Any tips on Southwestern US gardening and pollination?
I live in a very dry climate in the Southwest where the soil is composed of rocks and sand. I created a raised garden and mixed the sand with vegetable soil as instructed on the bag of soil. I planted a cherry tomato plant in early April and currently about 3 feet tall and pretty wide! There are only 5 tomato’s . Is this normal? The reason I am asking is because last year I planted pumpkin seed and the vine grew 10 feet but it never produced fruit. If I live in an area that doesn’t get much “pollination” from insects, is there a way to sort of help it along? PS. I water it three times a week and the leaves and yellow flowers look healthy.
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6 Answers
You need to add fertilizer, made for veggies. Also water daily.
This is my first garden too (I’m in the central valley of California) and I am feeling like a really crappy gardener. I got maybe 15 tiny strawberries on 15 plants and no new flowers so I’m thinking maybe the season is over? Very few tomato’s are growing and my peppers are pretty puny. There are a few green tomatoes, but some of the plants don’t have any. I weed and weed, and by the time I walk back to the garbage can I see a dozen more weeds that I missed. The only thing that is growing is the zucchini.
Maybe I will do better next year. :-(
If i water daily, the tips turn dark so I thought I was watering too much.
Good luck Judi!! So we’re in the same boat!!! This is why I didn’t buy too many to start with.
If you can get past the yuck factor, diluted urine is one of the best nitrogen fertilizers for tomatoes and scores of other plants. I’m using it on maize-corn, beans, squash and pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers, and a variety of herbs. The corn in particular seems to be enjoying it. Oh, and I think the lambsquarter that just sprouted up unbidden that I’ve been encouraging also enjoys it.
If you only had one pumpkin vine last year it didn’t produce fruit because you need at least a few in an area, and the males and females need to be flowering at the same time, roughly.
For pollinating, you can always use a feather to transfer pollen.
It sounds like you need to build up your soil.
Here are 2 options that might help
1. Lasagna Gardening – http://organicgardening.about.com/od/startinganorganicgarden/a/lasagnagarden.htm
2. Try building up the soil with Potassium, Nitrogen, and Phosphorus. These come in bags and can be bought from Home Depot, Loews or your local garden store. These are the nutrients all pants need to grow and thrive.
Good Luck
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