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Old 11-01-2005, 06:09 PM
simy1
 
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Default Last year, fungus fungus everywhere

If you have a wet summer, plant cabbage, greens, beets, celery, favas,
peas, potatoes. Whatever will take the weather. As you say, there is
little you can do. I live in a warmer zone than you (Zone 5.5), and I
have all but given up on eggplants, I am giving a last chance to
peppers this summer, and the racoons have counseled me to give up the
strawberries. I am dissatisfied with the tomatoes and zucchini, this
place just does not have tomato weather (reliably) in the summer.

But under the tunnels right now I am picking every week buckets of
hardy greens, and my siberian garlic is the best of the best. You have
to adapt. Cool season veggies have a lot to offer. More nutrients, more
production per square foot, more medicinal value, a harvest that
extends to Thanksgiving even without cover.

wrote:
Hi all,

I live in Zone 4 - Northern VT. Last year was not a good year for my
garden. We had a very wet, cold rainy summer and the garden rarely

had
a chance to dry out. Hence the fungus thrived - my tomatoes all but
keeled over from blight, the strawberries were covered with gray

mold,
the lilacs lived under a sheath of powdery mildew. Basically the
fungus family had a field day and there was little I could do. Baking
soda spray wouldn't touch it. Copper sulfate didn't do much for it.

Hoping that this summer will be a bit dryer. I'm not entirely an
organic gardener, I am a chemist so I make my own decision knowing
what I do about chemicals, but I don't use too many commercially
manufactured pesticides or fungicides. I rotate crops every year, and
I keep the diseased plants out of the compost and soil as much as
possible. I plan to use a plastic mulch this year to keep the soil
from splashing up onto the tomato plants. Can anyone give me any

other
advice in terms of preparing my fungus infested soil?

Thanks much.


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Old 11-01-2005, 06:09 PM
simy1
 
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Default

If you have a wet summer, plant cabbage, greens, beets, celery, favas,
peas, potatoes. Whatever will take the weather. As you say, there is
little you can do. I live in a warmer zone than you (Zone 5.5), and I
have all but given up on eggplants, I am giving a last chance to
peppers this summer, and the racoons have counseled me to give up the
strawberries. I am dissatisfied with the tomatoes and zucchini, this
place just does not have tomato weather (reliably) in the summer.

But under the tunnels right now I am picking every week buckets of
hardy greens, and my siberian garlic is the best of the best. You have
to adapt. Cool season veggies have a lot to offer. More nutrients, more
production per square foot, more medicinal value, a harvest that
extends to Thanksgiving even without cover.

wrote:
Hi all,

I live in Zone 4 - Northern VT. Last year was not a good year for my
garden. We had a very wet, cold rainy summer and the garden rarely

had
a chance to dry out. Hence the fungus thrived - my tomatoes all but
keeled over from blight, the strawberries were covered with gray

mold,
the lilacs lived under a sheath of powdery mildew. Basically the
fungus family had a field day and there was little I could do. Baking
soda spray wouldn't touch it. Copper sulfate didn't do much for it.

Hoping that this summer will be a bit dryer. I'm not entirely an
organic gardener, I am a chemist so I make my own decision knowing
what I do about chemicals, but I don't use too many commercially
manufactured pesticides or fungicides. I rotate crops every year, and
I keep the diseased plants out of the compost and soil as much as
possible. I plan to use a plastic mulch this year to keep the soil
from splashing up onto the tomato plants. Can anyone give me any

other
advice in terms of preparing my fungus infested soil?

Thanks much.


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Old 12-01-2005, 09:26 PM
simy1
 
Posts: n/a
Default


Ally wrote:
On 11 Jan 2005 09:09:22 -0800, "simy1" wrote:

My potatoes loved the wet summer; and the brussel sprouts did really
well, as did the carrots (I found that surprising). I am learning

what
veggies do best up here, course trying to find that plus those which
my husband will eat, leaves a very small opportunity! So I'm thinking
potatoes, garlic, brussel sprouts, basil (for pesto).


There are many cool season veggies that are tasty. Of course potatoes
(fingerlings and Yukon, but just about any freshly dug potato will do)
and northern garlic is superior. But also sorrel soup is the best soup,
and most perennial herbs can be grown in your zone. Then there are
mushrooms,
spinach. Favas and peas are great, specially when you eat them out of
the freezer the next winter. Long-headed radicchio, baked in the oven
with olive oil and salt, makes everyone swoon. In the fall, we love to
mix carrot sticks, thinly sliced red cabbage, thyme and salad dressing.

I am absolutely hooked on tomatoes though; I am almost out of sauce,
and usually I make enough tomato sauce to last a year. By sheer will

I
am going to get them through the summer! They actually do fine on the
dry summers; the weather is really variable up here. Sometimes it's

90
in May and sometimes it snows in June! The strawberry patch will
likely feed the birds, who generally eat a few bites and spit them

out
anyway.



I would select a spot on the sunny side of the house, which will warm
and dry the fastest. And I would restrict myself to extra early
(stupice), canning (roma), and cherry. Cherry tomatoes may not be first
but they are early, and as far as I can tell they are the most
productive in a cool summer, so long as they get their compost.



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Old 26-01-2005, 07:26 PM
Loki
 
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il 12 Jan 2005 12:26:35 -0800, "simy1" ha scritto:


I would select a spot on the sunny side of the house, which will warm
and dry the fastest. And I would restrict myself to extra early
(stupice), canning (roma), and cherry. Cherry tomatoes may not be first
but they are early, and as far as I can tell they are the most
productive in a cool summer, so long as they get their compost.


This is a bit late to comment. However...
There is a cool weather tomato called Russian Red. It's a fairly
stumpy looking thing when compared to other whispy young tomtato
plants. Do you have that variety or others like it?

--
Cheers,
Loki [ Brevity is the soul of wit. W.Shakespeare ]

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