A Problem with Cucurbits
by Leslie Cox; Saturday, July 22, 2017
I have been receiving queries lately about the lack of fruits on cucumber and squash plants. This prompts me to write about the Cucurbitaceae family in this blog. So here goes…
FYI: The Cucurbitaceae family encompasses cucumbers, summer squashes, winter squashes, pumpkins, gourds, watermelons, and muskmelons.
As a food grower…or grower of food…it is a little alarming to see a healthy plant with lots of flowers but no tiny fruits developing. Especially since summer is progressing and we want to harvest at least a few crops.
The current problem is: all of the flowers are male.
Apologies!
by Leslie Cox; Saturday; July 22, 2017
As with all technology devices and programs, one sometimes runs into problems. Well…I have had one huge headache concerning my website which dates back to the beginning of April. Frustrations galore.
Since my tech guy has moved up into a whole new career and changed residence about two years ago, I have been muddling through on my own. But this recent case had me stumped. It even had the tech support team stumped over at my webhost server.
Until today. It’s fixed. Finally. But notice celebratory commentary is only laid down in lower case. And no exclamation marks. I am going to give the fix another two or three days of quiet breathing and silent prayers before I jump up and down over my tech issues being in my rearview mirror.
In the meantime…my humble apologies for not getting follow-up material to my Duchess of Dirt columns appearing in the Comox Valley Record posted up on my website.
I will be rectifying that omission over the next while. Please stay tuned.
Azalea Sawfly
by Leslie Cox; Friday; June 9, 2017
I wrote about this pest in my latest Duchess of Dirt column in the June 8th edition of the Comox Valley Record newspaper.
This blog article is a follow-up with more information and more photos.
(View my column article at: http://www.comoxvalleyrecord.com/community/garden-pests-are-back-with-a-vengeance/)
Moth Identification
by Leslie Cox; Thursday; June 8, 2017
Identifying moths can be tricky. Mainly because they look so very different from their caterpillar larval stage. Add in colour variations in their wings differing from region to region to region…plus the lack of information both in book form and on the Internet…and well, it is a tough job putting the correct name on your specimen.
Yet…this can be a very important piece of data for the very health of your garden. Mainly because these adult moth forms will give you a clue whether your garden could be facing a pest infestation as soon as the eggs hatch.
It’s been a while…
by Leslie Cox; Wednesday; June 7, 2017
It’s been a while since I have posted anything on my website. The simple reason is…I was locked out. And it has taken this long to gain access once again. Frustrating.
My website has been plagued lately by a barrage of attempts by nefarious people to gain control of it. Since the beginning of April, there have been over 1200 attempts. Why? It is just a simple venue where I share stories, information, and recipes relating to things of a horticultural nature.
