2022 Gardening Thread

[Man]

Got a squash plant question. Why is my plants full of blooms but not squash ? Have zucchini right beside them doing alright .

When we get one like that the wife calls it a gay plant and collects all the blooms to make enchiladas with until it stops producing.

[eradicator]

When we get one like that the wife calls it a gay plant and collects all the blooms to make enchiladas with until it stops producing.

Yep, squash blooms are great tablefare!

[Geezy Rider]

When did you plant your tomatoes? They don't set fruit well once it gets to be 94-95 degrees consistently.....Most of mine are 5-6ft tall at this point. I do plant in march though.

I think it was late march or maybe early April. I waited till the temps at night we’re going to be in the 50’s. I was curious if all this dang wind was preventing pollination.

[Geezy Rider]

Take the main trunk of your tomato plants and shake them when the blooms pop open preferably in the morning an hour or so after the sun is up... You can also buzz them with an electric toothbrush... The blooms need to be shook so that the pollen dislodges from the male stem and goes into contact with the female receptors... Can also shoot 'em with a liquid/or water soluble phosphorus fertilizer... I use that seabird guano when they first start to set blooms...

Good to know Charlie, thanks, I’ll give that a try.

[eradicator]

I think it was late march or maybe early April. I waited till the temps at night we’re going to be in the 50’s. I was curious if all this dang wind was preventing pollination.

Well, that should have been early enough(and not too late) for them to be growing better. Not sure on the effects of pollination due to the wind but it's dang sure been brutal! I'd just let them roll and maybe try some of Charlie's advice and see if you can't get some to set fruits.

I'd like to amend my reference to Mr Saltwater as I've never met Charlie

[Strummer]

When we get one like that the wife calls it a gay plant and collects all the blooms to make enchiladas with until it stops producing.

We have ate a lot of them . Stuff with cream cheese them fry them ..

[SaltwaterSlick]

Got a squash plant question. Why is my plants full of blooms but not squash ? Have zucchini right beside them doing alright .

Hey Strummer, it might still produce. The male blooms appear first on the lower part of the plant before the female blooms. You can identify the female blooms because they have a tiny little underutilized squash below the bloom. They can be hand pollinated by coming out in the morning when the blooms are open. Find a male bloom and break off the little follicle inside the bloom that looks like a a-tip then take that a-tip and rub it in the center of the open female flowers. Pretty easy to do once you get the gang of it.

[Strummer]

Hey Strummer, it might still produce. The male blooms appear first on the lower part of the plant before the female blooms. You can identify the female blooms because they have a tiny little underutilized squash below the bloom. They can be hand pollinated by coming out in the morning when the blooms are open. Find a male bloom and break off the little follicle inside the bloom that looks like a a-tip then take that a-tip and rub it in the center of the open female flowers. Pretty easy to do once you get the gang of it.

Will look at them in the morning and see if I can see what you are talking about .

[SaltwaterSlick]

Of all the things we have in our garden this year, the most amazing thing to me is this pepper plant I decided to try on a whim... This variety is called "Beaver Dam Hot Pepper", but it's not supposed to be "hot"... Got a seed packet from Hoss Tools. Just thought they looked cool and the description said they were good for cooking, stuffing and to be used in salads... This pepper is supposed to turn a bright red similar to a cayenne pepper... They have not started to turn color yet, but just look at the size of these things!! They make my wife's bell peppers look like cherry peppers!! The plant is having a hard time holding them up.

[SaltwaterSlick]

This was our first meal out of the garden a few weeks back... Fresh sauteed Swiss Chard, onions and bacon, Fried squash (4 different varieties), and the meat was pan seared venison backstrap with a heavy cream/caper sauce recipe from Cajun Blake... It was absolutely lip-smackin' good!! Had a bunch of others since then, but this one was the first!!

[SaltwaterSlick]

DANG!! Went back a page or two just looking at everyone's pics and saw that I already posted the meal and a pic or so of those peppers... The mind is the second thing to go... Oh well, the update on the peppers is cool anyway...

Purple hull peas (Top Pick Pink Eye) are finally starting to bloom... planted way late, but looks like we might get some after all...

[Man]

Purple hull peas (Top Pick Pink Eye) are finally starting to bloom... planted way late, but looks like we might get some after all...

All those a cooler temp variety? I just planted purple hull for the first time last week because the package said they were a good warm weather crop?

[SaltwaterSlick]

All those a cooler temp variety? I just planted purple hull for the first time last week because the package said they were a good warm weather crop?

Generally all varieties of "field peas" are heat-tolerant. Purple hull peas used to be a popular "cover crop" for pasture lands in the South... hence the name "field peas"... They were used as livestock food and were a good cover crop for weed/grass control, so they generally do well when the temps get into the 90's or more as long as they get pretty good water. They need little fertilize once they get going good, a little balanced NPK after they come up... even nothing if planted in a good composted soil/garden...
I like the "top pick" variety because most of the peas grow on a stem of sorts that shoots straight up out of the plant allowing for easier picking with less bending over! (us old fharts gotta take every advantage to preserve our backs we can get!)

[MooseontheLoose]

DANG!! Went back a page or two just looking at everyone's pics and saw that I already posted the meal and a pic or so of those peppers... The mind is the second thing to go... Oh well, the update on the peppers is cool anyway...

Don't feel bad about posting those pics. Food pics are good whenever and wherever they're posted .

This thread could use more pictures

[wytex]

We had a hard freeze weekend before last and hopefully getting tp plant my peppers and tomatoes next weekend up here.
Pretty jealous of you all's gardens so far.
I have onions and shallots with garlic in the ground is all.
By mid Sept we will frost again.