I do not have any of that, Misti. I will have to find out where to get some.
I have another question for you guys and gals - I have a couple plants doing this but my cucumbers are the worst. The edges of the leaves turn brown and get very dry and eventually the whole leaf wilts and falls off. The zucchini edges don't turn brown, they just have the outside kind of wilt and then the rest of the leaf (and it's stem) wilts and I have to cut it off. Am I over watering? I'm pretty new to gardening so I might have quite a few questions.
Name: Stormy Valley Forge Pa I Love MAM ~ So Happy Together
Lori, I'm one of the few people on the planet that doesn't grow zucchini, so I can't help you there. Do you feel the soil for dryness before you water it?
It sounds like it might be a pest problem. I had squash vine borers last year, and the first thing I noticed was wilting like you describe. Look around your stems for holes or powdery debris, and if you see any, you need to mound up dirt around the plant so that it can put down new roots above the intruder. Squash bugs also go after zucchini, but I'm not sure what their damage looks like.
I do have bugs... Fungus gnats and spidermites have plagued me.... can either of those cause that damage? The spidermites were mainly on some strawberries I had so I put them outside to protect the rest of my plants. I haven't seen any recently, so hopefully I got em all. LOL I don't tend to check the soil... I glance to see if it appears dry on the top, generally.
I haven't noticed anything like that. I have had a fly-like thing invade the apartment lately. It's like a fly, but smaller. Bigger than a gnat. It breeds like crazy. And sugar ants seem to like my plants lately... I just have a whole insect infestation going on and I have no idea how must of them got inside!
Misti, I completely missed that they were inside. Thanks for pointing that out. Though it does kinda ruin my theory I'm not sure what would make them wilt inside - perhaps a nutrient issue?
Cheryl, how big are the holes in the lace? Around here, flea beetles are the biggest pest we have on eggplants. They make distinctive pinprick holes, much smaller than something like a Japanese beetle would make. Of course, you get enough pinpricks and you still end up with lace.
I'm not sure if Sevin controls flea beetles or not. I use pyrethrin very successfully against them.
Sorry Stormy Didn't mean to make you use the angry smiley.
I don't know what stores you have in your area, but I was in Target with my mom recently and they had pyrethrin in the garden section. I was really surprised. Had to read the fine print, though, it was called something very generic... "organic pest killer" or something of the sort.
Cheryl, I just looked it up and Sevin is "very effective" against flea beetles. So hopefully your problem will be sorted out now. The holey leaves never recover, but new growth should remain hole-free.
Name: Stormy Valley Forge Pa I Love MAM ~ So Happy Together
Bit, it's not you making me grumble, it's my pea brain. I usually buy the Bonide brand of pyrethrin and it also is called organic pest killer.
The nice thing about shopping at the Agways and the Southern States stores is that the clerks and their computer system can tell you which products have the ingredients that you are looking for. Often they also have cheaper alternatives than the one you would usually choose too.
Misti, the only fertilizer I've used is worm casting, and the soil they are in was miracle grow (I didn't know any better at the time!! Now I know how the fungus gnats got in! LOL). Only other thing I've used was some neem oil (mixed and used as directed) to try to control the gnats. Supposedly it's ok for plants, but a couple of my plants died after applying it.
Lori, pom as in pomegranate? If so, I'm completely jealous! I love pomegranates, but usually only eat the one my mom gives me for Christmas every year... they're so expensive! How many years until it starts producing?
Fungus gnats and spidermites have plagued me.... can either of those cause that damage? The spidermites were mainly on some strawberries I had so I put them outside to protect the rest of my plants. I haven't seen any recently, so hopefully I got em all. LOL I don't tend to check the soil... I glance to see if it appears dry on the top, generally.
I'm not sure what would make them wilt inside - perhaps a nutrient issue?
Didn't mean to make you use the angry smiley.
