Starting to get some New Mexico Big Jim's anybody ever heard of them? Are they hot? Hope so....

The first pic shows how my sweet 100 is starting to turn brown from the bottom up. The top half still looks great and it's still putting off little maters but if this keeps up I'm afraid the whole plant will die before I harvest. Thoughts?

Second pic is of my cuke. Went out this kiting and it's got those white spots all over it. Thoughts?

Good news bad news thing. There are little wolf/jumping spiders eating those foe beetles I showed you. Spiders good beetles bad

The spots on the cucumber leaves look like those that happen after putting out Sevin dust or when fertilizer hits the leaves...

The tomatoes aren't getting either enough water or nitrogen...Or it could be getting wind burned...I've got some that are having the same issue because of the southerly winds...I can block the winds from the north, but the south winds are just a PITA....

Got my garden in a little late but everything seems to be going well. In the last week I have had an invasion of grasshoppers. These things are tiny but there are 100's of them. They have eat the tops of my leftover radishes and are now working on my okra and pea plants. Put sevin dust out today , but the directions did not list grasshoppers as one of the insects it controls. Anyone have any suggestions if the sevin does not work? THANKS!

Here is an interesting read on grasshoppers...It is written by someone in Colorado, but has some very good information...Oh, and like women, grasshoppers are the debil...

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05536.html

Well the first tomatoe horn worm was a bit of a novety, even thought about feeding it up to become a lunar moth. 14 worms later... I'm pizzed! Used mechanical means of control...splat!!! Then found the stink bugs . Not happy about it, but malathion should do the tick.

I hate to hear that the horn woms are already out...

You are correct on the Sphinx moth Siberman. My entymology slipped up on me. Double checked the label before application, Malathion has a 7 day harvest interval for tomatoes at the rate I applied. I understand your concern, I might should have included a disclaimer with my post. I've kept a private pesticide applicator license for 30+ yrs. and even held a commercial lic. for 8 yrs. Also have access to an entymologist w/Phd. that I consult with before application. Certainly didn't wish anyone else to take my lead on chemical applications.

We always grow okra and this year we added Red Velvet to the list because we hadn't ever seen it before here's the first harvest, it is producing on very small plants.

Cha-ching! 3rd qt of pickles hit the counter today. Should have at least 2 more qts worth of cucumbers by Thursday of this week. I also have 6 bell peppers on one plant 7 on another. 12 roma tomatoes just about full size and starting to turn colors finally. Probably need to pick those today so the birds don't start pecking at them. Seems like that little "bottom rot" issue I had with the tomatoes worked itself out as these all look fine. Jalapeno bushes looking great, loaded with blooms and about 12 little peppers growing... Onions failed though, I don't think they are getting enough sun where I planted them.

So I may have screwed up. I have some kind of bug/worm getting my tomatoes just as they are ripening. It leaves a nasty black rotted chunk in the mater. Also, I have never done well with corn. The plant have always grown really well, but worms get in and 95% of the harvest is trashed (im not eating wormy corn).

Anyhow, I have never doen well with tomatoe plants, but this year my plants have a ton of fruit growing and the plants themselves are extremely healthy.

So, here is where I screwed up. I decided I was going to have wormless corn and I wanted rid of whatever is eating my tomatoes. So I bought a bottle of liquid Sevin and mixed it up in my sprayer and sprayed every veggie plant I had, even the fruits themselves.

I have used Sevin powder all my life for a pesticide, but I've never been a big veggie garden guy until the last few years.

Now, 12 hours later, I am regretting using the stuff after all of the reading I have done on other gardening forums.

So how bad have I screwed up here. Some stuff I read said I can't eat the fruits for two weeks. I will lose a ton of tomatoes and peppers and squash if that is the case.

Stoopid, stoopid, stoopid......

Growing up, we always picked field corn at my Grandpa's farm (think 60's thru mid-80's). In those days, there were very fews ears of corn that didn't have a worm on the end and maybe an inch or so of the corn gone. We always just cut that piece off and kept the rest, no big deal. Of course, nowadays, they have all of these hybrid varieties that are "roundup ready" and "worm-free". I can't remember the last worm I saw in an ear of corn from the fields, but then again, I'm talking field corn, not sweet corn. The field stuff is still edible but I would thing with all of the hybridization it's not nearly as good for you now as it once was. Anyway, most of that stuff is used for cattle, hog and chicken feed (not to mention deer corn).

Read the label/booklet attached to the product. Just happen to have a bottle of liquid sevin on hand. The number of days to wait between last application and harvest (PHI pre-harvest interval) for tomatoes and corn is 0 days. That is assuming you used the proper rate. You should be able to rinse thoroughly and consume. PLEASE DO NOT take this as advice to act upon. Read the label, check the rate, call the number provided on the label, 800-332-5553. By the way, never use any product that is not accompanied by a label for that product. Pesticides with no lable should be dissposed of properly.

Cool. I bow to your knowledge.
I've used malathion on ornamentals ( you can't beat it for killing bugs) but never on produce. That, and the fact I got a face-full of diazinon (sp?) one year keeps me from using anything stronger than Sevin.

I try to plant "trap" crops that either draw the bad bugs away or attract beneficial insects. (Sunflowers attract squash bugs, btw.) With the population of aphid-loving fire ants in my area I finally had to break down and start nuking the squash.

Don't worry. I'm in the same boat as you and have been wondering about all these "harvest" post.

All I've harvested so far are 3 banana peppers and one half eaten, half ripe tomato.

Is it too late to bury some crappie carcasses? How far do i want them from my mater plants? How deep?

Mine says 2 days on corn (which I am fine on, I assume it will be another week before I have any ready) and on tomatoes it says 3 days. But I did use the concentrate.

And don't get too worried, my cucumbers and okra just came up yesterday (which may be way too late).

I'm with you guys on the harvest. All that's ready so far are the green beans I planted last. As posted earlier, wasn't happy about using malathion, esp. this early, but I'm well over a week from any thing being ready. Started the tomatoes as transplants in 1 gal. pots waaay back in the middle of Feb., in the ground mid March and nothing ready yet. Maybe cucumbers by the end of the week... just seems like things aren't maturing as fast as they should.

I'm there with ya on the late harvest. So far I've only had sugar snap peas which did really well. Tomatoes are green, squash are blooming but not going, I've got one cuke started and a couple small peppers on very small plants. My excuse is this is the first year of my raised bed so the nutrients are probably all wrong.

how do yall get rid of the grass and yall garden after you dont planted stuff in it

Round-Up.