Quote:
Originally Posted by brownrexx
I did not read back through this entire thread but if you are concerned with cucumbers then you are probably having trouble with the bacterial wilt that is carried by the spotted cucumber beetle. The beetle itself does not kill the vines but the bacterial wilt that they carry does.
I am an organic gardener so I do not spray pesticides so I had been unable to get a decent crop of cucumbers for several years. Now I only raise the variety called County Fair and it is resistant to the bacterial wilt. Eventually the vines succumb but not before I have had a decent crop. Succession planting would help with this too since you live in the south and have a longer season. The later planted ones would last longer and thus give you a longer harvest.
There is also a variety that can be grow under row covers and does not require pollination by insects. I tried this one year and it was OK but the vines were really big and hard to keep covered. I forget the variety name but you can google parthenocarpic cucumbers if you are interested. It might be Diva but I am not sure.
Nothing new on Squash Vine Borer control that I know of except to keep planting new squash or injecting the vines with bt to kill the larvae that are already in them. I get enough squash to keep me happy by doing this.
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No cucumber beetle no spray.
My vines now last all summer most of the time.