The goal for this year is the same as always, grow something interesting and learn something new. An additional goal this year is to compete in the GVGO Team Tomato Challenge, GO TEAM 8!
This first post will be a biggy to catch up on everything I've missed.
April 26:
After panicking and thinking I should have started months ago, I get going. Thanks to some advice from fellow Team 8 members I relax and get my seeds going.
Tomato Challenge picks:
Tomato 5.03 Hunt 17
Tomato 5.36 Hunt 17
Tomato 5.36 Lyon 18
Fun picks:
Mangel Wurzel
Bushel Gourd seeds ( My own from 2019 Approx 45lb, and from the 2019 GVGO seed package)
I started the tomato and mangel in paper towels, inside of small tupperware containers. The Bushel Gourds I start in paper towel but ran out of tupperware so used ziplock bags.
May ?:
Several seeds have broken out and are looking good. I make some news paper cups and plant the tomatoes. I place them under an LED grow bulb.
The mangel I have read don't like to be transplanted. I probably should have sowed them directly in soil to start, however due to the Covid lock down I was unable to get any soil to start with. However I now have both soil and my new fabric pots, so in they go! I'm leaving these pots inside for the most part.
The bushel gourds don't appear to be showing any signs of activity. The ziplock bags usually feel cool. I've tried keeping them in sunny windows, and on heat vents, but to no avail they are always cold. I'm having doubts.
May 6th:
Tomatoes are poking out! Keeping them watered, and under the LED light from 8am-11pm every day. And I've put a little fan near by, sure they are to small but I better get into the habit, and I figure it will hopefully help them to be a little stronger.
May 9th:
Sustaining growth on my tomatoes! Keeping the same light schedule, and watering when necessary. I have read some people use a diluted fertilizer, but I'm to afraid to change anything since I feel like things are going well, so I stick to plain old water.
The mangel still are not showing. I've been bringing the pots outside on nice warm/sunny days.
I'm giving up hope on the bushel gourds. Maybe next year. After all they do spread and vine like crazy and did get a little out of control. Maybe next year I can get a good place for them to vine and try again.
May 18th:
Tomatoes have some real leaves and are looking good!
The mangel have also shown up to the party finally! I've got a few popping up so it looks like I'll have a couple to choose from. I have been bringing the pots outside on nice warm/sunny days, being careful of sudden May snow storms.
May 23rd:
Tomatoes are getting a little big for their paper homes. Time to move to a slightly bigger plastic cup. This will also let me water from below. Another new item I learned which is apparently good for them. I let them rest in a doorway to get some shade and a hint of what it's like outside.
The Mangel continue doing okay.
A friend gives me some left over yellow fleshed potatoes, so I go ahead and plant a few of them. They are in the same family as a tomato, so it could prove interesting to see how they fair. Plus who doesn't love mashed potatoes?
May 29th:
Tomatoes are being brought out on nice days for a little fresh air. Starting with my hardening off process. I'm going for 2 hours at a time for a couple days, then jumping to 4 hours for a few days. etc. Theres a few days where its cloudy but warm, so I left them out all day.
Mangel look good, but a few over zealous waterings on my part are giving them a run for their money.
Potatoes might be from the same family but they don't look the same as a tomato!
July 4th:
The tomatoes are getting bushy and smell really nice.
Yup, my heavy hand with the waterings have proven my downfall. A few of the mangels have some stem issues, and can't stand up on their own. One whole pot is not looking good at all, so I pull them out and try to transplant (despite knowing its not great) in hopes to have more then just one mangel. I leave the strongest looking one on its own, and the two weaker ones I move to the other pot.
July 7th:
I get some more pots finally for the tomatoes along with more potting soil. Time to put these bad boys in their forever homes. I snip the two seedling leaves, and some lower leaves in order to get the plants as deep as possible in their pots, and let those roots grow from the stems as I have read. I think I probably needed more soil for all of these pots, and could have planted a few of them deeper.
Also featured here two pots of future Zucinni loafs.
Any feed back on what I have done would be appreciated.
Next step is to figure out how to cage Giant tomatoes. I've grown a tomato plant once and it was a disaster, branches were hanging all over, the cage couldn't contain it, and most of my tomatoes ended up on the ground.
As well, I am going to start looking into proper feeding schedules and nutrients.
Hey Jeff...didnt know you were on here....come for a visit sometime if you still venture to st.thomas....can easily 'physically distace' here'....how's
the plants in the office looking...miss those Friday visits;)
Hi Joel!
Not to many people have been going into the office. I haven't been there since March. I have a bad feeling about the state of the plants. When we are allow back in we might need some serious help. You better start some some cuttings now. haha!
Maybe one of these weekends in the near future I'll swing by for a visit and see first hand how the pros do it!
April 13th:
I have had a little help from a sneaky critter. Seems someone thought my Mangel might need a companion plant or two. I found these guys busting through the soil today. It seems there is a hand full of seeds buried at the bottom of the pot. They must have gotten in there when I filled the pot half way with soil and ran out and it took me a few days to get more.
