Horticulture Tips from David Nagel and Lelia Kelly Vegetables Frosts have come to much of Mississippi and many crops were damaged, but tomato harvest is stall ongoing for many gardeners. There are two reasons to remember to keep the tomato plants well watered. The water in the soil helps absorb and retain the heat from sunlight and the water in the leaves and fruit helps maintain the temperature in the plant.. Dry soil and wilted plants allow damage at higher temperatures. Plants damaged by frost should be exhibiting signs to help determine if it is time to pull them up or keep them going. First place to gather evidence is the freezer or pantry shelf. If there is already plenty of that vegetable preserved, keeping the plant going is balancing the desire for fresh vegetables against the extra work required. Plants that are showing new leaves or flowers should be maintained. The NWS is calling for a warmer than normal November, so we may have a few more weeks to harvest these bearing plants. Plants that are not showing any growth by now should probably be replaced with something more adapted to cold temperatures. Strawberry plants should be in the ground by now. It is not too late to plant if you can find any transplants, but delaying planting makes the plants more susceptible to damage from cold and drought. Onion seedlings should be in the two leaf stage or more by now. Dont thin them until the plants are in the six to eight leaf stage (about as thick as a pencil). Plants at that size can be transplanted to expand you crop or used as green onions for turkey dressing.
Posted on: Tue, 05 Nov 2013 14:24:02 +0000
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