Gardener to Farmer

I Saved a Slug: Yes, I Need Therapy

 Slugs. I mean, really, what can you say? They are awful, slimy creatures that are taking over everything...and, I did something the other day I never thought I'd do...but I am getting ahead of myself.

Let's start with this evil little creature...just fat and happy, eating my tomato.

In Portland, we are always battling slugs...it is a part of life...this guy is small. Often, I find the larger slugs decimating my lettuce.

But what's different here is that this guy climbed up the tomato plant and grabbed this tomato.

In fact, many of my tomatoes had slugs. I can't say I have ever known these voracious eaters to climb up a weirdly textured plant like a tomato to get to their dinner.

Yet, there they were...all over my end of summer (ok, let's face it, fall) tomatoes.

I don't know...I feel sort of apathetic about the whole thing. Early in the season, I use the pick and stomp method and WorryFree to keep these dudes at bay. But now, I feel less inclined to kill.

And actually, I did the unthinkable 2 days ago. We had spent the day harvesting fall bounty and had buckets of produce everywhere (check out the grape escape on Portland Foodie). I hurriedly cleaned and stored most of it, with the odd tomato or grape left in a bucket or two.

That evening, it rained. When I went out the next morning, there was a tiny slug sitting on a tomato, holding his little feelers and face above water...the rest of him was submerged.

What do you think I did? Yes, that's right, I picked up the tomato and put the slug in the lawn. I don't like the lawn anyway, and would be just as happy without it, but I digress.

I just couldn't watch the little dude drown. Would I use soapy water or beer or salt or any number of things (including squishing) to kill him on any other day? Yes. Could I stand by and do nothing while he drowned? No.

I don't know...it seems like it is less then fair play to kill the slug that way. Really, they are my most worthy opponents in the garden and winning by default, well, it felt less than honorable.

I know, you all will write in and tell me I am a nut...but I couldn't override my heart...and that connection, from my heart to my garden, is what I love about my time outside. And when the season is closing, I am more tender, more sentimental...and I honor that.

So, go free, little slug...'cause when I find you again in the spring, you will be sleeping with the fishes!

I Saw the Sun

Yes, I saw the sun today for the first time in I don't know how many weeks...I immediately dropped everything and ran outside to plant...I planted 5-6 varieties of tomatoes, 3 varieties of eggplant, french filet beans, and 2 kinds of squash. I also added more Worry Free slug bait and I am trying to save the cole crops from the dreaded white butterfly...it looks so innocuous, but the next thing you know, little caterpillars are eating giant holes in the brussel sprouts...So, I added a little Bt to the mix...both are organic methods for controlling pests. Needless to say, I didn't get the pictures and post ready for Green Thumb Sunday...

I am also redesigning my Edgy Entrepreneur blog and will be unveiling a new foodie blog...jeesh! More on these exciting new developments later in the week...

It is supposed to rain again tomorrow...

Gardener Discovers New Organic Pest Management Method?

Remember waaaaay back in March when I brought the strawberries into the greenhouse, hoping to have an early treat? As the plants started warming up and growing, some hateful insects started eating the leaves...

I didn't know what it was or what to do about it...You all gave me suggestions, and several of you identified the problem as weevils. In fact, strawberries have their own special weevil...called, wait for it, the Strawberry Root Weevil, dun, dun, dun....Aack, what a gross pest...anything with larvae really freaks me out.

Anyway, I grabbed up the plants and put them out into the yard...away from my seedlings. They sat outside for the next two months or so... During that time, we had a couple of freezes (which is ridiculous...Mother Nature is seriously acting up)...didn't kill the plants, but they stopped growing. As we moved into the spring, I noticed the new growth on the plants had no notches in it...
I kept an eye on it, waiting to see the evidence of my strawberries turning into a buggy snack... but nothing happened. This week, I upended the container and dug through the soil and roots...no sign of any buggies...maybe one lonely slug...but that was it. So, I decided to divide them up and plant them anyway...

Did the freezing weather kill the adults before they could lay eggs? Did I just happen to catch the pest in the time during its lifecycle when it is inactive? Did I just infect my strawberry bed with larvae?? If a train leaves New York at 5 am, going 60 miles per hours, how many Strawberry Root Weevils will it kill?

For the answer to these questions and more...stay tuned! We won't know for sure until fall/spring of next year. In the meantime, I will probably go ahead and dowse the whole bed with beneficial nemetodes, just in case I have not actually created a new method of organic pest management...

We are the Champions, My Friends!

Many of you may remember one of my first posts about Hateful Wildlife. In it, I showed a particularly disturbing photo of a ravaged onion bed...It was an onion massacre, the likes of which I had never seen. Below is a picture of the hatefulness, if you have children near the computer, please, avert their eyes...

It just never loses its impact, does it? This kind of natural disaster could cause a family to lose their onion crop for a whole year...But would I let that happen? Would I? I CAN'T HEAR YOU...WOULD I?? I didn't think so...

Behold, the VICTOR!

