The garden's been doing well, with some exceptions. We've been eating salads every night:
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| Yummy Mixed lettuces with Watermelon Radishes |
But I am once again doing battle with the Flea Beetles. For years every time I put out my eggplants, flea beetles would eat them down to nothing. The exception was last year. The Potager wasn't completed until June last year and I purchased a larger eggplant plant to put in the garden. It never was attacked by flea beetles. It may have been genetically modified or it was just a more mature plant. Flea Beetles apparently can't eat thicker mature leaves. I just learned this. If I had learned this earlier, I would have waited to plant the eggplants and not ended up with this:
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| Flea beetle damage - tons of holes and dried leaves |
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| Sad looking Black Beauty - there are no new signs of growth on it. |
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| Even worse looking Rosa Bianco. |
I even waited until they had larger leaves before putting them out, but the flea beetles are voracious nonetheless.
However, I have a back up.
This healthy looking Black Beauty is still on my porch. If the others die, it will go into the garden.
Note to self - keep more spare plants next year. You just never know.
Hi Debbie,
ReplyDeleteI love your garden and was wondering what kind of fencing you used around the perimeter. Does it provide enough protection from animals?
My husband designed the fencing - it is wood and plastic fence. The deer will eat anything that grows out of it, but can't get in. I think the arrangement of the boxes inside also stops them from coming in - it's confusing so they won't chance jumping in.
ReplyDeleteOur ground hog politely eats from the weeds and the compost pile - he's never bothered the garden. The rabbits get chased by the cats, so they stay away.
Squirrels have never tried to get in the garden either. I'm thinking the cats must chase them also, although I've never seen it.
Debbie- So sorry to read about the flea bettles - yickes! Thank goodness for your back-up eggplant. Good luck and your salad looks wonderful too! Love the looks of those watermelon radish.
ReplyDelete