Diana,
I understand your frustration at bug infestations. I try to avoid chemicals and sometimes, the urge to spray it all is almost overwhelming. I'm still a newbie, so I have no hints for the spider mites. I hope you get plenty.

My biggest gardening challenges are slugs and Japanese Beetles. The slugs take out the first year plants, and the Japanese Beetles munch up the rest. Mom's 7 year old neighbor taught her how to collect the JB's in a ziplock and leave them on the patio for the day to fry. I'm pretty soft hearted, but I'm considering toasting the remaining JBs.

Hurray for the Apricot Profusion Zinnias. I would love to see a picture. The best part about wintersowing for me has been the cost savings. Well, the fun of this site and looking at all the other gardens might be even better.

Squirrel Girl

One of my friends told me to take a flour sifter with flour in it and lightly dust the plants, he lives not too far from me and he does not have any damage from JB's. I was infested with them. All of my fruit leaves look like lace and so do some of my ws flowers. I'm going to dust my grapes but the JB's aren't as bad as they were last month.

My biggest callenges have been the darn rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks. The rabbits are constantly eating plants down to the nub. Every time I turn around they have nibbled something down to the ground. It is so depressing! The squirrels and chipmunks are not nearly as destructive. At least they only dig or overturn the plants. Most of the time I get there in time to get them back in the ground or in their containers.

I have tried everything it seems. Repellents did not work very well because we had a horribly wet year. It seemed to rain constantly so I gave up on applying it (it gets very expensive). I have now resorted to bamboo skewers shoved in the ground and in the pots, especially around the tastier plants.. It seems to work for the most part, but darn they hurt! LOL. They also look kind of ridiculous!

The best thing is all the plants I grew wintersowing. They are so much larger and healthier than the plant I direct sowed last summer!

Rhonda

My challenges change yearly. Last year it was voles and chipmunks digging up seedlings, plus record heat and drought all summer. Stressed plants all got powdery mildew, many things just gave up by September.

This year, not a vole or chipmunk in sight. Spring and most of summer were unusually cold and wet. So bad, I could hardly get outside to plant. I think this has increased bug populations this year, too. Just in the past couple of weeks, it's gotten hot and the rain Stopped completely. My tomatoes were slow to ripen in the cold weather and now have something bad going on, not quite sure what. Oh yeah, and the deer visited and chomped on some tomato plants, too, eating the top half of the plants.

Verbena bonariensis tried to take over my yard this year and I pull many of the daily. This has been going on since early spring. When they were tiny I was using a scuffle hoe or circle hoe. Now I'm pulling individual stems all over. Four o'clocks volunteers are still popping up too, but at least they're in one area, not all over the yard like the VB. I must have some kind of super soil to germinate all these things in these numbers.

Slugs used to be a problem in spring, but since I started using Sluggo I have that pretty well conquered (I hope).

Every year is different, bringing it's own unique challenges.

Karen

My season started out with little jerk bunnies eating everything! (I feel ya' Rhonda!) We put up a rabbit fence,it has worked wonderfully,only one way they can get in,and they have to pass the neighbors dogs,so it has only happened 3 times since the fence was up! Compared to the all day long munching,it is short of a miracle! Voles were my nemesis last year,this year I have had one incident with them,a destructive incident,but only one. I had a Star of Yelta on the corner of the house,on either side I have Chikabiddy vines,well the little monster bit off the vines at the base,so my nice full vine turned into a shriveled heap! Thank goodness I put a stop to it before he got to the Chikabiddy!
Bugs havent really given me too much of a headache this year,some aphids on the Broomcorn,but that is about it.....I hope it keeps up!
Although Army worms took out a bunch of stuff before they ever made it out of their containers! UGH!
My soil was a challenge I tackled in the spring and early summer,I have a couple areas I need to amend this fall,but most of it has been done,that is until I start more beds! :)
Today I started a battle with Powdery Mildew,it got my pumpkins and gourds,has always got to my Lilacs. I did baking soda and water today,but another member turned me on to the milk and water,and from what I have read,I am going for that at the next spraying,wish me luck!
For all these challenges there is big rewards,bigger than the challenges themselves! At the end of the day,each challenge is well worth it,when surrounded by such beauty,and you know you helped it along,it is worth every headache,blister,bruise,gash,embedded thorn and sore back!

