Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page.
Q. This summer my zucchini plants produced many fruits that began to develop but then withered at the far ends and slowly rotted off. Why does this happen?
A. Questions on this common zucchini issue arise often. When the far, blossom end of a developing zucchini withers away and rots, the problem is some kind of stressor preventing newly formed fruits to develop to a usable size.
The stressor(s) can be poor or dry soil, a lack of pollinating insects, or uncongenial weather conditions
Given a modestly but consistently moist soil that is reasonably fertile and humus-rich, temperatures may have been an issue. Zucchini grows and produces best at temperatures in the 18 to 24 C range. Higher temperatures stress the plants. With hot weather, I top-dress my zucchini plants with compost and cover the compost with an moisture-conserving, insulating mulch. I use chopped straw, a good deflector of hot sunlight.
Young zucchinis can also rot if they rest on a wet soil surface. To keep zucchinis (and cucumbers) in good condition, avoid overwatering and consider lifting the fruits to rest and develop on a dry surface such as chopped straw.
Q. My shelling pea plants and pods developed some powdery mildew. Is it safe to shell and eat peas when the pods are slightly mildewed? The peas themselves look fine.
A. In a very severe infection, with all parts of the plants covered in a heavy dusting of powdery mildew, it is best to remove and destroy all parts of the plants, but if the infection is light and the peas inside the pods are clear of disease, it should be safe to
The website greengrove.cc is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
Want to make hummingbirds see red? Plant a firebush in your garden. Also called scarlet bush, it is not only among the easiest of plants to grow, but it also stays in bloom throughout the growing season with clusters of tubular red buds and flowers. Because the Southern growing season overlaps the spring and fall migration times of the ruby-throated hummingbird, and red is by far their favorite color, these blossoms will summon them to your garden.
‘PLANTS TELL the story of a place,” says field botanist and native plant nursery owner Jared Rosenbaum. “If you want to be rooted on the earth you live on, you can look to plants to interpret that story.”
Don’t put away your gardening tools just yet! Once the weather moderates, there’s still plenty of time to plant. In fact, fall actually is an ideal time for adding new perennials and shrubs to your garden to add beauty, privacy, andpollinator-friendly plants.
Have you ever thought about installing a pond in your garden? A pond can offer numerous advantages and serves more purposes than just being a decorative feature. Whether you have a spacious garden or a modest area, a pond can be a valuable addition. Here are five reasons why your garden might benefit from having a pond:
ORGANIC FARMING and gardening have always been based on the principle of feed the soil, not the plant. I recently got some expert advice for doing that, and also learned more about why our diligent soil consciousness matters so much, with the co-directors of the nonprofit Real Organic Project, a farmer-led organization advocating for food produced in concert with healthy soils and pastures.
Well, obviously, you’re not growing these houseplants because they are toxic! But with this deadly and discomforting quality, why grow them indoors at all? Because you simply can’t resist them! Let’s find out what these plants are and why we can’t stop ourselves from loving them.
On our final day we headed upstream to the small town of Bacharach, a former capital of the region and full of old timber framed houses like those you can see in the above photo. It was also festival time, with the streets bedecked with colourful flags and other decorations, the central one giving a clue to us being in the heart of the wine making area, with vineyards stretching impossibly steeply up the valleys either side of the river. No wonder wine production continues to be mainly by hand in this area.We could see the first hints of autumn* along the river valley, though daytime temperatures and sunlight were distinctly summertime. Now we're home it definitely looks and feels even more autumnal, how's the season with you?* I was surprised the trees of the region were mainly broadleaf, for some reason I'd expected evergreens.