it• INSTITUT E OF FOOD AND

AGAICUL TUA AL SCIE N C ES

UNIV ERSITY OF FLORIDA

F LO RIDA COO PERATIVE

EXTENSION SERV I CE

VIEG!ET.ARBA9'1 NEVVSLETTER 3026 McCarty Hall VEGETABLE CROPS DEPARTMENT

February 1, 1977

Prepared by Exte ns ion Veget able Crops Specialists

James Montelaro Professor

G. A. Marlowe, Jr. Professor

J . F. Kelly Chairman

J . M. Stephens Associate Pro fe ssor

R . D. William Assistant Pro fes sor

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA

TO COUNTY EXTENSION DIRECTORS AND AGENTS (VEGETABLES AND HORTICULTURE) AND OTHERS INTERESTED IN VEGETABLE CROPS IN FLORIDA

FRO::-[: Jam es Nontelar o , Extension

\'E GETARL\ N NE\-JSLETTER 7 7- 2

IN THIS ISSUE:

I . NOTES OF INTEREST

A. Rodent Damage-Pre vent ion in \faterme lo n Crops B. Vege tab le Field Days - Da tes Set for Two i n Ju ne

I I . COMNERCIAL VEGETABLE PRODUCTION

A. Soi l Fumigants Vs . Granular Nematicides for Vege tabl e Crops in Florida

v B. Transplant Production Probl ems C.. Roo t Injury - Prevention in Vegetabl e Crop D. Cutworm Cont ro l in Watermelon E. Tractor Furr ow Weed Cont ro l for Tomat oes

II I. HARVESTING AND HANDLING

A. Harves t ing Rn<l Hand ling Freez e- Damage d Vege t ables

IV. VEGETABLE GARDENING

A. Timely Gar denin g Topi cs B . Know Your Vcgcta hl cs - Vege t ab l e Spag het ti

XOTE: Anyon,: is Cre e to use the informat io n i n this n ews lett er . When ever possible , pl ease give credit to the authors .

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THE VEGETARIAN NEl•lSLETTER

I. NOTES OF INTEREST

A. Rodent Damage -Prevention in Watermelon Crops

Several growers have asked about pr eventing fi e ld rodents from eating watermelon seed from the row after planting. To prevent rodent damage, water­melon see d may be treated with a watermelon seed treatment kit . To the best of our knowledge, these kits can be purchased from Asgrow Florida Compa ny or Seminole Feeds.

(William)

B. Vegetable Field Days - Dates Set for Two in June

Dates for two Vegeta bl e Field Days have bee n se t. They are as fo l lo ws :

I. Location - Agricultural Research Cent er Leesburg, Florida

Date and Time - 1 :15 PM, Wednesday, June 1, 1977 Crops - Watermelon, Cantaloupe and Cukes

II. Loca tion - Vegeta ble Crop s Depar tmen t Gainesville, Florida

Dat e and Ti me - 9 : 30 AM, Thurs day, J une 2, 1977 Crops - Gener al Vegeta bl es

A more detaile d announcement on both fie l d days will be sent out lat er . Put these da tes on your ca le nda r and plan t o attend bo th .

II. COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE PRODUCTION

A. Soil Fur.1iga nts Vs . Gra nu lar Nematicides for Vege table Crops in Flor i da

Vegetab l e growers in Florida are on the lookout for pesticides that a re easy to appl y. They are especially interested in the possible use of the gr anu lar nematicides (Nocap, Dasanit, Fur ada n and Nemacur) in th e pl ace of the liquid so il fumi ga nts . Equipme nt and app li cation techniques for th e granular nematici de s a re s i mple r than th ose used for soil fumigants . The only questions a re re la tive ef fi­cie ncy and difficulties which may be inc ount er ed. We asked Dr . Rober t A. Dunn , Extens ion Nemat o logist, Depar t ment of Entomology and Nemato logy at the Univ e r si ty of Florida to answer these qu est io ns . His reply is as f ollo ws :