I've had a problem with aphids this year. They completely destroyed a huge honeysuckle and I think it may be gone for good. I won't know for sure until next year but it was a big disappointment for me. I love to garden for hummingbirds and it was one of my main plants for them. I tired spraying it with water and using Safer soap spray but nothing seemed to work. My tomatoes this year were awful too although I'm not sure why. Too much cool Spring weather maybe. Next year I am going to rent a plot in our Community garden and see if tomatoes do better there. What I can't believe is that the summer is almost over and I have to go back to school soon!!!
Joann

Drought! It's dry. Plus I have had a hard time getting rid of invasives and thugs that I no longer have time to coddle. The drought last year left my lawn weed infested.

I've had my share of aphids this year too. They keep going after my yellow milkweed. Hopefully I got rid of them for good!

I'm sorry for all your challenges and definitely can relate. It's hard to stay upbeat sometimes when you are constantly battling something, but I'm really glad to see that you all seem manage to keep trucking along!

Diana

*The bunnies and other furry beasts! Fences help, choosing "toxic plants" helps to some extent. I cant grow lettuce, peppers, beans, zinnias or cosmos until we get this situation under control.

Emily and I like to joke about how *sweet voice* the baby bunnies are so cute and you just want to pick them up and pet them and cuddle them and love them *change to evil voice* and then CHOKE THEM TO DEATH *change back to sweet voice* but then you'd cry cuz they died and they're so sweet. Yep, we're bunny psycho's here.

*JB are not such a problem here. I think its because I have lots of lightning bugs and the nymphs eat both grubs and slugs. Last year DH kept talking about "Angela's 8 foot tomatoe plants" and this year its "Angela's JB infestation". She's a friend BTW.

*Corn is a failure this year. They get so high, get infested with earwigs and break and tip over about midway up. The soil prolly isnt rich enough for it just yet, we're working on that.

*The biggest WS problem was planting the teeny seedlings with only one or two sets of leaves, they pretty much die (not all but lots). Next year Ill wait until they're a big larger before planting out and manage quantities better.

*Finally found ONE tomatoe starting to pink up. Lots and lots of green ones tho. Last year I SWEAR we had ripe ones in July. maybe I got 6 or 7 weeks before frost and we gonna be eating tomates like crazy and then NOTHING for another year. siiiiiiiiiiiigh. Hubby wants "US" to can them, which means ME and I dunno how yet, kinda scairt.

SNAKES and rabbits - Right now I am dealing with huge borders packed with four layers of annuals/perennial that need to be deadheaded and I am afraid to walk in my garden.

Sunday, I spotted a huge, long, thick snake - not a black one - those are good - and it's either a copperhead or cottonmouth - (copperheads are better than cottonmouths)...

I haven't been in the garden since....

I am sick over this... want to move back to NY (well not really, but I need to change something here... I have "snake haven"... they love all the frogs that frequent the gardens...) :0/

Carrie

Gotta chime in and add "deer" to the challenge list. Two years in a row now, they've completely broken my heart. I was so excited about winter sowing, planted a ton of stuff, got great germination, planted it all out... and the *@&! deer ate every last thing. I tried a bunch of different repellents with no luck whatsoever; we've had a bad drought two summer in a row and there's not much out there for them to eat, so they've been going after everything they can find. Little bastards! (I mean, they're cute and all, but DANG they're so destructive!)

So this fall, I'm putting up a deer fence before I start my WSing. That's my little rule for this year: the deer fence has to be up before I can begin. I can't take another year of everything getting chomped, it's just too heartbreaking. (I was going to make the rule "fence has to be up before I can get any new seeds", but that's just crazy talk... I mean, did you guys SEE that T&M 99-cent sale? LOL!)

"Emily and I like to joke about how *sweet voice* the baby bunnies are so cute and you just want to pick them up and pet them and cuddle them and love them *change to evil voice* and then CHOKE THEM TO DEATH *change back to sweet voice* but then you'd cry cuz they died and they're so sweet. Yep, we're bunny psycho's here."

LOL.... I had the same scenario here.... I can definitely relate to this!

