General information and discussion about cultivating all other edible garden plants.
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#1 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: California Central Valley
Posts: 2,542
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I planted the first batch of okra about 3 inches apart. I had a dozen varieties, with some new seed and some seed as old as 2003, intending to plant accordingly, but on the way to the garden the seeds got mixed together. The ones that germinated are mostly at the ends of a 4x8 bed. They are all about an inch high.
Can I transplant some of them so that they will be 1-2 feet apart? Or will that be a waste of time? |
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#2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Brownville, Ne
Posts: 3,290
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It just so happens I am the first to answer this serious question with my kind of answer: yes, out of the garden and into the compost pile. Now wait for the real replies.
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there's two things money can't buy; true love and home grown tomatoes. |
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#3 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Augusta area, Georgia, 8a/7b
Posts: 1,685
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Can't hurt to try as you'd have to pull them to thin the row anyway. Just get a nice chunk of soil with it.
Paul, I guess you won't be wanting any of the okra and tomatoes we're having with lunch today, eh? ![]() |
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#4 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Southeastern PA
Posts: 1,420
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I would give it a try. I start mine indoors in pots and transplant it to the garden with no ill effects.
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#5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Brownville, Ne
Posts: 3,290
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I would love the tomatoes but forego the okra.
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there's two things money can't buy; true love and home grown tomatoes. |
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#6 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Southeastern PA
Posts: 1,420
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I make stewed tomatoes with sliced okra added and it acts as a natural thickener. Honestly I can't taste the okra but DH can and he loves it.
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#7 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Alabama
Posts: 7,068
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I used to have to do the same thing almost every time I planted them directly in the soil. I have been starting them in cups for years to eliminate that problem and they transplant with no problem especially if they are over six inches tall with a good root ball. I now grow mostly Cowhorn types and they are so large that I try to give them a couple of feet between them. Bill |
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#8 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: California Central Valley
Posts: 2,542
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I did a test run a couple days ago, digging up 3 into prepared holes and the tossing a handful of compost around them before I watered. So far so good. The inferno is coming this week, two days 105F and two more days 100F+, so I’m letting them be for a few days.
In the meantime, I’m germinating a new batch so that I will be able to know who’s who. One more question: do I need to bag blossoms if I want to save seeds? |
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#9 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3
Posts: 3,231
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Yes, if you are growing more than one variety and want to keep seed pure. One source claimed it was possible to cross pollinate up to 1/4 mile, though I imagine you'd have to have no obstructions and perfect wind conditions. Or maybe the bees did it!
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#10 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 313
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BTW if saving seed, it has been my observation that provided the plants are not crowded, letting one pod per plant go for seed has little to no effect on yield. The plants I allowed to do that last year bore all season. |
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#11 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: California Central Valley
Posts: 2,542
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All of the okra plants I moved have done well. I also moved 11 of them to a different bed in mid-June, and covered the bed loosely with shadecloth and newspaper. Some of them looked like they might not make it -- wilting, lost leaves, etc. I watered every day, since the edges of the bed were in full sun, and we had a 100F+ heat wave for several days. Two weeks later, during a break in the inferno (80s-90s), I uncovered them and mulched, and all are thriving.
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#12 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: VA-7a
Posts: 121
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Good job! Someone at my community garden sowed all his okra in a clump and then moved them to rows when they were a couple inches tall. Good thing he had a ton of seedlings, since only about 20% made it. They definitely don't like being transplanted, but with the care you gave them it can work.
For okra, like a lot of things I direct sow, I've gone to soaking them and then keeping them in a lightly moist paper towel in a plastic bag until they sprout. Then I know when I sow them that close to 100% will come up so I can space them accordingly. I also find it helps get good germination if I'm starting them a little earlier when the soil isn't as warm as they might prefer. It is interesting to see the different days to germinate each variety takes. A lot of the longer types (Burmese, Perkins Long Pod, Bowling Red, etc.) germinate in the paper towels in just a few days and mostly all at once, the the fat types (Eagle Pass, Star of David, etc.) take a week and sometimes longer to show any life and then germinate a few at a time each day. Perhaps it is my seed source, but I was really worried when I first tried Eagle Pass that all my seed was bad and then they finally started to germinate. |
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