Summer Storms

A summer thunderstorm came through this week and laid waste to my tomatoes, blowing the fence support over my peppers, reminding me that not only should I stake my tomatoes more strongly, I should prune the non-producing stems and suckers to allow more air circulation and feed the producing parts instead of lush greenery. To prune a tomato, I start at the bottom, cutting the lower, non producing leaves, branches and suckers out with a knife, pruners, or simply pinching the tender, new shoots with my finger. Suckers are the new growth growing out of a leaf or limb "vee" and are non productive on the vine. Some of the healthiest limbs and suckers can be rooted by putting them in water or soggy peat, vermiculite or compost. Healthy, supporting roots will grow within a few days and can be planted safely when the roots are an inch or longer. These will make good late tomatoes (in zone 6/7 or higher) if planted this month, and if they are placed where they can be sheltered against frost will bear until a true freeze or prolonged cold weather comes.
Pruning in this manner will not significantly reduce your crop, and will help with the health of the plant, and ripe, juicy tomatoes.

Time for beginning for the next season.

Here in Zone 7 it's mid summer and hot, crops are coming in and some are already at their peak. As your crops finish with their productions, it's time to begin clearing them from the garden, composting them, and planting late summer and fall crops since we have almost 3 full months of weather suitable for growing another full crop. Depending on where you live, you may have more or less time, but anywhere in the U.S. you should be able to grow cool season crops, lettuce and other salad greens, peas, cabbage, kohlrabi, carrots, turnips, rutabagas, parsnips, and some short term crops such as squash, zucchini and perhaps cucumbers. In the lower 48 you may have time (zone 6 or higher) for a new planting of tomatoes and peppers, especially if you've started peppers and rooted tomato cuttings or have access to started transplants, especially if you are able to provide some frost protection when the nights start to become cold but there is still a lot of warm weather and sunny days before the first freeze.
If you've not started composting, now is the time to locate and begin a new compost bin since grass clippings, garden waste and leaves that will fall in a few weeks will give you a lot of material to provide organic matter when you begin your garden in the spring.

Getting Started