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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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CHECKLIST FOR THE WEEK

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Temperatures will be a bit higher than normal in the afternoons this week. Take care of chores early in the day – then enjoy the afternoon. It’s time to smell the roses.

* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. If you haven’t already, it’s time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters.

* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.

* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.

* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.

* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.

* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.

* Don’t forget to water. Seedlings need moisture. Deep watering will help build strong roots and healthy plants.

* Add mulch to the garden to help keep that precious water from evaporating. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch to 1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.

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