''Many ve ge tabl e gro wers would like to use the new granul ar or con tac t nema ticid e-ins ect icide s for nemato de contr o l in their veg et ables t hi s yea r. These materials are conve ni en t t o apply at th e ti.me of p lanting or i1nmedia te ly befor e pl an ting and many peo pl e prefer to hand le a granular materi a l rat he r t ha n a liq u i d f umiga nt. However , th ere are sev era l difficu lt ie s that sho ul d be consi dere d be for e 1:1aki ng th is impor tant manag ement decision : 1 . Is the.-~ mat er ial la be led f or t he specific use which you ha ve in min d? Sev e r.al l ' f th e~a.: c li e 111Lc al s a re la beled fut · l o w rates o f u se fc)r in sect

control but no t at ra t es hig!t e nou gh for ncmato dE~ con tro l. I f t he l abe.J.

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THE VEGETARIAN NE!.JSLETT ER

does not indicate nematode control, do not try to use t he material for that purpose on th at cr op . A grower with several d_ifferen t crops who wants one contact material th at he can use for nema t ode control on all of his crops is no t very l ike ly t o fin d on e . There i s almost no contact material which is labell ed for a wide variety of cr ops . Of course , us e of an un l abelled material on a crop may result in illega l residues and seizure and other legal pena lti es to the grower. "

11 Contact mater i als offer very good control of many kinds of nematodes, b ut fumigants are of t en superior to contacts for control of r ootknot nematod es. Since the rootknot ne matodes are the principle pests of ve getables in many p arts of the state, th is should be con ­sidered very seriously . Grower s are strongly en cour aged to use fum i gants wherever root k not populations are mode ra te or high er where susceptible vegetables are to be grown . "

"A third pitfal l of use of granu l ar nematic i des on vegetables is the temptation on th e part of th e grower t o put off soil preparat i on until ju st before planting , thinki ng that it's not as nec essary f or this kind of nematode control program as for the fumigants . That is wro ng. Dest ru cti on o f roots by soil prep a rat ion several weeks in adv anc e of planting is jus t as important for successful use of the contact nematicides as it is fo r the fumigant s . Nematodes which are protect e d inside unrotted pla n t roots may esc ape t he effects of either a fumigant or a contact n ematicide and provide a ready source of i no cul um for infection of th e crop."

" In sh ort : granular nematicides should not b e looke d upo n as a shortcut to nematode con t rol wit h less work ; many vegetables do not have contact nema ticides ava il abl e for l egal use on them i n Florida; contact nematicides may not be as eff e ctive as soil fumigants aga inst high populat i ons of rootknot ne mato des . The gro wer sh oul d balance these di sadvantages carefully against high pop u lations of roo t kn ot nematodes . The grower s houl d balance t h ese dis ad'Ja n tages carefully against po te ntia l ease of appl ica tion and a ddi tional co nt rol of so i l -borne inse cts that he may enjoy from use of these materials . "

Anyone contempla t ing use of granular nematicides sh oul d rea d Dr. Dunn's state; ;ient carefully . Any questions on t hi s ma Lter can be re fe rr ed to him or this office .

(Nontel aro )

B. Transpla nt Production Problems

The production of vigorous , disease - free vegetable transplants is an i mportant part of grow i ng a crop . The fie ld grower depends he avi ly on his plan t sour c e, expecting hi gh qu a li ty plants to be ready at an agre ed - up on dat e f or field setting . Plan t production requires a spec i al understand i ng o f the many details n ece ss ciry to grow a balanc e d transplanl:_ . ~ Attention to the se det a ils re ­q uires a co ~ti11 ual monitoring of the environme nt provi ded th e youn g Geedling .

Hany to mato, pe pp er , and cucu mber growers hav e starled t o grow their own tra nsp lm1i- s th is year f or. the first t ime . Some h ave h ad tr emendous suc cess and som e ha ve hRd !)rob l ems they nev er k110w ex-Ls ted . Most of tl1e problem s obse rved are H ~l nte d t o li. prnc; t.:Lc,= so me tjmes referred to as " over - k:Lll" . Jn th c:i.r conc ern to pro duc0 cxc0 JJ~ nl rl an ts they may over - water, over - fertilize an d/ or ov er-s pr ay .

THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

Some growers spray seedlings 5 times with pesticides and app l y 3 or more nutrient feedings before the seedlings develop their first true leaves . Actually, nutrient fee dings before the first true leaves are v i si b le usuall y do more harm than good . The stored food in t he seed is usually ver y adequate to carry the seedling through the first l eaf stage . The small root system could probably not absorb very ouch of the extra feeding until that time anyway . Soluble salt readings in some of these production media have been fo un d to excee .d 4000 ppm--a bout 3200 ppm more than the level considered ideal for these tiny plan ts.

A sound, but not excessive pes t control program is absolutely necessary . Usually one good covering spray every 5-7 days of a rec ommended fungicide (Maneb or Bravo) an d one of the recommended insecticides (endosu l fan:thiodan); (dimethoate: Cygan, Defend); or (azinophosmethyl :Guthion) should pr ovide good control . Plants shou l d not be sprayed when wet, and plants should not enter the nig ht hours with wet leaves, if this can be avoided .

A bala nc ed transpl ant should ha ve the following characteristics:

1. Root system shou ld be large in proportion to top growth. 2. Seed leaves shou ld be large, free of defects, and of a healthy green

colo r . These should persist until field s et tin B. 3. Ste ms should be hairy, turgid, and with a slight purple tin ge of color . 4. Tr ue lea ves should be well spr ea d, moder atel y dark green in color, with

no yellowing .

In the pas t three years the i mportance of the seed leaves has achieved new sig nif icance. Recent research in Isra e l and Japan has shown that the condition of the seed lea ves is closely related to the days t o flowering an d fruit set. Cotyledons (s eed le aves ) were removed or shielded from light in a wide ar ray of combinations. The numbe r of days from cotyledon expari ·sion in a Japanese to mato cultivar was as foll ows (Chi n, Paulsen and Beavers , 1972. Plant . Physiol. 49:482- 1189.

EFFECT OF COTYLEDON REMOVAL ON DAYS TO FLOWERING IN TOMATO

Days No. Cotyledons remov ed 1st cluster 2nd cluster 3rd cluster

0 . 0 39 46 54

1.0 43 50 57

1. 5 l16 52 59

2 . 0 L19 57 62

The Israeli research on 'Cal Wonder ' pe ppe r se edl in gs showed that seed-leaf reuO Y<!l or covering delayed pepper first bl oom as much as 10 days (Ryalski and Hc.1lev y , 1972. HortScience 7: 69-70) . This could mean th at the f irst cluster or crown set has os en blanked out or at lea st seriousl y thwarted and red uc ed in fuction.

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TllE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

The cotyle dons t ell us a great deal if we take the time to " read" them . vve rwat e rin g , drought, excess n i t rogen, spray burn , inadequate light , toxic fumes are but a few of the many fact ors which may cause one or mor e cotyledons to become discolored, malfunctional , or drop from the seed l ing . Almost any serious stress can throw the plant out of balance and cause t he cotyledons to drop .

The first cl uster of tomatoes or crown s et of pepp e rs is often the most profitab l e in early market production . It pays t o take the time and effort to produce a steadily growing , healthy t r ansp l ant .

C. Root Injury - Preventi on in Veget ab l e Crop

This is the second in a series of articles on root The fir s t dealt with factor s contributing to this pro blem . ways of avoiding r oo t injury.

(Mar l owe)

injury in vegetable crops . This articl e points out

The pr imary injury to roots in vegetable crops is caused by soil nematodes , diseases and insects. These three groups of soi l pests can be att a cked sin gly or a l l together. The multi-purpo s e fumigants con taining Chlor opi crin , Methyl Bromide and other chemicals , separately or in combination will give fair to good con trol of a l l thr e e soil pest groups . In addition, some weed seeds may be killed.

If a multi-purpo se fumiga nt j_s not used , th e thre e groups of soil pests nust be attacked separately . Crop rotatjon, alternate floodin g and drying of land, and comple te decay of cro p residues wi ll help control all gro ups.

