Better Be Planting This Year. 2022+ And Up MEGATHREAD

SpaceCritter said:
Speaking of...



The nasturtium patch (and sunflowers)! [grin]
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You should plant some nasturtium in the vegetable garden too. They reduce aphids, cabbage worms, Colorado beetles, squash bugs and white flies.

Nasturtium also protects against wire worm in the potato patch. One nasturtium every six feet.
 
Medicine Man said:
You should plant some nasturtium in the vegetable garden too. They reduce aphids, cabbage worms, Colorado beetles, squash bugs and white flies.

Nasturtium also protects against wire worm in the potato patch. One nasturtium every six feet.
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I have nasturtium planted but cabbage worms get me EVERY year. Its really the only problematic pest I have. Decimate all the brassicas. Still finding them out there even now.

I think I am going to be dependent on BT though I haven't used any this year. Or maybe dont grow any for a year or two, though thats pretty tough as I like them and they are good growers.
 
FunnerGunner said:
I have nasturtium planted but cabbage worms get me EVERY year. Its really the only problematic pest I have. Decimate all the brassicas. Still finding them out there even now.
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Diatomaceous earth is one of the best defenses against cabbage worms. Opt for food-safe diatomaceous earth, which will target cabbage worms as well as a wide assortment of other garden pests. When applied to your grow media, it will effectively kill any bugs crawling around.
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Diatomaceous earth is a mineral-based pesticide and its composition is approximately 3 percent magnesium, 5 percent sodium, 2 percent iron, 19 percent calcium and 33 percent silicon, along with several other trace minerals
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Last edited:
FunnerGunner said:
I thought it only works on things with shells? EDIT: exoskeleton type critters
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By dusting on the vegetation they are consuming, they die from the inside-out by digesting it... not the outside from lack of fluids like the Exo's.
Same outcome, different process.

Same as Tomato Hornworms.
 
enbloc said:
By dusting on the vegetation they are consuming, they die from the inside-out by digesting it... not the outside from lack of fluids like the Exo's.
Same outcome, different process.

Same as Tomato Hornworms.
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Gotcha. I would still prefer BT as its more selective and wont kill ladybugs (bees?). I do use DE on the chickens but will consider it for broader application. BT does seem like the godsend for caterpillar issues though, open to debate on that.
 
FunnerGunner said:
Gotcha. I would still prefer BT as its more selective and wont kill ladybugs (bees?). I do use DE on the chickens but will consider it for broader application. BT does seem like the godsend for caterpillar issues though, open to debate on that.
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Yeah. DTE applied willey-nilly is not wise. Pest Targeting should be slow, patient and methodical...
 
FunnerGunner said:
I have nasturtium planted but cabbage worms get me EVERY year. Its really the only problematic pest I have. Decimate all the brassicas. Still finding them out there even now.

I think I am going to be dependent on BT though I haven't used any this year. Or maybe dont grow any for a year or two, though thats pretty tough as I like them and they are good growers.
Click to expand...
Cabbage worms suck.

I’m not a fan of BT. It works great, but I personally believe it’s responsible for the rash of leaky gut syndrome.

Some tricks:
A spoonful of sour milk in the center of the plant is an old standby.

Instead of DE you can use a mixture of flour and salt to dust the plants. The worms eat it, dehydrate and die.

Your best bet is still companion planting. Stop planting all the brassica plants together. Heck stop planting all the cabbage together.

Row planting is for tractor farming. You’ll have greater success by planting different things together.

Besides nasturtium, interplant garlic and onions. They deter most pests. Tomatoes and hot peppers are also great candidates and will help shade your brassica crops and prevent bolting.

The basic idea is to spread it all around rather than presenting it as a buffet. It’s not natural to have stands of just one plant. Nature moves to correct that with weeds, bugs and disease.

Look up intensive gardening.
 
Medicine Man said:
Cabbage worms suck.

I’m not a fan of BT. It works great, but I personally believe it’s responsible for the rash of leaky gut syndrome.

Some tricks:
A spoonful of sour milk in the center of the plant is an old standby.

Instead of DE you can use a mixture of flour and salt to dust the plants. The worms eat it, dehydrate and die.

Your best bet is still companion planting. Stop planting all the brassica plants together. Heck stop planting all the cabbage together.

Row planting is for tractor farming. You’ll have greater success by planting different things together.

Besides nasturtium, interplant garlic and onions. They deter most pests. Tomatoes and hot peppers are also great candidates and will help shade your brassica crops and prevent bolting.

The basic idea is to spread it all around rather than presenting it as a buffet. It’s not natural to have stands of just one plant. Nature moves to correct that with weeds, bugs and disease.

Look up intensive gardening.
Click to expand...
Yeah I do a number of those things. Have you tried parasitic wasps?
 
Medicine Man said:
Cabbage worms suck.

I’m not a fan of BT. It works great, but I personally believe it’s responsible for the rash of leaky gut syndrome.

Some tricks:
A spoonful of sour milk in the center of the plant is an old standby.

Instead of DE you can use a mixture of flour and salt to dust the plants. The worms eat it, dehydrate and die.

Your best bet is still companion planting. Stop planting all the brassica plants together. Heck stop planting all the cabbage together.

Row planting is for tractor farming. You’ll have greater success by planting different things together.

Besides nasturtium, interplant garlic and onions. They deter most pests. Tomatoes and hot peppers are also great candidates and will help shade your brassica crops and prevent bolting.

The basic idea is to spread it all around rather than presenting it as a buffet. It’s not natural to have stands of just one plant. Nature moves to correct that with weeds, bugs and disease.

Look up intensive gardening.
Click to expand...
Great Reply! Thank you!
~Matt
 
FunnerGunner said:
Yeah I do a number of those things. Have you tried parasitic wasps?
Click to expand...
I’ve never bought insects for biological control. Unless I was growing in a greenhouse, it just seemed silly watching them all fly away.

We’re taught that nature is a competition, survival of the fittest, etc. The reality is most things in nature work together and live side by side.

What is true is that the weak will be weeded out. Just like a wounded antelope a weak or wounded plant will be attacked.

Unfortunately a lot of our gardening practices encourage weak plants or the illusion of weak plants.

Nitrogen is unstable as a solid and rapidly converts to gas. Nitrogen that is in the soil and not being used by plants is called free nitrogen. It’s not attached to anything.

This free nitrogen is a sign of a sick plant incapable of pulling up nitrogen. Free nitrogen is like a beacon for insects and disease. They move in quickly to eliminate the problem.

Believe it or no by fertilizing your garden, you create the illusion of sick plants until all that nitrogen gets sucked up. It can encourage insects and disease.

Fertilizing and row planting the same plants side by side creates the ultimate out of balance buffet. If you give them nothing else to eat…?

Instead of growing plants, I grow soil. I grow soil five different ways. I’m not talking about dirt you buy in a bag. Soil is a living breathing organism.

Because my soil is so fertile, I never fertilize. I never create that free nitrogen state.

Couple this with companion plants that don’t fly away and you’ve got a solid strategy to hinder pests.
 
SpaceCritter said:
I've never even heard of buying them. When the worms appeared, the wasps did shortly thereafter.
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I thought that I was losing my container garden veggies during the heat waves, they’re back. The last couple of weeks were encouraging and now I’m actually amazed! The only thing I lost was yellow squash. I’ve got a lot of banana peppers almost ready, more zucchini blossoms and small zuccs growing. I have 2 tomato pots and 2 cherry pots still producing. Cukes have some new blossoms, but not looking great. Waiting for Scarlet Nantes carrots...
D4320FEC-A6C2-404A-B849-79B30ECFC03B.jpeg
 

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