Here we go on the annual list of things that I need to do differently next year. I hope you slept well last night because this is going to be boring.
Every year I make this list, and then I mostly abandon it as things get busy. I forget the same battles I fought last year. So, in order to further anchor my life in tradition, here is the list:
1. Prune more, including at least one of every three secondaries. Perhaps more. Every year my plants grow more thickly than I want. This prevents light from getting through the canopy and warming the soil. Also, some pruning of the secondaries may help in getting a longer main. My best, the 779, was grown on a 13 foot main which is more than my usual 10 (or less) foot main. I'd like to see what I can do with 15 to 18 feet on the main!
2. Watch that stem!! Every year I mention this. And every year I have problems. I've got to figure out a way to manage the vine and the stem. Another thing, a longer main is going to help with this. A good section of the main vine cannot "root" into the ground when it must be raised to go with the stem.
3. Leaf health. Wow, I really do have terrible leaves by the end of the year. I figure that the "lifetime" of one of my leaves is about 90 days. That means that the first leaves are dying by mid-year. By September, only the newest leaves are healthy. This is going to take some research. I don't know if Daconil, or something like Agro-K is going to help.
Those are the easy things. The heart of the matter is.......... drumroll please.........
4. Heat. I've been pondering ways to get more heat into my soil. Of course the key number one thing to add heat is to use a hoophouse, something that I've finally become proficient at. But I'm considering a change in my approach. What I want most is heat in the root zone. Hoophouses, give lots of heat in the above ground, where the plant is. They can turn a 60 degree day into a 90 degree day, and a 70 degree day into 110 degrees. This also warms the soil, of course, but...
My studying on this subject suggests that a clear plastic sheet laid directly on a raised bed is going to provide significant soil temperature warm up. In conjunction with this, I will bury a soaker hose to provide moisture. I'm thinking of a 3-foot radius (6-foot diameter) piece of clear plastic around each plant. And then, just leave it there all year long!
So with this in place, would I still do a hoophouse or cloche? I don't know. Here's what I'd like to do: Use something like a "wall-o-water" (for tomatoes), but larger, and made of hard plastic so that it has no chance of collapsing on the plant. (We spend too much effort on this to have it ruined by a collapsing wall-o-water!) I've seen these. They're like an igloo that can be filled with water. But if I could find such a thing that is about three or four feet in diameter, that would be perfect.
8 comments:
You still need a hoophouse! 1) Too cold of nights your warm soil will cool down, 2) Warm soil is no good if the tops freeze, 3) Warm soil does nothing to prevent wind damage to your young fragile plants. Just my two cents.
Brian
My leaves die to. I think this is normal, The center of my plants are usually nothing but hairy night shade. I think this is the normal progression of the season. I've tried running a tertiary vine to replace those leaves but I can't get in there (because of all the buried vines) to control the growth.
Brian
Heating cables?
I've been thinking about them for a while but have never tired them.
gordon
Thanks for leaving comments!!! I've always wanted to get comments, that's what makes this a "living" site.
I actually did try using heating cables, once. I found that they did nothing unless you also used plastic on the ground to keep the heat in. But then, just using clear plastic will heat the soil as much as the cables!
I think you're correct about the hoophouse. I'm just searching, pondering if there is a scenario that would make better use of my resources of time and other things. I can keep them from freezing, and I can do lots of things to prevent wind damage. But the temperature is the key thing.
It's a balance, perhaps between soil temp and air temp. I'm sure I need more soil temp. I have too much air temp, but going without a HH is certainly too little.
If I could have main vines out to 15 feet by July 1, that would be an accomplishment. I've never been able to do that.
Keep posting.
I tried cables once. They were a pain to put in and take out. I couldn't notice any difference between the plants with and those without the cables.
The plastic might help keep the heat in. Once plastic is down I am not able to water the way I would like, and I hate moving the plastic for fear of damaging the plants.
Brian
It's true that heating cables also need plastic or some other mulch to retain heat. Quite a few years ago I tried this. I had cables on one plant and no cables on another. I was measuring with a thermometer, and there was no difference! I complained to the email list at that time, and Vince responded that I needed to add plastic. With the plastic and cables, my temps went from around 60 degrees to the mid-70's.
Then there's this:
"Daytime soil temperatures under clear plastic mulch are generally 8 to 14° F higher at a 2-inch depth and 6 to 9° F higher at a 4-inch depth compared to those of bare soil."
This is from the site:
http://plasticulture.cas.psu.edu/P-Mulch.html
The Biz (Jim Grande) taught me a trick that I'm going to try next year. He put down clear plastic on the ground in the planting area two weeks before he planted to help heat up the soil. He put a thermometer regularly and it never go to hot but it heated the soil nicely in the early season. I believe he removed the plastic a couple of weeks after planting.
Jamie,
Thanks for your post! You bring up a good point, "doing it early." I always avoided putting the hoophouses up early because that meant that I needed to try to keep them in one piece that much longer. But putting the plastic down on the ground, there's no reason not to do that for two weeks, then build the HH and then set plants outside. I like it. -Cliff
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