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Plant F-ing is a new Ask LAist series about growing food and flora at home--especially for those renters who do not have access to the luxuries of a yard and only have windows and patios to work with. If you've got a question, please send it to editor[@]laist.com and our in-house garden guru, aka Hand of Gardener, will answer.
Everybody seems to be talking about all the tomatoes they're growing in their yards and on their balconies, and I'm starting to wonder if I can get in on the action. Is it too late in the season for me to start growing tomatoes on my balcony? What do I need to know, buy, and do--if it's not too late to join the party.
It's California. It's never too late for botox, a career comeback a la John Travolta or your dear Green Zebra tomatoes. Of course you should have planted back in MARCH. You missed your big chance to really have a little farm that is the envy of your ReadyMade crowd of friends, but you still have time.
Why is it not too late? That answer is buried in the title of this column: Plant Effing. As to say - plants exist to make more plants. That's how they "think." It's their entire stage motivation. OF course I can hear west of the 405 saying, "plants exist to make oxygen" and that "they love the earth". Hell no, I say. You crazy. Like folks at ten minutes to last call, plants exist to pass on their genes - or at least make the attempt. Species without this trait tend not to linger around for us to get familiar with. Gardeners (that's what you want to be) manipulate their minions with a sound understanding of plant effing. And with that in mind you can go for it: put those tomatoes out in mid-August.
I would pick up a plant at the Hollywood Farmer's Market or at your mom & pop nursery. Armstrong still carries them as well, but your choices will be limited this time of year. Buy bigger, you are ready late (It's really, really too late to make a go of seeds}. Varieties like Taxi, Black Krim (any of the Russian heirlooms) and even a little gem called 'Grandpa's Cock's Plume' are a few of my suggestions. They are "determinate" varieties that will provide a short-burst yield as the calendar clock winds down on the year.
Take your late-comer orphan and drop it in a 5 gallon paint-bucket or as large as a container as you can fit. We have two solid months of heat and that will get these babies to grow. That same heat could cook your developing root zone, so go big.
Feeding? Your coffee habit will come in handy as it makes for wonderful, supplemental plant food. Throw the used ground on top along with the mulch. Tomatoes are heavy feeders so if you go organic... you'll likely be spending more on fertilizer than what the tomatoes would cost at Whole Foods. Really? Really. Your potting mix, if store bought, will likely be devoid of life. That's good and bad... no fungus, mildews or beneficials either. You may want to go worm hunting or begging at a community garden gate for some "worm starter mix" a la sourdough. I personally can't tell the difference between organic and "synthetic" fertilizers... vine ripe is vine ripe. You do what makes you feel best.
What will be the most limiting for your Caprese salad ambitions... lack of light. For tomatoes to really get into their fruiting cycle they need 8 hours of direct light. In two months that will be difficult as the laws of geophysics tilt us away from the sun. Tomatoes, in addition to acting like Frat Boys in Westwood, are solar powered. Really? Really. SO no sun mean less tomato. If, after 4-6 weeks you don't see flowers you might want to set up that "outdoor grow room" and give you would-be garden a little extra sun. It's ridiculous... but so is wanting to plant tomatoes in August.
Happy plant effing
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Dude, thanks for this... can you shed any light on tomato blight?
Oh man, 8 hours of direct sunlight. I don't think I can do that on my patio. Maybe I can do this on the roof, if the HOA allows it.
Caterpillars are decimating my morning glorys. I would hate to see what they did to tomatoes.
hornworms?!?!
Not quite that big but enough to do damage with their ravenous appetite. My patio doesnt attract birds so I am defenseless.
The cherry tomato plant we got a month ago is going crazy right now. Next year, I'm planning to get a proper start and get some seriously hot beefsteaky heirloom action going.
Maybe some corn, too! Effing-ay!
Ditto on the cherry tomatos here....
Our "normal" tomatoes (and the cherry ones too) can produce year round (and has). We usually end up pulling them due to overgrowing.
I should also mention they are south facing and get a RIDICULOUS amount of sunshine (to produce year round as stated).
Okay, I might try the cherry tomato thing.
umm lol.
there seems to an "echo" from the basil column in here.
kale and chard are a couple of "easy growers" that will cruise through the fall shift.
I've been eye balling this vacant lot next door to where I live. They created about a three story hill with a flat top with all the left over dirt from when they built Miguel Contreras Learning Complex. It looks like pretty good soil, weeds grow on it OK. With my luck I'd get a nice crop going and they'd decide they needed to relocate the dirt elsewhere.
I'm tempted to try it though.
Quick question...
I planted my tomatoes around the beginning of July and they've been flowering since the first week they hit the soil.
I was told to pluck the flowers so the plants can grow without the stress of fruit. I'm starting to pull about 10 flowers a week and am wondering: How long should I continue the practice?
I am not sure about all that flower picking, yeah your plant will grow, but it is going to get big during the normal course of producing tomatoes. The fruits are formed after the flower does it's thing (i.e. dies)- so you are like picking your fruits before they are even born. I would leave them alone and let mom nature do the rest.
That flower picking trick is good for leafy stuff like basil. Once basil starts to flower good and hard, the leaves stop growing. Pluck basil flowers for sure.
As far as nutes go, I put mine in the dirt and we don't add much of anything to them other than water.
Organicgardening.com for a lot of great tips... For tomatoes... these things grow like weeds... don't forget to prune off excessive growth so that the parts you want to grow, and the tomatoes grow nice and plump!
For potted tomatoes, I always found the biggest issue to be the all the watering they need in the crazy LA hot summers. This summer has been the least hot I can remember in a long time, so my potted tomatoes have actually done pretty well despite the lack of constant love.
mulch
lessen the need for constant water