Can I dig them out and put them back inside in a pot and put them out after May 10 or do I leave them as is and try and cover them? Whats better? That is just what I was going to suggest to you. ;) It really is way too early in your zone for all three of these so if possible re-potting them and waiting until the proper planting time and most important, the proper soil temps (70 degrees 6" down in the soil), in your zone would give you the best success. Most likely that will be toward the end of May for you in your zone rather than May 10th (10th is for zone 6B). The alternative but more work and likely less successful approach, would be to create a low poly tunnel (also called hoop house) over all of them. Good luck and think patience. ;) Dave

So as usual my eggplants are being destroyed by flea beetles this year. I took the advice and covered them with row covers for 2 weeks until I discovered that they were infected with early blight. I think the combination of wet humid weather and row covers is causing that, so I had to take the cover off. I have one eggplant planted in the tomato bed with no mulch. The other eggplants are all mulched with shredded oak leaves. What I have observed is that the one with no mulch is not bothered at all by the flea beetles even though they are all basically next to each other. The others have so many holes. I think next year I am going to try no mulch on all my eggplants.

I found this link that might help: Posted by gardenguru1950 SunsetZ16 (My Page) on Sat, Aug 8, 09 at 13:06 The most common "eater" of rose leaves in California is the Bristly Rose Slug, the larvae of the Rose Sawfly. The sawfly is a pudgy little wasp. It lays its eggs on the UNDERSIDES of the leaves and the caterpillars feed on the UNDERSIDES of the leaves. The rose slug is tiny, no more than 1/4-inch long and very slender, and it's the exact same pale green as the undersides of the leaves. Talk about hard to see and find! It's the critter that "skelotinizes" rose leaves. It's pretty easy to get rid of, actually. Almost any good spray will do the job: insecticidal soap, Neem, pyrethrum. The trick is to spray thoroughly UNDER the leaves. Not stand back and spray all over. You have to get UNDER the leaves. By the way, a commonly suggested spray for rose sawfly is BT. It doesn't work. It doesn't work because it's meant for the caterpillars of moths and butterflies. The rose slug is the larvae of a wasp. And I'm not sure of any beneficial insect that preys upon it. As for your rose buds, Applenut has a good idea. Go outside late at night with a flashlight. The critter most likely is an earwig, sowbug or pillbug. It also might be a slug or snail. Joe Here is a link that might be useful: Bugs that eat roses' leaves

I have a similar problem and am using this recipe with some success: 1 bulb garlic crushed, 1 onion crushed, 1 Tbl cayenne powder, 1 Tbl liquid dish soap, 1 quart of water. You can spray or just splash/rub it on the leaves by hand. Many find that a mild dish soap solution alone will work. Good luck!