burning my grass and planting lettuce with a push seeder, pictures of pests, looking for advice

[LettuceHead]

there's not too many pests, disease or damage in my lawn where i live, but i looked close and found some. what are these? will they go crazy once i plant my lettuce? ive had success with a lady bug house in a different location before, should i build one? or a house for another helpful bug? i picked lettuce to start a farm with because it seems profitable and simple and i have enough time to get a harvest in and think about what i learned over the winter. hope you guys have some tips for me! thanks!

 

[The Big Cowhuna]

I get that you're worried that what you're seeing will come over to your lettuce once you plant them. However, bugs are going to be in your yard and that's natural. Plus, all living things react to the environmental changes around them, so it doesn't necessarily mean that you need to do anything about it. In your shoes, I'd determine which pests are most likely to attack lettuce and keep an eye out for them, so you can get a handle on them before they really settle in.

The black spots on the leave are likely either fungal damage or pest damage. You can remove the damaged areas and check for pests on the leaves. Fungal spores are everywhere though. If your lettuce leaves start showing black spots it could be russet spotting. You might have some thrips. It's difficult to tell from the pictures. I can't tell if there are any aphids lurking about. They leave behind a sticky substance as their giveaway, but I doubt it would show up in photos. I also can't tell if that's a photo of a whitefly or not. I don't believe so because they're usually found in clusters. Whatever you do have in your yard, it doesn't appear as though it's causing much damage. Things look pretty normal from your photos.

 

[GrowPro]

Are you planning to grow your lettuce organically, or are you open to using pesticides? If you live in a hot and humid area, then you might not be able to totally avoid some of the mildews and bacteria that attack plants. To me, it looks like you've got some powdery mildew and bacterial leaf blight going on, but it's hard to really tell from just those pictures. The area looks wet, so it probably rained recently, and those droplets can leave a film on leaves which is a good breeding ground for bacteria. It's not uncommon. You can cut down on pests by removing the debris around the property.

Can you tell us a bit about your ladybug house? You should start a thread about it. I'd love to learn more. I've considered it myself, but I've been told they don't work as the ladybugs fly off.

 

[Almost Eden]

I can only see a bug in the last two images. Even then I'm not sure if that's a bug or a piece of fluff in the second to last one. My advice is to send the images to your local county extension office if you're really worried about it. They'll know what's common in your area. Burning will surely run some pests off anyway. What kind of lettuce are you cultivating? I hope you'll let us know how your first crop goes. It will be a big learning experience; I know mine was.

 

[LettuceHead]

what a nice forum this is!
this is the lettuce i'm growing:

Amazon.com : 15 Lettuce & Salad Greens Seeds Variety Pack 7500+ Non-GMO Heirloom Lettuce Seeds for Planting Indoors & Outdoors Garden, Hydroponics, Aerogarden - Arugula, Kale, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Lettuce & More : Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com : 15 Lettuce & Salad Greens Seeds Variety Pack 7500+ Non-GMO Heirloom Lettuce Seeds for Planting Indoors & Outdoors Garden, Hydroponics, Aerogarden - Arugula, Kale, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Lettuce & More : Garden & Outdoor

www.amazon.com

mix of 15 varieties
hope the push seeder works well enough. so many people transplant that it makes me think i made a mistake buying it
well yeah the lady bugs fly off that's what people say because they dont build a house for them!
i have a specific design in mind to utilize rainwater and feed insert and protection from predators, im excited to build it but im not sure its necessary lolol
but if i do build it the whole neighborhood will be buzzing with beautiful ladybugs for as long as they have water and raisins

 

[Almost Eden]

Well, I think the reviews were probably bought, but that's not uncommon when a seller first starts out on Amazon. You haven't overpaid in my opinion and I'm sure most of it will sprout and grow. That's a nice mix of seeds!

Have you designed your layout already? Keep your chicories separate if you're planning to save the seeds. They will cross-pollinate otherwise. Endive and escarole aren't the easiest to grow. They need blanched and have fussy watering needs, but they fetch a good price, so it might be worth the hassle to you if it pans out. Your kale will likely collapse dramatically at least once when it's been particularly hot outside, but it should recover once the sun goes down. Just give it a little water.

I can tell you've done your research, but don't spend a lot this first time! Don't build anything permanent if you don't have to. Who knows, after this first experience you might decide to move your plot to another section of the yard, or you might decide to take it inside, or switch to hydroponics, or something else. Heck, you might hate the whole thing and decide that gardening for profit isn't for you. So many people go all in and regret it afterward. If your soil is good, you probably won't need whatever a "feed insert" is. You haven't depleted the soil or anything yet. You can also overfeed plants.

 

[LettuceHead]

lol mostly good advice but i never want to hear the word hydroponics again! ive been drowning plants for 5 years. i took one of the dead plants outside and put it in the dirt and left it alone in july and it exploded so i decided to build a greenhouse and start a farm! the indoor grow room will still be useful, i should have got the paperpot planter instead of the push seeder shouldn't i have? the plan is to do a 30 inch bed spiral out from my house, planting everything seperately for now, good to know about that cross polination

 

[The Big Cowhuna]

i should have got the paperpot planter instead of the push seeder shouldn't i have?

The paperpot planter looks gimmicky to me. People usually start with transplants (buy or grow their own) because the seeds are hard to sprout, or they're trying to beat Mother Nature and get a head start. So don't worry if it seems like that's what others are doing. Transplanting carries its own set of risks though. As with most things in life, there is always a trade-off. Of course, that's true for sowing plants in situ as well.

 

[Thyme Flies By]

lol mostly good advice again . . .

Yeah, everyone has their own idea of what's best. It used to bug me that there wasn't one right answer with this stuff. I use a push seeder and it does the trick. The only thing that I don't like about it is having to buy additional plates, and sometimes they don't exist, so you're left with the choice of going up or down to the next best one. I still feel like it was a good investment. It saves me a lot of time.

I'm not familiar with the Paperpot Transplanter, but I can't imagine transplanting shallow-rooted crops like that. I'd also be concerned that the paper will get wet and become a feeding ground for bacteria and mold. I've tried similar gimmicks (seed tape and seed pods) that were made out of similar paper material, and the paper didn't break down by a long shot. Maybe it works great for some people though. I've grown many of those vegetables, just not as a microgreen, and all did fine with direct sowing.

 

[MartyR]

Hello, @LettuceHead, welcome to the forum. What's the big appeal about the Paperpot machine? Maybe you can get those same benefits another way. I wish you lots of success with your first crop!