Warmer days are enticing for tomato planting
These buds on a Meyer lemon tree will be blooming soon, a reminder that the tree will need a low dose of fertilizer to help set fruit. Kathy Morrison
“Can I plant my tomatoes now?”
After a very cool spring, gardeners throughout the Sacramento region are voicing that same concern. It may seem late, but actually nature is right on schedule.
Traditionally, tomato planting time in Sacramento is late April and the first two weeks of May. Even though air temperature is warming, soil temperature is staying chilly. And we’re in for a few more sub-par days.
According to the National Weather Service, Sacramento will be back in the low 60s Monday through Wednesday. The possibility of rain is minimal (less than 5%), but it will be breezy, especially Tuesday evening. Overnight lows will nudge 40 degrees on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The good news: Our spring warm-up is coming soon. We’ll be comfortably back in the 70s by Friday. Even better, overnight lows will warm up 10 degrees, too – much better for newly transplanted tomatoes.
So, if you can wait a week or two, your tomatoes will be much happier in their new homes. And happy tomatoes grow faster and healthier.
Meanwhile, take care of these other garden tasks:
* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat.
* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants; they bring aphids.
* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.
* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.
* Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer.
* 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.
* Weed! Tackle unwanted plants before they overwhelm their neighbors.
* Get ready to swing into action in the vegetable garden. As nights warm up over 50 degrees, start setting out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.
* 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.
* Plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce and kale seedlings.
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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3
November still offers good weather for fall planting:
* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.
* 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.
* 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 pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.
* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.
* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.
* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.
* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.
* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. 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.
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