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TOMATOES
BY
This past spring I was late
getting my tomatoes planted. However, I usually do not put in the plants
until May 15th but with the wet weather they went in later than usual.
And then just sat there and I waited. Then we had some very hot days and
so I was unable to get out in the afternoon and weed. As a result the
tomatoes and the weeds grew and I waited. Then we had a few cold evening
and the green tomatoes did not turn red so I waited. Finally, last week
I was able to get most of the weeds out, the last of the soaker hoses
in, and some of the tomatoes have turned red, and the Lemon Boy turned
yellow. They were good on my sandwich and in the salads. The wait was
worth it.
Also I have been removing the leaves that have blight but some
have completely taken over the whole plant. Some plants are beyond
repair. I have been feeling better and next Monday I get another shot
and hope then I can keep on top of the weeds and harvest, and do more of
the things below.
1. I add Plant Start when
I plant my tomatoes and other vegetable plants. I then side-dress with
2. I made good strong
tomato cages from wire fencing used to reinforce concrete driveways and
streets. This fencing is usually 5 feet tall and I use a 5 foot piece
for each cage. You can bend the end over to secure the cage or tie
together with a piece of wire. My tomatoes are usually very tall so I
have to use at least two pieces of rebar pounded into the ground and
then attached to the cage to keep the wind from blowing them over. This
gets the tomatoes up off the ground and away from some insects and
diseases.
3. I use the stretchy “
4. Between the cages I put
at least 6 pages of newspaper to keep the weeds down. Newspapers are
made from wood pulp and they use soy ink so the
papers can be tilled into the soil at the end of the season to
increase the organic matter. Dirt, grass clippings, straw, compost,
coffee grounds, etc. can be used to cover the newspapers so they do not
blow away. Do not use the colored sections.
5. I do a number of the
things because the tomato blight pathogens are in the soil. When the
tomato plants get about 3-4 feet tall, I prune off the lower 8-10 inches
of leaves and stems. This gets the leaves up and off the ground so the
pathogens are not splashed up on them when it rains. Also it opens the
plant for good air flow up through the plant. Leaving plants on the
ground only encourages insect and disease problems. I also prune out the
suckers for good air flow. Poor air flow invites disease problems.
6. Remove all blight
infected leaves from the plant immediately to help control spread of
disease. Also remove the leaves from the garden and do not compost. This
year with all the spring rain, one plant really got infected and I have
very few leaves left. Since I had to remove so many leaves, some of the
tomatoes have sun scald. I will now cover the cages with row cover,
cheesecloth, or weed barrier to shield the tomatoes that are left.
7. Rotate where you plant tomatoes to prevent blight. I have
enough space so I grow tomatoes in the same location for only two years
and then move on to another area. Potatoes and egg plant are in the same
family so don’t rotate with these crops. Do not return to the same
location for at least three to four years.
8. When watering do not overhead water unless you have to. This
will reduce the pathogens splashing onto the lower leaves. Also do not
overhead water after
9. Tomatoes
do not need insects
for pollination, contrary to popular belief. As with some other
vegetables and other plants, the flower is a perfect flower which means
it has both male and female parts in each flower. These plants
do need wind or
movement to transfer the pollen from the male part to the female part.
Hormones and other sprays, such as Blossom Set, does not increase
pollination in tomatoes according to a study at
10. According to Copyright 2014 |