Tomatoes are doing okay. They seem a little bushier, in one of the books I was reading today they suggested you might see flowers by June 15th... I clearly started mine a little after the book, but I hope my plants are not that slow of growers. They look pretty healthy to me, with a little bit of leaf curl on some of the older leaves that I think were from when it was living a sheltered life inside. So I am hoping that is due to not being used to the full sun.
Mangel are looking thick and healthy. I hope theres no other little surprises inside those pots. I thinned off one of the transplanted Mangel, but the other appears to be getting stronger.
Bonus Pictures:
My potato plant is growing really well, I wish my tomato grew like this! And the Zucchini are holding in there as well.
June 22:
It's impressive how much a plant can grow in a week!
The tomato plants seem to be taking off now! I see some possible flowers, and keeping the suckers off is almost impossible at the rate they seem to grow! I've got some 20-20-20 that I'm watering in, and trying to really water deep. I'm pretty sure I had not been giving them as much water as they really needed initially, so hopefully I can fix that problem and really soak them in now. Maybe that has been the cause for the leaf curl? I assume the plant might be trying to hold on to as much water as possible on those hot days.
The Mangel are looking great! They have really put on some weight I'm surprised at their speed as well.
And then the delicious Zucchini also have some buds forming.
June 28:
Megablooms and flowers!
I've got 2 megablooms (only doubles I think) so far, and a few other smaller flowers growing on my tomato plants so far. I'll hopefully get some posts in the ground to start tying them up to this week. One plant had a sucker go un-noticed and it seems rather long right now. I am not sure if its to late to take it off, but maybe I'll leave it to go as the one plant with two vines on it and see how well it does in comparison.
The Mangel plants continue their steady growth as well. I am still finding the occasional seedling growing out of these pots from time to time. I'm sure whatever that critter is that planted those seeds is pretty upset they aren't getting their snack.
July 4th:
I've finally got around to getting some stakes into the ground. The good thing about a container garden is that you don't have to worry about disturbing the roots when you place a stake outside the container. Bought some 2x2x8 and tried to hammer it into the ground, turned out my clay soil didn't like that. So I had to dig some holes and loosen the dirt up a bit first and then back fill them.
I've managed to get each tomato tied and I'll start training them up the stakes. I'm sure if I watered my grass as much as I water my tomatoes it would be growing just as good as they are. During some of these really hot days I've had to water every other day, the fabric pots aren't the greatest for holding onto water.
Mangel are looking extra leafy. My smaller one has a hard time standing up at times, and occasionally flops around. I'm doubting it will catch up but I'll keep it along for the ride!
The Zuchinni are surviving despite a lot of stripped cucumber beetles!
July 11th
My worse fears have come true, it appears I've got some blossom end rot on some of my tomatoes. I had put a little bone meal fert in when I planted, but as I've been researching it might not have been enough, so earlier this week I started applying some hen manure fert with calcium to help out. I'm unsure if it's a lack of calcium or if my watering has not been regular enough. I have found some of the plants appear to dry out rather quickly and I have heard it can just be caused by not being able to take up water in the soil which has the calcium. I'll have to keep on top of my watering to make sure. At least in the last 24 hours its rained for what feels like the first time in ages.
Otherwise I've got some potential big tomatoes coming! In just the last few days a few of them have started to form and start growing so I'm very excited!
The Mangel are still doing good, I've had to move them around on the patio to help avoid some of the extreme heat. A few times I'd come out in the afternoon and see them completely wilted in the sun so I've been moving them to the shade to get a little rest. Just another great thing about the pot garden, I can move the plants as needed to help hide them from the blistering sun.
July 19th:
The tomatoes are looking great and really big! I'm pretty excited. I have had to cut a few off due to blossom end rot. I'm still not sure if its the calcium deficiency in the soil or the waters, but I'll try my best to increase both. I picked up a 20% calcium fert that should help out.
The plants are looking great as well, one is even growing some new leaves on some of the older leaf stems.
I don't know how big tomatoes should be at this stage, but these seems really big to me!
The Mangel are still doing great, its getting bigger and bigger and some how growing up and out. I dont know if I should be piling some dirt on it or what.
July 26th
These tomatoes are going to be the death of me! I'm pretty sure planting them in the fabric pots might not have been a good idea. They appear to dry out very quickly, as a result I've been watering daily and I have seen some evidence of Blossom End Rot. So I started treating it with some calcium supplements. A few days after that, I notice some yellowing leaves... Looks just like Magnesium deficiency, which from reading is caused from over watering, or to much calcium. So I applied a little foliar spray of epsom salt, I think its fixing the problem, or at least halted it.
I've got what I feel are some pretty big tomatoes! I just hope they can last and nothing goes wrong with them. I've been concerned as well with them pulling the plants down/off. So I've improvised with some pantyhose to try and hold them up and not restrict them.
This plant has a cluster of 4 that are all really doing well, and I'm afraid to prune any off, but I assume at some point that time will need to come.
Some plants are considerably taller then others, despite getting the same amount of watering and nutrients. But over all I think they are all doing well.
That one tomato sure is hanging far out! I'll have to strap it in soon.
