Whiteflies eat bean plants! YIKES!

Whitefly Infestation

Whitefly Invasion!  Yep. Yesterday afternoon I did my walk about and I saw something was eating the leaves of my bean plants.  But, there was another sign.  The leaves looked wilted.  Do you see in the photo above how the leave is sagging and bent over itself a bit?  Those two things together show me the plant is in distress.  I needed to inspect the plant more closely and the first place I look is hiding places.  I looked at the undersides of the leaves and I saw little white bugs.  Now don't go thinking I'm some expert on garden bugs.   I work a real job during the week just like everyone else and from 6 pm to dark Monday through Friday and on  Saturday and Sunday, I try to squeeze in gardening, canning, painting, scrap-booking and every other kind of crazy hobby I come up with for that week.  Gardening and cooking are my constants and I have been sewing since I was in junior high.  But back to the bugs. 

Close up of  Whiteflies

 I saw the bugs and I immediately did what I always do when I see bugs of any kind on my plants - filled a spray bottle with warm water and dish soap and sprayed the entire plant top to bottom tops and undersides of leaves, stems and even the soil for every bean plant that shown any sign of the white bugs.  I took photos before the treatment and expanded the photos so I see a close up of the insects since my eyesight is not good enough to get a microscopic view or close up enough to identify them.  I was able to identify the infestation as whitefly with the help of the internet and photos.  While no one said to treat with the soapy water spray, it really worked wonders!  While my leaves didn't care for it much, neither did the insects and nearly all of the whiteflies flew the coop.  We had only a couple of the insects return the following day and I sprayed again.  I was not able to get a regular insecticide until Saturday night because I had my grandsons spend the night on Friday night as I was the babysitter on Saturday.  I'm not unhappy with my response nor my results, but tomorrow I'll use the commercial spray and hopefully eradicate them for good.  I want to point out why these daily walk arounds are so important.  While I was reading up on these insects, one man said that his entire sunflower planting was decimated by whiteflies in 18 hours.  This means that just skipping one day of walking around your garden/yard, you miss the opportunity of catching this kind of problem and maybe losing all of what you planted of a single species of crop.  It was only a matter of a few hours for this to spread to all of my bean plants and they are spread all across the various corners of my lanai.  This is just a little something to consider the next time you decide you're too tired or too lazy to stroll around the yard to check up on your garden.

Song of Chuck-Will's-Widow announces planting season arrival

Chuck-Will's-Widow

Whip-poor-will

Every night I can hear the song of the chuck-will's-widow singing.  For the longest time I thought it was a whip-poor-will, who got its name from the sound it makes.  I decided to share them both with you so you could hear the difference.  Who knows, one day your little grandchild might want to know this and you'll be just the person to know.  We know that our grand kids think we know EVERYTHING.  It's nice to be special.  Reminds me of getting those handfuls of daisies and dandelions from the kids and putting them in a vase with water on the kitchen counter so we could enjoy them for a few hours.  It was one of the lessons of sharing, giving and the joy of plants all wrapped up into a single, lovely package!
Best Planting Dates
A dear friend provided me with a great link to the old Almanac again.  Do you remember that thing?  I used to actually buy that every year for years and years and read it from cover to cover.  Just change the location to your own locale and it will show you the best dates for planting each type of seed.  It also includes very handy grow guides for each plant type with simple clicks.  This was really, really nice!  The plant categories include: vegetables, fruits, herbs, flowers, shrubs, and houseplants.
Vegetable Gardening Online.com has a very cool little tool.  It lets you plan your garden online using a drag and drop option.  You can drag the little veggies and plants into a grid whatever size you plan for your garden.  It even lets you plan your companion planting before you put them into the ground.  Because it makes noise, it's a fun little toy for adult and kids!  This could be used as a good learning tool as well.  I had a ton of fun playing.

When I watered the plants today, I was a little surprised at how big the beans are getting.  Just wait until Saturday, when I post the photos!  I also noticed that the sun is getting a LOT hotter as the beans in one section of the lanai were laying down on their sides they were so dried out.  This means that I'm going to need to make some big changes.  I didn't even look at the lavender because I ended up working until 7:00 tonight.  So, I'll need to peek at them during a break.  This is one reason it's REALLY GREAT to work from home.  I am able to water the plants on my break. The bad thing is that I work really late some days and I usually just grab a sandwich and eat at my desk for lunch.  I probably need to check on the hanging baskets in the front of the house because it's just hot, hot, hot full sun all day and they'll be burnt to a crisp.  They are fine for the winter since they are ivy, but during the summer I usually bring them into the lanai for a bit of shelter from the hot sun.  

