Gardens vegetable, flower or other?

[Puzzicato]

The soil is fertilized organically, rotated, and layered with compost each year. This is the first season I've seen this happen. Its not end rot. The flowers look viable and remain for a week or so. Instead of producing, they just wither away. No pests, no blight. I really think I need to pollinate by hand. Not going to hurt in trying anyway.

Yeah, I'd say so. That happened to us last year - the courgettes never put out a male and female flower at the same time. 4 plants, not a single fruit.

 

[jamespowers]

Is that mint you have growing next to you? My mint is taking over the rose bed. It is like a weed here.

 

[Paisley]

The soil is fertilized organically, rotated, and layered with compost each year. This is the first season I've seen this happen. Its not end rot. The flowers look viable and remain for a week or so. Instead of producing, they just wither away. No pests, no blight. I really think I need to pollinate by hand. Not going to hurt in trying anyway.

This happens to my tomatoes when the nights aren't cool enough: the blossoms break off on their own. When the nights get below about 60 degrees, the blooms stay on. I don't think it's a lack of minerals in my case--the ground is full of them here. Nevertheless, I've never tried some of the suggestions others have mentioned--they may work for you.

I'm happy to say I've got several tomatoes on the Patio Princess plants I started from seed and transferred to big pots. The Mortgage Lifter has taken off and has some tiny tomatoes on it. The Red Octobers aren't doing much.

A few months ago, I gave a Patio Princess seedling to a friend. While taking it home, she didn't notice it had fallen out of the pot and onto the ground (it was at night). The next morning, she found it, planted it, and it perked up. I'm thinking this is a good cultivar.

 

[1961MJS]

Is that mint you have growing next to you? My mint is taking over the rose bed. It is like a weed here.

Um, mint is a weed everywhere. A friend of mine planted a peppermint plant in his back yard (Madison AL), by the next August he had an 8x8 foot plot of mint. Smells good when you mow though.

Put it in a large pot or possibly divide your garden with 2 x 12's. I suggest the large pot.

Later

 

[jamespowers]

Um, mint is a weed everywhere. A friend of mine planted a peppermint plant in his back yard (Madison AL), by the next August he had an 8x8 foot plot of mint. Smells good when you mow though.

Put it in a large pot or possibly divide your garden with 2 x 12's. I suggest the large pot.

Later

I actually didn't plant it. It was a volunteer. lol Nothing is worse than Bamboo though. :eusa_doh: My neighbor has an idiot neighbor who planted a bunch of it along the property line. I told him that Triox is what he ought to consider as it is now about twenty feet tall and coming under the fence.
Mint is not a weed in places where it snows for a good amount of time. That will kill it off---at least that is what they tell me. [huh]

 

[jamespowers]

This happens to my tomatoes when the nights aren't cool enough: the blossoms break off on their own. When the nights get below about 60 degrees, the blooms stay on. I don't think it's a lack of minerals in my case--the ground is full of them here. Nevertheless, I've never tried some of the suggestions others have mentioned--they may work for you.

I'm happy to say I've got several tomatoes on the Patio Princess plants I started from seed and transferred to big pots. The Mortgage Lifter has taken off and has some tiny tomatoes on it. The Red Octobers aren't doing much.

A few months ago, I gave a Patio Princess seedling to a friend. While taking it home, she didn't notice it had fallen out of the pot and onto the ground (it was at night). The next morning, she found it, planted it, and it perked up. I'm thinking this is a good cultivar.

Interesting. I was told that the blooms fall off when the nights are too cold. [huh] In my experience, even daytime, nighttime temperatures are the best for tomatoes.
Mortgage Lifter has always been quite the producer for me as well. The leaves are HUGE this year. They stand off from the vine about a foot. I thought I was going to have a lousy tomato year with the weather we have been having but by August the plants should be fairly full (big varieties take around 80 days for fruit). I also planted Green Zebra, German Queen, Brandywine, German Johnson, Some type of cherry tomato my son brought home from preschool, a tomato the realtors around here pass out and a voluteer that of something that looks pretty good so far. Yes, I like the potato leaf type tomatoes.
Sounds like Burpee did pretty well with patio princess. I used to grow their Delicious and a few others. The Delicious got to be 2 pound fruits for me.

 

[Paisley]

Mint is not a weed in places where it snows for a good amount of time. That will kill it off---at least that is what they tell me. [huh]

They were pulling your leg.

