The Cucumbers I Planted Under Plastic

Bob Bauer

March 22, 2017 (Last Updated: March 06, 2023) | Reading Time: 1 minutes

March 22, 2017

The cucumbers I planted under plastic a week ago have come up, so the soil is warming. As the corn comes up this year I'm gojng to cut holes in the plastic for them to grow through and leave the plastic down until they all germinate. Last year I took the plastic off as soon as the first few seeds germinated and had a terrible yield..

I blamed the seed company but have since learned that cool soil (50ÃÂ°) will cause reduced germination. I'll use the same plastic again by just taping the holes closed..

March 23, 2017

I moved my mini greenhouses to the zucchini mounds because the zucchini are not doing well. They are pale yellow and limp. I think both the soil and air temperature is not warm enough for them. All of the crucifers are perky and dark green, and I have a third flat of them coming along. This is the perfect time for them so I might as well grow a bunch..

The asparagus has 17 spears up and there is enough Swiss chard to feed an army. Hooray for the garden cats, they are keeping the birds away. Maybe they won't run around so much when they get older..

March 24, 2017

My gardening almanac indicates that it's time to plant indoors cantaloupe, Chinese cabbage, cucumbers, squash and watermelon to put out in five weeks. I don't know how Chinese cabbage got on the list but soil and ambient temperatures should be higher then than now so you won't have to face the problems I'm encountering. Low soil temperature for the summer crops keeps them from growing and they become susceptible to pathogens, fungus and insect damage..

A plant that isn't growing can't produce the toxins needed to deter insect damage, which may be one of the reasons I'm having so much pill bug damage this year..

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