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South Hill, Virginia

I've posted some pics to my growers diary and at your convenience please mosie on over there and let me know what you think.

There are three pics of the stump and main vine area of my 275 Desrosiers. The leaves are wilting and dying starting at the stump and going out about 6 feet on the main vine. The only fruit on the main hasn't grown in over a week and is ripening.

There is one pic of little black bugs that are all over the leaves of the plant. They resemble gnats or fruit flies.

7/24/2001 11:13:57 PM

Connecticut, USA

The leaves at the base of the plant are always the first to show signs of age and die. This is normal. You should trim the dying leaves and keep the stump clear. If you let any rotting plant matter sit on top of the stump the stump may start to rot. If your stump is rotting then that is why your fruit stopped growing. The pictures look very crowded. You may want to try some heavier pruning. I would not pick Gene yet. Measure with the OTT technique to verify that he is not growing (not just circumference). I do not recognize your black bugs. What is your spraying schedule? What are you using for chemicals?

7/25/2001 6:39:30 AM

South Hill, Virginia

Ken,

I will clean up the area as you suggested. My plant did kinda get ahead of me and has become very crowded. I will also try to do some heavy pruning and get it back under control.

I have been spray Daconil as my fungicide and Diazonon as a pesticide. I have been trying to only use them when It looked like they were needed but I'm willing to step up use on a regular basis if that's what I need to do. I probably have only used the fungicide twice and the pesticide three or four times.

7/25/2001 12:24:48 PM

Connecticut, USA

I spray for diseases once per week. With disease it is all about prevention. If you wait until you have one then it is too late for spraying.

7/25/2001 3:02:29 PM

Buffalo, NY

I have seen the same bugs on both my pumpkin plants and tomato plants, they look like what I always thought were fruit flies until I read fruit flies had yellow bodies. Whatever they are, fruit fly or gnat, I've yet to find one alive on my plants. On mine, they are dead and you brush them off. They must have a very short lifespan.

It's been a weird year for bugs & insects for me. Haven't seen a cuke beetle or squash bug yet this year, just squash vine borer adult & eggs, even just a couple days ago. No tomato hornworms, no corn earworms, no flea beetles...just some aphids on undersides of pepper leaves and borage stems, and cabbage moths (white butterfly/moth) which I chase around the yard with a fly swatter until they meet their ultimate demise.

Maybe all the companion plants I'm growing are keeping the bad guys away...

Mark

7/25/2001 5:52:32 PM