I planted two gardens both about 70x100 each. I had the soil tested and it came back good just had to add 3lbs N per 1000 sqft. The problem is everything starts great and when it gets close to harvest it rots or busts. The only thing that does good is the zuchini and squash. tomatoes,canalope and cucumbers rot quickly. I pulled some tomatoes and let them ripen in the house and they had a bitter tate to them. I thought it might be some kind of fungus but I don't know. Any Ideas?
what wrong with my garden
- Thread starter tjse9006
- Start date
- Views: 3902
5030
Rest in Peace
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2003
- Messages
- 28,967
- Location
- SE Michigan in the middle of nowhere
- Tractor
- Kubota M9000 HDCC3 M9000 HDC
Sounds like damp rot to me.
troutsqueezer
Veteran Member
Not nearly enough information to go on. Any answers you get will be shooting from the hip. There are a lot of variables and a lot of possibilities. How is the drainage? How often and how much do you water? Have you grown gardens successfully in the same spot before? How has the weather been? Are you sure the fruit is rotting or is it something more like blossom end rot on the tomatoes? Professional horticulturalists will need to know specifics and usually ask for pictures before making a diagnoses.
bp fick
Super Member
What trousqueezer said, times two.
I now it will be hard to get the answers without alot more detail but I hope to get some ideas to start with. This is only the second year I have ever attempted a garden, the soil hasn't been worked for 40-50 years. The garden did the same thing last year. I do not water since we have had a very wet year. I do feed some with miricle grow and use sevin for bugs(which are a problem too). The soil drains pretty good for WV flat land but will stay damp for a few days after a big rain. Like I said I wanted to get a place to start looking because I don't have a clue.
Egon
Epic Contributor
Think I'd try some 17/17/17 fertilizer.
The above stated fertilizer will probably not be correct for blossom end rot although it has worked for me.
The above stated fertilizer will probably not be correct for blossom end rot although it has worked for me.
Last edited:
houstonscott
Elite Member
- Joined
- Dec 19, 2010
- Messages
- 3,674
- Location
- Oglesby, Texas
- Tractor
- Kubota L3800, Kubota GR2120, Kubota RTV1100, Kubota 5100sc
If you water unevenly that can happen to you. If your fruit like tomatoes are under watered when green the skin thickens and then when you water the fruit grows fast and they split. So if you let it dry then water allot, that could be your problem.
HS
HS
This is the best advice so far, take them a soil sample from the four corners of the plot and have them test the PH and advise you. Adding any fertilizer without knowing the PH is big mistake.
To sterilize the plot cover it with black plastic for a couple of weeks.
troutsqueezer
Veteran Member
Take them samples of the plants themselves. That will be key.
Egon
Epic Contributor
Blossom End Rot Fact sheet
Blossom end rot.
Note: My previous post had the wrong fertilizer components.
Blossom end rot.
Note: My previous post had the wrong fertilizer components.
Thanks for the replies so far, I will try to post some pics this weekend. I'm starting to think it is some kind of fungus. I was picking some beans and noticed some of the leaves dying on the end and kind of a brown powder on them. Could this be what's causing the problem in the whole garden?
Linda Albert
New member
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2011
- Messages
- 8
- Tractor
- 235 di
Nice advice.. I hope this useful!!!
Ga Downunder
New member
Just recently found this site and saw this thread today. As a Master Gardener and Georgia Certified Landscape Professional, may I say that I agree with several of the previous posts.
1. ALWAYS give as much information as possible and ask specific questions, i.e. what is causing the tips of my beans to die with a brown powder? There are so many variables in horticulture success.
2. That said, it seems that your biggest problem is soil moisture management. Try going to a local garden store and getting a moisture meter. They range from $10 to over $100. Just in case the directions are vague, as they sometimes can be, do a calibration test of sort as follows:
Take a pot of the garden soil and thoroughly saturate it. Then test it with your meter. This will show you what reading you will get for totally wet soil. I follow that up with a container of appropriately moist soil. That is, soil that will ball up when squeezed but will easily crumble and not stay in a mud ball. See what that reading is. Now you have two standards to go by and should be able to, from a practicle perspective, to gauge what you garden soil moisture level is. You may need better drainage, you may need better structure.