Soil nematodes alone can be cont rol led by use of th e simp l e soil fumiga nts of g ranular nematicides . Care should be exercised in the use of t hes e materials. Label instructions as to interval of tim e between application and planting , soil mositure requirements , temperature effects, etc . should be adhered to closel y . Avoiding root in jury to crops from soil pests is extremely important as ther e is little, if anything, that ca n be done after the crop i s planted.

The use of clean seed free of disease organisms, seed treatment with a fun gicide, and use of fungicide in the drill furrow will all tend to reduce root diseases . Even depth of planting can play an important role in development of r oot dis eases . SP.eel should be as ::;hallow as poss ibl e consistent with moisture needs to obt ail i good germination . Deeply planted crops are much more subject to attack from s o i l fungi than those planted to a lesser depth.

Soil insects cau si ng root injury can be attacked in two \lays . Seed treat-1:ient with a good insecticide j_s i nexpens ive i nsuranc e . Secondly, a broa dcast applicatlot! of an approved insecticide di ske d into th e soil prior to planting will h el p control many soil insects .

The next t hree factors contribut ing lo root injury are c]osely interr e l a t ed . They nrc (1) snlt injury, (2) mis use of fertil:izer and (3) misuse of il·rigntion and drc:.in age . Sall injury is just anoth e r name f or "fert i li:ler burn". Roo ts of yo un g se~dlings arc very sus cept ible t o Lhis type of injury . Young tomato sel•cD .i.ngs c .:111 be kilJ .ed at l evels less than 1000 ppm touil s o luble salts in th e soil solution, whct·e­as , full grow n pl;i nts cHn withstand l1,000 ppm snlts . The use of "i.n t1,e <lrill" appli<.: a tion of ferti.lizcr beneath, with, or above seeds s hould be a\'oiclc<l . Jn additi on, split avp li ca tj_ons and use of lo w sa lt-ind ex materials will do Ruel, to r educe salt jnjury co r oots .

Since soluble salt concentrations are inversely proportional to soil moisture contents , irr igat ion and drainage pla y an important ro le . Permittin g soils to dry out excessively in creases th e hazards of sal t injury to a crop at any stage of developme nt . Overhea d irrigati on can be used to keep fertilizer con ce ntrations from building up excessively by moving t hem downward periodi r.;:il ly. Overuse of irrigation or poor drainage can cause injury by excluding oxygen from the r oot zone . Quali ty of wat er us ed for i rrig at ion mus t be tak en int o consideration, also . Use of water high in salts can increase solu bl e salts significantly in a soil.

Pla nt r oo ts often are damaged or reta r ded by certain properties which are not conducive to normal root deve l opment. These include soil compac tion, shallow water tables , l arge clods , stoned, low soil temp eratures, et c . Chemical damage can re sult from pesticides or fer tilizers formulated or used improperly . A hazard of recent origin is inj ury from a herbicide used for the crop or pr evious c rops. All pesticides, fertilizers, and oth er amendments shoul d be used with ca re to avoid r oot injury.

tlechanical damage is resu lt s from the use of poor cultural practices. Roots can be damaged by excessively close or deep cult iva tion , imp rop er inject ion of fertilizer and other materials, soil erosion and heavy wind. These prob le ms can be avoided, at l east in part, wi t h goo d production practices . The channeling and up­rooting of small plants by cert ain soil and rodents can be cont ro l led to a de gr ee with approved insects che mica ls.

Nost of th e fact ors contributing to root 1nJury in vegeta b les arc di sc uss ed here in a brief fashion . It sh oul d be noted th at avoiding the proble m from any sour ce is the most economica l appr oa ch . The next arti cle wil l deal with correction of roo t injury after i t occurs .

(Montelaro)

D. Cutworm Control in Watermelon

Cutworms may serious ly damage newly pl anted watermelon , especiall y if the nelons are planted fol l owing pa st ure, sod, turf, or any grass crop . By walking thr oug h the field every other day or so, growers can monitor th e emerg enc y and gr01·1th of their crop, esp ec ially being alert f or symptoms of cutworm damage. Initially, the cu twor m will nibble at the stem, and later the stem and cot yled on s may be cu t completely from t he root system .

