October 4, 1972

Prepared by Extension Vegetable Crops Special ists

V. F. Nettles Acting Chairman

James Montelaro Profe ssor

J . M. Stephens Assistant Professor

S. R. Kostewicz Assista nt Profes sor

TO: COUNTY EX TENS ION DIRE CT ORS AND AGENTS ( \/EGET /\B LES AND HORTICULTURE) · ANO OTHERS INTERESTED IN VEGETABLE CROPS IN FLORI DA

FROM: J . M. St ephens, Assistan .1: Vegetable Crops Spec ialistJ! r[Jt;f'~

VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER 72-10

HI THIS ISSUE:

I . COMMERCIAL VEGETABLE PRODUCTION

A. Fruit-Set in Tomatoes B. Weed Control on Tomatoes Under Full-Bed Mulch

Cul ture C. Annual Vegeta ria n Index D. Potential for Sweet Potatoes in Florida

II . VEGETABLE GARDENING

A. Grow A Garden - For What It 's Worth B. Know Your Vegetables - Datal Pepper

MOTE: Anyone is free to use the i nformati on in tlYis ne\,1sletter. Hhenever possi ble, please give cre di t to t he aut hors .

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THE VEGETARIAN NHJSLETTER

I . co:,1MERCIAL VEGETABLE PRODUCTION

A. Frui t -Set in Tomatoes

Tomato grm.1./ers are apt to have problems with poor fruit - set any time duri ng the production season in Florida. The problems may exhibit themselves as: (1) total or partial failure of any flowers to develop into fr ui t, or (2) set of abnorma 1 fr uits which may be misshapen or catfaced and generally not marketable.

The first category is the fruit-set problem experienced most commonly. It is ~~st prevalent in commercial fields in the earlier plantings which bloom in August and September. Generally, the most common cause for poor frui t-sP.t during 1 ate summer and early fa 11 is high temperature--ei ther night or daytime temperatures. Optimum night temperature for fruit-set in tomatoes is about 680 to 700 Fehrenheit. Temperatures much below or above the 68-700 F. range for several nights may result in heavy blossom drop in tomatoes. During late August and September, night temperatures may remain above 750 F. for extended per i ods of t ime. Under those condit ions , fruit-set may be very light but may change dramatically with the onset of more favorable night te mperatures. A somewhat similar situation may develop during exte nded period s of cold weather. However, under cold weather conditions, the problem may show up as 11blossom drop," but it may be combined with abnormalities in thos e fruit which do not abort.

There are many other causes for lack of fruit-set and the development of malformed fruits. These in cl ude:

(1) Unbalanced nutrition - including excess or deficiency of some of the major and minor elements .

( 2) Ex tended periods of warm, windy v,ea the r with 1 O\'J humidity.

(3) Extended periods of showery, cool , overcast weather during winter and ear ly spring.

(4) Insects and diseases.

The problem of poor fruit-set i n tomatoes is most prevalent in the large slicing types commonly produced in Florida. The small cher ry and past e types do not exhibit fruit-set problems to the degree shovm by the 1 arger types.

Poor fruit-set can be expl ained briefly as a failu re in the poll ination of the flm ·12r or 1n the fertili zati on of the ovules (potential se eds) in the ovary (undeveloped fruit). Fortunat ely, the problem in field-produc ed tomato crops is te mporary in nature and, except for extended periods of abnormal v;ea ther , does not genera 1 ly affect more than one or tv10 hands of fruits on the tomato pl ant. (Mont.elaro)

B. Heed Control on Tomatoes Linder Full-Bed Mulch Culture

A serio us problem in the production of tomatoes under full -bed mulch culture is the control of \'/eeds that may grm·1 in the punchecl-ho"lc are a> t!ti·ough

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THE VEGETARIAN NEHSLETTER

the mulc h itself and in the water furrows . In a tal k presented at the South Florida Tomato Inst i t ute on SepternbP.r 20 . 1972, Mr. D. S. Burgi s summar ized the research results he obt ai ned in tria l s conducted in the fall of ·19n and in t he spring of 1972 at the AREC, Bradenton , Florida . Thi s work is bein g continu ed, but is presented here again in view of the urgent need for in for ­mation on this problem.