3. The suggestions for utilizing your local extension office are excellent advice. You do not have personal opinion but rather the benefit of information from a university. Just for asking, is that where you got your soil test done?
4. Fungus does not usually leave a powder (notwithstanding mushrooms, i.e. puffballs) and mold on plants is white.
1. ALWAYS give as much information as possible and ask specific questions, i.e. what is causing the tips of my beans to die with a brown powder? There are so many variables in horticulture success.
2. That said, it seems that your biggest problem is soil moisture management. Try going to a local garden store and getting a moisture meter. They range from $10 to over $100. Just in case the directions are vague, as they sometimes can be, do a calibration test of sort as follows:
Take a pot of the garden soil and thoroughly saturate it. Then test it with your meter. This will show you what reading you will get for totally wet soil. I follow that up with a container of appropriately moist soil. That is, soil that will ball up when squeezed but will easily crumble and not stay in a mud ball. See what that reading is. Now you have two standards to go by and should be able to, from a practicle perspective, to gauge what you garden soil moisture level is. You may need better drainage, you may need better structure.
3. The suggestions for utilizing your local extension office are excellent advice. You do not have personal opinion but rather the benefit of information from a university. Just for asking, is that where you got your soil test done?
4. Fungus does not usually leave a powder (notwithstanding mushrooms, i.e. puffballs) and mold on plants is white.
Last edited:
Sorry I haven't replied, football practice started and I haven't had time time to do anything. I'll count this year as a learning experience and try to do better next year. I had the soil tested by the extension office and the test came back good. I think the I the moisture thing was the problem and I planted some things too close together and that caused some of the problem. I can pay extra for a more complete soil test and I will this fall. I am going to cover the soil with black plastic after I till this years garden in. I will plant further apart next year and see what happens. I was also think about fertilizing the soil before I plant next year. Am I missing anything? Thanks for the rplies! TC
Ga Downunder
New member
TC
Your soil test from the extension service is as good as you need. As far as covering the soil with black plastic, consider this- try using clear plastic and solarizing the soil. This is not the same as sterilizing but serves a similar purpose. Do a search on the process and you can make a decision from there. If you do use either plastic, let the tillage break down first before covering. It will need oxygen and will suffocate if covered. Cover for a few weeks before planting to kill any weeds, fungi, etc. I always work some fertilizer into the soil when I till it during preparation. For most soil I like something like a 5-10-10 or a 5-10-15. The 10 and 15 help with root developement and overall vigor. One note: The middle 10 (phosphate) can build up in soil. It does not readily move hence it takes a while to get to the root zone if you just broadcast it over the top. It also does not leach out as quickly as nitrogen which is why you can get buildup, even to toxicity. Seen those commercials for "phosphate-free" detergents?
Your soil test from the extension service is as good as you need. As far as covering the soil with black plastic, consider this- try using clear plastic and solarizing the soil. This is not the same as sterilizing but serves a similar purpose. Do a search on the process and you can make a decision from there. If you do use either plastic, let the tillage break down first before covering. It will need oxygen and will suffocate if covered. Cover for a few weeks before planting to kill any weeds, fungi, etc. I always work some fertilizer into the soil when I till it during preparation. For most soil I like something like a 5-10-10 or a 5-10-15. The 10 and 15 help with root developement and overall vigor. One note: The middle 10 (phosphate) can build up in soil. It does not readily move hence it takes a while to get to the root zone if you just broadcast it over the top. It also does not leach out as quickly as nitrogen which is why you can get buildup, even to toxicity. Seen those commercials for "phosphate-free" detergents?
gardencarer
New member
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2011
- Messages
- 8
