Settling In

It's always a bit tough getting used to a new home, right?  After growing up in the greenhouse, it must be quite a change for all the little plants to get their own piece of earth in the garden.  For the tomatoes, they had to adjust from the fine care of Tomato Man Phil, who inspires a "can grow" attitude amongst his proteges, to the cautiously hopeful ineptitude of, well, me.  The rest of the plants, accustomed to the Lowe's landscape and garden staff who are constantly spritzing and kabitzing, have to adjust to the loneliness of Jan's garden.  Not to mention the threat of rabbits, deer, slugs, and such.  Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

Quite an adjustment, for sure.  The first morning after planting, I checked on all of my charges and with the exception of the little okra plant that was puny from the get-go, they all looked good.  Morning #2, however, a couple of okra plants looked like they had a rough night.  Too much fertilizer, perhaps?  Or perhaps separation anxiety?  After all, the okra had about a dozen plants in the same pot when I bought them.  I had to separate them like Siamese twins - - a tricky procedure, indeed.  I watered the okra, left for work, and hoped for the best.

Forecast for tomorrow thru the weekend - - rain and storms.  We'll see what these little plants are made of.  Live strong.

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Plants in da ground

Plants in da ground . . . plants in da ground . . . whatcha gonna do 'bout my plants in da ground . . . lookin' kinda cool with my plants in da ground . . .

It was a gorgeous day in Lake Wylie, and yes, I got my plants in da ground.  Tomatoes, basil, bell peppers, hot peppers, okra squash, cukes, a few herbs.  I worked all day long, and might not be able to move enough to type tomorrow, so I figured I'd better get this blog written el pronto.

I planted a total of 14 tomato plants, all heirlooms, courtesy of Edgefield Pottery dealer and Tomato Man Phil.  First in the ground was the Ibis Candy Cherry, which promises to have a sweet, candy-like flavor.  They are bi-colored cherries, not particularly prolific (which means I'll probably get about two), but the flavor is supposed to be wonderful.  Next were Yellow Pears (also miniature sized, have done well for me in the past).  I planted a Limmony Tomato next, a beautiful yellow, Russian beefsteak with a tangy taste.  I put it next to the tiny yellow pear, so they could keep one another company.  Kind of a mentor type relationship.

I planted one of Phil's very own heirlooms this year, Phil's Pink Strawberry.  It's a brandywine tomoato (pinkish in color), shaped like a strawberry.  It doesn't sound like a very manly tomato, but I'm all about equal opportunity in the garden.

Speaking of, I planted a trio of tomatoes, the Great White, the Black Giant, and Jaune Flammee.  I thought I had African American, White, and Hispanic all together in perfect harmony, until I hit the internet and saw that what Phil spelled as "Juan" was actually "Jaune", so there goes my attempt.

A newbie in my garden this year is Mr. Stripey, also known as Tigerella.  Considering I have a Tiger-to-be at Clemson this fall, this is a perfect choice!  This tomato has a mix of yellow and red, and is nothing short of the coolest dude in the garden.  Can't wait to see him!

Then, just to stretch my spelling skills, I added a Czechoslovakian tomato called a Stupice (pronounced stu-peach-ka), which is supposed to produce very early, and very much.  You'll have to Czech it out!

Next to the Czech, I planted the Russian Emerald Apple, a gorgeous green fruit producing plant.  I hope Russians and Czech's get along.  Otherwise, I'm sure I'll be hearing stuff like, "Hey, Stupe!  What kind of name is that!" and similar taunts out in the garden.  Oy, vey.

I planted some cucumbers next to the dill, hoping they'd cross pollinate and produce pickles.  Always looking for a short cut.  I planted some cayenne pepper and tabasco peppers for Jimmy, and two rows of okra for my Southern daughter Rachel.  It's gonna be a good summer!

Thanks for reading my blog.  I'm going to go take some Advil, because I'm feeling every muscle in my body protest over a hard day in the fields.  I've got to be ready for a full week of Lake Wylie real estate work with The Lake Wylie Man.  Happy trails!