Treat ments used by Mr. Burgis were as follows:

1. Herbi cide Treatment In-t he-row ·

Chemical t reatments and rat es i n lb/A broadcast applied as eithe r prep l ant in corporated at time mulch was laid or as a directed spray into the pl ant ing hole immediate ly aft er setti ng were as fol lows:

A. Check, hand weeded 2 ti mes B. Till am - 4 l bs . (l OG) preplant incorporated C. Paarlan - 3 lbs . , preplant incorporate d D. Planavin - l lb . , preplant in corporated E. Diphenamid - 5 lbs., direc t ed through pl ant i ng hole,

immediate post - set F. Diph. + Planavin - 5 + l, directed thro ugh pl anting hole,

immedi ate post - set

For the fall , 1971 tr i al , tre~tments B, C and D were applied on September 20 and covered immediately . Plants were set and tr eat ments E and F were applied on September 23.

For the spring, 1972 trial , treatmen ts B, C and D \·Jere applied on March 3, 1972. The beds were fe rt iliz ed and covered immediat ely . Holes were cut and pl ants were set immediat ely. Treatments E and F were set at the same time and tre ated.

2. Herbicide Treatment i n Row Middles (Water Furr ow)

Chemicals were appl i ed as (1) gr anular material covered by or mixed with soil on bed shoulder , or (2) directed preemergence spr ays to bare soil along the edge of t he ne\-1ly laid mul ch, or (3) as delayed postemerger.c~ spray s at time weeds were 1\ to 2 inches high. Chemical treat ment , applic E­tio n time and rat e (gpa or lb/A) of appl ic ation were :

A. Check - weeds not removed B. Paraquat - l qt . + 2 gals . llE oil appli ed post emergence

3 t imes C. Sencor - l lb . posternergence D. Diph. + Planavin - 5 + 1 l b. post emergence E. Vegiben (li quid) - 3 l bs . postemergence F. Para . + Vegibc n - 1 qt . + 3 lbs . poste mer gence G. Till am - 4 lbs . applied to fa ls e bed on edge of plas t i c

and then covered by regular bed

For the fall , 1971 t rial , treat ment s C, D, E and G were appli ed on Septe mber 20, whereas trea tments Band F were appli ed on October 6 af te r pl antings were evalu ated .

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For the spring, 1972 tr ial, treatments '1c, D and E applied as soon as

mulch was l aid and bedding completed. Treatment G was applied at time mulch v,as l aid but ju s t pri or to the throwing of final soil to form shoulder . Treatments B and F were del ayed until weeds v,ere l lz to 2 i nches high.

A summary of his resu lts is reproduced here as pres ente d at the Tomato Institute. PLEASE note those i tems that are marked with numbers ( 1, 2 , 3, etc.) and read expla nati ons and precautions given at the end of the summary.

SUMMARY

Table 1. Two seasons herbicide treatments to tomato plants growing in the row on mulch covered beds showing yie l d (lbs/~and mean% weed control

Treat ment A. Check B. Tillam C. Paarlan D. Planavin E. Diphenamid F. Planavin + Dioh. (1) LSD 5%

Yield 163.0 140. 5 164. 6 165.5 164.0 167.0 NS

(a) Improperly i ncorpora ted.

Fall 1971 Var. MH-1

Weed Con tro 1 0.0

92.5 91.2( ) 60.0 a 93.0 93.8

Yield 159.0 158. 7 189 .2 160.4 170.0 146.0 NS

Spring 1972 Var. 1723-1

\•Jeed Control 0.0

93. 8 91. 2 90.0 87. 5 83. 7

No significant differences in yiel d were found as a result of herbicide treat ment 1·1hen growing tomatoes with the full -bed mulch system. The recom mended her bicides produced results comparable to conventional production methods . Chemicals preplant in corporated int o t he bed and covered showed no phytotoxicity, and generally th is method would present less of a problem to the grower than t he use of direc t ed postsetting sprays i nto the planting hole .

