Yesterday I finally put my tomato plants in the ground. Seventeen all told of the various kinds listed below. I hope that my gardens are set up properly and my plants do well. I didn't just plow up the dirt and begin planting. The two beds are both raised, but the soil of each is quite different. The large bed was there when we moved in. The soil here was black, and sandy, extremely sandy I thought. It was soft, and very loose. I added a bit of organic matter in the form of about 20 gallons of horse manure. Not enough, but it should help. There was evidence of the previous year's crops. Tomatoes...
This was both encouraging and discouraging. Obviously they grew in the garden. That means the soil would support them. The bad news is that since last year tomatoes were grown, likely disease resistant hybrids bought at the local mega-mart garden center, there was a greater chance for contamination of the soil, and then my plants. I'm crossing my fingers. I planted seventeen plants, so hopefully even if some of them succumb to the elements, I should have plenty of hardy plants remaining to supply a bountiful harvest.
That is partially where the second, exclusive tomato bed comes in. My dad and I built and put these in at the end of March. In a patch of the yard that was overgrown with a gardener's worse nightmare: Bermuda grass. Still, not to be dismayed, I shaved this layer of grass off the soil, and worked the soil over to a depth of the shovel blade, about eight inches. There was once a tree here. I found a nice large rotten root system in the ground. It was almost 100% composted. This was a nice surprise since the rest of the soil was clay. It was blackish-gray clay and full of worms, but clay nonetheless. So, 9x9 cubic feet of sphagnum peat moss, cow manure, and top soil from a cattle feed lot was added, and mixed thoroughly, multiple times. I gave it a nice watering, and like my main bed, covered the entire thing with black plastic. There it sat for nearly six weeks as I grew my seedlings, and worried and fretted over them being large and tough enough to plant upon the arrival of May.
My main concern with this bed is that some of the organic matter might be too 'hot' for the plants. I suppose it's a little late to worry about it now, but since this second bed contains my main crop of never before planted , all heirloom, varieties I can't help myself. One thing that I am not worried about as much with this bed is contamination from years past. No tomatoes grew among the Bermuda as far as I could tell, so this should be the first time for this stretch of land. I will post the outcome.
For clarity, I should talk a little about first the soil, and second the varieties of tomatoes there in. Now, a note on soil. Soil rich in organic matter like manure, plant debris, etc, is good stuff. That has been my goal in building, and rebuilding the composition of these beds. However, I noticed that the base each of these beds lye on is clay. The dreaded clay of the South! Well not the red stuff from Georgia, or Alabama, as mentioned previously this stuff is black. To me, that sounds good. Also, it is full of earth worms, always a good sign of fertility. Clay is not altogether bad as some may lead us to believe. Now soil composed of nothing but clay is worthless. It is messy, cold, damp, and hard. Then again, soil with an abundance of sand is dry, hot, and so loose it blows away. So if you turn your bed, and run into some clay, don't freak out, just work in organic matter, like peat moss, and break that clay up. It will hold water where sand will dry out, kind of like a camel's hump does. Think moderation people, too much of anything generally turns out to be no good, tomatoes excluded of course.
Next are the varieties of the tomato plants. I do not mean the specific varieties named after the fruit they produce, like German Queen, or The Big Russian Romas. I am talking about heirloom vs hybrid. There is one main difference I am concerned with. Hybrids are plants that have been crossed and bred to be resistant to diseases. These plants stand up better to diseases than other, non resistant types. Those for the most part are the heirlooms. This group contains vast different varieties that have been bred for their differences as opposed to their resistances. If they have a resistance, that's a bonus, but don't count on it. Since most of the plants I put in are heirlooms, I have to be extra careful and attentive to them should they show signs of any disease.
Why go to the trouble? Well, what's the fun of everything being the same? That's why I would make a poor communist, I like diversity. So, for some extra work and trouble, I planted all these neat-o types in hopes they won't contract some epic plague like disease and rot before my very eyes. Since I hope to grow them as organically as possible, I am making it extra difficult since I will be keeping away from chemicals to control such diseases. Wish me luck. I will need it, but since the tomato only bed is new, it should remain relatively disease free, barring insect carriers infesting it.
***Breaking News*** The two early ones I put in have multiple blooms and are nearing stake size!!! ***Breaking News***
Also, I found a few small pink aphids hanging around. I then went to the most lethal pesticides I could find: my hands! A quick, ginger rubbing of the stalk ground these little botanical vampires to a fine paste.
Oh and in case you were wondering about the title, Ing is the Norse god of the Earth. No, I'm not a worshiper of Thor or Odin, though that would be cool, I am just a geek.
No comments:
Post a Comment