That's a tough one...I'd say about an hour a day...Tomato plants, if actively growing fruit take about 1 inch of water per week...Squash is the same...Corn is the only one that can take a little less...I'd go with an hour and adjust accordingly...

Ok. That's where I will start.

Funny thing is, my smallest tomatoe plants have the largest fruit, albeit only 1 per plant. And I'm not joking either. These are better boy plants that are no more than 10" tall. The fruit is big enough to fill the palm of my hand.

I know alot of it has to do with my soil. It is very high clay content and turns into concrete quickly after a heavy rain.

I'd do it very late at night or very early in the morning so that the plants have ample time to absorb the moisture...

AdventureTX,
I lived on a farm of which the south border was a river. My grandad would have me go down by the river where there were a lot of wild mulberry trees and pick all I could in the spring. Didn't gripe because I could eat as many as I wanted. With the rest my grandma made fabulous rhubarb-mulberry cobbler and my grandad would keep enought to make a batch of mulberry wine.

Thought I've been watering "just" acorn squash but found these mixed in.....pumpkins?

They sure do look like a pumpkin, but I believe that is Spaghetti Squash...

By the way, Spaghetti Squash is GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD eatin'...Just don't pick it before it's ready...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_squash

Could be? Several friends bring me compost and I've got different kinds of squash everywhere and threatening to take over.

It's odd, the one in the first pic looks more like a Spaghetti Squash...However, the second one looks like a pumpkin...Are they on the same plant? Spaghetti Squash plants put off a similar odor to that of yellow squash, but a bit nuttier, sort of like Zucchini...

They're growing down the alley over the fence and spreading to all four corners of the garden...





and I didn't plant any of them.

LOL...I've had that happen before...It's great, isn't it...Squash and pumpkins have similar plants and Spaghetti Squash is usually more oblong than round...It's a tough call...

My largest harvest thus far...



15 Zucchini Squash, 6 Yellow Squash, 1 Early Girl Tomato, 8 Sugary Grape Tomatoes (2 weren't ripe, but they came off when I pulled the others), 9 Sweet Banana Peppers, 4 Cayenne Peppers, 5 Anaheim Chili Peppers, and 5 Cubanelle Peppers.

My very first harvest of 2010 (I put my garden in way too late due to torrential rain). Is this safe to eat and what caused it?

What caused what the blackish/brownish/purple color or the utensil laying across the stem...? I'd say manmade global warming caused the utensil to try and have it's way with the stem...

I'm not sure what causes the discoloration...We have it on occasion and it's never been a problem...Eat away, just stop when you get to the utensil or else you'll have to buy new teeth...

Good job...

Lonestar

Here's another odd one I found....looks like a giant zucchini?



Tomatoes are going crazy too!





These are 2 of 20 plants with fruits all over them!!!

That's awesome!!!!!

I had one similar to that and it was like a zucchini/spaghetti squash hybrid...VERY good...If that's what it is, they take longer than the other squash to mature, usually about 20 days...

Friend or foe

I don't know, but it looks like it belongs to the beetle family and those are not good for vegetable plants...

Was it me, or were there more ladybugs around this year than in any I can remember?

In the last few days, I've seen of few of the no-good yellow looking lady-bugs. They'll be dying though.

I've had a BOAT load of lady bugs...First time it's been this way since 2007...We had them EVERYWHERE including the house that year...They've stayed in the garden this year...

Any one up in here? If so I got a question about okra. My first time trying them and not real sure when to pick them.
Thanks for the help!

Okra is usually ready when it's 2 - 4 inches long...Some varieties are okay longer, but the majority get too difficult to eat when they are longer...Be prepared to pick okra everyday...Oh and take a knife or pair of scissors to cut it from the plant...You may need to wear gloves as well depending on the variety and if it makes you itch or not...

Thanks LSS. 1st go around and learning as it happens.

One more thing, Edge, watch the flowers when you're picking...You might see a bumblebee instead of your more friendly honey bee...Bumblebees can sting more than once...NOT a pleasant experience...

FOE...get a bottle of Seven at your local Home Depot/nursery, then remember to wash everything before you eat it.