Wher e holes ar e cut or burned in the mulch, t he use of sprays into this opening around the tr ansplant could be re commended. However, when a plant setter (machi ne ) that punches an opening is used , the f l aps and scraps of paper around the opening would eli minate this type of herbicide appl icat ion.

Till am, Paarl an or Planavin can be eff iciently and sa fely preplant incor ­porated in a band under the paper .

Table 2. Two seasons herbicide treatment to 1-,heel r0\'1 middles bet\-1een tomato plants grm-1ing on mulch covered beds shm'ling yield (l bs/A) and mean % \'/eed control

Fal 1 1971 Var. MH-1

~-~S P~l_'i_n9_}_9_7_2 _ _ Var. 1723-1

Treatment Yield Heed Control Yield l•lecd Cont rnl A. Check 163.0 0 .0 207.3 0. 0 B. Paraquat (2) 146.8 98.0 202.5 85.0 C. Sencor (2) 173.9 94.0 204.l 95.0 D. D·iphenamid + Planavi n (1) 165. 8 93.8 241.8 85.0 E. Vegiben (liqu id) (3) 170 . 7 60.0 244.7 87.5 F. Paraquat + Vegiben (1 ,2,3) 157. 7 98.0 220.6 95.0 G. Ti 11 am ( 4 ) 16 7. 9. ___ _ 9_3_. _3 _ __ _ 206 _. 2 ___ _ _ --:9-=5...:.. . .::...0 _ .,:..L..;..s= [) ~5~~"..-:, ..::..:.:.--l_ :...!.._ _ _ _ _ ___ _ NS NS

THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

The treatment of row middles (whe~lrows) with weed control chemicals and mixtures of chemicals produced no significant yield red uctio ns . Sencor, Ti l lam and the Paraquat+ Vegiben mixture gave excellent weed control i n bot h seasons. Vegiben requires soil moisture for best results and the poor showing in the fall resulted from an application made to dry soil. (End of Summary)

(1) Both chemicals approved for use separately . Tank mixes not approve d unless sta te d on the labels.

(2 ) Not la beled for use on tomatoes in Florida.

(3) Vegiben granular only labe led for use on tomatoes.

(4 ) Tillam will suppress nuts edge (nutgrass) .

NOTE: Growers ar e advised to check the labels car efu lly to be sure t hat materials are labeled fo r use on tomatoes .

(Montelaro)

C. Annual Vegetarian Index

The Annual Vegetarian Index has been ini tia te d wit h the enclosed in dex fo r the 1971-72 producti on year . No\'J an easy means of loc at ing a desire d "arti cl e" is availa bl e for your use. It shoul d prevent a loss of val uabl e ti me by eliminat· ing the issue-by-.issue scanning previo usl y requi red to locate a des ire d arti cle.

The in dex is ar ranged in a cross-refere nced st yle so th at an article is liste d by both crop and specific topic . For exampl e , if one were interested in pinworms on tomatoes, by checking the index under Secti on I -Crop : Solanaceous (t omato , potato, pepper and eggplant) or in Section II -Specific Topic: Pest s and Cont rol; we would find that in iss ue 72-3 (1972 -March) the re was t he article on "Pinworm on Tomatoes."

An addi tion al chara cteristic i s the use of (Commerc ia l) and (Gardeni ng) fo l lowing the title of t he art ic le and iss ue number. These wor ds are self­expla nator y and se rve to help the i ndex user to categorize the slant of the article. Thus , for example , if \>./e f ind the it em Poultry Manure for Vegetable Crops 72-3 (Gardening) l is ted in t he index , it i ndic at es that t he ar ticle is perh aps written more towar d home gardener applications than commerc i al; ho"t1ever, tlris is not ah 1ays a clear - cut dis tinc t ion. In some cases, these t ernis ,,.JOuld more aptly refer to v,here in t he specific issue of t he 11Nev1sl ett er" the article is located, i .e ., the Commerc ia l Section vers us the Gardening Sect.i on.

