(Part 3) Top products from r/gardening

Compost and fertilizer do they same job, but you would be purchasing different things. Fertilizer would be something like Garden-tone which is little granules you'd sprinkle onto your soil. Compost would be something you'd purchase in a bag like potting soil like this. A simple explanation would be that fertilizer usually acts faster and runs out faster, compost takes longer to kick in but lasts longer. Compost also helps break up your soil and improve it so it's healthier for your plants. Compost (or composted manure) is also often cheaper. I usually work compost into my soil and then use a little bit of fertilizer near my big plants like my tomatoes.

Growing plants from seeds is a lot of fun, but it takes about 8 weeks to get tomato and pepper seedlings that are big enough to plant outside. You'd probably be better off starting with seedlings this year and trying to transplant your own next year. Also, setting up a system for growing plants from seeds to make sure they grow well can get complicated fast! So starting your garden one year, and working on seed starting later in winter when there's not as much garden stuff going on is a good idea. In order to save money on seedlings you might want to watch for sales at your local hardware store or see if there are any gardening groups in your area that might trade or sell extra seedlings. You can also plant mostly plants that are always grown from seeds directly in the garden like cucumbers, beans, squash, melons, etc. That simplifies things a lot.

Also I'm glad the size comments were helpful. I learned that the hard way when I was starting out. Doing one side at a time sounds like it would work really well!

And I hope you enjoy preserving. It's amazing how much money it can save once you've had a little practice, especially when the surplus is coming out of your own garden.

General Advice:

• Use a concentrate for bug/fungus sprays! Don't waste money on the ready-to-spray crap.
  
• When spraying for bugs, always use a fungicide in low-concentrate as well. The reason is that the water will encourage fungus growth, so you need to counteract that.
  
• Start with lower-concentrates, and work your way up. It's generally better to under-do something, than over-do and burn your plants.
  
  Fertilizer:
  
  
• General Hydroponics MaxiGro plus MaxiBloom (6/5) - I've tried all sorts of fertilizers, and found this to be the cheapest, most effective for container plants. To give you an idea how effective, this plant was growing in a 10oz solo cup at the time of that photo. The small quantity goes a LONG way; I've found it MUCH cheaper and easier to balance versus buying bags and bags of other fertilizers (i.e. bone-meal, compost, iron, calcium, etc, fish/kelp based, etc). Mix 1 tsp per gallon. I'm lazy, so I do 1tsp of each in a 2-gallon bucket, then distribute to all of my plants.
  
• Silica (4/5) - I can't report anything 'scientific' but according to my research, silica helps plants grow much stronger. I also mix this with my watering solution at about 1tsp per 2 gallons, but you can go a bit stronger if you like. Only reason it's 4/5 is because my plants were doing great before using this, so it's hard to tell exactly how much of a difference it's actually made.
  
• Tomato-tone (5/5) - Inexpensive, diverse nutrients, VERY effective. This stuff revived several container tomatoes, and a 4-foot basil plant. Smells a little, but not too bad.
  
• Earthworm Castings (5/5) - Inexpensive, diverse nutrients. This stuff can be used fairly liberally, and is an 'organic' option. Definitely helped keep my plants happy and healthy.
  
• Pearlite/Vermiculite (4/5) - Not a fertilizer, but helps prevent soil compaction, root-rot, and over-watering issues. This stuff is cheap, especially in larger quantities. Use liberally! It's difficult to over-use.
  
• Water Absorbing Crystals (4/5) - Inexpensive, fun, aerates soil, stores water, and kinda crazy (fun for kids)! These 'crystals' absorb water expanding many times their size, and then release that water. As you might imagine, this expansion and contraction keeps the soil loose, prevents over-watering, and is also good for "plants no one waters" scenarios. My only hesitation is it's somewhat of a 'chemical' additive, but all of my research suggests it's safe.
  
  Bugs:
  
  
• Spinosad plus Permethrin (5/5) - Concentrate lasts forever, very effective, human/pet safe, good for edible plants, pleasant/minimal smell, minimal/no mess.
  
• Diatomaceous Earth (4/5) - Effective, must be applied liberally, though it can be a bit messy, and may need re-application.
  
• Safer Soap (3/5) - Somewhat effective, but for edible plants, the taste is hard to get out, and made a mess of my grow tent. On the good side, it's cheap and lasts forever.
  
