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No need to take a pic, I think I know what they probably look like. I just don't have non-bog kind. But they are pretty.
Your tomatoes are probably suffering from blossom end rot. I've attached some info about what that likely is you tomatoes have and ways to prevent it. We have had it in past years, even on some bell peppers and its so disheartening. So far this year we haven't yet seen any of it.
No cukes forming yet on my cuke plants, although I have had lots of blooms on them. Last year though, according to my records, we were already picking them by early August!
Our largest cantaloupe has gotten to baseball size and has finally dropped low enough to be touching the ground to give it some support protecting its connection to the vine. The largest watermelons on vines that had started forming far outside the planter ring was already safely on the ground. My records say we picked the first cantaloupe last year on 1 Sep, so looks like we are on track for the about same time frame this year, although we won't mind if it comes a bit earlier this year, LOL.
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Finally got a chance to read that info on my other computer and I think you are correct about it, although I'm not sure about the exact cause, it does not appear to be from most of the reasons they give but nonetheless it is exactly what I'm seeing on both my tomatoes and my bell peppers. I'll look into that product that is recommended. I read somewhere that putting egg shells into the ground around my tomato plants would help them, so I did that last year and it did not help with the problem but it is possible that they were not ground up enough to make a difference. I'm going to post what you attached for others to read because it will be easier to read, thanks much for the info:
A water-soaked spot at the blossom end of tomato fruits is the classic symptom of blossom-end rot. This relatively common garden problem is not a disease, but rather a physiological disorder caused by a calcium imbalance within the plant. It can occur in pepper, squash, cucumber, and melon fruits as well as tomatoes.
Blossom-end rot is most common when the growing season starts out wet and then becomes dry when fruit is setting. Damage first appears when fruits are approximately half their full size. The water-soaked areas enlarge and turn dark brown and leathery. These areas will eventually begin to rot, so the fruit should be picked and discarded.
Several factors can limit a plant's ability to absorb enough calcium for proper development. These include: fluctuations in soil moisture (too wet or too dry), an excess of nitrogen in the soil, root damage due to cultivation, soil pH that's either too high or too low, cold soil and soil high in salts.
Prevention and Control
• Maintain consistent levels of moisture in the soil throughout the growing season. When the weather is dry, water thoroughly once or twice each week to moisten the soil to a depth of at least 6 inches.
• Prevent calcium deficiency with products such as Tomato Rot Stop.
• In cold climates, allow soil to warm before planting; cold soils limit nutrient uptake.
• Maintain soil pH at or near 6.5.
• Use fertilizers that are low in nitrogen and high in phosphorous.
• Use watering cones (such as Aqua Cones) to get water down into the root zone.
• Apply mulch, to minimize evaporation and help maintain consistent soil moisture.
• Keep garden records: You may discover that some crop varieties are more susceptible to blossom-end rot than others.
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Just went to that link you gave on the buttercup squash and read this:
"Although buttercup squash typically start maturing in late August or early September, you should check for ripeness a few weeks earlier if your area experiences a heat wave."
Since we have been in heat wave of sorts, I did see what was described in the article, dry vines and that was what I had read too, so I picked that one in the above pic. We cut it up this week and it was done, after blanching it, we used our freeze dryer to store it for use later. Here is that link for others that might be interested:
https://homeguides.sfgate.com/pick-butte...49992.html
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Oh my, those are doozies for sure. Too bad only I and one of our sons care to eat them in my family - those are full family sized serving or more. Even you may have to prepare it then freeze dry it to eat sometime later.
We have had several hard frosts already this year. The only space that has not been too adversely affected has been that space between the house and the detached garages. I harvested the second crop of peas. With all the rain we've had we have had our watering system shut off due to all the freezing temps. We've also stop collecting rain water as well, so we've now been diverting all water down the downspouts (not collecting anymore). The fish pond was filled to brim with water that was already collected in our barrels.
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LOL, all those big ones we freeze dry or cut up and blanch.
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Sad to report 2018 was my last year for a big garden in this location. I got word last month that they sold the property where I have been growing my garden for the last 6 or 7 yrs and are putting up town houses starting next month[  ]. Not ready looking forward to starting over in another location and even if I do it won't be as convenient as this place was. Not sure how 2019 will turn out but I've decided to at least put in a couple of planter boxes like you have. They sure won't get the sun like it did in the garden on the other side of my fence but I guess it will be better than nothing. I do have some feelers out for some spots for a bigger garden but it's not looking good so far.
