Tomato Tales - the Long, Hot Summer of 2021

About this time of the outdoor garden season, ask anyone who has grown tomatoes if they've had a good or bad growing season and you'll usually get a thumbs up or down response. For up, I'm talking about growing healthy plants with lots of fruit to harvest for eating, sharing or putting up. Thumbs down would include anything from puny plants, few fruit to disease, insect or squirrel issues. 

I suppose there's a middle ground in there, but I rarely hear a gardener say they had a medium tomato year ... anything is possible in the garden, just view the photo below for proof. 

From what I'm hearing from other garden friends, it's been a pretty good tomato year, at least in the Denver area. That would make it a thumbs up season. I've also heard tomato woes which I actually thought I'd be incurring. We went from cool to swelt in a matter of four days in June. This is tough on all new veg starts and for sure - ones that haven't gone in the ground yet.

Here's a quick late spring planting weather summary for context -

• Rain (several days in May) with May 30, 31 being the final rainy days of spring. These two daytime temperatures were in the mid-fifties. Then June changed quickly like the weather gods said ... "hey Pat turn off the hose and turn up the oven, and keep it there until further notice."  
  

• Dry and Hot - all of June. On June fifth, we hit 94. Pat kept the oven on high heat as directed. The rest you know, July, same, August, same, September, the same (so far). 

• Also, I have determined that our raised bed vegetable area is at least six or more degrees warmer than other parts of the landscape. All five raised beds get baked by the sun year round.

My tomato tale - 

 

The May/early June timing to get plants in the ground was difficult in my raised beds. The rainy, cool May didn't allow the beds to adequately dry out. I tried to plant. I put in two of my seed grown tomato starts the first week in June but they fried right away (despite being covered by shade cloth). They were hardened off well but they couldn't handle the heat, plus the soil was still wet. What to do, the plants needed to go in the ground soon!

 

It hit me during the middle of a sleepless night that I needed to create a raised bed planting condition that would allow the small tomato plant roots to easily establish in non-wet soil, plus be protected from the 90+ degree June (and beyond) days ahead. And do this quickly!

 

The planting technique I'm about to describe is something that ordinarily I'd never admit in public, but what the heck, I'm not shy and the results were (are) spectacular.

 

Glen, my husband was enlisted to do the heavy digging.

 

Consistent 90+ degrees can cause flowers to dry

I asked him to dig deep, wide planting holes in the raised beds and to place the excess soil around and between the planting holes. Yes, the soil was wet and it's never a good idea to dig out or in wet soil. I absolutely violated this rule and time will tell (after a hard frost or two when the plants are removed) if I did a very bad boo boo to the soil. 

 

Eight holes were dug for the eight tomato plants (six were grown by me from seed, two were purchased to replace the two that croaked). I filled the holes with sterile potting soil and added my own fertilizer. I use potting soil brands that don't have added fertilizers and a bunch of other stuff that is barely pronounceable or understood why it's added. I like being in control of my soil fertility. 

 

The tomato plants went in that evening to give them several hours (at least) of cooler temperatures over night. They were shaded as well for several weeks until they were clearly established and on their way. 

 

Through late June and into July I noticed many of the plants had dried flowers, meaning with high heat (over 90 degrees), flowers can give up forming fruit - they simply dry and drop. Remember, it's super hot in this area, so 90 for most gardens is still hot, but we're practically cooking eggs on the small rock mulch surrounding the beds. AND, 90 would have been considered a cool spell in the past three summer months, it was often 95 or higher for days on end. 

 

How'd they turn out?

The tomato plants are happy in their unusual soil manipulation surroundings. 

 

I fertilized the plants again when they began forming fruit. They were mulched well with chemical-free grass clippings (renewed as needed all summer). 

 

Watering the plants was tricky. I learned early on that I needed to water often, every other day worked the best. The plants were watered by hand until we took a short weekend trip in mid-August when I relied on the flat, soft nylon soaker hoses which are programmed on the automatic sprinkler system. The soaker hoses continue to water the plants and thank goodness, it was getting old hand watering.

 

I use strong, 5-feet tall sturdy, concrete reinforced wire tomato cages. The indeterminate varieties grew very tall, they are currently heavy with fruit. One of the determinate varieties actually collapsed on itself from the weight of the the heavy tomatoes.

 

Plants were shaded AND cloth shaded west setting sun

The finessed growing system worked, and despite the heat, the flowers eventually formed fruit and now we have a healthy crop of tomatoes. We've blanched and frozen several batches (instead of canning, which is another great way to preserve excess tomatoes). Neighbors, family and friends are delighted when they get a text from me letting them know I'm leaving tomatoes on their doorstep. 

 

Grow and Give is another excellent way to share all extra homegrown produce, not just tomatoes. 

 

Tomatoes planted - seeded indoors in April - SummerPick Hybrid, Galahad Hybrid, Mountain Rouge Hybrid, Green Zebra, Sungold and Red Racer Hybrid. The two store bought plants are Celebrity and Early Girl. The best tasting with few seeds is the Mountain Rouge Hybrid, a 2019 AAS Winner.  Second place is the Sungold, and for pure delicious taste and ease of growth - outstanding!

 

Please feel free to comment below the blog and let me know what your favorite tomatoes are from this year (or ever).

 

Two of the eight 2021 tomato plants, 'Green Zebra' left & 'Mountain Rouge Hybrid'

 

A 'Mountain Rouge Hybrid' tomato decided to grow in a most unusual shape!