Yes, some of those poor little yellow and white onions survived, and all of the Giant Dutch Shallots survived (on the left). In my next planting of yellow and white onions, I followed advice left by my readers and covered the bulbs with a row cover until they were rooted and had green shoots. Guess what? Yep, those are coming in, too...

But that's not all...Jean Ann, tell them what they've won...Walla Walla Onion Seedlings!

OH MY GOD!! I can't believe it! I've never won anything before!! Walla Walla's?? Are you sure?? It's a dream come true!!

These little cuties were grown from seed in the greenhouse, then transplanted a couple of weeks ago out in The Back 40 . I started them in a seed starting mix in an egg carton. It was one of the paper egg cartons, so the whole process was earth friendly...isn't that cool? I can't wait to eat one...Yummy!

Folks, the moral of this story is that you can't truly succeed until you have overcome failure...and overcome it, I did.

Two Fer

Yesterday, it was sunny and nearly 60 degrees! Hmmm, maybe grounding MN (Mother Nature) worked...Note to self: consider creating a system of rewards and punishments to help MN learn how to regulate... And I have so much to talk about, I am making this a two fer...yes, that's right, two...two...two posts in one! And I won't even charge you extra...

Anyhoo, as you can see, I spent the entire day out in the deliciously warm weather. I did an inordinate amount of weeding, yuck, and planted seeds and little seedlings. I transplanted what seemed like a hundred little Walla Walla onion seedlings. I seeded them in an egg carton, the one that holds 18 eggs. It actually worked very well. I noticed in the last couple of days the were looking a bit jaundiced, so I knew I had to get them into the soil, STAT!

I also transplanted my Falstaff Brussel Sprouts. These guys are so cute! (Did you ever think you would hear a Brussel Sprout called cute?) They are purple with a bit of light green here and there...adorable!

On to the second part...I came across many a bug/worm/creepy crawlie while out digging in the dirt. I noticed quite a few slugs, which I handily dispatch with my sword...err, weeding tool...and I took my weevil addled strawberries out of the greenhouse and over to the trash can...can't compost those as I don't want to add the strawberry weevils to our new property. And as I was ready to come inside, I noticed this...

Unfortunately, I didn't get a very good picture of it. If you could see a bit better, you would notice it is a black beetle with an inverted orange "v" on its back. I wasn't sure if it was a good or bad bug, so I left it alone with plans to post it and get some help with identification...So leave me a comment and let me know if you have seen this guy before and if I should be doing something about the fact that he has taken up residence on the side of my garage...

It is supposed to be sunny and 60 again today. Sadly, I will have to go in to work. If only I were independently wealthy...

Strawberry Snack

I have been in denial. I have refused to believe that something has wintered over in the strawberry plants and is even now munching on the leaves. I brought the plants into the greenhouse to give them a head start on berry production. I noticed there was a bit of leaf damage then, but didn't pay much attention, thinking it was left over from last season. But when I went out to water last evening, I noticed there was new chewing going on...and I suppose I should figure out what it is so it doesn't affect any of the other plants in the greenhouse.

For some reason, this is the part of gardening that is most difficult for me to implement organic methods. I know, I know...I can't just blast it with a bottle of non selective bug killer...but that would be so easy! Last year, I had a problem with nasty cutworms and they almost decimated my coleus plantings until I happened upon Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). And either it was wildly successful, or we finally made it to June. Either way, the damage stopped.

I also released lady bugs and praying mantids, and while I am doubtful of their effectiveness, it was a lot of fun! It's not that I think lady bugs and other beneficial insects aren't helpful, it's that I don't see how I can possibly know if the cute little things didn't just hightail it to the hills after I set them free. I know some of the praying mantids hung out, but they are sort of equal opportunity killers...they eat whatever bugs cross their paths...both the beneficials and the nasties.

I am just not sure about what methods to use for what...and it seems to me that is the key to organic pest management. I would feel way too awful to use a non-organic chemical, particularly if the problem exists on something edible. Instead, I tend to just stand helplessly, transfixed by the destruction, swimming in uncertainty. Yeesh.

But, not this time...I am going to try and actually do something before I have no strawberries, or other greenhouse plants for that matter. What do you think? Do you have ideas for me to try? I will give it a shot and report back on my progress...

Hateful Wildlife

Let's all be clear here, wildlife can be extremely hateful. What you see above represents the umpteenth time I have tried to protect my little onion bulbs from the marauding intruder who takes great joy in digging them up, only to leave them laying on the ground right where they were. Each time, I go back out, replant them and try a new preventative technique. So far, I have tried Cayenne pepper and row covers.

OK, to be fair, this has only happened three or four times. But it FEELS like a hundred times! I just don't understand...onions? Why onions? None of the other seed beds have been disturbed...just the onions. Not the shallots, just the onions. Onion persecution!!

I can't decide if it is the squirrels or the HUGE black crows that are everywhere on my property. I think they have both become a bit entitled and entirely too cheeky...If you ask me, several of our fine feathered (and furred) friends are too big for their britches!!

I will let you know when I succeed in dealing with these haters. For now, I am just sulking about it.