Mowed 28 times so far this year. Uncle!

[LD1]

Gary, do your cucumbers and zucchini usually die off this early out there in Arkansas?

Up here, a good year we'd still be picking them into september

 

[Will_C]

Mowing 2x a week-usually down to on e a week by mid July.

Will

 

[sixdogs]

GaryFowler...we used to grow vine crops commercially and maybe can help with your wilt issues. It's probably a bacterial wilt problem and at the end of the season you should gather up all the vines and old tomato plants and residue, take it to a different non-garden location and burn them. Short of that, just get rid of the diseased plants and don't till them back in where the disease can live for at long time in the soil. Tomatoes share the same problems and diseases as vine crops. Don't leave old fruit on the ground but pick up and dispose.

Freezing will kill this bacteria so we never fall tilled but waited till spring. In a cold climate like the northern US, we had no wilt problem doing things this way. If you could have a three year rotation it would be better. As well, you can buy seeds for plants resistant to wilt as well.

 

[sixdogs]

It rained again yesterday, rained overnight and thunderstorms and potentially heavy rainfall is possible later today. Just learned it's supposed to rain the first part of next week as well.
Probably won't rain all next summer after this.

 

[ArlyA]

Up here on the south shore of da BIG lake superior, we've been wet with cooler temps all summer, so the yard n weed keeps on growing. In fact the lake rise has been near a record amount. We're looking to replace the 15yo Simplicity mower with a new Husky.

 

[rekees4300]

Normally, it's 21 times for the year but it just keeps raining.

Feel your pain ... same situation next door in Indiana. At least once a week or more. Great year for Clover and honey bees love it.

 

[BoylermanCT]

I normally mow once a week. This year is has to be once every 4-5 day or the mower can't keep up. We get afternoon thunderstorms and 1/2"-1" of rain every other day. You can almost watch the grass grow this year!

 

[sixdogs]

#30 was yesterday. Rain later today through tomorrow.

 

[Richard]

I'd change places if I could but so far, I've made out like a bandit this year.

I usually spend 2-hours/week cutting the field in front of my house. Wife likes it trimmed. 3-houses on the farm, us, her cousin and on other side of him, his daughter/son in law.

(daughter has a son by different person than son in law so this person shows up every weekend or so)

I traditionally cut the field every week, if it needs it or not. Her cousin has said how nice it looks but it didn't need it.... I said that is how to keep it looking good.....cut it before it looks like it needs it!

This summer, his son in law and "the other guy" have been trying to gain "points" for us by trying to help out on the farm. This means they have been cutting the field and one of them, went into a more rough part of the farm (with my finish mower) and started to cut there...

Oh, and the son in law, complained how blazing hot the side of the tractor was getting... "it's getting red hot"....

I go look at it and in about 32 nano-seconds of seeing it, flipped the parking brake off and asked "did you turn this off prior to cutting??"

(no, had been using with parking brake engaged)


I've gone until literally last weekend when I finally cut the field for the first time this year. The two newer young bucks have been almost competing on trying to help & keep it cut.

Felt kind of nice. (but for their ignorance on how to use the tractor and using it in places that it doesn't belong)

 

[oosik]

The spring starts out with me having to mow three time per week. Since I don't water the lawns/fields - its now down to a small, tennis court sized, patch that is mowed every ten days or so. Spring mowing is fine - mowing this time of year is simply a bath in dust and various pollens. I must shower after mowing or suffer effects of allergies for a couple days. This time of year we could use rain. However, its a normal, dry as popcorn, situation here.