Discussion Board

I am wondering if I should just give up, or is there something I might do in addition to what we've already done for our vegetables. In particular, I'd like to save the summer squash and pickle plants. They are now turning slightly yellow but still green. The ground has dried out well, after being wet now to the point of being under water three times. We have a sump hole dug next to each hill and keep it bailed out when it has rained enough to fill the holes, but the plants have been so wet at times that I'm afraid they're goners.

I have sprayed the leaves with fish emulsion, and I am planning on doing a spray tonight for fungus - something from Gardens Alive that is organic.

I was wondering if anyone has any other ideas for my poor pickles? Maybe another dose of organic fertilizer dug in around each plant?

The tomatoes are looking better each day, a few are still tiny but some have blossoms and have doubled in size.

Have you tried using a hand cultivator to loosen the soil around the plants? I remember my mother cultivating around her plants after heavy rains. She always said that her plants could breathe better. Of course she also talked to her garden.

Well, I haven't loosened the soil lately, but I'll try it today. Thank for the idea! I'll scratch the soil and while I'm at it put some more plant food on the dirt and scratch that in too.

Three hills were planted above the ground level, and all the rest just below. Long story, we've had varied luck each year in this place and the past few years have been so dry that hills dried out and the depressed plantings did best. So this year we tilted it in favor of being dry. The three hilled plants look the best, so I'm sure it's the wet conditions that are making them turn yellow.

I think Doris is right--it sounds like some of the roots may have drowned/suffocated/rotted and the yellow leaves are cut off from nutrients. Cultivating might help! I imagine that any yellowed leaves won't recover but if the plant can grow NEW leaves it might survive.

I have some biofungicide stuff from Gardens Alive, too--is it "Plant Guardian"? I used it on my squash last year and it seemed to work great. It doesn't necessarily sound like your plants have a fungus, but if they are weakened from stress they might tend that way. I don't think the biofungicide will hurt anything and it may have a preventive effect.

Well, I will try the cultivating and some fungicide, maybe tomorrow. I would have done it already today but it RAINED again! It might rain tomorrow too.

Well, here's an update on my mushy wet garden. It did rain the other day so I didn't get out to cultivate right then, but since then it's dried out again. We never did get another real gully washer that fills up the sump holes and needs to be pumped out. Yay!

The squash and pickles in the hill are looking great. The ones in the depressed areas are looking better than they did! I don't know if what I did helped them but they aren't getting any yellower, and the pickles are setting fruit and so are the squash! Mr. Doodlepunk is very happy. He loves his summer squash, and pickles too. If we have nothing else he would be happy with all the pickles he can eat.

The tomatoes are another story. Only two plants have blossoms, the rest are still small but alive. I'm probably not going to have enough to can this year, but we have learned that we should probably always do raised beds back there. I have a plan for a drip or soaker hose type irrigation system, using the horse trough and rain water and a soaker hose. Nothing fancy but it should work just fine. Might have to figure out a way to filter the rain barrel stuff so it doesn't clog the hose, though.