Plants in the Greenhouse
Greenhouse
On Sunday, I filled the greenhouse with twenty assorted tomato plants in a variety of pots. Last week, I emptied the recycled pots, and sprayed them with 10% bleach solution. I used a gigantic bucket to mix one-quarter each potting soil, vermiculite, peat moss and compost. This made a light, airy soil. Then I planted each tomato up to its second set of leaves. and watered it in. Today, I used a half strength liquid fertilizer to water them: Schultz Plant Food, with a 10-15-10 analysis. Gee, I hope this works.
Plants in the Ground
Hah!!! I finally did it.
My seedlings looked so pathetic, I decided now-or-never. Every year, my tomato seedlings look puny compared to the monster seedlings sold at just about every store. But last year, for a little experiment, I purchased a couple of the biggish nursery-grown ones and pitted them (planted them at the same time) against my homegrown seedlings. And they both grew and produced at the same time. So I’m not worried that my runts can’t catch up: small but mighty.
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- Ready
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- Set
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- Grow
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- Wall o’Water
On Saturday, the only sunny day for the last week or forecast for the next week, I planted sixteen tomato seedlings: three each of Brandywine and Cherokee Purple, two each of Yellow Pear, Stupice, Siletz and Black Prince. Just prior to planting in the still damp soil, I added another inch of compost. I used my Troy-Bilt electric tiller to mix it in. Then I added a handful of wood ashes to each hole and buried the tomatoes up to the first leaves (about 6 inches deep). I picked off the peat pots to ensure nothing inhibits good rooting. I probably won’t use the peat pots again; I’ll stick to plastic which doesn’t dry out as fast.
Then, hoping the poor things didn’t sunburn, I got out the Wall O’Waters. I had to fill them up quickly, before the sun went away, so the water would have time to heat up and provide protection for the transplants. Filling the Wall O’Waters is backbreaking labor. I put a large pot over each seedling to protect it against a collapse. Next, I arrange the Wall O’Water around it, and use a trigger sprayer to start filling the individual cells. This takes a while. After the cells are about two-thirds full, I remove the pot, allowing the Wall O’Water to fall in like a teepee. Keeping the top closed over the small tomato plant keeps the heat in like an individual greenhouse. This was so much more effective than my cold frame last year, I am only using the Wall O’Waters this year.
Between the Rains
All winter, we wished for snow. Those wishes have been granted in spades. It has rained nearly every day of May. My highly-scientific-wheelbarrow rain gauge says we’ve gotten about 5 inches of rain: Great for the wildflowers and the grass, but it hinders planting plans. I am writing this now because I’ve been run indoors by a thunder and lightning storm, the third round today. Daytime temperatures have rarely reached 65 degrees, which is the requisite temperature for germination of pretty much anything. Nighttime temperatures are also still in the 30s, so it’s definitely too cold to plant warm season seeds. Spring seems a bit late. The trees are only thinking about leafing out; the chokecherries just opened up this week.
The Minion and I have taken turns carrying the tomato seedlings back and forth from the greenhouse. They needed light! I am too cheap to propane heat the greenhouse, so the tomatoes had to come back into the basement at night. They had sunshine several days for the last two weeks, but the overcast really didn’t lend itself to phenomenal growth. These are some pathetic seedlings. My seedlings are pretty stunted because they’ve been living in the cold dark basement. The recent snowy weather really took a toll. Anyway, last week I broke down and bought two 14 dollar grow lights to assist with the growing process. I’m not sure how much good it did, but now I have them for next year.
Tomato planting
The county extension service advises to plant 2 weeks after the average frost-free date. Sadly, that would put me into June here at 6700 feet. I have had good luck for the last four years using a cold frame and Wall O’Waters. Last year, the tomato plants in the Wallo’Waters totally outpaced/outgrew the cold frame tomatoes. These act like a personal greenhouse for each tomato. My tomatoes grew strong, quickly, and well. They produced really well, too.
This year I am hedging my bets. I am planting equal numbers of plants outside in the garden (in well-amended soil) and in the greenhouse with the most recommended recipe on the web, 1/4 compost, 1/4 potting soil, 1/4 peat, and 1/4 vermiculite. These plants will all go out this weekend, May 14ish. The outside plants will be protected by their Wall o’Waters, and the greenhouse ones will get be 100 degrees by day, and I will turn on a Mr.Buddy propane heater at night only if temps drop below freezing. We’ll see.
May (snow)showers
Well, the Colorado Front Range is experiencing the worst drought since 2001. My pasture crackles, not a good sign in May. This should be an Irish-green month. The hummingbirds were a week late. We usually set our calendars by their May 1st return, but they only showed up on Mother’s Day. I was worried. You know, the whole end-of-the-world thing. If anyone would know, the hummingbirds would.
Today, so far, we have received around 6 inches of snow, and it is still coming down!!! 2 to 6 inches are forecast. Thank goodness I didn’t plant my tomatoes outside like I was itching to do!
My greenhouse is currently populated by the random, assorted containers of potting mix, and all of the pansies and petunias I didn’t give up on. I have been taking my containers (big plastic storage containers) of tomatoes back and forth from the basement to the greenhouse during the day. Since I am too cheap to pay for propane heat for the greenhouse, I bring the plants in at night. Labor intensive, I know, but I don’t want them to freeze. I will start over outside on Friday, after the snow goes away.