If cubvonn damage is observed, Dr . Fred die Johnson, Exten sion Entomologist, sug ges t s that either a 2. 5% methomyl bait at the ra t e of 40 lb s. commercial product/acre or~ 5~ trichlorfon field bai t at th e rate of 20 lbs. commercia l product/a cr e be bro adcast as a so il app lic ation . The bait should be app lied unif orm ly ov er the entire ar ea usin g aircraft or tr acto r- mount ed gra nular sp reader equipment. If banding equip ­ment is ava ila ble , th e bait may be applied directly over th e row, bu t the rat e sh oul d be adjusted according to the area being cov er ed with banding equipment.

Beca use cut wor ms feed at night, baits shou ld be applied in lnte afternoon to avoid decooposition of th e active in gred ie nt by sunlight and to r educe vapori zation or dil ution fr om i rr ig at ion or ra infa ll.

(Hill iam)

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THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

E. Trac tor Furrow Weed Control For Tomatoes

Weeds growing in th e tractor furrow between fully mul che d tomato be ds ca n be co ntr o lled with a combination of chlor amben (trade name Amiben) at 3 lb s . act ive ingredi ent /ac r e plus paraquat at 0 . 5 lb . Active ingr edien t/a cre . The combin at ion must be app lied wi th a s hielded b oom to avoid con tact of the spray solut i on with th e tomato fo li age and should not be applied durin g pe r io ds of str ong wind s . Weed control can be improved by app ly ing the herbic ide s when the weeds ar e 2 to 2.5 inches high .

Afte r appl ic atio n, th e grower wi l l re cogn iz e immedi ate dess i cation and ble ac h­ing of the gre en color i n the weed fol iage , usua lly th e day following herbicid e app li ca­tion. These symptoms are caused by pa r aquat. C~loramben is added to the mixture b e­cause it offers residual weed con trol of sus ceptible spec ies f or a f ew weeks afte r application .

(Will i am)

Il l. HARVESTING AND HANDLING

A. Harv es t ing and Handling Fr eeze -Damage d Vegetables

Harvesting and handling of a l l vegetables wi ll requir e special a tten tion and care fol lo wing t he f reeze. Freez ing result ed in physi cal damage th at wi ll produ ce sca r ring , leaf bur n, or ac t ual breakag e even on those cro ps th a t survived . Fol iage los s of some crops may l ead also to i ncreased sunburn . Damaged and weake ned tiss ue wi ll be nf lower ed qua lity and also will be more susceptible to rapid decay and addition ­a l dai-no.ge . Grading and se l ection shou ld be careful ly sup ervi sed . Sup plie s ar e t oo l i mited to permit in discr i minate e lim ination of marketable ve getables . However , qu ality in general has been adversely affected by t he f reeze , and conta ine rs should not be improp erly mark ed . U. S. D. A. in spe ct ions are not requ ired for most vegetab le s , but veget ables must meet U. S. No. 1 grade sta ndards, fo r exampl e , if they are so l abe le d .

Cool-s eas on crops - cabbage , lettuce, cele ry, etc . - s uffered mos tl y leaf burn and s ome crackin g . Cabbage and let tu ce may deve l op soft rots wi t hin damag ed heads , and more sampli ng and cu tting will be ne eded to insure th e i r e l imination . Young celery pro ba bly has be en chi ll ed enough to in duce bolting that wil l be evident in t he spring cr op .

Warm-seas on crops - peppe rs , cucumbers, sq uus h, tomatoes , be<'lns , et c . - were es sentiall y all kille d . Those that wer e not h ave now been subj ecte d to a pr olonged period of !:emperet ur es within the chilling r ange (below 50°F) . These may be gin to show chilling symptoms in th e field, ruseting of beans , for example , or very soon af ter ha-rve:st if not h ;-mdl ed properly. All of th ese vegetabl es will be in a weake ned con ­cliti on and very su sceptib le to de cay and further physicaJ damage. Some a tte mpts will be made Lo salva ge toma toes f r om damaged p] an ts. Loss of f oliag e \·.'ilJ probably incrcnse Lhe ~mount of sunb1Jrned fruit. 11.11 fruit remain in g on tomato plants shoul d be pe r mi tted to r each ft: 11 m.:it:ur.ity · before ha rve st ing . Fr ui t chil led on the plant: wil l more nearly overc ome the eff ects if they remain on t he. plnnL unt il mature or ripe . Immatu re frult shoulcl be disc.-irdcd . Attempts to r i pen jmmature chill ed fruit off the pLrnt wlll result in s evere losses f r om ab11orma l ripe ning , decay, sof t fruit , and genern ] ly poor qual ity .

THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

In no case s hou ld t omat oes be he ld be low 55°F after h arves t . Gre a t e r th an n ormal .los ses ca n be expected during th e pipening of th ose severely chil led fru i t.

~OTE: Dr. B. D. Tho mps on is a Professor, Vegetable Cr ops Dep a rtm ent , Univers ity of Fl or ida, Gainesville, Florida .

(Thompson)

IV. VEGETABLE GARDENING

A. Timely Gardening Topics

These question s an d ans wers are suggested here f or yo ur use in de ve loping periodic (\,·eekly) ra dio o r newspaper s h o rt s . Th ey are b ased on letter s of inquiry from ga rde ne rs aro un d t he sta t e .

(1) Time ly Topic f or Week of Febr uar y 13-19.

Question

What c an I do in my garden to overc ome the s h ortage of fr e sh v ege t ables that is bound t o occur fol lowing thi s wi nt er ' s r eco rd Florida fr eeze ?

Reply

To answ e r t his , i t mu st fi rst be pointed out that the d anger of yet another freeze is no t yet pa sse d. So gardener~ sh ould adhere t o nor ma l p lant in g schedules . Cool seaso n vegetab les can be p lanted with a bett e r-tha n-av erage chan ce of s uccess anytim e no w throughout all are as of t he st ate . However, wa rm season cr op s, s uch as tomat oes , cuc umber s, an d squash, shoul d not be planted un ti l da n ger of frost is over , ,.;hich is mid - Narch in e xt reme North Fl ori da.

Unf ortunately, gardeners planti n g now c an do l it tle to provi d e fresh vegetab l es from t heir ga rd ens during the peak h igh pri ce pe riod , whic h ex ten ds to the en d of Har ch . Vegetables grown in gar den s take j ust a s long to mat ur e as vegetab les grow n in th e commercial fields . The re fore , garden pro du cti on foll owing the recent freeze will coi n­cide wi t h commerc ial fa rm production. Vegetables from th e garden could reach th e table a b it earl y if t he y are ha rves t ed in the you ng, i mmature st age . Certain ly mos t leaf and root c rop s, such as lettuc e , mustar d, turnips, c ollard, ka le, spi nac h, cha rd, cabb a ge, carrot, ra di sh, po t ato, and beet co ul d be eat en severa l days before th ey hav e reach ed the best stage of mat ur ity fo r ma rketing purposes. Ev en fruiting veg et abl es, such P.s

cucu mbe r, s quash, and bean~ a r e usef ul when har v ested earl y.

In many c ;ises duri ng t he f r eeze , gardeners we r e ab le to giv e more ad e quate protection to th e ir grow in g p l ants th an the farmers tr ying to pro tect large acreag es . Thos e g ar dene rs st i ll having live p l an ts, even t hough d amage d , sh ou ld strive to b rin g them out by rem ov ing damaged l eaves , fer ti lizi ng , wat eri ng nnd n urtu rin g pla nts ba ck to good he al th . Sk ips in the r ows ma y be repla n t ed . Eff ort s ~ 1ould h e made to th jn cro wded s eed lin g nr eas t h at es c ape d s eve re col d inj ur y, and rese t th e extrn pla nt s into sections of the g ard e n where p la n ts we re ki l l c <l.

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THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

Seeds that .were in the ground at freeze time proLably were not injur e d. How­ever, so me tim e will be necessary for the soil to wanu to proper ge r min a ting temp er a ­ture before the plants will emer ge. Gardeners should dig into the seed furro w to exa mine t he seeds and to determine if replanting is necessary.