The format of the index is based on the product ion year in Florida which is assumed t o be July 1 t o June 30 of the next year . Thus, the norn1a l content of a year' s index wil l be the July issue thr ough the June issue of the follo w­i ng year-. Hm·1ever, the pre sent "r eference" ty pe for mat fo r the nm•,sletter \'/iJS

i nst ituted \':i th the August iss ue of 1971. It i s for Ul"is reaso n that the i nit ial in dt~x vrill cont ain lis t in9s from the August, 1971 issue thr ough the June i ssue of 1972. Is sues prior to /\ugust , 1971 Here develop2d on an ir regular

THE VEGETARIAN NHJSLETTER

basis and fol lowed no set i ssuance pat t ern. At the pres ent time, an i ndex for the se ear ly news le tt er s i s bei ng devel oped and wi 11 be forwarded at the appropriate time . Only art i cles of a lasting re ference val ue wil l be in cl uded in that i ndex.

It is suggeste d t hat the iss ues covered by each i ndex be fi l ed together or be hel d i n a looseleaf notebook t o facil it ate rap i d ret rieva l of desir ed information .

(Kostewicz, Monte l ar o, Stephens )

D. Potential for Sweet Potato es i n Flori da

The productio n of sweet pot atoes has declin ed somewhat stea di ly in Flori da over the years. The estimated acreage has dvlindl cd fro m 24,000 in 1943 to an estim ated 2, 000 acres at the present t ime. This downward trend in acr eage is not shown by Flor ida al one, but is reflected in the decrea sed tota l acreage on the natio nal l evel as use and demand have dropped. Several of the southeastern s t ates have recen t ly been able to hol d their acr eages steady and, i n some cases , have i ncreased their acreag es .

Florida market s provide a large outlet for sweet potato producers of t hese nei ghbori ng sta t es. For example, in 1970, 193 tr uck loads of sweet potato es were handled i n the Miami market. Of these, 3 truck 1 oads 1·1ere from Fl or i da and 169 were f rom two of the southe astern states . l</hile statistics for other market cities in the State mi ght not shov, this vol ume or st eady incr ease in vol ume that Miami ha~ . there is l itt l e doubt that the volume in those cities is being filled by these neighboring states . A potential thus exis t s for Flor i da producers to compete for these markets within their own state . However, the competition will in deed be keen and only top -qual i ty sweet potatoes will be able to make any i nroad into establi shed marketing arrange ments .

Many di fferen t causes have been attr ib uted as being the most responsible factor for the decline of the Florida industry. Perhaps the sing le most menti oned aspect has been the sweet pota to weevil . The weevil , at one time or another , has been a serious pest of sweet potatoes in many of the southeastern sta t es. Federal and State programs have combated this pest by usi ng control measures and quarant i nes to prevent spread to uninfes t ed ar eas of the sout h­east . The State of Florid a has a set of ru les entitled, "Florida S\·1eet Potato Heevi l Regulations ," and t hey are administered by the Di vision of Plant Industry of the Fl orida Department of Agriculture . The Florida regulations are very specif i c in t erms of what must be done t o comply \v·ith the regulations . The point t o be stressed, ho\'lever, is the fact that the regulations do state, 11\-/cevi"l-frc e potatoes may be grown and shipped \·1i thin the stclte by follrn ·ting the control recommendations as prescr ibed."

Previous descriptions of potentials of vegetab l e production "in north and west Fl or ida have sugges ted sweet potatoes as a crop with good pot~ntia l for some areas . Then as nm·t, the importance of the grower I s 1,:i 11 ·i ngness und abi ·1 i ty to practice up-to -dat e cul tura 1 recomrnendati ons inclu ding insect and di sease controls, a v1illingn ess and ability to assemble the product at a centi·al assembly or packing point, anc! a \'/illing ness to grade and pack a st andard high-

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THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

quality product in a suffic i ent marketi ng volume for an experienced mar­keting man to se 11 are critical . There is a market for quality sweet potatoes throughout the State at all seasons of the year. If the pro­duction know-how and technology available are used, sweet potato production in Florida can be turned from potential to reali ty .