I found that a few drops of Dawn dish liquid,( I say Dawn because the cheaper store brand wasn't as effective), in a spray bottle,kills both aphids and earwigs! I had a problem with earwigs a few years ago,they liked to sit between the panels of my fence around the deck! They creeped me out really bad,so I sprayed them with the dish soap water,well they dropped dead upon spraying! That year I battled them daily and the next I hardly seen any,and none on my panels! The aphids I sprayed with the same solution on my broomcorn,after picking off the lady bugs and other beneficials that were enjoying them,I let it sit for a few minutes (before the sun hit them),than washed it off with my hose,aphids gone,broomcorn intact! I hated to do it,but I poured the remainder of the solution down into the ant hill,of the ants that were farming them,they are now gone too!

duodecad ,I have confidence that this is going to be your year! You will win,I just know it! With your determination and your fence,we will be looking at pics of your beautiful gardens next year!:)

Lol @ "little jerk bunnies". I feel for you though.

This year I've had two maajor problems: squirrels and neighbors.

The squirrels like to dig up every single seedling I put in the ground. I have to build wire cages for everything now. It has worked...somewhat. It still hasnt kept them from digging up my containers.
Earlier this Spring my neighbors on the left decided to replace their fence which was falling over into our yard. I was happy about it until I watched the bulk of the destruction going on in our side of the yard.
I lost about 5 Hostas which were literally trampled into mush by the workers, a few Columbine mushed, many of my WS seedlings (wire cages included) were gone and they even managed to partially sever my one Clematis vine at the base.
I was pretty horrified. Of course I didnt say anything...but I seethed for a few days.

The neighbors on my right have built themselves a pool. Again, I dont really care, what I do care is that their fence is also GONE so I get to see them everytime they go out for a swim since their pool is about 5 ft from our driveway.
That same neighbor delighted in going out everyday and putting stakes and string up in our yard for his new imaginary fence.
Again, I didnt say anything until he decided that he owned a part of our driveway.
We finally paid the $1,000. for a Survey to solve that problem. I'm just sick of trying to limbo under his constantly moving string "fences" to mow the damn grass.

Sigh...sorry about the rant.

JB's were a real problem here last month. I went out for awhile with my soapy water "death-cup" and nabbed quite a few. They seem to have gone away now...

Oh, and some of my Coneflower flowers were malformed this year. Lots of green in the middle of the cones or not forming petals.
Not sure what the cause is but it has been a pretty disapointing year with them.

"I lost about 5 Hostas which were literally trampled into mush by the workers, a few Columbine mushed, many of my WS seedlings (wire cages included) were gone and they even managed to partially sever my one Clematis vine at the base.
I was pretty horrified. Of course I didnt say anything...but I seethed for a few days. "

"The neighbors on my right have built themselves a pool. Again, I dont really care, what I do care is that their fence is also GONE so I get to see them everytime they go out for a swim since their pool is about 5 ft from our driveway."

Too bad you can't dunk the neighbors in your "death cup"!!!!!

carrie360:
Try getting some mothballs and throwing them around your gardens. They are supposed to deter the snakes and shouldn't do any harm to your plants. I've heard it will deter other pests also.

squirrel_girl:
Try using a bowl of soapy water early in the morning when the JP's are lethargic. Simply knock them into the bowl of water and that will kill them. Don't use bag-a-bug though. I've heard that it actually attracts more JP's than you have to begin with by releasing the female pheromone.

leecb:
I would have absolutely said something to those pesky contractors! Sometimes they are a bigger pests than the those that fly or crawl! I would have just asked them to respect your property and try harder not to damage it. I'm with Angie - you just need to find a MUCH bigger cup!

I discovered that the squirels made off with my nice orange and white daffs - the only two I found on clearance last spring at a local nursery. I think I see the BB gun coming out in the near future!

Sorry about the spider mites ... hope you're able to eradicate them all. It seems there's always several challenges each gardening year.

My biggest garden challenge is my dogs. Sometimes they dig up the plants in my borders, or chase each other through my raised bed or dig the nice soil out. The hardest time is when the seedlings are just taking off. Tomatoes and squash and doing fine, but I don't know if my fall spinach or lettuce seedlings will get a chance to take off. My first batch got destroyed. Luckily, I have lots of spinach and lettuce seed and will continue to scatter it until hopefully some of it makes it. Next year, I think we will build a fence around the vegetable garden. I will probably just hope for the best with my ornamental borders. My dogs are sweet, but it can be very frustrating. I wish I knew how to better train them to stay out, but either I'm a bad trainer or they're bad learners ... probably the former. I'm hoping they'll grow out of it.

