I was checking out the garden and pulling the stray weeds and whatnot when I noticed this squash plant growing towards another. I went to redirect it when I noticed this split down the middle of the stem. I thought: Hmmm, this can't be healthy. But looking around the internet I discovered that it's pretty common. While it's not an ideal situation for the plant, it can still survive. Since I never rip anything out of the ground until it's brown and withered away, I'll keep an eye on this one and leave it be.
At first I suspected this little guy in the center of the picture (silly little cucumber beetle) but they destroy plants by eating roots and spreading their nasty little germs on the plants (not splitting the stems). Thus my cucumber:
I'm not a big insecticide fan so reading up a bit, I learned that I'll be picking these guys off my plants and chucking them deep into the woods.
I'll bet those beetles would love to ride on some hooks to get a closer look at some fish !
ReplyDeleteBy the way, the garden looks great !
ReplyDeleteAre you sure those beetles are not aliens?
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a good Father's Day - thinking about you and hoping you are well.
ReplyDeleteThanks man, I appreciate it. You too!
ReplyDeleteDo you have a problem with Japanese beetles too? They are crazy down here-
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen any in the garden...just the cucumber beetles. In fact, I lifted a leaf and 3 of them scampered away.
ReplyDeleteSo did the plant survive the stem split? I've got a watermelon with it, how does it happen?
ReplyDelete