Long vines, but no fruit! What am I missing?

[MoniDew]

Hi, guys!

I'm noticing that I have a lot of lovely, long healthy vines growing in my new raised beds. (First timer for raised beds!) And my tomatoes, squashes, etc. are all growing nice and long/tall. But they are not setting fruit well. The season is half gone and I haven't had a single edible fruit. (Bell peppers too, just one tiny baby, and one tiny baby tomato!) The fruit stays very small, and sometimes rots and drops off before getting any bigger than a pea. Some of the plants have had no fruit at all...most, in fact.

Am I missing a key nutrient in the soil?

[Ozark Homesteader]

Are you in one of the areas of the country that has been unusually warm or cold? Either could explain your problem. Also, do you have pollinators (bees, etc.)? If exceptionally warm, you could try floating row covers to cool your plants a bit. If too cold, try black plastic mulch. For too few pollinators, you can take a tiny paint brush and tickle several flowers to spread the pollen yourself. Sometimes too you'll get big vines with few productive flowers if you are providing too much fertilizer to the plant. I think the only solution for that is to wait until next year and fertilize less.

I look forward to reading other people's ideas too!

[MoniDew]

I haven't really fertilized - in fact, I was hoping that this would be a solution, since I haven't done it yet. This is a brand new raised bed, filled with "organic garden soil". Frankly, what they sold me as "soil" looks very much like mulch to me...lots of wood chips, etc.

[Ozark Homesteader]

Okay, I see from your location that you are in Oklahoma. Hundred-degree days there a lot recently? It may be the heat. The plants you are describing will not set fruit well in the heat, but they will as the weather cools down.

I add nutrients to the soil when I start, but you could still use a fish/seaweed emulsion and/or something similar.

[MoniDew]

Oh, good! I was just thinking about adding some seaweed! LOL!

Great minds, as they say....

:))