[Shazer]

I can't seem to grow squash very well. Every year I expend so much energy to try to keep it alive. I've had a garden for four years now and the first year I had ants farm aphids on my squash and pumpkin plants. I had only one good pumpkin plant that produced anything. Fast forward to year two and squash vine borers and squash bugs attack everything. This was during my first trimester of pregnancy and I didn't have the energy to rescue my squash. Year three, I had a baby and no one to watch her while I gardened. The squashes died again. This year, I've picked off the squash bugs, dug out the borers, and done my absolute best to keep my plants alive. Many have died. The ones that have survived have not fruited. Believe me, I have tons of bees around to pollinate. But the plants just aren't producing any fruits. Out of six or seven pumpkin plants, I have two pumpkins. I had one spaghetti squash that grew an inch and then rotted on the vine. Oh, and it the weather this year started out very cold and rainy. Now we are in a drought and temperatures are normal. But the wind is awful. We've never had summer winds this bad, day after day it seems.

Anyway, I'm depressed about my squash. I love squash, but it certainly doesn't love growing for me.

What plants have foiled you?

 

[Garden~Lover]

I feel your pain. I want to grow squash so bad. Ive tried for the past few years and nothing.
is there a svb resistant variety>?

 

[HydeParkB]

At home, we have no luck with tomatoes. Thankfully, our community garden plot seems to do well with them.

Squash is pretty rough at the home garden too. It's a good thing we don't have to rely on our garden for food. It usually does pretty well, but we also have CSA AND go to the farmer's market.

 

[MamaMonica]

Potatoes. I grow big plants with puny and few potatoes. I hill them and water them and use compost. Every year I expect to dig up the motherlode and find about 4 potatoes per plant.

 

[Mamax3]

We've grown squash in the past and done okay, but this year we failed miserably with the squash. We got invaded by squash bugs and vine borers and I just couldn't save my plants.

We always plant several of something in hopes that at least one plant will live but none of our squash survived. We are making a trip to the farmers market today.

Our heriloom tomatoes aren't doing well this year but Romas are fine. I am putting up lots of tomato sauce but there's nothing like tomato on whole wheat sandwiches for lunch and dinner and i am missin that this year.

 

[serenetabbie]

This year I gave up on beans. I planted three packets and got maybe 4 bean plants. I think something ate them as soon as they sprouted. In years past, we had more beans than we knew what to do with.

I also have never had any luck with watermelon. The family asks me every year to grow melons, and every year they are a terrific failure. This year I did not even try.

In years past I failed at growing pumpkins bigger than jack be littles. This year they came up without any assistance and the pumpkins are huge. Go figure.

 

[henny penny]

I give up on at least one crop every year in our garden. Some things just don't want to grow some years. I've given up on onions forever. So sad!

 

[Mama Dragon]

OP - have you ever used nematodes? Between the nematodes and DE, I've had almost no trouble with bugs. The one bit of trouble I had was our cauliflower, which are known for being hard to grow anyway...I think black aphids kill the one good plant I had. I got no cauliflower this year due to bad growth and those bugs. If you do get aphids, get a pack of lady bugs and release them onto the affected plants.

 

[Blooming]

I'm thinking of giving up on pumpkins. I have tried every year for four years and this year, I thought we, were golden. More then eight plants lots of flowers and still not a pumpkin in sight.

Oh and the zucchini that grows like weeds for everyone else? Not me.

This year I would really like to get a seed starter for indoors, I think that is a huge part of our problem, our growing season is so short, and I probably plant too late.

 

[Erinz]

Okra. This year was my last try.

There will not be home grown, pickled okra in our future.

 

[KariM]

my give-up crop is carrots. we've tried for four years now only to get puny little carrots.

any tips for growing them?

i know part of our problem is that we can't seem to plant them far enough apart and fail at thinning them. we pull up too many or not enough.

our soil is loose (sq ft mix of compost, peat moss, vermiculite) and well draining. our seed planting is probably our downfall.

 

[DreamsInDigital]

Mine is broccoli. I tried for two years straight and it was NOT good. Aphids and spidermites, plus bad weather this year..ugh.

 

[lmonter]

Peas. I'm only growing the purple ones from now on, mostly because they're purple.

Not sure whether I'll give up on celery yet or not - may try again next year.

I tried cauliflower for fun this year, and eh. I can better use the space with something else I'm better at. First try at broccoli wasn't spectacular - didn't get the starts in the ground early enough for a harvest this year. Probably try broccoli again next year, but won't count on a crop.

This year I seem to be having cucumber issues. I think they just prefer being on the front of the house, vs. where they are this year. So much for crop rotation I suppose...

 

[Owen'nZoe]

Cauliflower. I've only tried and failed 2 times, but we don't like it enough to try again. I'd rather use the space for something I can actually grow. I'll buy cauliflower from the farmer's market instead.

 

[onthemove]

corn is my failure crop each year because the growing season just isn't long or hot enough. I keep planting because we come soooo close to having corn. last year we got about 5 cobs, this year I planted a little earlier but we have had very little sunshine.

 

[Blooming]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KariM my give-up crop is carrots. we've tried for four years now only to get puny little carrots. any tips for growing them? i know part of our problem is that we can't seem to plant them far enough apart and fail at thinning them. we pull up too many or not enough. our soil is loose (sq ft mix of compost, peat moss, vermiculite) and well draining. our seed planting is probably our downfall.

What happens when they are planted to closely? I think I may need to thin mine. I was going with the thought that someone else shared, they thin when they are baby carrots and then again later so that they get two harvests.

This is my first year with carrots, so we'll see.

 

[WeasleyMum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blooming What happens when they are planted to closely? I think I may need to thin mine. I was going with the thought that someone else shared, they thin when they are baby carrots and then again later so that they get two harvests. This is my first year with carrots, so we'll see.

If carrots are planted too closely, they'll be really small and skinny, because they need shoulder-room to grow to full size.

 

[KariM]

Carrot seeds are really tiny (y'all know that) and I can't seem to plant them far enough apart even with a little seed syringe. When I try to thin them, they all seem to fall out and I'm left with very few.

Even when they are spaced widely apart (too wide, really) we don't end up with much of a carrot.

 

[Jennisee]

I can't get eggplant even past the seedling stage. I killed cauliflower two years in a row, but did better this year growing it in a shaded spot. My leek experiment went very poorly, but I'll give them one more try before I give up completely.

 

[lmonter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jennisee My leek experiment went very poorly, but I'll give them one more try before I give up completely.

Leeks are as annoying to start as onions. I've just resigned myself to buying starts and giving up starting from seed.