Tradi ti ona lly, the 11early 11 market for sweet potatoes has been the ti me when prices are generally the highest. This high-price market ranges from about May through part of July. It is at this time that the quality of the stored crop from other areas is reduced making the new supply of harvested potatoes mor e att rac t ive and able to bring the premium prices . It is for this market that the central and south Florida areas have good potential for marketing sweet potatoes in the State.

The north and west areas of the State don't have the advantage of an earlier season and would be better suited toward fall or l ate production of sweet potatoes. The competitiv e advantage available to the se areas i s one of nearness to the marketing areas . This, of course, would be variab le depending upon area, but certainly worthy of investigation for many areas.

Reiterating a point stressed before , only top-qualit y sweet potatoes will be able to make any i nroad in to established marketing arr angements. /\ny attempt to ju st get by may yield only temporary gains and cer tainly hinder the long-t erm development of the marketin g channel . In fu t ure articles , topics of importance will be dealt with in an attempt to update our store­house of knowledge on sweet potato production.

( Kos tewi cz)

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THE VEGETARIAtl NEHSLETTER

I I . VEGETABLE GARDENING

A. Grow A Garden - For What It's Worth

Accor din g to some observers, we may be seein g the replace ment of the 11Vi ctory Gardens II of t he 40 ' s by t he II Survival Ga rd ens II of the 70 1 s . Thi s isn ' t meant to i mply th at our sta t e and nat io nal economy i s in that dire shape , but poss i bi lities fo r stre t chi ng the food dollar a bit are gett in q clo se scrutiny these days . ·

To shm'I how it can be done , here i s an account of a survey made in a well -known Florida farmi ng conmuni ty . Of course, qarde ning is not r es t ricted to just r ural people, but i s pr act iced by everyone , city folks inc l uded, havin g a s uitab l e plot of ground.

The stud y was conduct ed on 33 fan ns in the Hasting s , Fl orida area. Each farmer and his wife ,-1ere i ntervi elf1ed and t he information recorded. The records were t aken from the farmers as the in te rvi ewer came t o them. Four bla ck farmers and 29 white ones were incl uded in t he survey . The average size of the farms was 60 acres. The principal cash crop was early potatoes.

Ga r clen Products : Thirty-one of th e 33 farr:is had gardens. Of the gar­den products grown in the community, 17 dif f erent vegetables were found in more than 20 per cent of the gar dens, with 50 percent of all the gardens having 9 or more kinds of vegetables. ·.Green beans , turnips, beets , tomatoes, mustard and onions were the only gard en products grown on 60 per cent or more of the farms . Of the 31 gardens , hm fu rnis hed 15 products , 9 furnish ed fro m 11 t o 14 products , and 19 furnished fro m 6 to 10 garden products eac h.

Now a ta bl e is gi ven to show t he pattern of production from the various fami ly gardens (see Table 1).

An attem pt was made to f i nd th e season of the year th at each product \"Jas most corrmonly used . The time as given i n the last colu mn of the table includes from 80 to 90 percent of al l repor t s. This t i me does not mean that eac h farm havi ng the prod uct had it f or the full period, but that the vege­table \·1as used fr esh every month covered by this period by one or more f amil i es. Collar ds were the only vegetab l e used the year round . The fact i s that only one farmer reported using collards every month of the year , but the season cover ed on the other farms varie d cons id erably fro m farm to farm, so t hat every month in th e year was inc l uded by t\ ,10 or more farms .

The months of March, Apri l and May were the months furni shi ng the greatest variety of veget ables . As many as 12 different gar den cro ps v1ere furnished on some of the far ms for a 11 three mont hs . Februa ry , Jan ual'Y, December and June \·1ere t he next months of import ance in the ord et named. Collards, okra and onions were t he only garden cro ps harvested in August and Septe mber, col lar ds for October and cabbage and collards for November.