Gardeners should expect to see more problems than usual from premature s eeding of l eafy crops and a general reduction in quality. However, thes e problems can be tol e rated in light of the alternative s.

Vegetables that were nearing maturity may still be salv ageable. For example, potatoes whose t ops were killed still have usable tubers. These sh ould be du g , cle aned, and sorted a s soon as possible. They probably will not store long due to the stage o f i mmaturity, so shou l d be eaten rath er soon.

Lookin g further into th e spri ng, ga rdeners wi ll be unlik e ly to save as much as us ual on th ei r home gro wn pr od uce, for v egeta bl es gr.own commer c i a ll y will p r ob ably be pri ced mor e reason ably than us ual a s so on as produc t ion r e sumes in April. The se low er pric e s coul d r es ult f rom ove rla pping of su pp ly fr om t h e vari ous major pr odu cti on poi n t s in Flori da . Eac h area wil l be repla n ting many major crops about the sam e ti me as the ot he r are as, s o th a t subs equent ha rve st pe riods will p rob ab ly co in cid e mor e clos e ly t ha n i n normal year s . The net results should b e ove r -su ppl y and lo wer prices . Howeve r, su ch pro gno s tication pr eclud es future weat her deve lo pmen ts , wh ich could off er mor e cold be fo re the wi -nt er is throu gh , result:i.n g in hi gh fo od price s f or a consi dera b ly lo nger ti me th an we mi ght an ti c i pate.

So in su mmary , t hos e who can hav e a veg etn bl e gard en shou l d b e encour nged t o do s o . But th e be ne fi ts are not going · to be much gre ate r or much less t han in ot her yea rs ha vi ng more no rma l wea the r .

(2) Timely Topic for Week o f Feb r uary 20-26 .

Questi on

I oft en hea r the tenns "determinate" and '1ndetermin a te" used in re f e r enc e to toma t o va rie ti es . Wha t do es it mean and wha t ar e some example varieti es ?

Reply

The t erms app ly t o gro wth hab it of the tomato plants. I n general, "indet er ­min nte " r efe r s t o pl ants th a t ar e tall, vining, and co n tinu ous gr owin g . The te rmi na l (t ip) gro wt h i s ve get a tiv e rath er tha n fruiting. Bloss om cluste rs f or m abou t ever y t hr ee le af int e r nodes . Thi s pl an t habit m.:ikes s uc h va r ieti es ad ap t abl e to s t ak in g or tr e ll i s in g . Here is a par tia l l i stin g of var jet ie s with i n the " inde t e r mi nn t e " cat eg ory : Bet t er Boy , Bi g Doy, Count y Fair, Fan ta st ic , Bonny Best , Beef Ste ak , Ear lian a , Fl ora del , In dia n Ri ve r , J t:b :i.lee , Manapa l, Nana luc i e , Narion, Oxhe a r t, Pond er os a , Rutge r s, San Mar za no , Super Sio ux , Tro pic , Beef mas ter , }~ n te Car lo, Gold en Roy, Gl rnnour , Tri p L Crop Cli mber , Suga r Lump, Red Che rry, Rc<l Pea r., Re el Plu m, Yel lo w Cherry, Yel low Pea r , Yel low Pl um.

The f ol l m.;,ing fi t be st in t he "d et e r mina t e" cate go ry :Ace , C«l - ace , Ear l y Pa k, Fl or ida NH- .1, llmr.c:'.s t ea cl, Ha rgl obe , Napo li V. r·., New Yor ker. , Pea r s on , Ro mn , She ye n ne , wa l t a r , Tr opi-G r o , Tro pi- Recl, Spri ng Se t, Bi gs et, Bonus , Patio , Terr i f i c , Won der Boy , America na, Tumt]· in 'f 01JJ, Sma l l Fry , Roya l Chi co , Gol den Dcl ighL , Cold Se t , Hej n z 1350 , and Ti ny Tim .

THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

(3) Ti mely Topic for Week of February 27- Mar ch 5.

