I Was Sure All the Tomatoes I Had Planted the Weekend Before Were Dead
When it warms up in April here on the California Central Coast, gardeners often throw conventional wisdom out the window. Surely when you're in the midst of an April heat wave the frost season is over. April 24 seems an arbitrary last frost date when its triple digit weather on April 17. So I planted the wonderful heirloom tomatoes I'd been buying at Farmer's Market for two weekends. Even when the nights got cooler, I didn't worry too much. High 30s didn't seem too dangerous. So I didn't worry about getting the row covers on. Then Jack Frost paid my lovely tomatoes a visit. The picture shows what he did to my tomato transplants the weekend after they were planted.
The Gruesome Discovery
I didn't even suspect.
Sure, I knew the days had gotten cooler the last week of April, and I had felt the chilling wind. The weatherman, however, kept silent about impending frost. I was, after all, busy. We had discovered some termite damage that week, and I was busy moving books around to allow access for repairs. (See lensroll at right to read more about the termite fight. )After the heat wave ended and I wasn't in the garden every day to water, I wasn't keeping close tabs on what was happening in the raised beds. I was more worried that the lettuce would wilt or bolt from the heat, and I had put some dead branches with the leaves fanned out flat over them to help shade them. I watered about every three days when it started to cool off. The last Friday in April, which just happened to be the 24th, I was busy elsewhere. When I went out to water on Sunday, all the tomatoes but this one lone Celebrity, appeared to be dead. The only green I could see was the the lower part of the stems on the others -- even the other Celebrity planted only two feet away.
Has frost ever killed your plants?
This year is the first time I lost vegetables. About three years ago I lost some flowers when we had an usually cold winter. I thought then my gazanias were gone forever, but most grew back again from the roots.
I Was Devastated.
If you've ever planted something, cared for it, and lost it, you know how I felt.
I didn't pull up the ten plants I was sure were going to die. Hope springs eternal, I guess. I did water well and I did put up row covers to keep any other late frosts away. I made daily visits, but it looked pretty hopeless. All I saw were partly green stems and brown leaves.On the next Saturday, I went back to Farmers Market and went straight to Ralph Johnson's booth. He had sold me the tomatoes and I wanted to see about getting more. He's the only one that brings heirloom tomatoes to sell. I told him my sad story and he told me all was not lost. He told me that if there was even one green leaf left on a plant, it could survive. He told me to keep watering and that although the plants might get a two-week set-back, they would probably come back if there was enough root in the ground.
I was pretty sure I had plenty of root. I normally pick off any blossoms when I plant and then I pull away the four bottom leaves and plant the stem deep into the ground. I bought just a couple more tomatoes, another sage, and some golden squash. I decided to go home and wait it out.
After another week, this is what I found under the row covers.
It was hard to believe the resurrection I was seeing.
This Early Girl still looks mostly dead, but there is a tiny bit of green there at the bottom. There is hope.
My Favorite Gardening Books
Great Garden Companions: A Companion-Planting System for a Beautiful, Chemical-Free Vegetable Garden
This book has been a great inspiration to me. I actually take it to the garden with my seeds and other gardening tools. When I'm planning a garden, it's also a great help, with its many suggested layouts. Besides that, it's just fun to read during those off-season months when you are itching to get your hands in the soil and see things growing again. It discusses plant rotation, beneficial insects and how to attract them, preventing pest problems, and, of course, companion planting. It also teaches you how to make a raised bed, what to fill it with, and how to water it. I highly recommend it, and I love the clear illustrations of how to do things, as well as the gorgeous photos of the plants and gardens.
Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/01/2009) 
The New Self-Sufficient Gardener
The version I have is now out of print, but this is a good basic book for those who want to grow their own food using deep beds to grow more food in less space.. Its illustrations are especially helpful. My version arranged by vegetable families, and also shows what should be going on in the garden through each season of the year. It helps you determine how large your garden should be to feed you and tells you how to preserve all your produce after harvest. Other topics covered are herbs gardens, growing in a greenhouse, garden paths, and much more. At the beginning of the book is a wonderful illustration showing the ecology of the soil and how things look in a healthy soil underground.This is followed by color drawings of vegetables, fruits, and herbs by their families, and most include the entire plant (except for trees) -- root, stem, blossoms, leaves, and fruit. That's something I haven't seen in any other book in my vast collection of gardening books.
