vegetables do well until flowering stage, fruits v tiny

[sheela jaywant]

Hi,

I live in Sangolda. The soil around my house has many pebbles, I make my own compost with kitchen waste and PLENTY of leaf litter of the forest trees around, including teak.

The vegetables I grow do well till the flowering stage, but all the fruits are tiny. Karelas, pumpkins, lady's finger, tomatoes... lots of healthy flowers, miniature fruits and v few in number. What do I do? I've bought seeds from various sources, same results.

Sheela Jaywant.

[Kenelm I.F. Santana Lopes]

I have heard that teak leaves are not so good for plants.

If you notice, very little grows under teak trees

Kenelm I.F.Santana Lopes

Domus Lopes

#0246, Near the Church,

Morombi O Pequeno

Merces-Goa

403005

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[Vivian A. DSouza]

I too had heard that Teak leaves are not so good for plants.  Ditto for Teak mulch or Teak wood chips.

I also heard that Teak wood has a natural toxicity which deters termites or white ants.  So maybe this is the part of the problem ?  It would be nice to hear from the experts.

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[Jen]

Teak (Tectona Grandis) dried leaves. ... Leaves will be decayed into rich humus to help feed the crops you plant and to improve the structure of the soil Teak Leaves are Nature's perfect mulching material and soil-builder, and supply some fertilizer, when they've rotted.

Maybe the reason why small plants don't survive is bcos of the shade and being covered over by the huge leaves

[Yogita Mehra]

Hi Sheela,

My main advice to you would be to work on your soil. Fruiting is a very energy intensive exercise for plants. It is made possible, when plant food reserves are matched with sufficient nutrients available in the soil. 

Sometimes, the nutrients are present in soil, but could be 'locked up' or unavailable to plants for a number of reasons. One of these, is the absence of microbes, sufficient microbes or the right ones.

While this is all theory, what it means in practice is that you need to continuously  nourish your soil and protect it, to let it get to the point where it is able to regenerate mostly on its own without  much intervention from you. 

What that further means is :

1. At the start of a new crop, add generous amounts of cow dung/compost to your soil. Coco peat will go a long way of your soil  is too clayey. You can also substitute coco peat with copious amounts of decomposed leaves. Mix all this well and mulch it, so it does not dry out. 

2. Feed your soil with compost or liquid manure like panchgavya one a month, especially for fruiting vegetables. 

3. Try to maintain a thick layer of mulch, say 3-4 inches. And use mixed leaves, not just one type, say  teak. Too many teak leaves as mulch is not a good idea, since they could inhibit both germination and growth rates. Mixed mulch is always preferred. 

Feed the soil (soul) the rest will follow... 

:-) 

Yogita

[Karan @ GreenEssentials]

I tend to agree. The amount of leaves it drops are more likely the deterrent. Also some things do grow well under them.

There are these delicious pineapples that I can see just below my balcony. Right at the base of the neighbors teak tree.

Karan