It should not be infer r ed that it was i mpossible to have any of t hese vegetables outsid e of the time incl uded, but it is evident th at a l arg e majority of the families in te rvi e\-1ed di d not consider ·it 1,i1ort!Mhil e .

THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

Table 1 . Distribution of Family Living fro m the Garden 33 Fanns - Hastings Area, Florid a

Kind of Farms Furnishing Amount of Product Vegetable Number Percent Per Family Using

From Garden: Beans (Green) 25 76 2 Bushel s Turnips 24 73 74 Pounds Beets 23 70 70 Pounds Mustard 21 64 79 Pounds Toma toes 21 64 2 Bushels Onions 20 60 2 Bushels Cabbage 19 58 111 Heads Okra 19 58 2 Bushel s Lettuce 18 54 66 Heads Col lards 16 48 71 Pounds Cucumbers 12 36 2 Bushels Peas (Engli sh) 11 33 2 Bushel s Radishes 11 :: 33 15 Pounds Rutabagas 11 33 46 Pounds St rawberr ies 11 33 49 Quarts Carrots 10 30 65 Pounds Squash 8 24 80 Pounds Peppers 7 21 66 Pods Miscel l aneous 5 15 Spinac h 4 12 31 Pounds Beans (Lima) 3 9 1 Bushel

From Fie l d: Potato es (Irish) 33 100 8 Bushel s Corn ( S1,,1eet) 26 79 21 Dozen Peas (Southern) 15 45 6 Bushels Potatoes (Svteet) ·15 45 21 Bushel s \-la terme 1 ons 10 30 77 Melons Canta loupes 7 21 94 Melons Beans (Green) 3 9 2 Bushels CucumLlers 2 6 2 Bushels Peas (Engl ish) 2 6 1 Bushel

Season Furnis hed

Apr.-May Dec. -May Mar. -May Jan. -Mar. Apr. -July Mar. -Sept . Nov. -May May-Sept. Dec. -Apr . All Year Apr.-May Dec.·-Mar. Mar.-Apr. Dec. -May Jan.-May Dec. -May May-J une June-July

Feb. -Mar. Apr. -J une

Apr. -Oct. May-J uly June-Aug. All Year June-/\ug. May-July .A.pr. -May June March

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THE VEGETARIAN NEWSLETTER

In addi tion to those vegetables coming fro m the gar den, many families obtained fresh vegetables and strawberries from thei r own fields. The use of these vegetables by the families is als o incl uded in the table. All of the 33 farm families had fresh potatoes to eat, but i t is si gnifica nt to note that on the far ms where sweet potatoes were grovm, nearly three ti mes as many sweet potatoes were used by the families. Almost hal f of the farms provided potatoes, sweet corn, sweet potatoes, and Southern peas for home use . Seven farms furnished cantaloupes and ten farms had water melons. One­third of the families had fresh strawberries from their own plots .

By th e way, the survey was conducted in 1927 covering the year 1926, by former Florida Agricultural Extension Economists, J. E. Turlington and D. E. Timmons. Hould such a survey shm,1 a si milar pat ter n today?

(Stephens)

B. Knm'i Your Vegetables - Datal Pepper

A dis tin ctly different small hot pepper called Datal has been grown in the St. Augustine area for some time by gar deners . There is some indica­tion that Datal pepper belongs to Capsicum sin ense Jacques, although common names are sometimes misleading . This speci es is most readily distinguished by the 3-5 flowers at each node, the drooping pedicels , and the circular constriction at the base of the fruit 11cap. 11 The plants are 1\ to 2~ feet high ; the fruits are fro m 1 to 12 cm. l ong, varying in shape from spherical to oblong . Most of the other hcit varieties of pepper are usual ly either Capsicum annuum or Capsicum frutescens .

Occasionally, seed of Datal wil l appear for sale in the Florida Market Bulletin . Otherwise, such seed is not ah1ays easy to obta in.

(Stephens)