Starting vegetables by seed can be more rewarding and more economical for most people; however, the time investment (and sometimes emotional investment) is huge. These guidelines will work for starting most vegetable and flower seeds, although I wrote them with the nightshade family (except potatoes) in mind. See individual growing articles for more in-depth info […]
Symphylans are very small, white, many segmented organisms that you may see in your soil when you pull up a struggling plant. You will notice them darting and scurrying quickly about the root ball or seedling plug. They are also known as symphlans, or “symphys”, pseudocentipedes, or garden centipedes, even though they are not centipedes. They are […]
Fusarium is a soil-borne fungus that can survive for a decade or more in dormant stages. It enters the plant through roots and invades its water distribution network, where the fungi partially or completely block the vascular tissues, usually by gum-like formations, causing wilting and eventually death of the plant. General Description Widespread fungus that affects a wide […]
This year I finally figured out how to get a successful bell pepper harvest in Redding! The trick was to grow them in a wide bed, instead of a row, at biointensive spacing. What this means is that in a 4’x4′ bed I grew 14 plants in a honeycomb pattern, with each plant only 12″ […]
Compared to my 2010 bell pepper harvest, I had more fewer peppers, and less overall weight. In 2010, each plant produced 3 peppers and the average pepper weighed 2 oz; this year, 2011, each plant only produced 1 or 2 and they weighed only 1.5 oz, on average. This reduction in overall production is probably […]
Bell Pepper Varieties Chosen for 2011: RED BELL PEPPERS: Bell Boy Cal Wonder Fat & Sassy ORANGE BELL PEPPERS: Cal Wonder Orange YELLOW BELL PEPPERS: Super Heavyweight Quadrato Asti Giallo (New trial for this year!) PURPLE & BROWN BELL PEPPERS: Purple Beauty Sweet Chocolate (New trial for this year!) Growing Conditions: Since the last few […]
Each year I have grown 10-12 plants with maybe only 1 or 2 successful peppers each. The plants have been rather small and not very strong. Last year I gave them a bit more room than I usually do, but still had poor production. They also set pretty late and therefore most of them were […]
Quick Intro Physical Description Fungal wilt disease that starts as water-soaked spots on stems, then white moldy growth appears on the stems and then the branches wilt Species & Taxonomy Kingdom: Phylum: Class: Order: Family: Genus Species: Lifecycle Plants Affected peppers tomatoes Plants Unaffected Geographical Range Signs & Symptoms Whole Plant water-soaked […]
Quick Intro Physical Description Fungal wilt disease that often starts on one side of a plant, then works its way up. On individual leaflets, you can see it go down one side, then come back on the other side. If you live in a hot area, Verticillium stops causing problems once the temperatures climb and […]