Set a hose to a strong spray to knock these flying pests from the plants. Monitor plants for signs of aphids and flea beetles, which include chewed-looking foliage and stunted plant growth. Lay a narrow band of compost a few inches in front of each lady's finger row, then water to allow the nutrients to begin leeching into the soil. The stems are prone to rotting if soil conditions are too damp.Side-dress the plants with additional compost about 30 days after sowing seeds. Supplement water with a hose or drip irrigation system during periods of low rainfall.Water okra plants less frequently after they produce flowers. Choose the hardiest looking seedlings, and remove the rest by cutting the seedlings at the soil line.Keep the soil in the okra bed consistently moist until the plant flowers. Thin lady's finger seedlings to at least 12 inches apart when they are 3 inches tall. Plant them at a depth of 0.5 inch, at a spacing of 6 inches apart within rows. Night temperatures should not fall below 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Work a 3-inch layer of compost into the top 6 to 8 inches of soil to add fertility and improve drainage.Sow lady's finger seeds in early summer, at least four weeks after all danger of frost has passed. If it is lower than 6.0, use limestone to raise the pH level so that it is not overly acidic. If it is higher than 6.8, use sulfur or peat moss to lower it to the slightly acidic level okra prefers. Okra can be plagued by aphids, spider mite and whitefly.Test your soil with a kit from the garden center to determine your garden bed's pH level. Fresh Okra has to be eaten the same day, because it doesn't keep well. When the pods grow taller, they get hard and thready. The pods are then about 6½ - 8 cm in size. Harvest the Okra after 55 - 60 days, after transplanting. Water enough s pecially during dry-spells. Keep the pots apart, because the plants can grow to a large size (120 cm). Put the young plants in a greenhouse, because Okra needs a moist and warm place with a soil temperature between 22 - 30 ☌. Harden the seedlings of, by putting them for about 2 - 3 weeks in a room with a temperature between 15 - 18 ☌, from the beginning of May. Keep moist and don't let the seedlings dry out. Keep the temperature as even as possible and don't let the temperature drop during the night. Transplant the seedlings, as soon as they are large enough to handle, with peat pot in larger pots. Keep the germination temperature between 22 - 24 ☌. Sow indoors in individual peat pots filled with moist potting soil from March. Because Okra has a very delicate rootsystem, it's a good idea to sow in individual peat pots. This allows you to transfer the plants with peat pot into larger pots without disturbing the delicate root system. Okra needs a lot of light and warmth to grow well. Don't cook Okra longer than 5 - 7 minutes. Okra is used a lot in Cajun-, Creole and Suriname kitchen. For other applications, you must keep the Okra whole. Okra that's used for the binding of food should be cut into small pieces. Okra is delicious in combination with: aubergine, tomato, sweet pepper, onion, lamb, beef, sweet potato, garlic, ginger and bakkeljauw. Okra is an exotic vegetable that can be used in stews, soups, stir fry dishes and as a binder in various dishes. Okra can be cooked, baked, fried or grilled. It also contains a lot of fibres and nutrients and little calories. And the minerals: calcium, phosphor, iron, potassium, copper, magnesium, sodium, selenium and zinc. Okra contains a.o.: vitamin A, B1, B2, B6, B11, C, E and K. The pods colour green when they're cooked. Okra is also known as Gumbo, Okro and Lady's Fingers. It has a delicious flavour when the pods are harvested when they're about 6 - 8 cm in size. It produces a prolific amount of long straight pods. Okra Burgundy is a very unusual and striking dark red till dark purple variety.
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