What did you do in the garden today?

[Sally PB]

I have onions up in the green house. Yesterday, some marigolds joined them. And today, a few little tomato plants have stuck their leaves up to say hi.

 

[riss]

Our last frost date is usually around April 1. We're expecting frost tonight, so I watered the beans that have just sprouted, since raising the humidity helps to prevent frost damage. I also covered my tomatoes and peppers with clay pots.

I think I'm gonna plant this week outside. We are looking at 80 degree weather from now on. I will just have to check the weather and see how cold it gets at night and just put buckets over the plants when it's going to be cold

 

[TJAnonymous]

None of the yellow & red onion sprouts I planted last fall made it through the winter. Picked up more starts at the feed store over a week ago but just now got around to planting them. I'm dubious about whether they will make it...

Noticed that both my potted blueberry bushes up by the house have died. Not sure why but I'm very bummed about it. The 2 out in the garden look very healthy and lush. Guess I have to buy MORE now.

I sprayed the grapes, fruit trees, and roses today since I saw the aphids this morning. Realized I have yet ANOTHER rose bush dying. This one in the garden. I wonder if the insects are spreading a virus? None of these plants share the same soil. Just seems strange, what's happening. It's like one branch gets infected and it just spreads through the wood to the main trunk.

 

[Acre4Me]

None of the yellow & red onion sprouts I planted last fall made it through the winter. Picked up more starts at the feed store over a week ago but just now got around to planting them. I'm dubious about whether they will make it...

Noticed that both my potted blueberry bushes up by the house have died. Not sure why but I'm very bummed about it. The 2 out in the garden look very healthy and lush. Guess I have to buy MORE now.

I sprayed the grapes, fruit trees, and roses today since I saw the aphids this morning. Realized I have yet ANOTHER rose bush dying. This one in the garden. I wonder if the insects are spreading a virus? None of these plants share the same soil. Just seems strange, what's happening. It's like one branch gets infected and it just spreads through the wood to the main trunk.

Ugh. Frustrating!

Are you using some garden tools between bushes, like pruning shears?

 

[TJAnonymous]

Ugh. Frustrating!

Are you using some garden tools between bushes, like pruning shears?

I used the same pruning shears for the roses but disinfected them. I gathered up 3 small branches from the Madame Blue and 1 from my peach rose when I pruned them with the intention of rooting them. All 4 branches were doing great for maybe 2 weeks and then without warning the leaves turned brown and the wood died. Thought that was strange but I wrote it off to a fungus or bacteria or something in the starter soil I was using.

About this same time, I realized my Madame Blue rose bush was showing the same symptoms. The leaves had just begun budding out and suddenly they turned brown and just died. It started on one branch and eventually spread to the entire bush. The peach roses are within 3 ft of the Madame Blue and have showed no signs so far...

The blue tea rose I found today in the garden is showing the same symptoms. This bush is in its own raised bed in the garden which is 500 ft away from the house and the Madame Blue roses. This has NOT spread through the whole bush yet but has affected approximately a third of it. I grabbed a different set of pruning shears, sprayed them with Lysol, and pruned out all the diseased wood. We'll see if that helps.

I have a pink tea rose in the garden that is approximately 50 ft from the blue tea rose. I don't see any signs of this issue with it. So far.

The 2 blueberries which appear to be affected are individually potted and located by the house, within 15 ft of the Madame Blue roses. They both were filled with flower buds just a few weeks ago but instead of opening up the buds withered and died. Just like the leaves on the roses. It started on one branch and took over the entire plant. The leaves never budded out either....
Here's a picture of the flowers dying on the 2nd blueberry. Unlike the roses, I have not pruned either of the blueberries because they were still so young.

 

[Sally PB]

I think I'm gonna plant this week outside. We are looking at 80 degree weather from now on. I will just have to check the weather and see how cold it gets at night and just put buckets over the plants when it's going to be cold

The 8 day forecast for us (I'm about an hour or so north of you) includes a BIG crash in temps after next weekend. Lows of 32 Monday and Tuesday night, Highs in the 40s and 50s during the day. Of course, that's 8 days out, and it could change.

You should be able to plant peas, lettuce, spinach, kale, and other frost tolerant plants. But I'd wait on beans or corn.

I'll be planting potatoes this week.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Still to darn wet to plant anything Maybe by April.

 

[BReeder!]

Do they have a rash?
@BReeder!

Not really a rash. There's a ton of mosquito-bite like bumps that itch like hell from the looks of it. They are slightly better today. I think the kids are on the mend now. Keeping the calamine lotion on them and giving benedryl.
I thought of jelly fish, but never thought of the infant forms (sea lice). That could be it... I am still leaning towards something in the sand, but sea lice makes just as much sense.

 

[Swiss]

I got another new garden bed hand-tilled today. So, that's 4 out of 8. Then I have to spread the compost and topsoil on them, and then extend the garden fence to enclose these beds. Potatoes need to be planted, but the guy who delivered the compost and topsoil dumped it on one of my potato beds (he did try to dump it in front of the bed, but it didn't work very well). I am considering putting my potatoes in a different bed in order to get them in sooner...

I noticed tarp strands in the compost again, so I probably won't order from this place again. I mentioned it when ordering this year and she was really surprised and said that shouldn't have happened. It would be really nice if I made enough to not have to buy some, but that's not happening right now.

Did I mention that we possibly won't be getting chickens this year? We were pretty sure this was the year, and it still could be, but there are other things that are higher priority.

 

[BReeder!]

Pics today:

Two bleeding heart plants coming back. Thee's a 3rd one I didn't look for yet.

Greenhouse left

Greenhouse right

Herbs in the greenhouse

Closeup of tomato starts in the greenhouse. The stems are very thick! I'm pleased with this.

Tomato starts in greenhouse looking good and tall and well-leafed.

Pepper starts are looking lush.