Question

I have noticed several kinds of melons on display in the supermarkets. They loo k something like cantaloupes but are not netted. What are they?

Reol y

Th ese are all members of the muskmelon group, (Cucumis melo) . Those having distincti ve " netting" on the surface of the rind and "sutures" (ribs) are generally called cantaloupes. Muskmelon may mean more specifically the larger fruited, heavier ribbed ty pe s . Those without netting, and to which you are referring, are mix e d melons more clos ely related to honey dews .

Questio n

Re:0l y

Some of the more common kinds are described as follows:

Casab a has wrinkled exterior skin, deve lo pin g a ri ch go l den color whe n mature.

Santa Claus is a long casaba typ e with wr ink le d sk i n and a dark ­gr een- and-gold mott l in g.

Cranshaw is a round , s l ight ly corrugat ed , dar k- green melon th at turns yel l ow when ripe .

Hone y dew is nearly round, wit h a cream y wh ite sm ooth s urface. Persi an is similar to the others in si ze and shape, but is co mplet e ly

cover ed by fin e n e tting. Unl ike the cant a lou pe , it has no sutures . Banana is a long cylindrical melon 4 i nches in di ameter by 12 inche s

long . The surface is s mooth with no nett in g, altl1ou gh it tastes more lik e a cant a loup e than a hon ey d ew .

(4) Timely To pic for Week of March 6-12.

How ar e some beans able to climb and others are not?

Po le t y pes ar e ch a ract eri zed by what is called an " in dete rm inate" gr owth h2bit, wher eas bush beans are "d et erminate" in ha bit. In the inde te rmi na te h_abi t t he flowers f o rm in the a x ils of leaves an d ste m, thus, the stem may con tinue to gro w lo~ ger more or l es s indefinitely; in the de ter minate hab it the ma in g r owin g point ter mina t es in a flower cluster, thus, preventing fur th er stem e lon g a tio n . Beans t ha t clim b do so by vir tu e of their hairy, sinuou s , tw ini ng st erns . The absence o f tendrils or t en dril leaves i n b ea ns helps in on e way to di s tinguish b ea ns from p ea s. Th e b eans de not h ave th e ab: i.li t y to climb until we ll a long in gr ow th.

( St eph ens )

:n. Knoi·~_Your Vege tables - Vegetabfo Spagh _ett _~.

. VeEe t:ablc • spagl1e t t i (Cu curbita J~~_po) is also know n a~ sp agh2 tt i squ.1 sh , spaghet ti go urd, MRnchurian squash a n d sq 11aghe tt i . Jt has erro n eousl y been call ed cucl!zzi , whic h ic: a n ed ihl e g oun l .

THE VEGETARIAL"l NEHSLETTER

The interesting thing about vegetable spaghetti is its resemblance to a bowl of spng h ctti when pro per ly prepared. If the yellowish-orangP. mriture fr ui t is cook ed ,,!hole for about 20 minutes and then ·cut open, the flesh is in loose sh reds , s·omewha t res embl in g spaghet ti in appearance. The taste, h owever , is squash-like, although rat he r bland. Proper seasoning, as with salt, pe pp er, and butter, is require d for the be st tasting dish .

The fruit is about ten inches long and five inches in diameter, weighing about bvo pounds. The fru it ste m is five - sided , grooved and no t conspicuously flaring at attachmen t to fruit . Like the oth er membe rs of the vegetable mar row group, zucchini and cocozel le, the smoo th skinned fruits are produced on a bush.

Cultivation of vegetable spaghetti should be as for any summer squash . The plant is tender, being damaged or killed by cold weather, so seed should be sow n early in the s pring as soo n as danger of frost is passed. In South Florida, it may be seeded anytime from Septemb er thr ough March . Spa ce plants 3 fee t apar t in rows spac ed 42-48 " apart . Najo r plant pe sts arc mildews, pickleworrns, and fruit rots . Both mal e and fe male flowers a re pro duc ed on the sa me pl ant , s o bees are necess ary for pollination pur po ses. Fruits deve lop to harvest stag e ab out 70-80 da ys aft er seedin g .

(Steph ens)