• Neem Oil (2/5) - Smells terrible, don't use indoors. Perhaps good for outdoor use?
  
  Fungus:
  
  
• Chlorothalonil (?/5) - After extensive research, apparently this is safer and more effective than copper. Trying this product next.
  
• Copper (4/5) - Has effectively reduced a very bad leaf-fungus issue I was having on tomatoes and peppers. Only issues are that according to my research, it's not the safest product, and works best as a preventative rather than 'cure.'
  
• Hydrogen Peroxide (4/5) - Use 30%-35% food-grade, and dilute heavily to about 1-2%. Good for root-rot, algae, and leaf-mold (spray). Leaves no mess, as it breaks down into water+oxygen. Safe for plants and humans (in low concentrations). Only problem is that it's a short-term solution.
  
• Baking Soda (2/5) - I may have misapplied it, but this seemed to burn my plants.
  
  
  
  

I'm very fond of Cornell's growing guides. Here is their guide for potatoes. I followed most of that same advice with the fabric pots, but halved most of the spacing and depth measurements.

Here's my entire process if you're interested:

• Follow Cornell's guide on cutting and curing the potatoes in a grocery bag.
  
• Fill a 20-gallon smart pot with about 5" of garden soil.
  I had been using Pro Mix Ultimate Organic Vegetable and Herb Mix, which was 2CF for $19.99, but they don't seem to carry it anymore. I liked it because it's kind of halfway between normal garden soil and potting mix and has mycorrhizal fungi added, but anything not too dense would probably work. I also sprinkle in some all-purpose organic fertilizer and add a few handfuls of peat moss to increase the acidity.
  
• In a ring, about 4" in from the edge of the pot, place one of your seed potato pieces every 5", eyes up. I usually get around 5 pieces/pot in that ring.
  Depending on the size of your pieces, you should be able to fit another 1-2 pieces in the middle of the ring.
  
• Cover all that with another 4" of the above soil mix.
  
• Grab two ends of the pot, shake it a bit, and pull a little outward. Should be a crevasse on each side beneath your hands. Drop some more soil in there. Rotate the pot a bit and repeat until there's no more room for soil. This helps the pot stand up better and gives more soil along the edges for the taters.
  
• When there's been about 3-4" of growth, add about 2" of soil, unrolling the bag as you go.
  
• Pretty much repeat every few weeks or 3-4" of growth until the bag is completely unrolled and then you're done.
  
  Water according to the Cornell site. I've got a dripper in each so I kind of just run that weekly.
  
  This is only my second year doing it this way so I wouldn't yet call it tried and true, but I did get a splendid yield last year.
  
  Edit: Sorry, I kind of snuck the answer to your question into that wall of text so I've bolded the relevant part.

The Square Foot Gardening book really helped me out. It's easy to read, has a whole section dedicated to the different types of garden bed layouts, and a glossary in the back for different plants that goes over when to plant/harvest and what sunlight conditions they do best in. You don't have to have a square foot garden to benefit from this book.

*Edit You should also research the zone you are in to get a better understanding of frost dates. These will tell you when the best times to plant or transplant are as well as how long your growing season is. Also, determine how the sun crosses your property. Doing so will help you determine the best location to start your garden.

For those just getting started, Square Foot Gardening is great, it's a good starting point for getting in the habit of maintaining a garden, for making good use of small spaces, and for learning about gardening.

How to Grow More Vegetables is a fantastic book. It is a great reference book on sustainable gardening, and self-sufficiency gardening. It is used by several programs as a textbook to teach sustinence gardening in third-world countries.

Carrots Love Tomatoes is a great book for learning about companion planting.

I just ordered Gardening When it Counts: Growing Food in Hard Times. I haven't read it yet, so I can't give a review, but it is reviewed very favorably. My understanding is that it presents a more old-fashioned, traditional method of gardening that requires less water, less fertilization, etc.

Good luck, and let us know what you think of any books you try!

Gonna jump on your post here if it's ok...?

