KC Tomato Times Blog

This rain is just ridiculous.  Tomato plants like to be dry and  warm and they are not getting any of either for a while it seems.  This causes several problems, but you can help solve them a little and keep your plants healthy until the weather warms up and dries up.

Fungal problems like blight, septoria, and fusarium can kill plants quickly especially if the plants are fairly small.  you should prune any leaves that look like they are yellowing, spotted or turning brown.  This can help to keep things from spreading up the plant.  You will likely need to start some kind of fungicide schedule as well.  Spray your plants as soon as the rain stops and then re-apply after more rains.

Options for spraying run the gamut from organic to nuclear.  Liquid copper is the most commonly used organic spray.  Daconil is not organic, but is pretty mild and works well.  Mancozeb is a zinc based fungicide that works very well.  Make sure you follow the mixing and application directions for whatever product you decide to use.  Diligent spraying and pruning are essential to maintain plant health in this weather.

These heavy rains will likely wash a lot of nutrients out of your soil.  Hopefully you fertilized when you planted and that should help matters.  I would recommend fertilizing again very soon due to the heavy rains…especially if your are in containers.  Tomatotone is a great product and is organic, but a good 13-13-13 wouldn’t be a bad idea to replace what the rains have washed away.

Lets hope things dry out and warm up soon!

If you still need plants, need replacement plants, or know of charity gardens needing plants, please e-mail me at kctomatotimes@gmail.com to schedule a time to get those gardens filled!

Well this Spring is lovely for growing lettuces, radishes, spinach and the like, but they are calling for a wind chill in the 30’s with low temperatures in the low 40’s tomorrow morning….crazy!  The heavy rains have kept a lot of you out of the gardens and you are wise to stay out of the wet soil.  Working wet soil is a recipe for disaster.  The water logged soil will turn hard as concrete if you walk in it or dig it or try to till it.  Best to wait until things dry out a bit before planting.

Because of this, I am extending my plant sales for another week.  I’ll be open this Saturday from 8-noon and then again on the 18th from 8-noon.  I’ll be available most any time during next week also, just let me know if you want to stop by and we can work out a time to fit your schedule

I still have plenty of plants left and they are looking great!  Out of a few types, but a great selection still!  2019 Greenhouse Flyer Final

My address is 215 East 97th Street, KCMO.