# Questions on cucumber & zucchini plants



## Mantaray (Aug 29, 2004)

My cucumber plants were doing great, all of a sudden they stopped on their track on the climbing fence. All of the tops just bundled together with little flowers & undeveloped leaves. I could see black sandy stuff (insect eggs?) falling onto the leaves below. I could not see any insects & no leaves are being eaten. 

My zucchini plants produce a lot of male flowers. I have been eating a bunch but left a few for the bees. The female flowers never opened up & the small fruits just died. I checked each morning but never had a chance to hand-pollinate. I don't think the bees had any chances either. Of the 3 zucchini plants, I have one single zucchini that is big & still growing. I hand-pollinated this one since it was the only female flower that opened up.

What am I doing wrong? Could it be the fact that I used cheap topsoil from Home Depot? I got it for $1.98 a bag. I have been using miracle gro fertilizer.


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

too much miracle gro?


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## w_r_ranch (Jan 14, 2005)

It's getting too late in the season. They won't set fruit & start to shutdown down when the temp gets too high.


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## Profish00 (May 21, 2004)

Too hot


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## Mantaray (Aug 29, 2004)

Thanks. I planted them kinda late but thought they would produce through the entire summer. I'm surprised my lone tomato is in the same condition (halt growing). Now I'm intending to clear them out & not wasting water on them. My next question: What could I plant that would produce and last right up to the fall?


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## w_r_ranch (Jan 14, 2005)

Basically we have 2 growing seasons - spring & fall. Very few things grow through the July/August heat (eggplant & okra are all that I personally know).

Plant your spring garden just after March 15 & your fall garden late Sept/early Oct. and you should do well. You will get your spring harvest before the heat hits & your fall harvest be for the hard winter frosts.

Note: If you do potatoes, we have a thread on their planting dates here too.


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

You can grow enough okra to feed the world through our summers here on a small plot of ground....but not much else makes it in my garden in July and August.


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## BEER4BAIT (Jun 24, 2005)

May be to dry late summer and fall. I plant beans, peas, carrots, and corn first part of Aug. but will end up composting due to lack of rain till Mid Sept. Mid Sept., I plant lettuce, cabbage, brocoli, onions, leeks, turnips, spinach, kolorabi, and swiss chard. In the garage in Aug. start you cabbage, leeks, brocoli, and lettuce to trans plant Sept through Nov. Get seeds now they have been like ammo everyone buying them up.


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