No help here, but just know that I've had the EXACT same thing happen. This is my first year gardening. Followed Mel's Mix to a fault (more cow compost, but some mushroom compost too and all different "brands").

Everything looks sickly. The bean leaves are yellow. Some of the pepper leaves are yellowish. The basil is dying. And the tomatoes stems are a deep purple/brown. The leaves are veined in purple. The cucumber is just sitting there. The zucchini died off. The squash looks sickly.

Things are just barely growing if at all.

I broke down a week ago and added in some Miracle Grow potting mix, but have had no major changes with it yet. The temps *have* been a bit cooler than usual. But I'm in zone 7. A few degrees off shouldn't make this kind of difference should it?

I really look forward to hearing any thoughts on this as well.

You are not alone.

Have you checked the pH?

I'm not the original poster, but I've not checked my ph. Will one of those little instant stick in the ground meters do? What ph is best?

what has the weather been like for you? Beans, viners, eggplant etc. all want hot weather.

In my zone I can't even think about planting these yet as the temps don't seem to want to top 70F and the rain keeps coming.

If you are having similar weather that can explain what you are seeing.

It's definitely been cooler than normal for the last few weeks. But the temps have still been in the 60's. Too rainy too. Not a lot of sun.

And I just checked my ph and it's right at 8, which I know is alkaline. Should I try to change that? And if so, suggestions?

A ph of 8 is higher than desirable. However, changing it takes time and it's too late for this crop. Garden sulphur is commonly used to lower ph, but it works over months, not days. Amending the garden soil with peat is also helpful as peat is acidic and acidifies the soil as it decomposes.

A *trick* you can put to good effect is to use common, cheap household vinegar when you water. About a cup of vinegar to a 5 gallon bucket of water should do the trick.

The idea here is that plants feed in the watery zone immediately next to their roots. This is where the soil ph is most important, right next to the roots. So, water with a small amount of vinegar in the water and it is acidic, just like the rain is. This effect will not last very long, but while it does those roots are able to get the nutrients they need.

I have a friend in Texas with a soil ph of around 8-8.5 who did this last year and she reported back to me that the improvement in her plants were immediate (few days).

Now, the overall yellowing of your plants may be ph influenced, but the cool, wet, sunless weather is also playing a huge role in this all over the place this year regardless of soil ph.

Thank you *so* much for the tip. I'll start that today. And then definitely work on my ph after these crops.

Perhaps because I used 1/3 peat to begin with, the soil will become more acidic as the season progresses and it breaks down? Or is that wishful thinking?

Again, I really appreciate your help. I'll be sure to report back and let you know how the vinegar worked!

Michelle

The usual weather here for the past month has been hot and humid, average 60+ nights and 80+ daytime. Rainfall is slightly behind, but in the SE Texas heat we have to water often and I do.

I didn't follow Mel's instructions for the mix he recommends. I had a problem finding perlite in any large quantity so I improvised.

Thank you for the tip about the vinegar. I'll go out and find a soil test kit today.

Regards,
sre

I would go easy on the vinegar, I use it in a spray bottle to kill my weeds.
DC

Darkcloud. Please note that I advised 1 cup of vinegar (5% acetic acid) to 5 gallons of water.

At that rate the ph of water would be 4-6ph and isn't going to kill anything.

interesting find...
* Posted by username_5 5 (My Page) on
Sat, Jun 3, 06 at 12:07

No, vinegar is non selective. It is the organic equivalent of RoundUp. There is no organic equivalent of a selective herbicide that I know of.

we report - YOU decide

Here is a link that might be useful: The Use of Vinegar on Weeds Other Than on Dandelions

Ok, I've read many times about Mel's mix but what the heck is Mel's mix? LOL Would love to know more about this please.

sickly yellow leaves indicate WAY too much nitrogen. Loose the mircle grow and mix a lot more soil or peatmoss in the cow do-do. A half bag of manure would be a heavy hit in a 4X8 bed.

don

Potting soil (usually cheap like top soil), bags of cow manure and store-bought compost all have poor drainage.

Did you use coarse sand? Fine sand would be problematic.

I believe your mix is way too dense--the roots may be suffocating.

Down here the recommendation from a couple classes I took was 70% coarse sand and 30% muck or top soil. I then added some additional organic matter to my raised beds. (home-made compost, etc.)

What does your mix look like wet--how does it hold together?
Mel uses one third vermiculite--not sure you have anything in your mix to equal that component.

Dilute Acedic acid isn't going to hurt anything, pH is logarithmic, ph of 3 is 1000 times as acidic as pH of 6.