I do not want to fail at this! I’ve spent so much time and money on this project, I’d really like to get something from it! Plus, I really like the self-reliance that comes from having your own (successful) garden. But, I’ve got yellowing peas, wilting tomatoes, red strawberry leaves, spotted tomato leaves, and onions and carrots that haven’t changed in weeks.
Help Me Solve My Garden Problems!
Could this all be due to the unseasonably cold, wet weather we’ve had here? Typically it is around 70F during the day & 50F at night which I thought should be fine: no chance of frost etc. But, for the last month, the highs have only been in the high 50s / low 60s, and of the last 18 days, we’ve had significant rain for 9 of them.
It looks like for the next 10 days we shouldn’t have any rain and temps should be in the mid to high 60s. Will this save my garden? Or is something else wrong?
Here are some pictures. I’d love your thoughts!
- Red strawberry leaves (with very few flowers/strawberries). I have both everbearing and June bearing:
- Wilting Tomatoes:
- With spotted and discolored leaves:
- And a few curled leaves:
But still starting to produce a few tomatoes:
- Onions and carrots that have looked exactly like this for 4-5 weeks now:
- Peas that are yellowing (the newer ones on the right are greener than the older ones):
Any ideas? I’m REALLY hoping it is just the weather…..
Strawberries: Normal to look this way during cool weather, especially during winter/early spring.
Tomatoes: Cold weather. Can you cover with plastic/sheets at night? They don’t look too bad, just cold.
Peas: Soil could be leached due to heavy rains. I think organic compost solves a lot of problems myself…
Onions/Carrots: Cold/rainy weather. Once warm/sunny will improve.
Thank you Katie! The soil was originally 1/3 organic compost. Should I add more? How? Seems to me like that would be difficult to get down to the roots w/o tearing up the plant. But I’ve never done this before, so I’m sure I’m missing something!
I usually apply to the top of the soil and let rain and critters do the work. I think you maybe planted a bit early, but I don’t really know planting times for SoCal weather! My garden looked like this last summer into June because it was soooo cold here in NorCal. Things will perk back up, just remember to be patient. (And if not, replace what isn’t thriving (ha!) with new seedlings. Gardens catch up fast.)
I’ll try that Katie.
According to my local nursery and the averages for this area, I was fine with planting when I did. HA! I should have waited. The weather isn’t USUALLY this cold, but it is typically rainy this time of year….
And you are right, I could always just replace the plants if I need to….maybe I will with a couple of the really sad tomato plants. I REALLY want tomatoes!
THanks again!
I agree. When the weather calms down a bit, your garden will perk right up. Last year, the weather was REALLY wet here in Utah. We didn’t get tomatoes until almost the end of the growing season. Your peas are growing so well! We are just getting them up at our house.
Also, if your weather is warm enough for tomatoes, it might be too warm for your carrots and onions. They are cool weather plants. In fact, we have had carrot seeds not grow one year. Then, the following spring when we were tilling the garden, we found carrots that grew during the winter. =)
Good luck with your fun garden!
It hasn’t been much over 60 in a while. Is that too hot for carrots and onions? How funny that you found carrots from the WINTER! WOW! Maybe I’ll get lucky a year from now…haha
It’s the weather. Once the plants dry out, they’ll start to bounce back. But once they dry out, be sure to add back nutrients, either with compost or a general fertilizer. All that rain has likely leached a lot out of the soil. What sort of soil do you have? Is it acidic or basic? If you have a wood-burning fireplace and more acidic soil, it’s a fabulous additive. And if you have fish tanks, the water from that makes good fertilizer too. You can mix Epsom salts with water and add that to the soil as well, the magnesium helps with yellowing leaves too. I dislike spending money on chemicals for our garden (I run a community garden here in NC) because there are so many better ways to fertilize…and they’re usually less expensive. 🙂 Good luck!
THANK YOU! You’ve made me feel so much better! I will add some fertilizer and the Epsom salts you recommended. (-: