ridden plants I've ever seen. I've helped a lot of people over the years and plan to continue to do so this Saturday when I go to take a look at another garden owned by someone who is ready to give up (actually she used the term "that's it I'm done with trying to grow tomatoes in this garden").

Good luck.


Randy

[AprilMayJune]

I feel your pain, I was just going to post something similar. This year we had:

- a really cold spring that delayed planting out by weeks. I had tomato plants crammed into my house that were absolutely monster-sized.
- a cold snap after planting out that required me to cover everything in multiple layers of protection multiple times, and the pepper plants still got wind burned and chilled and set back by weeks
- a week of nonstop raining that caused some of my tomato plants to begin to develop some lovely diseases
- wind that cracked off many parts of many plants
- aphid attacks
- mite attacks
- a week of crushing heat and humidity that caused blossom end rot on some of my tomatoes due to uneven watering, worsening of diseases, and tons and tons of blossom drop on my peppers and tomatoes. This also triggered a ton of the tomatoes I did have to start ripening at about half their normal size.
- a visit from a mystery animal that ate nearly all the top leaves off of my soybeans overnight one night, never to return (?!)

...and more. The weather is lovely at the moment and should stay that way for a while so I am hoping that this helps some of my plants bounce back a bit for the 8-ish weeks we may have left (you just never know around here...some years it's a blizzard by Halloween and other years you could practically still be wearing shorts then.)

Here's hoping you can still salvage some of the season!

[b54red]

Originally Posted by riceke

Not sure about that Scott. I planted mostly the brown tomatoes: JD Ctex, Black Krim, Choc Stripe and they chomped on a few of them. It's probably from conditioning that since anything round in the garden taste good rather than the color.

They will eat any color tomato. Three years ago they completely demolished every tomato on my Gary O' Sena. They liked them so well that they even ate all the green ones too. They haven't been as bad this year because of the plentiful rainfall. When it gets hot and dry they tend to get into the tomatoes much worse. Once squirrels find a garden and start feeding in it they must send out a flier to all the other squirrels within 10 miles to let them know the buffet is open and free. Once this happens the only thing you can do that is effective is shoot them until they get thinned out enough that your crops can survive.

It is actually sunny this morning after raining again yesterday but it is only a 30% chance of rain today so maybe, just maybe it won't rain again today. I really need to do some spraying and I still have seedlings to set out.

Bill

[livinonfaith]

Originally Posted by riceke

GOTWORMS...glad to see it's turning around for you. For the 1st time in about a month we didn't have rain yesterday and none is expectd today. Maybe it is changing. To all of us here on T'ville who suffered as I did let's keep our fingers crossed. For sure at least we don't have to water! (much). Hey how about those skeeters?

Yes, the skeeters have been terrible this year, haven't they? I have a really bad habit of leaving empty containers around. Most years it doesn't make much of a difference, because they dry out before the mosquitoes mature, but this year, with the constant rain, I had a dozen little mosquito farms going.

That certainly broke me of that bad habit!

[kevn357]

Originally Posted by livinonfaith

Yes, the skeeters have been terrible this year, haven't they? I have a really bad habit of leaving empty containers around. Most years it doesn't make much of a difference, because they dry out before the mosquitoes mature, but this year, with the constant rain, I had a dozen little mosquito farms going.

That certainly broke me of that bad habit!

I had to dig ditches in my garden from all the rain and having a clay soil. These ditches have been holding water for a good 3-4 weeks now. I went in the garden the other day to spray some fungicide and they literally swarmed me from every plant I sprayed. It was a nightmare. I gave a lot of blood that evening, and was wishing they were bees by the time I finished spraying.

[Jaysan]

Yeah it rained and rained on the east coast and here in VA. Septoria or bacterial spot worked on my plants in the raised bed but they are still living and I have gotten a decent crop but just because the rain stopped. Will put down landscaping fabric next year to block soil splash.

Cukes doing really well in SWCs. Sungold cherries also.

Darn squash vine borers recently decimated every one of my summer squash.
Go a late crop spouting though.

Been a rough year but have learned a lot too.

[mari.beth]

Originally Posted by riceke

... I'm writing this because everyone else seems to be having a good year except me. If anyone else had this same experience I would sure like to hear it 'cuz after 45 years of gardening I'm beginning to doubt if it's me or I must be living in a biohazard area. Besides misery loves company. Oh I could go on but I think I'll just hrumph and read you alls successes.

Ken, I have 3 years of tomato gardening experience so - as you said, misery loves company - I am feeling like less of a failure knowing that someone with as much experience as you occasionally has the problems I have been battling. East TN and Atlanta have been having similar (RAINY) weather, so you are not alone in being close to the towel-throwing-in stage!!! (BTW, it's nice to see someone from the 'villes on here. I lived in Loganville for 11 years. My sister still lives in Snellville.)

[riceke]

Originally Posted by mari.beth

Ken, I have 3 years of tomato gardening experience so - as you said, misery loves company - I am feeling like less of a failure knowing that someone with as much experience as you occasionally has the problems I have been battling. East TN and Atlanta have been having similar (RAINY) weather, so you are not alone in being close to the towel-throwing-in stage!!! (BTW, it's nice to see someone from the 'villes on here. I lived in Loganville for 11 years. My sister still lives in Snellville.)

Yes it has been a bad year for those of us who are new to gardening and those who have been doing it for a while. It's sort of funny that once we feel we are experienced Mother Nature throws something at us to prove that we aren't as experienced as we think. Everywhere on the continent folks are having either record heat and drought or rain and flooding. It definitely is a trial for us. By the way I only threw in the towel for this year. I'm sure unless I drowned I'll be out battling Nature again next year. Loganville is mreally growing in the past few years. Thought of moving out that way myself. Good luck going forward.

[riceke]

Originally Posted by Jaysan

Yeah it rained and rained on the east coast and here in VA. Septoria or bacterial spot worked on my plants in the raised bed but they are still living and I have gotten a decent crop but just because the rain stopped. Will put down landscaping fabric next year to block soil splash.

Cukes doing really well in SWCs. Sungold cherries also.

Darn squash vine borers recently decimated every one of my summer squash.
Go a late crop spouting though.

Been a rough year but have learned a lot too.

I laid down fabric and covered it with 4" of wheat straw in my raised beds and my plants still came down with diseases. What kind, I don't know they all look the same to me. Black rotting leaves from the bottom up to the last few stems. I realyy think that insects are carrying the spores since the diseases seem to start when they arrive. Don't like to spray for fear of killing off the pollinators (bees, butterflies, etc). At least you got some cukes and sungolds. So it wasn't all a failure. Good luck going forward.

[Urbanfarmer]

This thread presents the best arguement for a greenhouse. If you have the room, the time, and $2000, you can quickly build a 18' x 32 hoop greenhouse out of PVC. That includes covering it with greenhouse-grade plastic and installing intake/output fans with insect netting. Best gardening money ever spent.

Here in the South it means 10 months of gardening, and then a shutdown for July and August. Up North it means a very extended summer season.

No rain, no wind, almost bug-free, and a very special place to be.

Ours took a direct hit from Ike and were unscathed.

I say "almost" bug-free because sometimes the aphids will sneak in, and if not dealt with early they will get out of control. Pyrethrin bombs take care of them. But definitely no stink bugs, caterpillars, etc.