Gardening, Greenhouse, Life

I don't know how you do all that you do ! You did inspire me to plant tomatoes on a string and they are doing well. I am not doing to bad for first time suckering and wrapping the vine, so much different than letting the tomato grow and bush out.
All the Best

I am glad things are working out for you outsideasy. now the trick is to grow big beautiful plants without the dreadful diseases and fungus. I personally am happy when I can grow healthy plants right up til the first fruits start to ripen= then I feel like I accomplished something GREAT. My crop ends about 8 weeks after the first ripe tomatoes mostly cause they run out of trellis space by the time the first fruits ripen so I just cut their heads off when the first ones ripen. AT the same time, I start a new crop about that time for a Fall harvest.


Many of my tomato plants have reached the top of their trellis support. Which means= off with their heads. The other plants should be at their max head space within the week. But I also got a late start Something to think about is= when it is time to cut the tops out= make sure you have plenty of foliage above the last cluster of toms that pollinated so they don't get sun scald.

I do have a few early signs of blight. But keeping those leaves picked off to slow it down.


A pic of the "Tommy Toes" and next to them are the " Giant Tree" and both have reached the top of the support system.

tomatoes everywhere. The aroma is addictive.

Gorgeous-gorgeous-gorgeous !!!!!!!!!!

thank you very much acara.

And we have some Brandywine ripening.

Carolyn, have you tried to get them to grow back down after they are at the top? Can you loop them over the rafter?

yes, I have grown them over the top of the trellis. I have even lowered the vines and retied them to the trellis and still let them grow over the trellis= support. By Aug the vines are normally 12 to 14 feet long with very little production due to high summer temps and it's a jungle. Even If I let them fall over the trellis and grow towards the ground= they will reach the ground by Aug And by that time the plants have been taken over by blight. I would love to see just how long I could grow the plants but production wise, it is best to start a new crop for the Fall.

I have another greenhouse frame but I don't have it set up yet. I am afraid we won't have time to set it up since we are desperately trying to get the house built , dried in, and winter ready.
That greenhouse will be set up late winter.===then next year I can grow one crop as long as I possibly can while getting a second growing in another greenhouse.

YEAR 2005

We all are always impressed with your tomatoes, Carolyn. Great job yet again!

The spring and summer tomato crop has ended and I have sown seeds for
fall and winter crop. They will be grown by the square foot. One single
vined plant per square foot. Also each cluster will be pruned to have
only 4 tomatoes per cluster. The greenhouse raised beds will have a
total of 450 vines.

Sowing new squash plants this week in the Table Top Gardens. Sowing
Carrots. Almost time to sow Fall crop===in a couple of weeks. Excited
to start the fall crop.
Harvest Corn from the 4x4 bed. It was beautiful corn. Time to pull up the old and start a new.
Have mini cantaloupes all over the place.

I am going to redesign the raised block beds=kinda.........I did not
like the plants growing in the holes of the blocks. I will use wood
framing around the top of the block beds. This will give me a true
Square Foot design. I am more excited with Fall planting than I was
with spring planting cause we really don't have a Spring. It's Winter
then Summer. I am ready to grow some Lettuce. I will be building some
Table Top Gardens next to the garage where it gets Afternoon and
Evening shade for growing my Lettuce in the Spring.


My son is home= discharged from the Army. He wants to grow a garden too.

My new House is blacked in== has a kitchen, has a bath. It has been a long hard working Spring and Summer.
I designed the roof= Gambrel= Barn Style. It is two story. Haven't
put the shingles on the roof yet. Designed and built my gambrel roof
on the office.... I want to build a square foot garden in front of the
office. I have the soil that goes in the bed in front of the office
but we have to put the siding on the house before I build the beds.

The house is actually a little further along than what you see in the picture.

Carolyn, You may have already posted before , but I dont remember,,,, tell us about soil sterilization in the greenhouse (prep for fall tom's) ???

I have never sterilized the soil in the greeenhouse. I haven't had any problems that require it.
Many commercial growers steam sterilize no matter what just to make sure they had no problems. I don't have the equipment to sterilize. But I do drench the entire greenhouse with fungicide, mouthwash, liquid dish soap, and liquid seven dust before I plant each crop. I did this before I planted the spring crop and I had no problems except tomato hornworms showed up about 5 weeks ago and I had to spray for them. I didn't have any major diseases. Had a few plants showing early signs of blights but it never became a problem.

It is easier to steam sterilize when you are growing in containers. If you want to save the soil after you have had some fungal problems or other disease problems , You can flush the containers with 160 degree water for 3 minutes on each container- assuming they are 5 gallon containers. I personally would throw my hands up and walk away if I had to steam 70 foot grow beds. I don't have a hot water tank big enough to handle the job. And I don't want to use the chemicals involved with doing the other methods of sterilizing the beds. If and when I start having problems bad enough that it requires sterilizing the beds then I will just do away with the beds and use containers with fresh new soil.

A southern note= Our frost dates have always been between April 8 and the 15th. To our great surprise , this year our last frost was May 15th. It was a light frost a whole month later. One never knows how to plan their garden these days. Just plant it according to the normal and cross your fingers.

CarolynPhillips wrote:A southern note= Our frost dates have always been between April 8 and the 15th. To our great surprise , this year our last frost was May 15th. It was a light frost a whole month later. One never knows how to plan their garden these days. Just plant it according to the normal and cross your fingers.

Carolyn - I think we switched zones! Our normal frost date is between 5-15 and 5-21 (and trepidation until after Memorial Day Weekend), but this year it was approx. 4-15! This has happened one other year in the 13 years we have been here in SD (I have been tracking the trends).

GG

wow GG. Did you just happen to plant something early and get lucky too? Hope you got to use some of that extra growing season. wow a whole month!

CarolynPhillips wrote:wow GG. Did you just happen to plant something early and get lucky too? Hope you got to use some of that extra growing season. wow a whole month!

I planted my corn earlier than I normally would have (not the whole month early, but a good head start) and my tomato volunteers started earlier than usual, so they were ready to take up the slack when I wind-crisped all my indoor starts during hardening off!

GG