Thanks, I think the cabbage pulled through but the lettuce....

Don't give up on the lettuce. You will be surprised to see it shake off the frost and keep growing. I'd be surprised if it doesn't.

That's a glorious photo of frost on the cabbage! For future reference, you can avoid a lot of frost damage if you use water to rinse off the frost early in the morning, before direct sunlight hits the plants. Much of the "burn" is apparently the result of sun shining through the prism-like ice crystals. Of course, if you're a night owl like me, by the time you know the frost has hit, it may be hours too late. And a hard freeze is another story altogether.

Direct sunlight doesn't hit my plants until hours later in the morning. Trees block the rising sunshine. I've heard of finishing frost off and I think tried it once. During this next bout of bad freezing weather I'll cover what plants I can with my insulation boards.

I've rinsed off an early frost any number of times with minimal damage to the plants.

Busted out the electric blanket - forecast says 17 Monday night and 14 Tuesday night. Protect your plants!

Already 0 degrees here going for about -6 tonight and -2 for high tomorrow. House is pretty cool due to that but holding ok. No veggie plants inside or out.

I have SQUASH BORERS in my garden. I'd hoped they were gone since I haven't tried to grove squash for a dozen years, but I had 1 zucchini plant last year, and they found it. Grrrr. If I try again this year with multiple plants, I'll keep a closer eye on them. I think Bt might help? And in the past, I've even cut out the pest and crossed my fingers that the vine would heal.

I think I'd have a better shot with vining varieties rather than bush types, since vines will often root as they grow across the ground, making it possible for a borer to damage part of a vine without killing the whole plant.

I know I could try gourds, pumpkins, etc., but I also like summer squash. Does anybody know of vining varieties of zucchini or yellow summer squash? All the ones I've checked seem to be bush types! Thanks

They never touched my zucchini when I grew it but I can't grow yellow squash for nothing because they will find the plants before I even get fruit.

Jill, I agree that the vining squash have a better survival rate; and C. moschata types (like butternut) are somewhat more resistant to the borers because the stems are solid rather than hollow. And I haven't yet tried it, but supposedly you can inject the vines with Bt to kill the "worms" inside; I bought a "meat injector" syringe a couple of years ago for that purpose, maybe this year I'll give it a try.

The only vining type of summer squash that I know of is the "Zuchetta rampicante" (aka Tromboncino), which can be used as a summer squash when young and as a winter squash when mature (although I found it to be a little coarse in texture as a winter squash). I'm also going to try some yellow sticky traps around the plants this year, which presumably will at least catch an adult or two so I'll know they are present.

SVB are almost inevitable here. When I get yellow squash survive, I think it helped that I had accidentally sacrificed zucchini to the borers. I read once that borers prefer zucchini. I have never grown a bountiful zucchini harvest. Yellow crookneck or straightneck, have had some good years. I didn't like trombocino as a sub for yellow squash or zucchini- just isn't the same for eating, for me. Succession planting of yellow is probably my best plan.
Tried lettuce (sown, put out to stratify, brought in) and onion seed (sown indoors) a week or 3 ago, nothing.

I practice crop rotation to discourage those icky squash vine borers. With my tiny garden, I even have to exclude the C.pepo varieties once every few years. Cucuzzi (Lagenaria siceraria) is an interesting alternative to zucchini.

Appreciate all the input!!

Maggie, I didn't grow squash for 10-15 years, and they still found my zucchini plant last year.

Are there vining types of summer squash? or are zucchini and yellow squash all bush varieties?

Even my bush squash try to root at joints, they just don't do it well enough to overcome SVB.
Same here as Jill, skipping a year in my yard doesn't stop them, and I don't have any immediate neighbors who garden at all.
This cold snap might help kill pupae. I've left my fall leaves mostly out of the garden this winter, they should be composting well with all the rain.
Off to read about Cucuzzi-

critterologist said:
Are there vining types of summer squash? or are zucchini and yellow squash all bush varieties?

I've only experienced the vining Tatume Squash. It's a C. pepo, but reportedly somewhat immune to the squash vine borer. Worth a try, but my harvest resulted in few fruit for much trellis space. I gave away the rest of the seeds.

Does anyone have any recommendations for vegetable seed sites with a good variety?

I've used Rareseeds regularly in the past but after the third shipment with getting the wrong seeds (which of course I only find out mid-season, way too late to fix the mistake) I'm not so excited to use them anymore

Burpee is decent but I had an issue where one of their seeds they sent me wouldn't germinate and their customer service completely ignored me so I'm not a big fan of them either, but will use them if it comes to it.

Any other good options for vegetables in general?

I haven't used Victory Seeds yet but knowing it's now a Dave Whittinger operation, I have full faith.

It very much depends on the type of seed that you want. If you want varieties for commercial market growers my favorite is https://twilleyseed.com/ I also have good results from https://www.neseed.com/ I have not used them but https://www.trueleafmarket.com... Has bout the widest selection older varieties that I have seen. I will second Salley's suggestion of Victory. Dave continues a good selection for a home gardener. For more antique varieties https://www.sandhillpreservati...

repentantslide said: Does anyone have any recommendations for vegetable seed sites with a good variety?

Baker Creek Heirloom seed is a great place with TONS of varieties, I've bought from them for years. Some of their prices are steep but it's tax free, free shipping over ten dollars and you get a free seed packet with your order. You can also email them with any questions. I'm having to stop buying from them though because their website is so updated my crappy internet connection at home doesn't pull it up good.
Victory Seed is good, and if you have any questions you can message someone through the website like a text message setup. Shipping is semi-fair but there's tax and their prices have gone up, especially on hybrid varieties. But you'll also get notified when your order is out for delivery and when it has been delivered, which a nice bonus. One day after dark the only way how I knew the mail went by was the email saying my seeds arrived.

Victory Seeds, for sure! If you're a new customer, sign up for the newsletter, and you'll get a 10% discount coupon.

For bulk quantities, I also love Hazzard's. Peppers and Tomatoes, several good sources like Tomato Growers Supply, Totally Tomatoes, Tomatofest. And don't forget about SSE, Seed Savers Exchange, but order ASAP as their orders can take a while to ship. Harris Seeds is also excellent.

Last year I ordered from Nikitova, a Ukranian company. They have an amazing number of varieties, and I got good germination from the parthenocarpic cucumbers and alpine strawberry seeds I ordered. Free shipping and 20% discount on orders over $20. https://us.nikitovka.com/en/