I live in Southwest Georgia and two years ago I planted a meyer lemon. This year it bloomed at the same time as my other citrus trees. To make a long story short, even though all my other trees are satsumas I found out at first by accident, then by research, that cross pollination will help set fruit and keeps the fruit drop down. I literally have more fruit than I know what to do with this year. My Brown Select tree has a good bushel if not more of fruit on it ripening now, and my owari trees look the same. The one down side is that I have a seed or two in my satsumas which normally don't have seeds, but my crop is literally multiples of 10s more than my best year previously. My satsumas range in age from three to six years old and they all are loaded with fruit and I did not have any real fruit drop this year like I always did in the past. My meyer is only two years old and loaded also with no fruit drop.

Thank you for the message. I uncovered some of the bark to find little black beetles. I'm so upset. :(

This is the first year I've had great success with peppers and it was in a greenhouse. I'd tried growing them outside for several years and it never worked--they just didn't ripen, regardless of the type I tried. Mexican peppers always did fine outside (Jalapenos, Anaheims, Poblanos), but not any kind of sweet bell pepper. So, I suggest if you really want peppers you make at least some frames to grow them in. I got more in the greenhouse than could be eaten (both red and yellow) and canned a bunch. I'd also strongly suggest raised beds. I created beds tall enough that I didn't have to stoop to harvest (about 3ft tall). It was extra effort to make and fill them, but boy was it worth it when harvesting and spraying (watch out for aphids!)

When something similar happens in tomatoes, it is sometimes called "INCOMPLETE POLLINATION". We know that peppers and tomatoe are self pollinator. I suspect that due to environmental and/or genetics the product of pollination becomes defective. In tomatoes this happens early in the season. Evidently because, MAYBE the sexual system of the plant is not yet perfected or due to the cold. T