DIE TOMATOES DIE!!!

It' been a long, hot summer...not much of a year for gardening. The biggest surprise for me came from the mass die-off of my tomato plants -- all varieties. At first, the attack looked like red spider mites but the plants did not respond to the normal treatments. The plants continued to turn white with a moldy, fuzzy stuff on many of the stems. I was stumped as to the cause until I read an article about how home gardeners across the country were losing their tomato plants to a very contagious disease - the same disease that caused the potato famine. While it doesn't harm humans, it is to tomatoes what the plague is to us...deadly! Most of the press that I read tracked the source of the disease to Bonnie Farms, a nationwide chain of growers that service the big box stores such as Walmart and Lowes. I got the disease from a last minute purchase of Celebrity tomatoes from Walmart and it spread like wildfire to all my tomato plants (and egg plants too) in very little time. To me, it's another example of the failure of factory farming. I will never mix purchased plants with my own home-grown starts again.

Watering Tips

With the increasing heat, you will notice that vegetable and ornamental plants may show stress during the heat of the day by "wilting" and otherwise turning their leaves away from the sun.  This is a normal response and should not be confused with wilting due to lack of water.   Many plants including tomatoes, most herbs, and Texas natives do better when they are allowed to dry out between waterings.  Don't be suckered into watering by the midday wilts.  If the wilting is caused by heat, the plants will return to their vibrant selves by morning.  If they are wilted in the a.m., then it is definitely time to water!

This is also time to begin thinking about mulching.  Four inches of mulch around a plant reduces evaporation and soil temperature resulting in less watering and better plant health.  I prefer cedar mulch or hardwood mulch.  A good aged mulch will be a rich, dark brown.  Cedar has the added benefit of a nice aromatic smell.  Don't use decorative bark as it washes away, provides a home for unwanted insects, and does not provide the same benefits as the other mulches.

Worms on my Tomatoes!!!!

Horn are always a problem but this year there are worms eating my tomatoes!  And other customers are having the same problem.  There's an easy fix - BT!  It is a biological that comes in a powder to be applied directly or a liquid that you mix with water and spray the plant.  Follows label directions and apply over entire plant.  Evening is best as BT is a biological and the heat and sun can affect its efficacy.  Worms will quit eating after one bite but it may take a few days before they turn black and DIE!  BT works on all worms.  Good Luck!

Raised Bed Update

I finally got my demonstration raised beds planted with lots of veggies of all kinds.  

Arch.  I used a piece of welded wire to create an arch between the beds to train the tomatoes, cantalope, cucumbers, and pole beans (barely visable in second picture).  I can walk under the arch and pick the produce!  By using the space between the beds, I expanded the amount of available soil space for more plants.  

I selected indeterminate tomatoes to climb the trellas.  The hanging cantalopes will need a little extra help in the form of pantyhose to prevent a fall to the hard earth.

I also planted peppers, bush beans, squash and eggplant - all in two 4x4 foot plots!  Check out the picture and stay tuned for more updates!