 

[jamespowers]

They were pulling your leg.

lol lol lol lol Ok, Rumblefish was lying to us then. lol

 

[rumblefish]

lol lol lol lol Ok, Rumblefish was lying to us then. lol

lol

My integrity has been brought into question?!?!?

No, really- I have yet to tear any out, it dies back every year.

 

[jamespowers]

lol

My integrity has been brought into question?!?!?

No, really- I have yet to tear any out, it dies back every year.

I knew you were telling us the truth but I figured you needed to come to my defense.
Are you growing Cyn...errr uh, I mean artichokes this year?

 

[Paisley]

Chocolate mint keeps on growing in my yard. I leave it alone--there's not much that will grow in the spot where it is.

 

[jamespowers]

Chocolate mint keeps on growing in my yard. I leave it alone--there's not much that will grow in the spot where it is.

Then it is a beneficial weed for you.

 

[Viola]

I had black peppermint and spearmint and I can't say snow did much to curtail their habits - they died back in winter, sure, but came back bigger and badder every year, except that the black peppermint was eventually bred into nothingness via cohabitation with the other mint varieties.

 

[PADDY]

Prolific Mint growing (like a weed)

It's my fault to be honest. Just not making enough cocktails with mint in them!! [huh]

Yep, I'll have to cut it right back. Other herbs like Basil and even parsley just haven't been doing so well this year.

But...I have been trying CHILLI PEPPERS (yes!! in the UK of all places!!) just inside the house by a large window and they are doing GREAT. Been pulling them, chopping 'em and popping them into my dishes!! yum!!

Got some TUMBLING TOMS (little tomatoes that hang down rather than grow upwards) in my baskets at the side of the house, so they'll be nice for salads, pizzas..etc.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

My Dorset Naga chillies are coming on great guns. I grew the plant last year and got a lot of good fruit off it. I overwintered it indoors and now the weather got good down here, i've had him sitting outside during the day to get some insect action on his flowers. Nice large fruit growing … just waiting now for them to turn red and i'll start burning my mouth off again: These boys are HOT. Apparently one of the hottest in the world. A bit like Scotch Bonnets, but much hotter, and just as sweetly fruity.

My courgettes are on a rampage. I've had 6 off each plant so far and so many more are coming on. The flowers are wonderful fried in lots of vegetable oil after dipping in a very basic flower and water batter. Fantastic. We (I) grew an 'heirloom' variety. I don't even want to know what these would cost in the shops. Normal courgettes are getting to minimum £1.50 a kilo. What a scam.

Paddy, how does one know when potatoes are ready to dig up? Mine have been growing for a while but are showing no sign of flowers or buds, and no sign of wilting.

bk

 

[PADDY]

REPLY to BK. (Spuds)

It's usually about a week after the flowering dies I tend to dig them up. I use a pitch fork to ease them up but then find I loose a lot of them in the soil, so that's when I get "down and dirty" with my hands sifting through for those golden nuggets!

Not sure if I told you. When I was Press Officer for the Duchess of Northumberland, one of the stories I had to follow-up to promote the Alnwickk Gardens, was a farm just up from Coldstream (what's the name..? oh yes, Carroll's Heritage Potatoes), which supplied all these 'old' 'golden era' spuds to the Duchess. They are Potatoe enthusiasts and have brought back to life potatoes that were commonly used before WWII (the Govt them wanted high yield potatoes, and it didn't matter if they weren't 'that' tasty). After the war, people had got used to these non-descript, white, high yield spuds and that's what' we've still got today - BORING SPUDS!!

The one's the Carrolls produce are red, purple, blue, orange and all shapes and sizes and flavours and textures - pretty amazing!! I'm going to go up get a few bags and keep some for planting!!! REAL VICTORY GARDEN spuds! of the old type.

 

[PADDY]

Heritage Potatoes (link)

http://www.heritage-potatoes.co.uk/shop.php?main_page=index&cPath=3

 

[BinkieBaumont]

"My Avocado Tree is under performing this year, we have had a few weeks of cold winter weather"

 

[John in Covina]

Got some TUMBLING TOMS (little tomatoes that hang down rather than grow upwards) in my baskets at the side of the house, so they'll be nice for salads, pizzas..etc.

Over in the US there are several companies that market hanging - upside down tomato kits. The picture always has prize winning "maters" on the vine.

Max the wunderdog (doxie) will eat any tomatoes I grow that he can reach!

 

[Puzzicato]

My Tumbling Toms are doing really well too - now they just need to ripen.

The flowers have just finished on the spuds, so next weekend we'll dig them. The advantage to having them in a growbag is I don't have too far to look and the soil is fairly loose!