This guy's book was a really good read (sounds region-specific, but lots of good advice & I like it, at least the old edition I had from him - not my area but was a really good read nonetheless):

https://www.amazon.com/Growing-Vegetables-West-Cascades-Anniversary/dp/1570619727/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?adgrpid=61475601532&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIko2K3s_H4wIVkMJkCh2TuQ0uEAAYASAAEgJTbPD_BwE&hvadid=274737938392&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=1014167&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t1&hvqmt=e&hvrand=3854399460535581594&hvtargid=kwd-307473147769&hydadcr=22602_10370142&keywords=gardening+west+of+the+cascades&qid=1563767514&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Really good author for drilling basics into your head & always seems genuine (in the two books of his I've read in the past)

edit: he talks about soils and spacing quite a bit, at least in the older edition. Newbies would be well advised to check it out; not your garden-variety "more compost + unicorn manure + pretty pictures" gardening book 😉

This is a good one too.

Weird why Amazon would not ship.
Some walmarts carry the Espoma line of organics, so check Walmart.

Absolutely, just the fiber along cleans up your gutt. I hated the taste initially, but so used to it now, its now part of the taste palette.

I went full vegetarian, about 3 years ago, cholesterol is down, blood pressure under control, sugar levels are normal, lost 40+ lbs, more importantly I sleep a lot better. So glad to have a 8hr sleep. I wont say it was just Ashitaba, but it certainly boosted my confidence and changed my view on food.

These two books helped me a ton! We have a fairly unique climate here that can be difficult at times. Basically sets you up for the best success each year. I love gardening! Happy to have another in our ranks!

https://www.amazon.com/Growing-Vegetables-West-Cascades-Anniversary/dp/1570619727/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493331258&sr=8-1&keywords=west+of+the+cascades+gardening

https://www.amazon.com/Growing-Vegetables-West-Cascades-Anniversary/dp/1570619727/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493331258&sr=8-1&keywords=west+of+the+cascades+gardening

Well, I have this excellent book, which I was roughly using as a guide. The root (ha!) problem I think, is that I didn't have the balls to do it last year, when I planted it. It was a gift when we bought our house, and it's the first thing I've ever stuck in the ground and didn't want to hurt it. I've since planted a bunch of stuff, and I'm a bit less timid. I figured that even if I killed it, I can learn from my failure and do better next time.

My goals, though, were several. Trying to encourage the open-center shape, for one; hopefully strengthening those two thin branches (as I said in my other comment, those were the only two on that side of the tree even before the massacre); plus the general advantages of pruning.

As for next time, I have no intention of ever having to do anything this dramatic in the future. Here's hoping I didn't fuck it up too bad. Thanks for the input, and I hope I get better at it.

For the ants, Spray with something harmless to plants, targeted at ants. For the Aphids, Ladybugs! Ladybug the crap out of them ! Here is where you can buy some very easily! I have bought live insects off amazon several times and never once have I been dissapointed. I know it sounds silly buying live insects online but it works ! Hope this is of Help ! :)
https://www.amazon.com/500-Live-Ladybugs-Guaranteed-Delivery/dp/B00I0DOKNW/ref=sr_1_2?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1465405929&sr=1-2&keywords=lady+bugs

In dirt in my raised beds for peppers and tomatoes I amend the soil with cow manure compost, turkey manure compost & top dress with tomato tone.

In containers I like to grow in ProMix BX and I use General Hydroponics Maxibloom which is a dry, water soluble 1 part complete fertilizer that has all the macro & micro nutrients you need. It grows amazing peppers and tomatoes and doesn't require any additional supplements like cal-mag or epsom salt. From planting out til end of season it's the only thing I use for my peppers & tomatoes.

Plus it's super cheap at $12.49 for a 2.2lb bag on Amazon. If you have ever heard of the Lucas Formula Maxibloom at 7g/gallon of water is spot on.

For seedlings I like to use kelp & fish emulsion until planting out.

You might want to try Liqui-Cop. It might be a little late, but it won't hurt. At least it is a source to learn from for next year. https://www.groworganic.com/media/pdfs/pfm320-b.pdf Directions say for bacteria spot and speck to mix it with Maneb or Mancozeb:https://www.amazon.com/Bonide-Chemical-Mancozeb-Flowable-Fungicide/dp/B000BWZ9JO. edit: your county cooperative extension won't try to sell you something. The nursery may have a good clue as to what is going around this year. Be sure to talk to the right person. I really hope you get tomatoes. You have a tremendous amount of time in this project.

