I think I have a new favorite tomato

[kvet]

Originally Posted by early

I have taken Two Master Gardening Classes, the last here in NM, but not sure I have learned how to plant a garden that grows here in this arid heat. Fortunately I have a well and lots of water.

Would it help to setup shade cloths, or maybe grow in a tunnel and/or greenhouse?

[kvet]

Tomato garden at parental units' home all planted out last weekend! 170sq ft of clay soil was double-tilled with local green waste compost (OMG I haven't been in so much pain hahaha), and organic nitrogen fertilizer added per recommendation of the soil analysis with supplemental iron. Also planted some companion plants between tomatoes like basil, borage, parsley, carrots, and radishes. Today, we setup a lower-lean trellis system using rebar, electrical conduit, and some pvc. I made my own version of tomahooks from 12ga galvanized steel wire. This is a bit of a sore point for me - regular source to purchase them at a fair price was out of stock, and the ones on amazon were overpriced and unknown quality. Subsequently, I bought the wire, spent a few hours making the hooks, then a family member pointed out they were back in stock. Oh, well!

The three potential areas of failure:
- compost too strong (so far okay, plants have survived the first week)
- disease in soil, since the parental units have grown tomatoes in this area for last 20 years, TBD
- cotton string rated to 3lbs.. I should've bought the 5 lifetime supply of plastic twine for this, but, I didn't and now we'll see what happens

5 cherokee purple plants amongst 37 total Majority are heirlooms, but we did add a few hybrids from the nursery just in case.

I'll be growing 6 dwarf varieties at my home, but these are lagging 2-3 weeks, they were super slow to germinate for some reason.

[WaterWitchin]

I am past impressed Kvet! You're doing this hardcore. Like maybe you were me twenty years back. I'm stable on tomatoes this year... sticking with Cherokee, doing some Mortgage Lifter again because my older, wiser cousin who's a mountain man kinda guy insists I should try again. He's eldest of my remaining family, so I listen. And a couple of Chocolate cherry little guys, in spots close to the deck so the grands can pick and eat, but yet supervision.

This year is rehabbing my asparagus. It's a long story, and I'll try to come back to it soon. But yes, a labor of love. Can some days barely walk by the time I'm done... but well worth it.

Many kudos and BRAVO to you, for not only doing your own but assisting respected elders in the process.

[kvet]

Thanks It's been a very fun project so far. I completed some tests this morning with the cheap cotton string from box store, and it tore easily once wet. Subsequently ordered the multiple-lifetime supply of proper twine and will re-twine this week while they are small and easy to work with.

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

This year is rehabbing my asparagus. It's a long story, and I'll try to come back to it soon.

Oooo please share! I planted my one and only asaparagus root in February and it gave me one itty bitty spear that I've let grow per instructions. It is now a tiny little whispy lonesome plant.

[WaterWitchin]

LOL... don't you have old Tshirts, sheets, panty hose? tear into strips, tie, and walk away.

I have all kinds of asparagus tips. And you can't plant one asparagus crown. That's silly.

---------- Post added at 10:24 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:55 AM ----------

Figure on planting around ten crowns per person... fifteen per person if you really like it. Prepare the bed well ahead of time. A raised bed is preferable, as asparagus love moisture but need excellent drainage. I use a 1x6 deck board for the raised bed.

Mix in a LOT of compost and well rotted manure if you have it. If your soil isn't sandy, add a LOT of sand. I imagine your soil is already sandy, but don't know. Till or hand turn it down to a foot's depth at least. Dig a six inch deep trench, stacking the soil to the side. Plant the crowns 12" apart down the trench, or up to 18-20" apart if planting two year old crowns. (I try to always plant 2 year crowns, but you may not be able to find them.) That's measuring from crown to crown.

Cover roots and crown with a couple inches of dirt. I leave about 12" in between each trench row, which is about perfect to pile the dirt, plus be able to step through the bed. As the asparagus pokes up from the crown, keep filling in trench slowly a couple inches at a time until the crowns/roots are covered with the 6" of soil you removed.

Water them about like you would tomatoes. The first year, take no asparagus. I don't the second year, but you could harvest very lightly a time or two. Never take a spear that's smaller around than a #2 pencil. By the third year you should be able to start harvesting for 4-6 weeks. Asparagus beds last for 15-20 years, so prepping the asparagus bed is the most important part.

Skip heirlooms like Martha Washington. Plant one or more of the hybrids like Jersey Giant, Jersey Knight, and planting some Purple Passion is always fun. They're bred to be predominately male plants, and better disease control which is important since it's the same plant year after year, unlike a tomato where experimenting with heirlooms is worthwhile. If you do happen to have female fronds come up, cut them before they seed out. (You can tell it's female, because it gets red berries on it.)

After it's up a ways, mulch with something organic. My preference by far is shredded leaves. Asparagus grows best with a pH around 6.5 to 7. It's not worth it to plant somewhere you're not going to live for more than three or four years, obviously.

You can't leave any weeds growing in the asparagus. But after it's well-established, I usually throw a bunch of lettuce seed in between the rows and sometimes plant peas along the very edge of the bed.

Any questions, just holler.

[kvet]

Ah, cool, thank you for that! A lot of work!! I'm surprised, 10 crowns per person?! I don't have room for that, I planted one mostly for laughs and thought I'd get a 2-3ft tall fern-like plant.

Here's the little aspooroogoos from a few weeks ago, skinny little dude Right now about the same height, maybe a little taller, fronding in about a 6" diameter or so.

[WaterWitchin]

Looks like it's doing well! Just give it some and you may get another couple or three fronds. They'll get ferny in awhile!

[kvet]

I have to figure out how to properly water these tomatoes. Very different so far from the daily watering I had to do with the container ones last year! I did a nice, deep watering last weekend, and the clay soil is still pretty wet, so much so, the leaves are slightly curling up. Note, the clay soil was amended with compost. Maybe things will change as they get larger, and, our morning/evening overcast burns off through the weeks (although.. june gloom is around the corner). Only hand watering them for now. Maybe they will be candidates for "dry farming" ? Hmmm.

[WaterWitchin]

Have any of you tried using the PVC method to water tomatoes? You stick a piece of PVC that's between 2-4" diameter down into a hole 12" or a bit more into the ground then backfill dirt into hole. Plant tomato beside the PVC. Some put panty hose or similar fabric on end of pipe, some drill 1/4-1/2" holes in sides. Then you water tomato by filling up the pipe.

I've always wanted to try, but never got around to it. Just wondering if it works well, while I ponder doing it with a few of mine.

[kvet]

That sounds like a variation of the "Olla Irrigation" method. Nice way to keep water off the leaves, probably good for slopes. What other advantages would it have over hand watering with a hose+wand? Other than maybe you could setup a float valve in each pipe to allow automatic watering? That'd get pricey..