Heres a close up of the one thats hanging way out off the plant.
The Mangel are slow and steady. I've added more more dirt, not sure if it will do anything. However the plant just looked to awkward sticking so far out like that to me.
Everyone tells me how great and easy zucchini are. Am I the only one with pests? First it was the cucumber beetles, now its the vine borer! I split the stem open to find 4 slugs growing inside. No wonder the plant wasn't growing or producing any fruit. A few online blogs suggest you can plant the split vine and it could still live. So I've given that a go, lets hope for the best.
And last but not least, my 3 year old Carolina reaper plant is starting to produce!
July 31:
In order to grow a winner you are going to need to prune... So I did just that today. One plant had 4 decent looking tomatoes, so I've started to prune it back to give one the chance to grow big! The one I pruned today had what looks like a cut/blemish so I figured it had a greater potential for problems.
Currently this is my personal best for tomato weight, but don't worry I've got more on the vine still!
August 2nd:
Everything is still growing. Slow and steady, nothing new really.
Just trying to pair down some fruits on my tomato plants. The biggest one has lost its main fruit due to end rot, so now its just a few tiny ones growing, I'll see how big they can get. The other plants already have several biggies growing, just have to decide which ones to keep and which ones to cut. The biggest plant has also started producing new leaf vines lower down on the plant from existing lead vines. So I'm not sure what is going on with it, but I'll keep an eye on it. More leaves means more potential for energy right?
My Mangel are still doing fine nothings changed. They seems pretty hardy which is nice, I don't have to baby them or tend them very much.
I also harvested one of my potato plants. It was starting to die off, so I figured I might as well dig it up. Get ready to be jealous of my massive harvest!
August 16th:
After a quick vacation for a week and leaving my babies to be tended by someone else I'm happy to report everything is still okay!
My tomatoes appear to be changing colour now. Largest seems to be around 50 cm, I haven't been measuring to often but I'll keep an eye on it to see if its stopped growing or not.
Some of the plants have started showing some signs of aging and are turning yellow, most of them appear to have stopped growing as well. The tallest plant has no fruit on it, and when it does get some they all have a terrible case of blossom end rot.
This one is looking rather promising. Still green and gaining. There is another fruit on this plant you can see below it that is starting to gain some colour. I'm assuming if I prune it away, this one will get a bit of a bump in growth.
This one is about 50 cm.
Mangel seem fine. I should start to measure them as they don't seem to be changing to much to my eye.
Nice ones Jeff..looking good. Have you tested the ph of your water? If soil ph and calcium levels seem fine, you might look into acidifying your water a bit for the blossom end rot issue🤔.
I have tested my water (for my fishies), and it seems the pH is around 6.8-7.
I haven't tested the soil levels, I feel like I've added plenty of calcium though. I'll give acidifying the water a little try and see if that gives any results. I may even try finding a soil pH test.
August 17th:
I've taken one of my smaller tomatoes off, it is getting red and I'm hoping it will increase the size of the remaining fruit.
1lb8oz (5.36 Hunt/17)
August 18th:
I keep looking at it, and I didn't want to leave this beast one the vine much longer for fear it would ripen to much and loose some weight.
3lb 3.1oz (5.03 Hunt/17)
August 23:
Most of my tomatoes have been rippening so I've been taking them off. All of them between 1-2 lbs. I only see one starting to form on any of the vines so I don't know if I will have much potential for any others, but we will wait and see.
My second biggest as of yet.
The plants all appear okay, but maybe getting close to End of Life, I'll keep up the feeding and we will see how these remaining Tomatoes do, and if they can start producing more fruits.
The tall Mangel has put on maybe 0.5 inches in width over the last week. I'm really interested in seeing whats below the surface, and what its going to look like on the very bottom of the grow bag.
And my Carolina reaper is starting to get some ripe peppers! Who likes the spice?
Sept 3rd:
Nothing exciting to report on the garden side. My tomato plants have seen better days, thats for sure. I have a few blooms on them now but I doubt there will be enough time to grow another giant. Some of the plants appear to have stunted growth and at least one I topped by mistake. All new growth are from suckers part way up the plants stock. I'll keep an eye out and see how any do just for the fun of it though.
My Mangel are doing fine, slow and steady! It looks like they haven't grown at all but looking back at past pictures and measurements they are doing just fine.
Sept 12th:
The Mangel have put in a tiny bit of growth from last week. So things are still looking okay.
Sept 20th:
I wasn't getting anything in the tomato department, and I figured it would be to late to grow another giant by now anyway. So I finally pulled them up and put them onto the compost heap. They were so big that I couldn't fit them all into my compost bin and in fact had to start a little pile in my garden for them. Until next year Tomatoes!
The mangel seems to have slowed right done, however I think thats my fault, I've gotten a little lax with the watering schedule. I'll have to pick things back up this week to see if I can keep it growing! I had some friends stop by for a back yard distanced visit and they were amazed with the size of them. It's going to be great once I pull them out to see how they look.
Oct. 3rd
I've got a little bit of growth up on my mangel, but the width isn't changing. I guess that makes sense though.