They do! I don't have much to say about them right now since I bought them a week ago based on other recommendations. So far, so good though! They're much sturdier than I had anticipated.

They are called SmartGrow pots. Everyone on Amazon swears by them. They have a great range of sizes, I just wanted something large enough to give the sprouts a chance to become true trees.

While I don't have experience with this Lowe's version, the concept is pretty standard and is one that my wife and I used in the past. The concept is called "Square foot gardening" and the idea is to plant a different crop in each square. Now considering that this raised bed is 48" squared and the number of squares are 6 in one direction and 5 in the other (as opposed to 4 in both directions), what you plant is going to be a bit more cramped.

Personally, I didn't like the idea and we just use raised beds that I built myself. You have to be very calculating regarding how you plant things. This is obviously a good thing. I just didn't like the super duper planning that it called for. My garden is currently 16'x24' and I have a good number of raised beds, so I don't need to be so perfect when it comes to the amount of space I use.

When buying something like this, realize that you could probably make this yourself for $20 or less. If you're being sold solid materials and it's less than $30 bucks, I'd say go for it and buy it. If the markup is high, forget it! Remember, 2 2x8 ($5 each) and some nails or screws (which you probably have already) are all you need. You can use anything to mark those squares. If you don't want to spend any more money, you can simply drill screws along the frame at 1' intervals and string yarn or anything of the like across.

edit: clarity

> ...with some of our plants like peppers and zuchinni, I feel like we could've done better.

I’m a little further north from you (Cascade foothills, NE of Seattle) but the best twenty or so bucks I ever spent was on a copy of Steve Solomon’s Growing Vegetables West of the Cascades (Amazon link.) Peppers can be tough in our climate (not enough heat units) but if you’re struggling with zucchini you might need to up your game.

I don’t recollect how much Solomon delves into raised beds, but most of the concepts can be applicable to most gardening methods, if you’re OK with reading.

I keep seeing posts from a lot of people having great luck with their plants and I want the same for mine.

I set the troughs up using the Square Foot Gardening Technique and they have been doing pretty well. We've been getting Chard, Kale, Green Beans, Snap Peas, a few carrots, and a few beets. Nothing seems to be thriving other than the tomato plants in one of the bins but no fruit yet!

I water regularly but have not fertilized other than last week for the first time and I wasnt sure how much to use. I used one solo cup of each fertilizer and spread the one cup full throughout the three troughs. The tomatos look a little wilted to me but are haning in there and have a few flowers now.

Veggie Fertilizer:http://amzn.com/B001H1LS6G
Tomato Fertilizer: http://amzn.com/B0011UEKKE

Any advice appreciated!

(Picture of my dog included because pets make everything better!)

I had good luck last year growing my tomatoes and cucumbers in these I had I believe two in each pot and worked up a kind of tripod system to support them.

This might be a cool book for her. I have a few books like this, it's handy to have a good reference like this to consult.

I use Smart Pots (20" wide or more should be OK). They can dry out faster, especially with wind / sun, but I like how easy they are to store over winter, move, plant, etc..

https://www.amazon.com/Vegetable-Gardening-Pacific-Northwest-Regional/dp/1604693517/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1481756834&sr=8-2&keywords=pacific+northwest+gardening

I recommend giving this book a look. It is broken down into sections for each month and lists what you could direct sow, start indoors, or transplant. It has a wealth of information and is local to the Pacific Northwest.

I would recommend you only plant one summer squash. Two if you really want to push it. I could have built a house out of all of the summer squash I got from two plants last year. It definitely makes you feel like a real gardener but soon you'll find your 4 year old buried in a stack of summer squash.

If you ever want a bigger garden plot and don't mind driving out to Redmond I just want to let you know about the community garden at Marymoor, where I garden. http://marymoorgarden.org/ Their standard plots are 400 square feet so you'll get quite a bit more space than you have now.

Yeah, Maxibloom is 100% complete and can be used in hydro, soilless or even soil (although I never use it in actual soil). At 1/2tsp to 1tsp per gallon a 1kg bag goes a LONG way. Growing like 14 plants in 5 to 20 gallon pots I went through just a little over 1 bag in a season from April til late August. Best thing ever IMO, peppers and tomatoes love it. Makes growing in inert soilless mix a snap.

