Thanks - I have a bottle of Blue Dawn but it says “Platinum” so a little leary of it. I’ll pick up a bottle of the Ultra when we go to the store later today.
Dave's Progress Thread - Year II
Digital_Dave
#802
As long as it doesn’t show to have bleach or Anti-bacterial properties, it should be fine? I’ve used the original Blue Dawn before with good results. This one just happened to be the Ultra. But I can’t say I know much on the Platinum brand? Baring of the side of safety might be a good bet though? 
Regina
(Empress of the Unexpected)
#803
Yeah, so I’m pretty bummed. I have a whitefly infestation. Dawn is recommended for that a well. Or a milk spray. Anyone ever had whitefly issues?
dlc96_darren
#804
Apparently the Dawn Platinum reintroduced enzymes that used to be in the original Dawn, before it was reformulated in 1987.
However, there are different variations of the Dawn Platinum, so you need to pay attention to which variety it is.
According to information I gleaned from a Proctor and Gamble website, it appears that Power Clean and Bleach Alternative contain amylase enzymes.
The Power Oxi, on the other hand, contains protease enzymes.
Amylase enzymes break down starches and protease enzymes break down protein.
Digital_Dave
#805
Sorry, never had those, so can’t say what the best thing for those are… But I have to jump real quick, since we had a nasty storm hitting presently and I’m just hoping it doesn’t damage the new plants I was able to get it today! 
Digital_Dave
#806
Well, after the storm, namely those F’ing high winds, I went outside & check before the rains had even stopped… Honestly, I’m about ready to get a damn bad and beat the living hell out of something. Why do the storms today have to be accompanied by the high ass winds? Not sure what the speeds were, but it actually killed two more Yellow Squash plants, and even blew off two Squash right off another plant? Are you friggin’ kidding me? … I already showered and I’m out there walking around in mud, trying to get everything straightened back up. I swear, I will be getting some more stakes and armoring the shit out of the rest. I’m just so sick of this %$@#*& weather. 
… Then I look up and there’s a big ole’ Rainbow… Yeah, that’s helpful! 
… Sorry for the rant, it’s just that I’ve spent so much time on this damn thing this year, just to have this stuff keep happening. Good news is all the new plants look good and don’t seem to be affected? Time will tell though. So I am now down to 30 Yellow Squash, pending no losses from tonight’s damage, and now 30 Zucchini Plants. The rest looks ok. Here’s a pic after I straightened them back up the best I could. But they are top heavy presently, but healthy…
Here’s what it looked like before tonight’s planting…
And after I got the new plants in… It had been raining lightly for 20 minutes or so before I finished…
You can see the top pick, compared to the one above, shows how the winds did a number on them. 
Regina
(Empress of the Unexpected)
#807
I can relate. No high winds or rains, but stuff chewing my plants, whiteflies, and powdery mildew (but we are installing drip lines next week.)
Digital_Dave
#808
Yeah, it just really sucks. We’ve been seeing more and more of these types of storms and it’s really getting old. … Due to by job, I have to monitor the weather in case I need to have some of my staff man the pumping stations. And these quick burst storms are really a PITA, especially when they come in packs. Can really dump some water too quickly for systems to keep up. … To have this keep happening here at home is even worse, since it wipes out all the hard work you put in. I was out there for just over 8 hours today, in bright sunlight all day, and it almost feels like it was for nothing. … I’m wondering if a damn green house might in the works for my future? Sure would be helpful in these damn situations.
Regina
(Empress of the Unexpected)
#809
So you have noticed storms worsening by the year? And it gets hotter here each summer. And my next door neighbors still poo-poos climate change? Course, I was raised on the coast, being inland is a PITA. We get Santa Ana winds, and are directly downwind from the Cajon pass. Last January my fava beans were doing nicely, until they all got blown over by the wind. I am nearly at the point of stopping the experimenting and letting survival of the fittest happen. And, trust me, squash (other than zucchini) is not always the fittest around here.
Digital_Dave
#810
Yes Ma’am, certainly have indeed. I’ve been with the Government for 35 years, with the last 28 of them in the Storm Drainage Maintenance Division, handling Pumping Stations, Levees, High Hazard Dams, etc. - So yeah, working and monitoring storms is pretty much second nature for my position. And I can say that the last 10-12 years or so, we have been seeing more and more of these storms that come in the form of burst, which are worse then long lasting or just heavy storms. Along with those mentioned above, I also oversee all activities/functions related to SWMF (Storm Water Management Facilities) - Ponds, as well as Channels, Flood Control Areas, where most of our Levee’s are located, as well as any and all County maintained Storm Drain Systems. … These are basically storms that are capable of producing large amounts of rain in such a short timeframe, that the Hydrology, Engineering, etc. pretty much gets tossed out the window. Systems, whether rated for 10 year or 100 year events, get simply overwhelmed, causing major flooding throughout the areas they hit. And since I also have been dealing with the media for the past 10+ years, I have to meet with News crews on a lot of these weather related issues. … So it’s not fun overall dealing with them these days and it’s getting quite old to say the least.