Plowing the fields

My dear husband tilled and hoed the lower 40 yesterday.  (The lower 40 square feet, that is . . . )  That is particularly impressive if you consider that he is a strict meat-itarian, and shuns most vegetation, including the Almighty Tomato.  Yet each year he tills the soil and hoes the rows so that I can play in the dirt.  Is that true love, or what?

The wind was brutal yesterday, and I wasn't able to get much planting done.  We had 4 ft swells in the cove, and that's pretty amazing considering we have about 2' water depth.  I'm talking that wind was STRONG.  I tried to plant some parsley seeds and they blew all over tarnation.  I suspect my neighbor across the cove may have a lovely crop of Italian flat leaf parsley this year.

We did visit Lowe's during the torrential rain yesterday.  Purchased a 75' soaker hose for the tomato plants, some organic fertilizer and compost, and another hundred dollars worth of stuff while we wandered around the place waiting for the rain to subside a bit.  We decided that shopping at Lowe's during a heavy rainstorm was equivalent to grocery shopping when hungry.  Not a good idea if watching the budget.

This morning has dawned sunny and beautiful, and the trees are still . . . so happily I should get my garden planted!

Thanks for reading my blog.  To read more about Lake Wylie real estate, or Edgefield Stoneware Pottery, or fire damage repair and other completely unrelated topics, please visit the websites of my delightful clients and friends!

Garden 2011 - The Tomatoes

This past weekend, I made my annual trek to the sprawling half acre ranch of the Tomato Man, Phil Wingard.  It was time to pick up the heirloom tomato plants that he has been nurturing for a couple of months, growing them from carefully harvested seeds from last year's crop.  Phil started the seeds indoors, then transfered the seedlings to his greenhouse outdoors.  He put a couple hundred plants in his garden in late March, and covered them up to weather thru the frosts that we've had since then.

I like to wait until the danger of frost is gone, because I am challenged enough when it comes to gardening!  So after a couple of weeks of short sleeved weather, I felt it safe to pick up my plants.  Phil set me up with a dozen various heirlooms, plus two bonus plants.  I then visited the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden to find some herbs to add to my herb garden.  With a very busy weekend ahead, I wasn't able to plant anything and set everything on my screened porch.

As it turned out, how lucky was I!  Saturday evening the Lake Wylie area was absolutely hammered with some thunderstorms, hail, and high winds.  Phil lost only a few tomato plants in his garden, but one of his customers, who planted two dozen on Friday afternoon, lost his whole crop. 

I'm planning to get my tomatoes into the ground some time this week.  Phil gave me detailed instructions.  For each plant, I am to dig a deep hole.  If the ground is dry, I should fill the hole with water and let it soak into the earth, until there is no standing water in the hole.  Then I am to add about 3 tablespoons of organic fertilizer, a scoop of organic compost, and mix it well.  I am then to add about 2" compost so the roots of the tomatoes do not come in direct contact with the fertilizer and "burn". 

The tomato should be buried up to its neck.  The plants are now about 12-15" tall, and all but the top quarter should be buried.  The buried portion will become part of the root system. 

Phil told me that I should be careful not to overwater, as the nutrients would all wash away and I'd get very little fruit.  (Could have been my problem in years past!)  Instead, I should only water when the plants look droopy in the morning.  It is common, after a hot summer day in the South, for plants to droop at the end of the day.  If the plants are still drooping the next morning, then it is time to water.

Phil also told me that tomatoes prefer to be watered at the base, and a drip hose is ideal.  I'll give that a try this year.  I've always watered with a sprinkler, figuring it was the same as rain.  But considering my crop usually yields about 8 tomatoes, and Phil's yields about 4000, maybe he's on to something.

Stay tuned!

Phil Wingard is not only an expert on tomatoes, but also on Edgefield Stoneware and Pottery.  Read more blogs about Lake Wylie living and gardening , plus other topics of great facination.  Thanks for reading!