A couple summers ago I had rabbit problems. They kept eating my green beans ... made me so mad. I haven't been having rabbit or bird problems since getting the dogs, but I've inherited two more :)

Japanese beetles are always an issue for me ... especially with my rose bush. I sprayed with neem oil, which would have helped more had I sprayed before they descended in the millions. I didn't let it bother me too much this year, since they stayed away from most everything else but a few zinnias.

mo,dogs are very smart animals and can recognize and respect borders. When our dog was alive,he was a boxer,he knew that that black stuff or the metal stuff,meant "Do Not Enter". My MIL's dog,comes here so we can dog sit while she is away,MIL does not garden,but her little angel took right to the borders,at first she did her thing,but after I corrected her ,she runs around here and never steps foot in one of my beds! Maybe some sort of border,whether it be rocks,a low border fence or whatever you have handy and they can see clearly,will help. Put the border up,and than show it to your pups,when they go to pass it,tell them to "Leave It! "(,must be said in a stern voice!)You will need to be persistent and catch them in the act,it wont be long before they put 2 and 2 together! I think you will be surprised by how well borders and the phrase "Leave It" works! Good luck! :)

Our worst pest is probably gophers. This has been the worst year ever for them here! Whatever it is that they need to raise lots of gopher pups must have been just right this year, probably the lack of rain this spring kept them from drowning in their blasted warrens. The best year we had on gophers was the rainiest, there were little springs everywhere with water gushing out of them from previous gopher warrens. I have a friend that lives on a slope, and when it rains heavily he actually gets fountains shooting up in the air from their gopher warrens.

--Ron

dorisl - go for the canning of your tomatoes. Nothing better than canned salsa or spaghetti sauce (well other than fresh I suppose). I can oodles every year and we enjoy the taste of summer all winter long. Another option would be to freeze them too. Although they do get pretty mushy frozen - still good for adding to sauces and such.

I'm definitely going to have to remember the dish soap insecticide.

My latest challenge has been a skunk digging up our yard. Yes, a skunk! I think I may have gotten him to move on though by scattering dog hair around the perimeter of the yard. The yard looked a little "fuzzy" for a couple of days but the hair is now embedding in the grass pretty good so it isn't noticeable.

My other challenge this year is getting new beds prepared. I ws'd a lot of perennials. They are all doing great in gallon pots, but I need to get them planted. Hopefully this dry spell will end soon.

Of course one of my biggest challenges every year is not to start my seedlings too early. My greenhouse was bursting at the seams by early May. Hopefully, ws'ing will curb my appetite to start so early next season :)

At the beginning of the season, we were inundated with rain and standing water. I couldn't get my babies into the ground. By mid July, the lack of rain was really starting to show and I've already started pulling some plants in preparation for getting my beds ready early for the upcoming spring. Lots of crispy plants right now.

Oh...and I had some kind of mole/vole critter. He didn't eat my plants but he sure aerated my soil for me....sheesh! Big tunnels, man!

I'm sure I have bug problems but nothing that is devastating to any particular plant. Now...our slugs get pretty big so the early spring hunks are at risk.

TIME!!

My biggest challenge is time. Yes, I have voles, and yes, I have a horrible infestation of Oriental beetles every year, and yes, the weeds are taking over, and yes, I WS too much stuff for too few beds....

But if I only had more TIME, I think my garden would be so much more beautiful, more organized, more under control (pests and weeds), and much more productive.

:)
Dee

I'm with you Dee! Lack of time is my biggest problem too. I had deer this spring (I live on a fairly busy street on the edge of town) that chomped my tulips and then my perennial asters, I had squirrels digging plants out, I had roofers literally trample half of my front garden, slugs and earwig galore, and even a skunk digging holes in the front lawn....I sure would be happy to just have some more gardening TIME.

Bonny

My neighbor's walnut tree was a huge challenge for years until I figured out what could tolerate proximity to it.