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I know you've worked really hard to get that spot in good planting conditions, so that's too bad really. We do grow our peas/pods in those really large plastic tubs with rope handles. We even put a cage in them to protect from a chilly wind, they also have soaker hose for each one. We can start the peas really sooner than anything else as the tubs are on rolling platforms so we can roll them in at night, roll them out once the its sunny again - it worked really well last year and they're elevated so its pretty back-friendly to harvest.
If you plan out your stored foods you even rotate the plantings of some things and hopefully work out a good system. At least your grapes and peaches won't be affected since they are within 'your' boundaries.
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Good idea Jil, what kind of soil do you put in the large plastic tubs? I would imagine you don't use dirt because it would be too heavy to move.[:/] Do you use the tubs that have wheel? Do you put holes in the bottom of the tub?
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the tubs are so deep they typically don't ever use the lower portion of them, but they do have some holes in the bottom just in case. They sit on wood platform that we put rubber caster wheels on. We had them from another purpose and no longer use them for it so they were handy, to repurpose for this - works well.
You are correct, we just use the Miracle Gro garden soil in them, and then we use miracle gro fertilizer once the plants are growing .
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So instead of buying the tubs with the smaller wheels already mounted on them you guys built a platform that uses rubber caster wheels, then you but the tub on it? How big are the wheels? Maybe one of these days I can stop by and take a look at them. Do you fill the entire tub with Miracle Gro garden soil?
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Actually we had the platforms already from something else we had done, they just worked out for this purpose now. Ill look through my garden pics to see if they show up anywhere. If not I can always go take a picture in the garage.
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OK, sounds good, thanks.
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This pic was taken last year, but it probably shows the planter buckets on their 'platforms' best. if snow or hard frost is forecasted we are able to roll these into the nearby garage to protect them. You can see the hoses running up to them, they connect to the soaker hose rings that sit in the pots. Since the roots never get all the way to bottom the bottom 1/3 is normal garden soil, the top 2/3 has the nicer MG garden soil that is nice to plant in. The fall planting was also just started from seeds once these first ones were no longer producing.
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OH, totally not what I was expecting, I was thinking the rectangle containers with wheels but I see what you are saying now. Thanks for the pic. I was thinking about maybe putting some gravel or pebbles in the bottom then some sandy soil then the MG garden soil on top. We likely won't move them once they are planted but it would give us some additional space to plant stuff. Your snow peas look great in that pic.
By the way, we are going to do some major trimming of our grape vine this Spring, so if you are still interested in a start, from it, let me know.
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Well they say a picture is worth thousand words - LOL. [laugh] We did put a little gravel in bottoms so the dirt didn't get washed out the drain holes we put in the buckets. The pes did really well these, and at our previous house we did tomatoes in them that did really well. So they are versatile for many things. They are also nice that you don't need to till the dirt and they are already elevated so harvesting is much easier on the back and knees!
Yes, Thanks, I do want some of those yummy grapes. Not sure we can put them anywhere here, but if not here, I will convince [  ] our son to put them at his house and we are there enough that we too can enjoy them. So just let us know and we'll bring a bucket or two to put them in. How long after planting them before we can expect to have grapes?
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[quote jjannie]Yes, Thanks, I do want some of those yummy grapes. Not sure we can put them anywhere here, but if not here, I will convince [ ] our son to put them at his house and we are there enough that we too can enjoy them. So just let us know and we'll bring a bucket or two to put them in. How long after planting them before we can expect to have grapes?[/quote]
It would be several years before your start getting grapes. It might be sooner if you take a large piece of vine with the start. Because of the new housing development that is going to start soon, I will likely have to remove most of my vine.
This might not be something you want to do but I'd bet a grape vine would do good above your house on the hill. I think all you would need to do is run a water line up there and maybe a couple of poles with wire between them or fence, for the vine to grow on. I've never done anything but water my grape vine so they a very low upkeep.
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Hey Ralph, I was reading this post from last year and I started to wonder if you grew any tomatoes this year? I know last year you were just getting moved in and had lots of projects to do but I thought this year, you might have given it a try.
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