need some information about------ - Page 2

ddsack · July 6, 2013

Jon,

I keep coming back to sun, and the quality of sun as most important to spindly tomatoes in the garden. I have two garden locations. My front garden gets morning, mid-day, and afternoon sun, also lots of wind. If I get any spindly tomatoes there, it does have to do with soil fertility in a spot where the original clay pan is trying to resurface, or maybe just a wispy variety that looks more spindly than other stouter RL varieties. I have another garden about 150 ft away that is surrounded by tall trees. Most of it doesn't get morning sun until after 10AM, for the last bit it's after 11:30, but then it gets sun until after 6PM or later. So although the garden gets at least 6-8 hours of sun during the peak of summer (less as the sun stays lower on the horizon starting in August) the same varieties of tomatoes that grow back there are very noticeably spindlier and set and ripen later than my front garden. The extra morning sun makes a big difference, and there is nothing I can add to the soil in back that will make a difference in the long internode length of tomatoes stretching due to lack of enough sun. I see this in the rugose dwarfs, as well as normal indets. There are a few early varieties, like Stupice, that do fine back there, ripening at about the same rate as the front garden, but most other tomatoes lag behind about two weeks.

zeroma · July 6, 2013

A professional soil test will tell you all of the information you are seeking as Redbaron stated. There is a place on the form you need to fill out for what it is you are growing, i.e., veggie, lawn, field corn..... The lab will address this information.

If I were wondering how to fix my 'spindliness" (love that word) problem, I might even include a little note along with what the forms asks you for. But the lab you send your soil to will know how to help you. They have a "reference standard".

In a perfect world, I'd keep a written and photo journal from year to year. I always have good intentions at the beginning of each year but start to fall off by the end of the season.

Good luck with what you are searching for fellow gardener.

peppero · July 7, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by zeroma

A professional soil test will tell you all of the information you are seeking as Redbaron stated. There is a place on the form you need to fill out for what it is you are growing, i.e., veggie, lawn, field corn..... The lab will address this information.

If I were wondering how to fix my 'spindliness" (love that word) problem, I might even include a little note along with what the forms asks you for. But the lab you send your soil to will know how to help you. They have a "reference standard".

In a perfect world, I'd keep a written and photo journal from year to year. I always have good intentions at the beginning of each year but start to fall off by the end of the season.

Good luck with what you are searching for fellow gardener.

thanks for sharing your thoughts. i now have a better appreciation and understanding for soil test results because of you and redbaron. glenn and ddsack have also been helpful.

again, thanks to everyone who cared enough to respond. this is part of what makes this forum such a great place.

jon

Barbee · July 7, 2013

You can't go wrong with a good soil test with recomendations. I use A&L Western Labs in Modesto, CA.

With that said, I really believe, like Ami, that it all starts at the beginning. The stalks on my tomatoes are always as big around as my pinkie finger when I set them in the ground. A cool room and the lights within 1/2 inch of the plants really does make for stocky seedlings. A fan blowing across them or petting them daily helps, too.

If you have had nice stocky plants in the past, but now you don't, I believe you'll find the answer in your soil test.

peppero · July 7, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barbee

You can't go wrong with a good soil test with recomendations. I use A&L Western Labs in Modesto, CA.

With that said, I really believe, like Ami, that it all starts at the beginning. The stalks on my tomatoes are always as big around as my pinkie finger when I set them in the ground. A cool room and the lights within 1/2 inch of the plants really does make for stocky seedlings. A fan blowing across them or petting them daily helps, too.

If you have had nice stocky plants in the past, but now you don't, I believe you'll find the answer in your soil test.

thanks for taking the time to respond.

jon

July 6, 2013	#16
ddsack Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3 Posts: 3,231	Jon, I keep coming back to sun, and the quality of sun as most important to spindly tomatoes in the garden. I have two garden locations. My front garden gets morning, mid-day, and afternoon sun, also lots of wind. If I get any spindly tomatoes there, it does have to do with soil fertility in a spot where the original clay pan is trying to resurface, or maybe just a wispy variety that looks more spindly than other stouter RL varieties. I have another garden about 150 ft away that is surrounded by tall trees. Most of it doesn't get morning sun until after 10AM, for the last bit it's after 11:30, but then it gets sun until after 6PM or later. So although the garden gets at least 6-8 hours of sun during the peak of summer (less as the sun stays lower on the horizon starting in August) the same varieties of tomatoes that grow back there are very noticeably spindlier and set and ripen later than my front garden. The extra morning sun makes a big difference, and there is nothing I can add to the soil in back that will make a difference in the long internode length of tomatoes stretching due to lack of enough sun. I see this in the rugose dwarfs, as well as normal indets. There are a few early varieties, like Stupice, that do fine back there, ripening at about the same rate as the front garden, but most other tomatoes lag behind about two weeks. __________________ Dee **************

July 7, 2013	#19
Barbee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: SW Ohio Posts: 1,818	You can't go wrong with a good soil test with recomendations. I use A&L Western Labs in Modesto, CA. With that said, I really believe, like Ami, that it all starts at the beginning. The stalks on my tomatoes are always as big around as my pinkie finger when I set them in the ground. A cool room and the lights within 1/2 inch of the plants really does make for stocky seedlings. A fan blowing across them or petting them daily helps, too. If you have had nice stocky plants in the past, but now you don't, I believe you'll find the answer in your soil test. __________________ *Barbee*

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July 6, 2013	#17
zeroma Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: SW Ohio Posts: 637	A professional soil test will tell you all of the information you are seeking as Redbaron stated. There is a place on the form you need to fill out for what it is you are growing, i.e., veggie, lawn, field corn..... The lab will address this information. If I were wondering how to fix my 'spindliness" (love that word) problem, I might even include a little note along with what the forms asks you for. But the lab you send your soil to will know how to help you. They have a "reference standard". In a perfect world, I'd keep a written and photo journal from year to year. I always have good intentions at the beginning of each year but start to fall off by the end of the season. Good luck with what you are searching for fellow gardener.