Now, we have Japanese beetles that go after my roses and my hibiscus, and I have a host of weeds in my yard. THose are both manageable (or ignor-able in teh case of the weeds - they look green when mowed).

My biggest headache is gravel around the foundation of our house that the previous owner put there. We have large trees, so with the leaf litter, it's impossible to keep clean and it is going to be serious labor to remove. WE've done about a third of it, but the biggest part of the job remains. I have grand landscaping plots and plans for when we eventually tackle it though. :-)

Dorisl, if you are really pressed for time, just stem and rinse the tomatos, throw them in a ziplock and freeze them. I do it every fall, just grab a few tomatos out of the bag when you want them in the winter, rinse them under warm water, and the skin slips off. You'll still have seeds, but I don't mind them. Great for making a summer-tasting pasta sauce, or throw them into chili. Yum..tomatos!

Water or rather poor drainage/shade/clay soil which leads back to drainage. This year I dug across thirty or so feet to make my dry ditch/river bed and mounded. It seems to be helping but I need to fill it with stones to keep it from filling with mud or drowning my toddler. One serious rain though and look.
{{gwi:358258}}

This is from this month, how am I going to make it through another spring?

Hey--that picture looks like my back yard! My biggest pet peave is the clay that is my property and the raised beds all around the perimeter (previous owner's idea) that trap all that water in! Makes me mad, mad, mad!

But I am blessed--no slugs on the hosta this year, no aphids or mites or beetles. Amazing.

Diana, my favorite flower discovery this year was a Profusion zinnia, too! I have the orange version. It's just FULL of blooms (still going strong) and very bushy (although quite tidy). And unlike the apricot and cherry versions, the orange color doesn't fade. I just love it! Such a cheery flower. E-mail me if you want to try it; I can send you a few seeds.

Diana Lynn

my biggest challenge is lack of space... after few years of WS I am flat out of space, and it goes to the vertical space as well- walls are covered, trellisses built etc...
am still want to grow few things...like have couple of hundreds packs of different seeds...
I am trying to stay organic gardener with minimal use of chemicals... healthy garden has its own ecology, lots of manure, compost, worms seems to be doing good job. ONce ina while I am giving helping hand but try to do it unobtrusively, slugs, JB have to live too so I do not get upset with little damage...
I did scream at contractors who were repairing my sidewalk and stepped on my streaked hosta seedlings...well, they sprinkled grass seeds all over my hosta bed after they were done... probably did not realize that I took all grass out intentionally...

im with diggerdee! time and me are my biggest challenges.
i always direct sowed in spring, well spring was late n came with storms.i didnt get half of what i wanted to sow and what i did get sowed half got washed away. or maybe drowned. this happens alot. year after year. i think winter sowing is going to make a big diffrence! i cant wait!

Well, I wasn't thinking bugs and fuzzy animals when I read this post! My biggest challenge is not being physically able to do what needs to be done and no help from DH. His exact words were: "I'm sick of hearing about gardening. I don't give a $%@# about gardening. I would rather do anything than dig in the @#$@ing dirt."

Furry animal solution: It would be hard for me to hurt them. Perhaps you could just plant enough of everything to share? But there's always a 12 gauge. Wonder if that would work on DH?

proudgm
I've been reading different posts for hours and yours just made me laugh my ass off !
annette

First challenge this season was the bunnies eating 1/2 of bush bean rows.

The next was an influx of slugs, never had them before like this, I couldn't tell they were secrectly entering my melons on the bottom! Would pick one up and ...mush.

Now, of course is the fall weed removal time, processing took over so much of my time in late July and August I never got into the beds to weed or mulch, now I am paying for it.

My annual challenge is the crazy weather we get, was out in the gardens in March , then cold, then record highs, re sowed seed,great harvests in July, then August 9th we had hot chocolate and blankets by the pool it was so cold!
Now, it will be 73 degrees by Friday after heavy frost yesterday.

Organization, or lack there of, deer, rabbits, groundhogs, slugs (up to 3", disgusting and voracious eaters) and clay ground that looks like the back yard "pond" in above photo after merest rain sprinkle.

I've done the amending and mounding thing but that seems to have made gardens prime target for moles, voles and chipmunks. While side dressing perennials with compost yesterday found more than a few holes directed right at roots when I was moving foliage to get compost under there.