Well, sorry, wanted to provide some info, but we are presently being hit once again and the thunder has all the Pups acting like complete nuts presently…
Janie
(Jane)
#812
I’m so sorry Dave. I feel your pain and frustration. I always start a bunch of tomatoes and peppers indoor around Jan and squash in March and it hurts to lose plants you have tended and watered for several months. One year I kept waiting for the spring storms to die down and finally planted my tomato plants I’d babied for months. The strong winds destroyed nearly every one of them the next week. I was heart-broken.
We have owned this property for 14 years and much of it we just had a yurt to camp in a couple of times a year. I lost count of how many “100 years floods” and “500 year floods” we’ve had since this. A fucking joke.
Janie
(Jane)
#813
Speaking of losing plants… my healthy zucchini plant that just gave me 2 amazing fruits now has yellow leaves and looks like it won’t make it. What would cause this?
This is one I started indoors. The other plants I direct sowed seeds look fine - just not producing yet.
monsterjuice
(Ashley)
#814
I’m in love with your yurt btw 
I’ve seen some really amazing ones people have made into permanent residences.
Digital_Dave
#815
@Regina … No worries, I’m in Southern MD
@Janie Thanks, yeah it is a major pain. I mean I’ve had some weather issue before, but people don’t realize just how bad winds really are. I’m sure the garden looked as if there were a bunch of balloons tied down in there, and just swinging and whipping all around by their stems. But to have produce just thrown off the plant, that’s nuts. … In the past, it’s been some of those heavy stomping storms that got me, usually coming in within a couple days of planting and simply smashing plants flat.
But yeah, anyone taking a good look at some of the storms we get these days, should be seeing a big difference indeed. And yep, we’re seeing more & more of these historic storms coming and destroying things in a major way. … And I hate they even mention 100 year floods in the media, etc. People don’t realize that a 100 year storm, does not mean that a storm of this magnitude will only happen once every 100 years, but that each year there’s a 1 in a 100 chance (1%) of seeing a storm such as this. And that you can indeed see storms such as this each or just years apart, if not in the same year. (But of course they continue to use the terminology because it sounds like it has meaning.) 
As to the Yellowing leaves on your Zucchini’s, there are a lot of things that can cause this and is one of the main things folks deal with for Z plants. … I just quickly ran a search, and this is the first thread shown. But it should cover all the things it could be from insects to disease, etc. but I do know acting fast can indeed help save some. … I’ve had this happen a few times, and it’s always been insects for me. (At least that was the only thing I found) But one year, it seemed to hit all at once and I did end up losing most of what I had planted. But the newer plants I put in didn’t have any issues? (I found this strange, since they were planted in the same general area? My guess was the bugs came with the plants, and must have moved on or been taken out by the Dawn/Veg-oil treatment I did?) Again, this was just first page that pulled and I haven’t read it, but just looking at the first paragraph, it does seem to mentioned it would go through the things it could be and probably remedies.
Digital_Dave
#816
Well, it’s begun… I pulled some more of the Yellow Squash tonight, but only trying to get those turning a slight darker in color and also trying to not let them get too big. Seems I start getting really big guys, and a lot of folks actually say they like them on the smaller size. These are around 8-9" long, except the two that the winds blew off the other night. … And not sure what the heck the tubby guys was thinking? 
Was going to have some tonight, but when my Wife and Son’s plans for dinner fell through, she threw in a Steak, so we just did that and a Salad. But I will be having some fried Squash very soon. 
dlc96_darren
#817
You’re gonna have to change the title of your thread to, “The Squash Man, Cometh.”
Digital_Dave
#818
I think I will surely have enough of them, if no more storms come in to destroy things. But I have 6 Zucchini’s producing, and 24 more new plants just in. … But I’m letting the Zucchini get a little bigger since I’ve been wanting some Zucchini Boats. I make mine with a 50/50 Sausage/Hamburger mix, along with some Rao’s Sauce, Garlic, Scallions, Mozzarella Cheese and Parmesan… Can’t wait. 
cervyn
(Mame)
#820
so beautiful! I love them grilled as well. They should show up at the farmer’s markets in a few weeks!