|
Post by chrysanthemum on Jul 9, 2022 6:56:53 GMT -6
I need to hide under a chair. I’ve started them as early as the day after Christmas, but usually sometime in January. I try to get mine out in early March. It’s a gamble, so I never set them all out that early because I’ve been burned more than once. No need to hide under a chair, HMooseK. You’re just doing it the Texas way. It was surprising to me when I moved here and looked into gardening advice from the local extension service to find recommendations to start in my area as early as the end of January, but it seems that the recommendations really push having large, advanced transplants to go in as soon as possible in order to get to maturity in time to beat the heat. I tend to put mine out in March, though last year was as late as early April. They’re pretty good sized by then, and I think one of mine was even flowering in its little bag this year, but that variety is the one that has done the best for me this year. The heat came so early this year that I’m really having problems with my blossoms not pollinating. I’m keeping the plants alive in the hopes of seeing more fruit, but I’m also growing some replacements inside right now.
|
|
|
Post by woodeye on Jul 9, 2022 8:12:58 GMT -6
I understand about starting the seeds earlier in Texas, I would do that too.
I'm having the same blossom problems right now, the plants are not setting fruit at all. About 2 weeks ago we had some relatively cool nights and if there had been blossoms at the time, they would have produced. But the hot weather before the cool nights began had mostly shut down the blossoms. When the weather began to heat up again the blossoms came on fast. But then the scorching temps continued once again and the blossoms are not setting anything, they're just decorations on the plants.
I've still got about 30 tomatoes left on the 5 vines I have, but they sure aren't growing very fast. All I've been doing lately is just trying to keep them alive for hopefully a fall crop.
That's a good idea, grow some replacements...
|
|
|
Post by heavyhitterokra on Jul 9, 2022 16:08:57 GMT -6
This is a really good thread. I planted some tomato seeds this year on the first day of Spring, March 21st. They were just the perfect size for transplanting on May 1st, and I thought I had finally discovered the 'sweet spot' as far as a good seed planting date. However, now that it's mid-July and I've yet to get a ripe tomato, I'm thinking a couple of weeks earlier might have been a better deal?
Oh well, that'll give me something to tinker with again next Spring. Gardening around here is just one big experiment. That's all part of the fun.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2022 16:54:55 GMT -6
Throw volunteers out in early spring. Late frosts.not included, let the plants tell ya. But even they dont know about the late frosts. Lol
|
|
|
Post by hmoosek on Jul 9, 2022 17:01:10 GMT -6
Yes it is one big experiment. The thing is, just when you think you’ve got it dialed in, something always comes up and throws your plans right out the window. I do things a bit quirky anyways.
|
|
|
Post by chrysanthemum on Jul 10, 2022 6:38:02 GMT -6
Throw volunteers out in early spring. Late frosts.not included, let the plants tell ya. But even they dont know about the late frosts. Lol I had tons of volunteer tomatoes from a not quite finished batch of compost last fall. I’ve pulled most of them or let the winter finish them off. One little plant came up in our onion bed this spring, though, and I left it in the bed as sort of a canary in the coal mine to tell me how cold the beds got. I protected the onion beds with frost cloth a couple of times, but I know that little seedling survived down to 28 degrees one night nestled under frost cloth and onion foliage. I figured if it had survived that long I wasn’t going to pull it. I’ve been letting it sprawl all over. It is a cherry type and has barely set any fruit, but I just picked my first ripe one. I have no idea if it came from a hybrid seed or not or if it will taste at all good, but I think I’ll find out this afternoon when I make a salad after church.
|
|
|
Post by heavyhitterokra on Nov 21, 2022 18:32:21 GMT -6
This seemed like an appropriate place to put this, as a tomato seed catalog that arrives in mid-November seems a little too early to me, but my 2023 Totally Tomatoes seed catalog just arrived in the mail today! I'm a sucker for a seed catalog ... Especially one that is cover to cover tomato seeds. Somebody hold me back!
|
|
|
Post by amyinowasso on Nov 22, 2022 10:54:09 GMT -6
The last couple of years you have to buy early or they sell out. I've been checking to see what I'm low on and fighting the urge to buy what I don't need, or is just unusual enough to sucker me in. I will likely have made my purchases by New Years.
|
|
|
Post by hmoosek on Nov 22, 2022 13:48:05 GMT -6
This seemed like an appropriate place to put this, as a tomato seed catalog that arrives in mid-November seems a little too early to me, but my 2023 Totally Tomatoes seed catalog just arrived in the mail today! I'm a sucker for a seed catalog ... Especially one that is cover to cover tomato seeds. Somebody hold me back! Hehehe. I just ordered a few days ago.
|
|
|
Post by woodeye on Nov 22, 2022 15:14:43 GMT -6
I have every seed that I'm going to plant already in stock, so I'll do my best to not look at the catalogs. It's not fun, but it's the only method I've ever found that works to stem the flood of seed that I don't need. Trouble is, now I'm getting more emails from seed companies that I don't dare open...
|
|
|
Post by triffid on Nov 29, 2022 1:55:46 GMT -6
With a stiff upper lip I managed to ignore the deluge of 'Brown Friday' emails from all of the regular seed companies. But winter has barely begun, and the specialist suppliers never lose.
|
|
|
Post by woodeye on Nov 29, 2022 7:53:41 GMT -6
With a stiff upper lip I managed to ignore the deluge of 'Brown Friday' emails from all of the regular seed companies. But winter has barely begun, and the specialist suppliers never lose. I bow my head in shame as my upper lip was not quite stiff enough yesterday, causing me to backslide to the tune of $9.74. An easy-open email, free shipping, and 2 free packets of seeds from a seed house that I had dealt with before, created a level of temptation that I could not ignore, and ultimately did me in, making it the third time this fall that I have purchased "the last seeds that I'm buying for 2023"...
|
|
|
Post by hmoosek on Nov 29, 2022 9:53:04 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by triffid on Nov 30, 2022 17:05:28 GMT -6
How long before planting out do you all sow tomatillos? I sowed some in Feb at the same time as the peppers, a good few weeks before tomato sowing time. They grew so fast and a few started flowering under the grow lights...
|
|
|
Post by rdback on Nov 30, 2022 18:56:35 GMT -6
How long before planting out do you all sow tomatillos? I sowed some in Feb at the same time as the peppers, a good few weeks before tomato sowing time. They grew so fast and a few started flowering under the grow lights...
I started mine with the tomatoes - about 6-8 weeks before plant-out.
|
|