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 12/01/2009)
Down-To-Earth Gardening: Know-How for the 90's : Vegetables and Herbs (Down-to-Earth Book)
I have an older version of this book, but I imagine the updated version is as good or better. Like most of my books, this one does not advocate the use of chemicals or pesticides. It tells you how to build the soil for plant health and attract beneficial insects while discouraging garden pests. It explains all the basics in a way that won't intimidate a beginner -- composting, plant propagation, earthworms, composting, roto-tilling, feeding plants, keeping weeds under control, vegetable diseases, harvesting, and more. Then there is a section with specialized information for each vegetable. He has a very good section with tips and tricks on growing tomatoes.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/01/2009)
New Illustrated Guide to Gardening
This is the basic guide for all things gardening. Although it does discuss the use of chemicals and pesticides, it is still a useful book for organic gardeners because of its wealth of information on plant varieties, propagation, and step-by-step illustrated instructions for doing almost anything in a garden. It discusses flower and vegetable garden, and also trees and shrubs.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/01/2009)
Lasagna Gardening: A New Layering System for Bountiful Gardens: No Digging, No Tilling, No Weeding, No Kidding!
This is for those who want to make their raised beds the easy way by layering right in the garden instead of messing with a compost pile. It uses newspapers or cardboard as a weed-blocking layer next to the ground, and you build from there with other organic materials. I've never managed to build an entire pile this way, but I have found the suggestion of recycling paper in the garden a wonderful way to block weeds.
Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/01/2009)
Where There's Life, There's Hope
It pays to be patient.
I'm glad now I did not follow my first impulse and give up. By waiting for two weeks I saved myself from buying eight new plants. I also learned that God has built into plants a way for them to heal themselves when the wound is not fatal. I have learned that if I am patient enough to wait and see, my damaged plants might very well still live to grow and produce fruit. I am hoping to post some pictures later in the season when these plants I almost gave up on start bearing their tomatoes.
A New Threat
Almost everything in raised beds are sick now, with yellow bottom leaves. Tomatoes in pots are fine. So now I have to figure out what will save the tomatoes that were recovering from frost damage from whatever is missing in the soil in the raised beds. i will post the solution when I find it.
New pictures of once dead tomatoes on July 25, 2009
You will see that some have made a lot of progress, some not so much.
I'm not sure which tomato this is, but it is one of the ones that I thought was dead after the frost.
Gardeners are Great Dreamers Who Always Envision a Large Harvest
But we are also practical.
Step2 5A0000 Garden Hopper Mobile Garden Stool and Storage
This is definitely on my wish list. It stores your garden tools as you move from place to place in the garden, and it's sturdy enough for you to sit on while you do transplanting and weeding.
Amazon Price: $36.30 (as of 12/01/2009)
Keep It Simple With Katie Brown Portable Green House Tent 24-inch by 48-inch
This might have saved my plants the temporary damage from the frost. It's a lot easier to use than row covers.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/01/2009)
High Quality Portable Green House w/ Shelves
Of course, a greenhouse is even better. It holds a lot more, too. maybe next year. I think Hubby is finally seeing that it would be worth the money.
Amazon Price: $129.99 (as of 12/01/2009)
Keep It Simple With Katie Brown Adjustable Natural Canvas Garden Hat
i am sensitive to the sun. I've been wearing a straw hat my husband gave me, but it is falling apart. This is what I should replace it with. The cord (hard to see in this small picture) is a must have for my area because it gets pretty windy in the evenings when it cools off enough to work. There's nothing like having the hat secure on the head. Natural is a nice, cool color on those hot days. And the hat is washable, too.
Amazon Price: $16.99 (as of 12/01/2009)
EarthBox RB-EB-TRC-PBB Garden Kit, Terra Cotta
A garden planted in this contained will water itself as long as you keep its tank full. For me that would mean not being so tied to my garden in the summer that I can't get away for a few days. I've also heard that the plants grow faster and yield more when grown in the Earthbox. It's on my wish list.