Planting Seeds, exploring the yard & deer problem
It was a beautiful day for working outside and I feel every bit of in in every aching bone and muscle I have.  The mysterious sprouts that I couldn't remember when I spotted them on Thursday, I remembered today. How?  It just hit me that I put the Chinese Lilies in that particular pot.  This is what I have to look forward to in the coming months:

Chinese Lily

Josh's beans shocked me when I saw them this morning.  The success was absolutely amazing!  I'm not sure what to do with all these terrific looking seedlings.  I don't have the heart to just dump them.  I planted 9 of the seedlings today (2 of the ones that made it past Josh's fuzzy stuff and 7 redos).  

Bean Seedlings planted February 25, 2012

I also did some direct sowing today - basil, parsley, and chives.  Some people read the seed packet, measure between rows and how deep they plant and do a wonderful job.  I am not that kind of gardener.  I still manage to get my plants to grow in my garden for me.  ;)  As I think about this, I compare it to the cook who uses a cookbook and a cook who cooks from memory or taste.  So let's take a look at how I planted those seeds today since we KNOW I did not even look at the back of those seed packets. 

First, I used the hand rake to get rid of all of the old roots and stuff out as well as any new weeds that may have started to grow inside.   Then, I sprinkled some Osmocote on top.  Osmocote is my all around fertilizer used for almost everything except palm trees, fruit, and acidic soil loving flowers.  How much?  Oh about that much.  Look  at the photo.  Like I'm cooking, about that much is often my measurement given when asked. Until I'm finished using my current supply of this fertilizer, I'll continue using it.  When it's gone, I'll be looking for one that's a bit more earth friendly.  Use the hand rake to mix the fertilizer into the soil.  

I took about 1/2 the seeds and sprinkled them into my hand first.  Then I scattered them across the top of the soil.  I used my open palm the disperse the seeds and get them covered by soil at the same time.  This was done very gently.  Finally, I watered the freshly planted seeds with a watering can that gave a very gentle water. 

Do you remember when we talked yesterday about the dead trees?  Well, my limon tree (cross between lemon and lime tree) was dead.  I swear it was.  Nothing but dead branches were sticking out of that pot and I was just too lazy to go out and take care of it.  Today, I went to take care of things and looky, looky what I found! The fragrance was out of this world beautiful!!

You may have noticed by now that everything is so far is in containers.  This is because I have a deer problem.  We live in a preserve area that is a gated community that keeps the deer inside and protected, but this also means they are heavily overpopulated.  They eat everything in sight.  Any tender growth, bulbs, even my hanging flower baskets weren't safe from these monstrous appetites.  While the animals are beautiful to behold, they are the bane of my garden.  I'm investigating new plants that deer do not like due to their heavy fragrance or thorny stems for planting outside the screened lanai to move beyond my containers since I'm so cramped for space. 

Our surprise sprouts

Dill seeds planted  February 11

Planting Seeds & Spring 
Is it a sign of getting old when you don't remember what you had planted in a pot the year before or does this mean you have too many plants?  As I was doing my "daily rounds" I found some new sprouts showing up to the garden party.  It looks like the dill is about ready to be moved into its permanent home.  

Close encounter of bean sprouting

 The beans, ohhhh the beans.  Those took two tries.  I had a bit of help from 3 year old Josh.  Everything went just great, even down to the poking the little beans into the dirt.  We put 2 little beans into each little compartment.  We found some old peat pots that made it so much easier for a toddler to understand to keep the beans into their squares.  The trouble came with the watering.  He drowned the poor little beans and then they got all furry and rotten.  Of the 12 seeds we planted, only 2 made it out alive.  So, last weekend, Josh and I started again. But, I was not paying attention and I handed him the bean seed envelope from last year without doing a viability test.  He did a wonderful job this time!  When I realized my mistake, I took out this year's bean seeds and poked in 2 more seeds into each compartment.  In less than a week, we have stunning results!

Bean Seeds planted 2/25/2012

Along that walk of mine, I also inspected the trees because we planted 2 new trees last year and I was a bit worried about them.  The Crepe Myrtle looked for the most part dead.  It really needs close inspection to realize this is not the case.  Look closely now.

The Bougainvillea was looking dead as can be until the past week or so and then little by little, flowers began to appear.  The reason I'm bringing both of these up is that sometimes we're a little quick on the draw with our plants and don't give them enough time to show us they are still alive.  These were trees and they usually do things a bit faster.  Last year, I was pulling out what I thought were plants that died from a frost and lo and behold, I found 3 that had a teeny bit of green buds on them.  I transplanted them to a new sunny location that was in a more protected area and I babied the heck out of them and those little sweethearts came back.

