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Dig In: Garden checklist for week of Nov. 11

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED NOV 10, 2018

The weather and smoke together are shutting down Sacramento gardeners' tomato vines. Time to p ick or compost your unripened tomatoes. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)

Time to pull vines; smoke and colder weather halt tomato production

Time to give up on Christmas tomatoes.

Spread in a single layer, green
tomatoes will ripen off the vine.

Heavy smoke and changing weather patterns plunged temperatures from 10 to 15 degrees above normal in the Sacramento region just a week ago to five degrees below normal. In addition, overnight temperatures are dipping into the very low 40s.

So, all those tomato vines that pushed out new blooms just wasted their energy. Wildfire smoke will keep bees inactive, so those yellow flowers won't get pollinated. And the temperatures have cooled off so much, the fruit won't set or develop.

So, if you haven't already, pull the vines.

What to do with those green tomatoes? If they've grown enough to develop seed sacs inside, they likely will ripen off the vine. Place in a single layer in a warm dry place (such as the kitchen counter). They'll take a few weeks to turn fully red. Maybe, there will be Christmas tomatoes after all.

(Don't want to wait? Kathy will have a recipe in Sunday's post that uses green tomatoes.)

That wildfire smoke makes it unhealthful to be outdoors. But when and if the smoke clears, here are some tasks that may need attention:

* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.

* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.

* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.

* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet peas, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.

* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.

* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.

* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now. Plant garlic and onions.

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cool-weather annuals seeds tomatoes Sacramento peach leaf curl trees garden chores wildflowers fall planting gardening chelated iron vegetables. bulbs

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Garden Checklist for week of May 5

Survey your garden after the May 4 rainstorm. Heavy rain and gusty winds can break the neck of large flowers such as roses. Also:

* Keep an eye on new transplants or seedlings; they could take a pounding from the rain.

* Watch out for powdery mildew. Warmth following moist conditions can cause this fungal disease to “bloom,” too. If you see a leaf that looks like it’s dusted with powdered sugar, snip it off.

* After the storm, start setting out tomato transplants, but wait on the peppers and eggplants (they want warmer nights). Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* 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.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, radishes and squash.

* 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.

* Don’t wait; plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

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