Amazon Price: $60.78 (as of 12/01/2009)
Update on my reviving tomatoes on August 15, 2009
This is almost four months after the freeze.
This is how the tomatoes in the deeper raised beds look now. The plant with the red tomatoes is the Stupice, which seems to have recovered the fastest and was least affected by the soil problem. Since I applied the organic tomato and vegetable food, the plants are turning a healthy green again and most have blossoms or small fruits. The very hot days aren't good for setting fruit and that is probably why some blossoms just wither instead of fruiting.
How the Tomatoes Looked on September 2, 2009.
This is an overview of the raised beds that had both the freezing and the soil problems. You can see I've mulched them, and that did help during the heat waves. None of them have produced more than blossoms.
Links for Tomato Gardeners
- Preparing the Raised Beds for Planting
- This short blog shows the preparation of the raised beds where these tomatoes were planted. We knew the soil in the beds needed amending because our tomatoes and other vegetables planted there last year simply weren't thriving until I added fish emulsion or milk to the beds. This year I decided to start over, and it's made a big difference. The tomatoes I planted this year stayed green until hit by frost, and even then the stems were still green. When I first planted last year's tomatoes, they turned almost gray/green and didn't grow much until I gave them the needed nutrients the soil in the beds had run out of.
- The Organic Homestead and Gardening List
- This is an email discussion list with hundreds of members who garden without chemicals and pesticides. It is also like a big family. People share their gardening successes, experiments, failures, and homesteading joys and sorrows. If there is a problem with a sick animal or plant, one can get lots of seasoned advice on how to deal with it. If one needs inspiration, this list will provide it. It's a large list and can be a bit overwhelming while you get to know the regular members, but you can post who and where you are and your gardening objectives when you join and you will get a warm welcome. This list is very practical and has many child lists for seed sharing, selling garden related items, and even a list for people who just want to talk to others on the main list about off-topic subjects. There are several list moderators who deal immediately with spammers, flamers, and other list violators, and to keep peace certain topics are off-limits. It is a thorough G-rated list. I think it's the best one out there.
- Tomato Gardening Guru
- This is a great site for information whether you are a beginner or an old pro at growing tomatoes. It tells you how to get started, suggests varieties for special needs, and provides plenty of tips and tricks for improving your yield.
- Tomfolio.com Vegetable Gardening Category
- Sometimes you may want a used book from a reliable source. Or maybe the book you need is out of print. Example, until it sells, my own offering of Terrific Tomatoes: All About How to Grow and Enjoy Them, is listed for only $12.38. The lowest price I saw at Amazon for this book was over $100.00. I have no idea why the sellers there are charging so much for this out-of-print book that's been my tomato growing Bible. You will find many other wonderful books there from professional used book sellers and your satisfaction is guaranteed. You can look up any topic imaginable through an extensive category system. The booksellers place their books in the categories they believe are the best fit, so it's not a computer deciding, but the one who has the book in hand. Try tomfolio.com next time you need a used or out-of-print book.
An Early Frost Made Me Dress My Tomatoes in Row Covers
Don't they look like ghosts for Halloween?
These are two of my most productive tomatoes. The tall one produces sweet, cherry-size orange tomatoes. After last weeks storm the tomatoes started to be more productive and also larger. The short one, which I moved next to it so they could share a row cover, produces medium red fruits. It is really loaded since the rain. We got word this week that we would have a freezing night or two, so I decided I'd try to save my plants. i was really lucky that the Farm Supply Store actually had row covers in stock. They usually don't, and I didn't have time for mail order.
Halloween update: The row covers saved all but a few leaves at the top of these plants, but the wind blew almost all the little tomatoes, ripe and green, off the tall one. I found them on the gourd this morning, still looking healthy. There are still a lot of green tomatoes on the plant which I hope will ripen. I left these uncovered for the middle of the day since it's very warm -- about 80. I will cover them again tonight. Even if it doesn't freeze, tomatoes don't really like cold nights.
You can protect your crops, too.