Still recovering section of Bougainvillea

Recovered section of Bougainvillea

Sowing Seeds Indoors
Yes, it's time to think about starting those seeds indoors. You could be thinking of giving your gorgeous flowers a head start or your veggies or herbs a jump start so that you can either take  advantage of a double planting season or maybe harvest sooner or even have a short planting season if you are in the great, white tundra.  Some people have the mistaken idea that they need to go out and buy all kinds of stuff for this . . . peat pots, topsoil, fertilizers, yada yada.  I've had pretty good luck doing this on the cheap and I've found some pretty cool inexpensive ideas as well.  Egg shells, egg cartons, plastic fruit containers, and milk cartons all make excellent plant containers for the new seeds.  The egg shells are my favorites because you can put those directly into the soil and crumble them up as you transplant them.  Another option that is really nice 
and you can move directly into the garden, is the little pots made of newspaper.  I found an excellent tutorial online that gives step by step instructions for even the very blackest thumbed gardeners.  (Newspaper seedling pot instructions)


Let's talk for a minute about those seeds while we're at it.  You might have some seeds left over from last year.  Don't throw them out.  Test them out to see if they're any good first.  You may be surprised!  

1. Put about 5 or 6 seeds between 2 paper towels and spray them with a water bottle with water until wet but not sopping.
2. Fold or roll up the paper towel and put in a plastic baggie and label with date.
3. Place in a warm place and check after a few days.
4. The back of the seed packet tells how long it should take for germination.  If it is taking a lot longer than this for you to see the seeds sprout, they are likely not viable any longer.
5. If 2 of the 6 germinate, then you will need to sow 3 times as many seeds as you want plants to grow.  

These germination charts should help you to know what to expect from your seeds:

Germination Time for Common Seed-Grown Annuals

Common Name	Germination Time
Ageratum	5 to 14 days
Alyssum	7 to 14 days
Baby Blue Eyes	7 to 14 days
Baby's Breath	10 to 15 days
Bachelor's Button	7 to 14 days
Bells of Ireland	25 to 35 days
Black Eyed Susan Vine	10 to 15 days
Calendula	7 to 14 days
Celosia	3 to 6 days
China Aster	8 to 14 days
Cleome	10 to 14 days
Coleus	10 to 15 days
Cosmos	5 to 10 days
Geranium	10 to 14 days
Globe Amaranth	10 to 21 days
Impatiens	10 days
Larkspur	15 to 20 days
Love-in-a-Mist	10 to 15 days
Love-Lies-Bleeding	10 to 15 days
Marigold	5 to 7 days
Mealy-Cup Sage	14 to 21 days
Mexican Sunflower	7 to 14 days
Morning Glory	5 to 10 days
Nasturtium	9 to 14 days
Nicotiana	14 to 21 days
Petunia	10 to 14 days
Poppy	8 to 10 days
Purple Hyacinth Bean Vine	7 to 14 days
Scarlet Runner Bean Vine	7 to 14 days
Snapdragon	7 to 14 days
Sunflower	5 to 12 days
Sweet Pea	14 to 21 days
Verbena	14 to 21 days
Viola	10 to 20 days
Zinnia	7 to 10 days

Germination Times for Common Seed-Grown Herbs and Vegetables

Crop	Germination Time
Basil	7 to 10 days
Bean	7 to 14 days
Beet	10 to 14 days
Broccoli	7 to 10 days
Brussels Sprout	7 to 10 days
Cabbage	10 to 14 days
Cantaloupe	5 to 7 days
Carrot	10 to 14 days
Catnip	7 to 14 days
Cauliflower	5 to 7 days
Chervil	14 to 28 days
Corn	5 to 7 days
Cucumber	7 to 14 days
Dill	10 to 21 days
Eggplant	7 to 10 days
Fennel	10 to 21 days
German Chamomile	10 to 15 days
Lettuce	4 to 6 days
Mint	12 to 15 days
Parsley	21 to 28 days
Pea	7 to 10 days
Pepper	7 to 10 days
Pumpkin	7 to 10 days
Radish	3 to 5 days
Spinach	7 to 21 days
Squash, Winter	7 to 10 days
Tomato	7 to 14 days
Watermelon	5 to 7 days

Flower cart from Provence in France

Free Plant Network 
In honor of my first blog post, I'm sharing the link for free plants!  
Totally Free Plant, Cut Flowers, Vegetable & Flower Seeds and Flower Bulbs Delivered Right to Your Doorstep.

Yellow Phalenopsis Orchid

I'm really excited about starting a gardening blog that will share the information I have been gathering about gardening in Florida and that spring is just about here.   We've already started sowing some seeds for the herbs and our early bloomers have begun their showy displays.  We have some wildlife problems in my neighborhood to deal with that limits where and how planting can occur or else it just becomes food for the ever-growing herds of deer.  Coming from zone 5 to zone 9b is a learning experience that never ends, so together we will face the joys and sorrows of my successes and failures of the garden.  This year is the year of learning to collect seeds from our gorgeous plants and try to regrow and share them.  We'll see how that goes too.  I invite you to come learn with me, teach me and share your garden glories.  

Tomorrow, we'll start talking about getting those seeds started indoors on the cheap.  :)