It's pretty cheap too, $14.50 for a 1kg bag on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/General-Hydroponics-MaxiBloom-Gardening-2-2-Pound/dp/B00NXVZQUW

I can't find any good pics of my tomatos but this is an Aji Lemon Drop pepper in a 20 gal pot of promix + perlite that was fed nothing but maxibloom its whole life: http://i.imgur.com/GdmaZj6.jpg

The fruit that is on there is probably fine for this year. In future years when it sets heavier you will want to thin the clusters to 1-3 each (rather than the typical 3-5).

You should NOT prune your trees now unless there is a diseased or damaged branch. Pruning on apples and pears is done in the late fall and winter when the tree is dormant.

You can read this for some basics. http://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1957/22166/pnw400.pdf

Better bet is to buy a pruning book and learn about the basics. Couple great examples here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1564583317/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

or here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1780192703/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The polymer pellets are going to be Terra-sorb or Agro Diamonds. Miracle gro calls them Water Storing Crystals. The product should tell you application rates. You can shop around using the term hydrogel with a little more ease I think. Terra sorb asks for 1tsp per gallon.

http://www.gardeners.com/buy/terra-sorb-drought-proofing-crystals/14091.html

http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Gro-100831-Storing-Crystals-12-Ounce/dp/B0042YYVYG/ref=pd_sim_sbs_lg_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0T7X87H8G7KJ7N5BFHAJ

Love this garden knife!

http://www.amazon.com/Japanese-Garden-Landscaping-Digging-Stainless/dp/B0007WFG2I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418157066&sr=8-1&keywords=garden+knife

I swear by this stuff, organic and has protected all my greens and radishes like a boss

I use this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Yimby-Tumbler-Composter-Color-Black/dp/B009378AG2

It says 2 weeks, but I would budget a couple months :)

I bought the Yimby compost bin two years ago and a Jora Compost bin last year. IMHO the Yimby is junk - it is too small to heat up and compost. The Jora, being insulated does very well and can create compost in a month if I add lots of greens. That being said, if I bought another it would be a Geobin.

You could always look into those "water crystals". Basically take a big handful of them and toss them in a bucket of water, let them absorb for a little while and then mix them into your pot. You could probably cover with rocks or some kind of mulch and you should be fine.

Also, I feel like chili's are fairly resilient and would bounce back quickly should anything go awry.

I've only used one, but I'm sure they're all about the same.

This is the one I bought:

https://www.amazon.com/Safer-Brand-5118-Insect-Killing/dp/B00192AO90

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1564583317/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?qid=1372706208&sr=8-6&pi=SL75

That's a good one.

I drape mine in this stuff. Works like a charm.

You might look at it and think it would look unsightly, but in fact, once you're about 10 feet away you can barely see it. From across the yard it's invisible.

I have clusters of sunflowers in my yard, so once the heads first begin to form I'll drape this across several plants at once. Keeps the birds and most critters away, doesn't affect blooms.

I use them on grape vines, too, to keep the birds from eating all my fruit, and across strawberry beds.

Have you considered something like this?

I'd would plant a small edible forest garden. I like the ecological soundness, variety of produce and yield/upkeep factor of such systems.

How about one of those motion activated water sprinklers, when a person or animal comes close enough to the target area the sprinkler turns on and sprays the person/animal with water.


https://www.amazon.com/Orbit-62100-Enforcer-Activated-Sprinkler/dp/B009F1R0GC


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000071NUS/ref=psdc_553974_t1_B009F1R0GC


Or a motion activated camera like the earlier posters suggested will also work.

I'm having the exact same issue and picked up some of this stuff: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BX1HKI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. Seems to be working so far, just make sure to only use it on houseplants - it's apparently kills bees and the like as well.

I have this gardening blade I bought on amazon a year or two ago and it's great for finishing off the plants. I point it towards the roots, just below the visible part of the plant, and hit it with a mallet and it severs the roots just below the surface. Unless it's an asparagus weed or a yucca or one of the other many plants that can grow from a root segment, it won't come back. If it is one of those type, persistence is the only way (just keep cutting it to the ground when it pops up, eventually it'll run out of steam.)

This is the blade I bought. There's another one for 14$ but I don't know how good it is.

