Veggie challenge update
EAT YOUR VEGETABLES: Maryann James posts on vegetable gardening every Tuesday.
I hope your vegetables are growing well, intrepid gardeners! The response last week to the veggie challenge was amazing -- I'm excited to hear about the progress of your arugula, cucumbers, herbs, peas and green beans. Keep me updated.
As promised, I got two new vegetable plants to hold up my part of the vegetable challenge: I'm trying cucumbers again and testing out a hot pepper plant. The cucumber plant has been nestled amongst the boisterous, nosy nasturtiums; I may have to move them if they distract my cucumber plant too much. I love the fuzzy feel of the cucumber leaves; I'm excited to watch more of its prickly leaves unfurl.
I discovered, a bit too late, that I bought too seedlings, not one. Where's the other seedling, you ask?
It went to that great cucumber garden in the sky.
Lesson learned, now that it has happened twice? Cucumbers hate each other. As soon as they sprout, separate them. Put them far, far away from each other.
I also bought a hot pepper plant. Being the end of the robust spring seedling season, there were few sprightly plants outside of the cucumber and pepper genres. So, hot pepper it was.
I didn't do my research before picking my plant, and it seems I committed a cardinal sin. According to Rodale's Ultimate Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening, you should not pick plants that already have small fruits. They don't produce well.
Oh well. I'm happy to be the poster child for Gardening Dos and Don'ts, heavy on the don'ts. How are you vegetable gardens growing? I want to see pictures! (You can e-mail to maryann.james@baltsun.com or post them on Baltimore Sun's flickr group, and I'd be happy to share.)
And any veterans have tips for cucumbers and peppers?
Comments
I know I've bought plants with fruit on them. Seems to me, the worst that can happen is, the already-on fruit will or won't do well, but the fruit that follows will or won't (I'm not all that scientific about gardening. Many variables.) be just fine.
Perhaps, in order to be a vegetable gardener, one needs to like mysteries.
Posted by: Eve | June 23, 2009 11:47 AM
Hope that your cucumbers and peppers do very well for you. Enjoy the eating. They are so much better when you have grown them. The are so much better tasting than store bought.
Dan and Deanna "Marketing Unscrambled"
Posted by: Dan and Deanna | June 25, 2009 1:53 AM