Right now I'm trying to figure out how to fit in potting up perennials that don't have a home yet, plant all the bulbs after trying to amend the always soaked/compacted clay (tulips I planted yesterday have puddle over them this AM), what to do with perennials that look like they have lace foliage from slugs/bugs/insects and still try to get the hang of winter sowing so I have enough to replace what the miserable creatures ate and destroyed.

I'm tied up in an anxiety knot my second year since I know it all doesn't work out well and it's so disappointing after all that work to get it going. Did I have germinating mix too wet, did I feed them soon enough, who needs light and who wants dark...on and on and on.

Gotta take the time to make a chart and get organized. After marathon sowing (without record keeping except Sharpie notes on containers)I got lost in what all different things needed and how they wanted to be planted. I don't have the experience or personality to just hunk'o'seedlings them and let em survive or perish!

My fenced butterfly garden has been decimated by groundhogs that climb 4' fence, rabbits that find the smallest opening to slither under and deer that are getting in there although they aren't supposed to jump fences without a lot of open space beyond fence.

The only thing they haven't eaten in there is milkweed but that was moldy and losing most foliage long before the last of my Monarchs were released in late August. I also know there will be a plethora of self seeded monarda just waiting to spread mold coming up all over in there...LOL.

Had to put Tithonia in huge container 3' high (was for onboard boat storage) with another 3' of chicken wire rigged on top of container. Groundhogs still got up there and repeatedly ate them to nubs, went away for a while and then pulled down 4' stems until they looked like they'd been struck and split by lightening. To add insult to injury not a single butterfly used them but the bees loved them.

I should be asking myself why I've already purchased most seeds and have a few more to get for next year but it's impossible to fathom. This is supposed to be fun but I guess seeing at least some flowers that attracted lots of bees and butterflies who don't care about the rest of the plant looking like hell or know what's not there that was planted makes up for all the disappointment.

Just to put in my 2 cents, I'd have wanted to explode if workers and/or neighbors were so inconsiderate to trample plants after all the work it took to get them in there! I'd just seethe but my head would hurt from keeping it in...LOL. You at least expect "humans" to have more sense than all the critters that plague your plants/gardens.

I've spent a small fortune on bagged garden soil, potting soil, compost and amendments as well as critter repellant sprays. Started winter spraying regime yesterday on roses, azalea, boxwood, hollies and yews. Compared to people who have snakes in their gardens I think I'll consider myself relatively lucky on the critter front no matter how much of a continual fight it is.

I could go on whining forever but it only makes me feel guilty for all the troubles I DON'T have that others battle daily on a more serious level.

It won't stop me from whining or gardening but people "alive in the flesh" around here just walk away when I start talking about seeds, flowers, plants, containters or any gardening topic.

Wait until I come home with bales of germinating mix when it comes in Friday at Agway 30 miles away that ordered it for me...LOL.

Sorry for whining when "challenges" was topic! I need an attitude adjustment like they tell kids.

I'm lucky in the critter department. The cats take care of whatever furry things come my way. As for insects, this has been a good year. Had a little problem with leafminers and earwigs at the beginning of the season, but that was it.

But my challenge is what I want vs. what I have. I garden in a very small area facing south and another even smaller facing west with very little or no shade. My preference leans towards the cottage garden look. Temperatures in July-August in this area can be hot, and I mean high 90's-100's hot and extremely dry.

So in other words, plants that thrive in our cool weather in May-June, look pitiful come the beginning of August. So I suppose I'll be doing some serious homework this winter trying to figure out what plants will achieve the cottage look and thrive in conditions less than perfect.

LOL proudgm your too funny! my hubs dont care to much for my gardening either,but it keeps me busy n he likes that lol.
i have cats and snakes galore so that helps with the critters lol. i got prayingmantis eggs last year n a few stuck around, found a egg in the pampus grass this spring! n seen afew adults in the garden this summer, those are a big help with the bugs:)

weeds! thats a big challange, i live around fields n woods, the winds just blow the weed seeds back into my yard i cant keep up with all of them so just call them fillers lol.

My biggest challenges:

too many seeds, too few ws'ing containers
too many ws'ing sprouts, too little time :)