I personally prefer to trellis my cucumbers, keeps them off the ground where there are (theorectically) more bugs, dirt,etc...plus when they are up, it's harder to miss one when picking. Another plus is they use considerably less space!!! I had cantolopes sprawled everywhere from only 3 plants, they began to take over my garden and then some!!! i am doing midget melons this year and will trellis them. I am also zone 8, but i'm in central Texas where its 100+ summer temps and very dry.

Hazel, how exciting to hear about your plants! It's a fun and rewarding time of year, isn't it? I have decided not to worry so much about doing every little thing just so, Dawn is right, plants know what to do. SO. . . when did you plant your beans? You planted them from seed? What kind of beans did you plant? I have not planted mine yet but I'm thinking I need to get on the ball and do it. My habit has been to plant later rather than earlier and I think this year I want to go ahead and get my seeds in the ground. It's been a warm and extremely dry season so far. I'm sure the colder temps are behind us. I just want RAIN!! My carrots and beets are still very small but at least they have a start. Everything I started indoors, under the grow light I made, I have been very disappointed with. (I'll do my homework for next year) I started my squash and cukes too early and I'm just going to plant seeds next week. My tomatoes are just pitiful. I think I'll keep trying and transplant next month and have a back up plan with plants from a nursery. Here in Enid, my selection is a joke, BUT actually last year I bought a cherry tomato plant, variety unknown, that just did marvelous and produced till the frost did it's number on it. My peas that I planted from seeds look great, about 3" tall now. Oh how I hope I get a good crop, I do love my peas! My asparagus is doing superb, almost all of the 18 or so plants have sprouted and are now covered with soil and hay. Dawn, you have so much experience and give great advice, so here is a question for you. What kind of Espoma do you use? I had no idea there were so many to choose from! I also have been adding organic material to my soil for the past couple of years and it's looking good, I would like to simplify things and get a basic fertilizer, if that is what can be done. I have had the OSU extension center do soil sample tests on different parts of my garden for a couple of years and my pH is good, just needs a bit of potassium and phosphorus, which I have added. Thanks all!

I remember putting some spinach, arugala and dill seeds. But this seems like it might be a vine. I could be wrong though. I can not think of anything else. It is not a weed for sure. Because it is growing in a row of 4 plants as though it was sown. I also see some red stems.

Well in any case, it certainly looks edible -- whether you call it mild mustard greens, turnip greens, or immature rapini. That whole family is edible, and when it happens to be mild, it is imminently so. If it's crowding out your broccoli, you could just cut off the big leaves, chop 'em up, saute in some oil and onion or garlic, and it will almost surely be delicious and nutritious. That's what I would do. In fact, I did that, when something grew in my garden mulch several years ago that seemed to be a mustard green. It turned out to be milder than my arugula, so I ate some, let it go to seed, and have been planting it ever since. I think it must have grown when I threw the trimmings from a pickling episode onto the mulch. But I tried planting what I thought were the same mustard seeds the next year, but they were rougher and less tasty than the mystery mustard greens, so I don't know where the first seeds came from, but I keep planting them.