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Dig In: Garden checklist for week of July 28

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED JUL 27, 2019

This Red Pride, a determinate tomato, is just about at the end of its production cycle. Keep on eye on your plants

in this heat. (Photo: Debbie Arrington)

High heat can hit even sun-loving crops hard

Feel the burn? This weekend’s triple-digit spike in temperatures toasts leaves (and people, too).

Make sure to water early in the morning to keep your vegetables hydrated for the hot afternoon to come.

This ripening tomato got sunburned. Add some temporary

shade for exposed veggies. (Photo: Kathy Morrison)

Sun scald of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants is common during these conditions. Erect some temporary shade to shield ripening fruit from intense afternoon sun. (See our 5 hacks for quick shade here .)

These 105-degree days may be enough to push some plants over the top. Determinate tomato varieties – those kinds that grow to a certain height and bear their fruit all at once – may be nearing the end of their cycle. (An example in my garden: Red Pride.) Keep an eye on those vines; they can die back quickly. After harvest, pull out the plant; it likely won’t produce more tomatoes even if green and healthy.

The good news: This heat wave is only temporary. According to the National Weather Service, we’ll quickly slip back into the low 90s for the rest of the week and next weekend. If you can put off chores until then, do it.

What should you concentrate on when you do get outdoors this week?

* Water deeply. Make sure moisture is penetrating soil at least 6 inches and reaching roots.

* Harvest summer squash promptly; it will keep the bush or vines producing.

* Harvest garlic and onions; pull the bulbs before they flower.

* Pick tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and other summer favorites. When temperatures cool, many varieties will set more fruit.

* Pick up and discard dropped fruit around trees; it attracts pests and critters.

* Pinch back chrysanthemums for more blooms in fall.

* Start fall veggies indoors, including cabbage, broccoli and lettuce.

* Outdoors, there’s still time to plant pumpkins, winter squash, corn, beans and sunflowers.

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Garden checklist for week of April 19

After this midweek storm, start getting serious about spring gardening. Flowers are blooming about three weeks ahead of schedule. That includes weeds!

* Get ready to swing into action in the vegetable garden – if you haven’t already. As nights warm up over 50 degrees, set out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash; wait on pumpkins until May. Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias. Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom. Late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce and cabbage seedlings.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Smell orange blossoms? Give citrus trees a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants. If leaves look yellow, your tree may need an iron boost -- apply some chelated iron fertilizer.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden needs nutrition. Give shrubs and trees a slow-release fertilizer. Mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost, which helps the soil, but keep it a few inches away from trunks and stems.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

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