Cucumber help please -- First Year gardener here!

Hello everyone~
I am a first time gardener and am thrilled with my SFG so far. We have a variety of crops going (10 squares so far, and another 10 to be planted as soon as my hubby finishes the last box).

These are pictures of my cucumber plant. The leaves are pale in spots. I found one insect on the underside of a leaf (a friend tells me it looks like a winged aphid, see pic). Otherwise, the occasional ant on the box itself, but I didn't see any others on the plant.

The box is 6" deep. Filled with SFG mix from my local organic nursery. We had some strong rains last week, otherwise water every day or every other day. It has been in the 90-deg F range the last few days, and was in the 40's last week (gotta love Texas).

Ideas? I seeking an organic solution.

.... I couldn't figure out how to post the pix and there is a 7-day waiting period to post a hyperlink to the pix... so here is the link (just use your imagination, add three w's to the front, delete the spaces ).... loseweightlivefree. com/ private/ squarefootgarden.html

to the forum Margo

I use cinnamon to get rid of my ants. They farm the aphids, so get rid of the ants. Here is a link to other post.
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t549-oh-noaphids?highlight=aphid
Try using the search in the upper left hand corner, just type any subject and it will pull up all posts or topics with lots of info.

Good luck and happy gardening

Thanks for the tips. I will try that. We have ants everywhere (mostly fireants).... so, I'm doubtful I will ever do away with them, but perhaps they can move to the neighbor's yard.

Did you look at the picture? Is the discoloration typical of aphids? I had a friend suggest scorching and another suggest it may be due to overwatering..... wondering if I have multiple issues.

Yes I did and I agree with over watering. Are you using Mel's Mix?

Yes, I am (my local organic garden premixes it and sells it in bags) (I believe the compost portion was from 3 different sources)

Thanks for the comment about the watering. We will let things dry out a bit as well as add cinnamon. I'm also going to look for ladybugs.... figure they can't hurt!

Ladybugs help with all kind of pests. Before you do the other box I would get a list of ingredients from them. Then I would add at least 2 more sources of compost and anything else the book calls for that they didn't add.
here is one place on craigslist.
http://austin.craigslist.org/grd/3723207748.html

I will look into it! Thanks!

Use diatomaceous earth to get rid of ants in your bed. It's made of fossil shells and is organic/non-toxic. I have a horse trough I put tomatoes and peppers in, but the ants took over and nothing I did would get rid of them. In February, I loaded the top layer down with diatomaceous earth. Haven't seen an ant in that trough since.

I also have a 25' x 8' raised garden bed that I fill with tomatoes, onions and peppers. I was weeding last night and saw ants running all over the dirt, as they love loose, moist, soil. I sprinkled the diatomaceous earth all over the top of the bed and on my mounds. The diatomaceous earth will only work if it's dry, so put it out for at least 48 hours before watering or rain. Once it gets wet, you'll have to reapply it. It also gets rid of caterpillars, millipedes and other insects that are ground crawlers. You can do a search for it on-line and buy it at a garden center. Keep it on hand.

Hi, you might want to check out Ladybug Brand mix. It's approved by Mel for SFG and the store is in Dripping Springs - which should be fairly close to you. I used it in a couple of beds here in McKinney and they are doing very well. It might be worth the drive - I lived in Steiner Ranch for seven years and moved north last spring. John Dromgoole is the owner and is very well known for organic gardening. He is on Central Texas Gardening, a PBS show in Austin. I bought my herbs and flowers from his gardening store, The Natural Gardener.

http://www.ladybugbrand.com/index.asp

I just remembered that Whole Foods also carries LadyBug, so if one is closer to you, you might check there. I just thought it might be cheaper at the source. The Natural Gardener is off Old Bee's Cave Road and they would most likely carry it, too, as well as a lot of interesting plants, etc.