Ashley has been busy! Doing what, you ask? Harvesting, of course!
One of the more glorious times in the garden, she is reaping what she sowed (is that a word?). Anyhoo, she is happy as a lark with her first bounty of potatoes, zucchini and beans. You know this by how CLEAN they are! I assure you these babies didn’t look like this when she dug them out of that inky black dirt. Way to grow, Ashley!
And while you may not be aware, she was privately battling a topsy-turvy experiment gone wrong (one stiff breeze whacked the entire contraption from her tree) but is happy to report: success!
Isn’t it beautiful? You’d never know the trauma this poor thing endured by looking at it, would you? And quite lush now that it’s comfortably (and safely) secured in a real planter with real support. Not that I have anything against topsy-turvy, mind you. In fact, I’ve heard of several that have done fine, just not this one.
Off to Julie’s and lo and behold, we discover this unfortunate sight.
Yep, according to what the Stephan from mold remediation in Montreal, those white spots are fungus (or mildew) and are not good. Most probably a result of humid conditions (surprise — it’s Central Florida!) and/or leaf watering, but if these leaves aren’t removed and quick, this nasty stuff will spread. Some might attempt to spray it with a mix of antibacterial soap and water, allowing the mixture to dry before rinsing it off with a hose, but me, I’d remove them and move on. Because I don’t have time to spray, dry, rinse and repeat. Of course…my kids are home on summer break… Why, there may be all sorts of things I suddenly “have time” for! Division of labor works wonders on a schedule. 🙂
Another more gruesome discovery were these piles of frass (poop).
“Oh, hey–thanks for sharing!” 🙁
Sorry, but I had to show this photo. It’s important you learn how to spot signs of hornworm invasion–other than the more obvious stems-without-leaves syndrome!
These are common pests and quite the pigs, I might add. Found one myself this morning during my daily garden visit. The beast was so big and fat I thought he’d explode at my mere touch! Of course he was dispatched immediately.
Prevention would be most opportune in combating these fiends, specifically Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis). Purported to be organic and safe to everything but hornworms, this may be the answer. One thing for sure, I’m going to check into this magic potion because I absolutely dread the “hornworm search.” Unless they’re HUGE, I have a hard time seeing them (don’t usually wear my glasses to the garden) and HUGE hornworms can down a plant in a matter of days so by the time they reach this size, I am so-out-of-luck.
I’ll keep you posted!
Those hornworms are greedy little buggers. Hope you got ’em all. Looks like you’re enjoying some good homegrown veggies.