LIFE’S FLAVORS 6/22- In the garden squash and tomatoes- ALLISON LIBBY-THESING OF THE OAKS BED & BREAKFAST

Summer is in full swing and if you are like me then that means taking kids to all the places, sports practices, all while still running a business and maintaining the garden.  The recent rain has helped a ton, since then that does not mean I have to water my garden.  But now it’s time to keep my plants happy.  

Last month we talked about fertilizer and what natural ones we use for our garden.  Let me tell you all my plants love the extra treatment we gave them with the coffee grounds, egg shells and banana peel “juice.”  That’s not all plants need to survive and produce the greatest amount of yield for your family.  No matter if you are container gardening or if you are gardening straight into the ground you plants need some extra TLC so they produce the most “fruit.”

Today I want to focus on tomatoes and squash.  We have so many wonderful tomato plants in our garden this year that I can hardly wait to enjoy the fruit.  I also want to maximize the growth of fruit and have the plant work harder on production than just growing leaves. I give my tomatoes a regular “hair cut,” if you will.  I trim off any leaf steams that do not show signs of flowers.  Down by the ground I trim away any stems that have come out right at the base of the stem growth.  From there I make my way up the plant until I have it all trimmed back, so it can focus on fruit production.
 I find this helps the plant focus it’s growing and energy on the growth of new fruit that we can later harvest and eat.  I will admit, one of my plants I was a little overzealous and trimmed it back too much and was afraid that it would not produce more fruit.  In the end I lucked out, it created new growth, which produced new flower buds that turned into fruit.  

Squash plants, while easy to grow and care for can develop a few issues that can reduce the production out of your plant.  Powdery Mildew and squash bugs or vine bores are troublesome but can be delt with efficiently to help with continued growth.  Mildew could be caused by late in the day watering or over crowding of the plants.  Make sure your squash plants have room to grow.  Water in the early morning so that the sun has time to help dry the plant off.  If there is still an issue we use an organic fungicide.  
Squash bugs and vine bores can a pain to get rid of but not impossible.  If you find that you have some you can easily pick them off your plants and drop them into a bucket with liquid soap and water.  Creating a spray out of the soap and water and misting your plants can help as well.  Duct tape can also capture the bugs and pull them off.  Diatomaceous Earth is another good idea to sprinkle the bugs with DE and it will work its way into their system and they will die shortly after the application.  

Two ways to prevent the squash bugs from invading your garden would be to cover the plants early so the bugs can not land and lay their eggs.  Examine your leaves and discard any eggs that may have been laid.  You can also use a natural bug repellant, nasturtium.  Nasturtium as a companion plant will help deter squash bugs and you have the advantage of another leafy green to add to salads. 

If you have vine bores the best way to get rid of them is to squash them right in the vine.  Once you seen that your vines are being disturbed by these pests you can cut open the vine to find the bugs pull them out and squash them or squash them directly inside your plant.  If you choose to cut your vines open be sure to cover the damaged vine with dirt so that the plant will continue to grow.