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Post by smsmith on Aug 1, 2023 9:58:23 GMT -6
I wonder if the jewelweed even sprouted and grew this year I saw a bit somewhere. I haven't spent much time in the areas where I've seen it growing in previous years. I may have some out there somewhere, I don't know edit...back to pumpkins. Last weekend I noticed the pumpkin vines/leaves west of the house were heavily infested with little, black bugs that hop around when you brush up against the plants (aphids?). Also lots of grasshoppers out there, just like every drought year. I figured since the deer were eating the pumpkin fruit and vines, and the bugs were sucking the life out of the leaves I'd hit them with a shot of permethrin, bloom booster fertilizer, and Deer Off. I just soaked them all, we'll see what happens... further edit...some searching would seem to indicate my black jumping bugs are flea beetles. I had to stop growing brassicas west of the house due to the same little black bastards. I had forgotten that, the west plot has been in a clover/alfalfa mix for a number of years now. I wonder if drought makes them worse?
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Post by smsmith on Aug 18, 2023 17:41:57 GMT -6
Probably the last round of pumpkin irrigation tonight. Heading to Kab in the morning for a week. I suppose I might hit the pumpkins one more time if the drought stays as ugly as the 2 week forecast looks
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Post by Sandbur on Aug 18, 2023 18:56:11 GMT -6
Probably the last round of pumpkin irrigation tonight. Heading to Kab in the morning for a week. I suppose I might hit the pumpkins one more time if the drought stays as ugly as the 2 week forecast looks Good luck on the fishing and have fun. I am cutting back on the watering. We pulled the summer squash and 2/4 cucumbers. After this week, newly planted apple trees might only get water once a week.
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Post by smsmith on Aug 19, 2023 7:33:38 GMT -6
Probably the last round of pumpkin irrigation tonight. Heading to Kab in the morning for a week. I suppose I might hit the pumpkins one more time if the drought stays as ugly as the 2 week forecast looks Good luck on the fishing and have fun. I am cutting back on the watering. We pulled the summer squash and 2/4 cucumbers. After this week, newly planted apple trees might only get water once a week. Thanks. I doubt we'll catch much, but at least it's supposed to be much cooler up there than here. Most of our garden is done for the year, but our tomatoes and peppers are still going strong. I hope they still look okay when we get home.
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Post by smsmith on Aug 26, 2023 15:53:59 GMT -6
Dumb deer ate all the pumpkin fruit in the last week. I wonder what the odds are of getting mature pumpkins before frost are now...
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Post by smsmith on Aug 27, 2023 19:00:18 GMT -6
Watched a doe and her twins walk through the actively watering tower sprinkler tonight repeatedly. I yelled at them a few times from 50ish yards away. They just looked at me and kept me eating. Not much you're going to do once they find a good food source I suppose.
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Post by smsmith on Aug 29, 2023 18:56:01 GMT -6
Couple bucks out there tonight eating pumpkin vines and clover.
I'm done watering for the year. They win
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Post by smsmith on Sept 2, 2023 7:34:49 GMT -6
Couple bucks out there tonight eating pumpkin vines and clover. I'm done watering for the year. They win I wandered around out there last evening and actually found a few, small green pumpkin fruit. I decided to give it one more shot. I watered a section last night, and will water the rest this morning/tonight. I sprayed the section I watered last night with Deer Out a bit ago. Maybe I can keep the deer off long enough to get a couple orange pumpkins yet (I remain doubtful)
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Post by Foggy on Sept 2, 2023 7:46:46 GMT -6
Couple bucks out there tonight eating pumpkin vines and clover. I'm done watering for the year. They win I wandered around out there last evening and actually found a few, small green pumpkin fruit. I decided to give it one more shot. I watered a section last night, and will water the rest this morning/tonight. I sprayed the section I watered last night with Deer Out a bit ago. Maybe I can keep the deer off long enough to get a couple orange pumpkins yet (I remain doubtful) Maybe you need an exclusion cage or three?....lol.
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Post by smsmith on Sept 2, 2023 7:54:25 GMT -6
I wandered around out there last evening and actually found a few, small green pumpkin fruit. I decided to give it one more shot. I watered a section last night, and will water the rest this morning/tonight. I sprayed the section I watered last night with Deer Out a bit ago. Maybe I can keep the deer off long enough to get a couple orange pumpkins yet (I remain doubtful) Maybe you need an exclusion cage or three?....lol. I'd need to fence the whole area off until the pumpkins are ripe, then remove the fence. This is the first year they've hit the fruit and vines this hard. It has to be due to the drought. I believe I've read that deer get the vast majority of their water needs meet via the foods they eat, not from drinking. Native vegetation is dry as a bone this year. My irrigated pumpkins/vines are lush (as is the clover/alfalfa growing around/among them). This is also the first year I've had all the apple/crabapple fruit eaten on numerous trees as high as a deer can reach. Again, it's gotta be because the fruit is high in moisture content.
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Post by Sandbur on Sept 2, 2023 8:58:49 GMT -6
Maybe you need an exclusion cage or three?....lol. I'd need to fence the whole area off until the pumpkins are ripe, then remove the fence. This is the first year they've hit the fruit and vines this hard. It has to be due to the drought. I believe I've read that deer get the vast majority of their water needs meet via the foods they eat, not from drinking. Native vegetation is dry as a bone this year. My irrigated pumpkins/vines are lush (as is the clover/alfalfa growing around/among them). This is also the first year I've had all the apple/crabapple fruit eaten on numerous trees as high as a deer can reach. Again, it's gotta be because the fruit is high in moisture content. A lot of my fruit on the ground and on trees has not been eaten. Perhaps there has been a bit more feeding on drops during the last few days. Irrigation on crops on three sides of me might be the reason for the difference.
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Pumpkins
Sept 24, 2023 7:34:36 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by smallchunk on Sept 24, 2023 7:34:36 GMT -6
Did you get hit with a frost up there when it dipped into the 30’s or are those fruit turning orange?
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Post by Sandbur on Sept 24, 2023 11:12:41 GMT -6
Did you get hit with a frost up there when it dipped into the 30’s or are those fruit turning orange? We had frost on some the grass, but no significant damage except a few squash leaves.
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Post by smsmith on Sept 28, 2023 13:10:03 GMT -6
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Post by benmnwi on Sept 28, 2023 13:50:07 GMT -6
That buck sure seems to like pumpkin leaves. I'm hoping this warm weather coming up allows my pumpkins to mature before the first frost. My pumpkin seeds didn't germinate until early July, which is a full month after I planted them.
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