T wrote:
songbird wrote:
T wrote:
songbird wrote:
T wrote:
...
I give it extra water and extra fertilizer. But it is still
sad looking and not growing much.

if it isn't actively growing it should not
be fertilized much at all..

Uh oh!

How about the extra water? Am I screwing up there too?

i don't know, it depends upon the condtions.
here it has been hot and dry enough that i water
the veggie patches every three or four days. a
container plant in the hot sun might need water
twice a day... (i don't have any veggie container
plants)


I only use certified organic fertilizer. Does that
make a difference?

i would back off a bit to see how it responds.
without knowing the specific nutrients and
ingredients i couldn't say. for me the organic
fertilizers i use are either green manure chopped
and left for the worms to digest or the worms and
worm castings that i put in the gardens under
the plants in the spring when i'm planting. i
don't fertilize after that. by rotation planting
then i may not fertilize a garden for two or
more years later. depends upon what i'm growing
in that space.

I wish I had your skills!

in time it comes along. i didn't know anything
when i started growing plants as a kid, but i read
and practiced and made mistakes and kept at it.
even now i still make mistakes.

mostly i'm just a very simple gardener and in
doing that and using principles like encouraging
diversity and using cover crops and having areas
that are insect refuges it seems to be working out
pretty well.

i'm also pretty laid back. i don't always get
things done on time or worry too much if there's
a weed here or there.

as far as crop rotation goes, just pick plants
from a different family of plants. as long as
they aren't a heavy feeder you may not need as much
fertilizer (or none at all). i like beans and
peas enough, but plenty of other things work well
too. after zuchinis onions or garlic, beans,
peppers...


....
Okay. Bummer. Any advice other than to do an autopsy?
Autopsies are kind of hard on the patient!

is it still in a pot or is it planted in the
ground?

I hacked holes in the ground, pulled out all the
rocks, stuck weeds at the bottom (your doing by the way),
filled with peat moss and whatever that stuff is called
that came out of the hole to start with. I figured
that since my soil is so poor and hard, I would make a
"ground pots". Not problem with them blowing over and
cheap. They were not easy to hack out. Took forever.

I just water the ground pots with a wand. I made sure
the fillings I put back didn't quite go to the surface
so water would pool up.

All my other plants seen to really have taken to
my ground pots too!

On the bright side, I discovered that swinging an ax
is really good for my blood sugar! Vigorous exercise
has the same effect on a T2 as eating a carb loaded meal.
That would be your liver thinking your are running for you
life!

well, glad that things are going ok. i'm
pretty sure i'd want something in there other
than peat moss, but at least it is organic matter
and better than nothing.

next time those holes will be easier to work with.
each season builds upon the last... next year you
can make more holes if needed, but the previous ones
can be planted with some other family of plant. made
a little bigger. keep chipping away.


songbird