Dalen 25-Foot Harvest Guard #HG25
Amazon Price: $13.88 (as of 12/01/2009)
I spotlighted this because it these row covers have helped me in the past to start crops earlier and keep them growing later . They let light and water through, but keep the crops a few degrees warmer by holding in heat during the day and keeping the frost at bay by a few degrees. Depending upon the thickness, they can raise the temperature by 4-6 degrees. Had I had these in the early spring this year, my crops might not have frozen in the first place, but I didn't think ahead last fall, and in the spring this year, none of the local nurseries or farm supply stores had any in stock. Think ahead. Get yours now. You can cut them up for container plants, or huddle a lot of containers together under one, as I did. You can also cover an entire raised bed as I did. If your raised beds are larger than mine, you could use closepins to join two in the middle.
Other accessories you might need
Penley Wood Spring Clothespin, Pack of 50
This is the kind of clothespin you need for closing gaps around plants when you cover them with the row covers.
Amazon Price: $3.59 (as of 12/01/2009)
Reemay Garden Blanket - 67 Inches x 20 Feet
This is an alternative floating row cover that some people prefer.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/01/2009)
Great Garden Companions: A Companion-Planting System for a Beautiful, Chemical-Free Vegetable Garden
This is one of my favorite gardening books. It's great any time of year, but it fun to dream with in the winter as you plan your garden. It's very practical and covers garden plans that include companion planting as well as giving you ideas for grouping plants to make them happier. I love the drawings, too, because they help me visualize what will happen in a companion garden.
There are garden plans for attracting beneficial insects, making a wheel garden, designing a hedgerow for the birds, and more. There are suggestions for growing each vegetable and herb. This book often goes out to the garden with me, and it's just fun to read for inspiration. It's one of my collection of gardening books I would never willingly give up, because it's one of the most useful.
Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/01/2009)
Please share any comments or tomato tips you might have.
We love learning from fellow gardeners.
Feel free to share anything that comes to mind from reading this.
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Reply
- BarbRad BarbRad Oct 31, 2009 @ 4:49 am | in reply to LaraineRose
- Thanks for your return visit. Do you get the plastic through catalogs or farm supply stores and use regular tomato cages? Or do you put the plastic on those big hop-like frames? About how many degrees warmer does the plastic make it?
This year's crop has been very disappointing with the weather ups and downs. It froze last night and maybe it will freeze tonight before morning, but it' supposed to be 80 tomorrow.
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Reply
- LaraineRose LaraineRose Oct 31, 2009 @ 2:35 am
- Saw your lenscast and decided to come back for a look at your row covers. I've never used them .. just use heavy plastic stuck up on the cages and weighed down with bricks. I had a bumper crop of tomatoes this year with a lot of green ones left to ripen in the house for eating now. I'm not bragging .. just the way it is some years. Good year or bad year. This just happened to be a good year.
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Reply
- BarbRad BarbRad Oct 10, 2009 @ 2:26 am
- This has just been a disappointing gardening year. Last Saturday I picked a few small tomatoes and left quite a few green ones on the plants in pots, which mostly were not the ones that had frozen. Now the nights are cold again. I've been sick all week and could not get out to water, but the paper said the low was 32 on Monday night. I hope to have enough energy to go out and see if there's anything left. I guess if the plants didn't freeze again, it's time to put row covers back on. If they did, I will give up
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Reply
- AppalachianCountry AppalachianCountry Aug 21, 2009 @ 8:38 am
- Mr. Ralph was a blessing. Wonderful lens. We hope you have a bumper crop even with this last trial. 5 stars*****
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Reply
- LaraineRose LaraineRose Jul 29, 2009 @ 4:04 am
- The weather this year has been crazy for us gardeners. Our springtime and usual planting days were cold and then summer came with a bang. Very hot days seemed to stunt all the plants. I was hand watering everything twice a day for about 2 weeks. We had a couple of nice rains when everything grew and then, exceptionally hot weather again. Our thermometer read 102F degrees today. I'm hand watering again. We try to use the sprinkler after the sun goes down but we have a big acreage and no underground system so it is impossible to water everywhere. Fruit trees, flowering shrubs and flower beds are all drying up. Waaaaa I'm thinking of doing a rain dance.
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