E-Mail This Article Printer-Friendly Version

By Adrienne Cook
Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, July 20, 2000; Page H01

In a year that boasted near-perfect conditions for growing a garden, the powerful storms that hit last weekend came as cruel irony.

Hail left a trail of destruction in my part of Northern Virginia, while heavy winds and rain battered many other parts of the region. The gale left in its wake shredded foliage, splintered stems and shattered plants.

Because of the severity of last weekend's weather, gardeners are likely to be at a loss as to what to do next, except hope that the lavishly generous weather we've been blessed with much of this growing season will return and persist.

Plants that have been damaged by marble-size balls of hail are now weakened and therefore vulnerable to infestations of insects or diseases. Hail damage on tomatoes will certainly result in insect attacks and rot.

Cucumbers and squash foliage that are pocked and tattered will be exposed to wilt and powdery mildew, conditions that are spread by insects and environmental factors, and both are deadly.

Eggplant and peppers are less prone to diseases, but the former will come under attack from flea beetles when weakened by damage; if left unchecked, these beetles can be exceedingly destructive. Beans, broccoli, potatoes and onions will probably revive and continue producing.

The major pests of beans and potatoes are beetles, which can be held in check--damaged foliage or not--with organic and biological pesticides, such as rotenone for bean beetles and Bt for potato beetles.

Corn is often affected by seasonal high winds and storms that cause stalks to break or keel over. The hail damage was primarily aimed at foliage, which corn can largely shrug off. If silks were plundered, then the gardener should make a point of hand-pollinating to ensure full ears of corn.

A few wise gardening practices at this point include getting rid of as much debris as possible to reduce the incidence of insect of disease build-up in dying foliage. Plants that have been knocked over but are still rooted should be propped up and staked, then mulched to cover disturbed roots. The natural pruning undertaken by the hailstorms actually will result--down the road--in bushier, full plants, once they begin to recover.

Spraying all damaged foliage with kelp foliage spray will act as a wound balm and will help regenerate some of that plant material more quickly. Follow the kelp spray with a coat of neem oil to reduce disease and pest infestations. Both kelp and neem are available at garden centers.

Damaged fruit should be collected, even if it is not ripe yet. All squash, tomatoes, eggplant and peppers should be picked if they display the pockmarked bruises and nicks that hailstones leave behind.

Undersize squash, peppers and eggplant can be used pretty much like full-grown specimens. Most of the damaged tomatoes are going to be green, but because they won't reach maturity or even full ripeness once the flesh and skin are marred, they must be harvested anyway. Green tomatoes can be fried, pickled or added to chutneys.

Bean plants that have been battered will bounce back and should continue producing beans if they are not at the end of their fruiting.

If the damage was severe enough to warrant pulling certain plants or crops, it is not too late to plant new ones now.

In fact, the season of readying the fall garden is nearly upon us, for August is when the late-producing fall garden begins to get planted. Clearing out areas for this next phase of the vegetable garden may be what needs to be done in the wake of hail ruin.

Lettuce, spinach, peas, beans and even squash and cucumber all can be sown now. Within a month, garden centers will start offering broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower seedlings, which can be planted in August to mature in the cool temperatures of September and October. Other cool-loving varieties to consider planting as replacements for failing crops are fennel, carrots, radishes, beets, turnips, parsley, cilantro.

Sun-loving basil will mature before frost and can be sown now. If corn has been so badly injured by the hail, the gardener can try planting a last-gasp crop of fast-growing Early Sunglow; seeds that go into the ground this week will result in a harvest the first week of October.

Even after one of nature's periodic assaults, determined gardeners can offset the damage by giving each plant close attention.

Previous Article          Back to the top         Next Article