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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] flea beetles vs. eggplants

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  • From: Alex McGregor <waldenfarm AT sprintmail.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] flea beetles vs. eggplants
  • Date: Tue, 18 Mar 2003 09:45:10 -0500

I gave up on growing eggplant some years ago because the flea beetles always
turned the
young plants to lace. But then Ryan Cohen (Gaia Gardens in Atlanta) gave me
a flat of
Orient Charm from Johnny's that he had left over. I told him it would be a
good trap
crop- keep the flea beetles off the arugula. I had no hopes it would survive.

But it did. The flea beetles hit it, ate a bunch of holes and stopped.
there was
plenty of leaf surface left and we got lots of eggplant through the season.
And as a
professor once said to me, "OK, that's one in a row." So I planted 2 beds
last year
(about 250 plants) and the same thing happened- plenty of eggplant.

And this type is easy to sell, especially these days when no one wants to
spend more
than 1/2 hour preparing a meal. I explain to customers that all they have to
do is
slice and cook. No peeling, salting, rinsing & drying.

We'll see if this season makes "three in a row."
--
Alex McGregor
Walden Farm





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