Netting is a PITA, honestly, and it looks like your vine is on a patio trellis so it would be odd to cover. I've had pretty decent success with winky and blinky for keeping the smaller birds away from my table grapes on the same sort of trellis. Commercially, we use flash tape, zon guns and distress call recordings, and of course, netting, but it's different to cover long rows that are only about 5' tall.

http://www.amazon.com/Mosquito-Dunks-117-6-Bits-30-Ounce/dp/B0001AUF8G but that prevents them from hatching, once they are hatched you have to use something else...

This is what y'all want: https://amzn.com/B002KSVXGU

Daily washing in the shower under the handheld works, paying particular attention to the leaf axils (the place where the leaf attaches to the stem). What plants do you have?

Or there is this. The plant absorbs it, it poisons the sap, an aphid feeds and dies.
http://www.amazon.com/Bonide-Product-951-Systemic-Control/dp/B000BX1HKI

>I'm sort of convinced that the aphids have somehow infested my sunroom and they resurface every time I kindly bring them food.

This is actually true. Aphids are parthenogenetic, which means they're born pregnant. All it takes is a single overlooked aphid hiding in a leaf axil, and the cycle begins all over again.

This was from a pile I had for a couple years (have to manually turn it) i throw everything compostable in there...(uneated food, coffee grinds, egg shells etc) I have since upgraded to a tumbler style composter.

https://www.amazon.com/Yimby-Tumbler-Composter-Color-Black/dp/B009378AG2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1474898528&sr=8-2&keywords=tumbler+composter

It's much better/easier

I just bought this book specifically for our area. It has a breakdown of what to plant and do in your garden month by month.

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/1604693517

One day these two books will be mine. I've checked them out of the library here before. So good.. you should check em out if your library has them.

edit: oppsed the link http://www.amazon.com/Edible-Forest-Gardens-2-set/dp/1890132608

Powdery Mildew is the white stuff. The dots could be leaf blotch

I use a mixture of Mancozeb and Bayer Advanced to control them on my peony trees.

This stuff?
http://www.amazon.com/Mancozeb-Flowable-Fungicide-Zinc-Pint/dp/B000BWZ9JO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371176936&sr=8-1&keywords=Mancozeb

https://www.amazon.com/500-Live-Ladybugs-Guaranteed-Delivery/dp/B00I0DOKNW/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?keywords=live+ladybugs&qid=1556210879&s=prime-day&sr=8-4

Get some of this stuff You would need a really tiny amount for just some houseplants.

You could try a hawk or owl decoy:

http://www.amazon.com/Bird-Gone-MMRTH1-Hawk-Decoy/dp/B002KSVXGU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1462331235&sr=8-3&keywords=fake+owl

I haven't seen a hori hori mentioned. I use mine a lot.

Dave Jacke's book:
http://www.amazon.com/Edible-Forest-Gardens-2-set/dp/1890132608

Gaia's Garden:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1603580298/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687542&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=1890132608&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0DKFRRSMRZE5HP5F3XDB

Not exactly, but this is similar: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004RA0P/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_pYfXAb7HX7050

I've had some peppers do this during this growing season. I can't say for sure what it was but giving them some calcium seemed to helped. So either they are having trouble absorbing the calcium or they just weren't getting enough period.

First round I just used some random calcium supplements I had around the house that I crushed up and dissolved in water. I've moved up in the world now and I switched my fertilizer to this. It has a nice amount of magnesium, calcium, and a couple other micro-nutrients.

So far the issue hasn't returned so I must be doing something right.

I know one of these scares me when I try to stealthily make my way through peoples backyards at night.

If you are not looking to protect the plants and just the dirt you can cover the bed with a thin plastic net, like bird net. The plants can grow through it and the cat claws will get caught on the net if they try and dig so it will deter them. As the plants grow and need more room you can cut away the net around the plant base and leave the rest still covering the dirt.

I have used this method on more then one occasion to specifically keep neighborhood cats from digging in my yard dirt. It definitely works.

Two simple solutions.

1. A one inch layer of sand. They don't do well when sand is the top layer.
   
2. BTI granules (aka mosquito bits). BTI is a naturally occurring bacteria that kill the larvae of the gnat/squito family of flies. Add them to the water when watering and bye bye problem.
   
   https://www.amazon.com/Mosquito-Dunks-117-6-Bits-30-Ounce/dp/B0001AUF8G/