Tom(ate)o, Tom(at)o

Tomatoes like to be planted in rich soil with a PH of 6 to 6.8 or slightly on the acidic side.  Neutral is 7.

Tomatoes prefer regular feeding once the fruit sets, but too much too early in the season will grow a large plant with fewer tomatoes.

Calcium is very important to tomatoes to prevent blossom end rot.  Perhaps magnesium is more important, as it needs to be present to allow the tomato to take up the calcium.  Magnesium sulphate or Epsom Salts in the soil helps.  I use an alfalfa tea which has epsom salts added.  I alternate between the alfalfa tea and an organic tomato fertilizer during the fruiting season.

A list of tomatoes available this year:

• Big Beef – indeterminate, beefsteak type, 10-12 oz, red fruit
• Biltmore – determinate, medium, 8-10 oz, reddish purple fruit
• Black Cherry – indeterminate, cherry, 1-2 oz, black, purple fruit
• Black Krim – indeterminate, beefsteak type, 8 -10 oz, reddish purple
• Brandywine – indeterminate, beefsteak, 9-16 oz, Pink fruit
• Celebrity – determinate, medium, 8 oz, red
• Cherry Falls – determinate/trailing, cherry, 1 oz, red fruit
• Chocolate Stripe – indeterminate, beefsteak, 3-4 in, mahogany stripe
• Early Girl – indeterminate, medium, 4-6 oz, red
• Early Girl Bush – determinate, medium, 4-6 oz, red
• Flamme – indeterminate,  medium, 3-4 oz, orange or persimmon
• Gold Nugget, determinate, cherry, 1 oz, deep yellow
• Healthkick Roma, determinate, roma, 4-8 oz, red
• Heirloom Genuwine, beefsteak, 12 – 15 oz, pink, cross between Brandywine and Big Dwarf
• Heirloom Perfect Flame, medium, 3-4 oz, red, cross between Juane Flamme and Peron
• Juliet, indeterminate, cherry, 1-2 oz, red fruit
• Lemon Boy, indeterminate, medium, 8 oz, yellow
• Moneymaker, indeterminate, medium, 7-8 oz, red
• Oregon spring, determinate, medium, 5 oz, red
• Patio, determinate, cherry, 2 oz plus, red
• Red Grape, indeterminate, cherry, .75 oz, red
• Roma, determinate, roma, 3-4 oz, red
• Super Fantastic, medium, 10 oz, red
• Sweet 100, indeterminate, cherry, 1 oz, red
• Taxi, determinate, medium, 4-6 oz, yellow
• Tumbler, determinate/trailing, cherry, 1oz, red

I have grown most of these with the exception of a couple of new ones such as the heirloom crosses.  My preference is the ones with the most acid.  My grand kids love any and all of the cherry varieties.

Happy Gardening!

Planting by Moon Phases

Veggie garden and planting by the moon signs

If I read my moon phase calendar correctly the new moon for March is the 8th and the full moon is the 23rd.    Keep these dates in mind when reading the following information.

Planting by moon signs in its simplest form is to plant vegetables that bear crops above ground in the light of the moon, that is from the day after the moon is new to the day before it is full.  At the new moon, the lunar gravity pulls water up, and causes the seeds to swell and burst. This factor, coupled with the increasing moonlight creates balanced root and leaf growth. This is the best time for planting above ground annual crops that produce their seeds outside the fruit. Examples are lettuce, spinach, celery, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower.  Cucumbers like this phase also, even though they are an exception to that rule.

In the second quarter the gravitational pull is less, but the moonlight is strong, creating strong leaf growth. It is generally a good time for planting, especially two days before the full moon. The types of crops that prefer the second quarter are annuals that produce above ground, but their seeds form inside the fruit, such as beans, melons, peas, peppers, squash, and tomatoes.

Likewise plant vegetables that bear crops below ground during the dark of the moon, that is from the day after the full moon to the day before it is new again.  After the full moon, as the moon wanes, the energy is drawing down. The gravitation pull is high, creating more moisture in the soil, but the moonlight is decreasing, putting energy into the roots. This is a favorable time for planting root crops, including beets, carrots, onions, potatoes, and peanuts. It is also good for perennials, biennials, bulbs and transplanting because of the active root growth.

In the fourth quarter there is decreased gravitational pull and moonlight, and it is considered a resting period. This is also the best time to cultivate, harvest, transplant and prune.

A lot of this information is on the internet.  The theory seems logical and can’t hurt.  I will admit to not always following it exactly.  Sometimes I plant when I have time here at the Nursery.  I do have friends and customers who follow it always.

Happy Gardening!