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Old January 17, 2017   #76
edweather
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Sorry it took me so long to respond. Was very busy, including taking care of sick in-laws. I had a few minutes to skim the thread. Wow, most of it was way over my head, but I really appreciate all the information and the time it takes to thoughtfully respond. A few varieties that seemed to float to the top were Creole, Prudens Purple, Indian Stripe PL, and Big Beef F1 for safety. Have been used to growing in containers, and will probably try that first. Have seen some folks around here that have raised beds and have seen a few gardens in the ground. Most of our native soil here is sand with some dirt. Not really sure how to attack the "garden" issue, but will use a few containers this year, and go from there. Am very afraid of the diseases, and can see me spraying with all sorts of fungicides weekly. But thanks again for all the replies, and certainly didn't think this thread would have the legs that it did. Ed
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Old January 22, 2017   #77
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Down here in extreme SW Mississippi where I grow for my little local sales, the heat set tomato's dont really do much better than the market hybrids I grow. The most heat resistant OP types I've grown here are Indigo Blue Beauty (which also has a strong disease resistance too), Stump of the world, & Cherokee Carbon cross. The lists fall off pretty quick after those.
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Old March 25, 2017   #78
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I will chime in since I am pretty much further down than most on here being in Southwest Fl. I will only say that Tomatoes are not a tropical plant whatsoever IMHO or I would be growing them near my banana plants, mangoes, and other tropical fruits. As most of us know they start disliking temps being above 85 typically and I always shade cloth at 40% here whether in colder months or warmer do to how close I am to the equator. 85 here feels like when it is 95 up north! I tried everything ages ago to try and grow a tomato here in the summer months using every trick in the book and every heatwave tomato there is and was. I also grow most of my tomatoes hydroponically outside, but they wont make it through our summers here either. I admire B54 Bill for he has done well in his tough climate through the summer and he is no amateur at this but I will have to disagree with him on the tomato being a tropical plant remark! Again, I am only semi-tropical and cannot grow them, true tropical can be slightly worse.
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Old March 26, 2017   #79
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It is not the high heat alone that weakens the plant, but the combo of the high humidity matching the temp. 90 temps in Florida are so much different than 90 in N.C. or elsewhere.
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Old March 26, 2017   #80
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Hello there B54! You mentioned your having a tough time with your bell peppers so here is what I do and achieved amazing results again. I grow them in soil, not in my hydro system for they like the soil better. I do not use nitrogen more than once or twice at the beginning. I then use Ironite that you get anywhere and give them 2 tblsp every 2-4 weeks depending. I also never grow bells for they are inferior in taste to me and not only that, a little harder to grow. I actually do not think they are very sweet when comparing them to an earlier more aggressive Giant Marconi which can handle damp, cold, wet conditions like no other and set fruit much more easily and much earlier. 9 plants produced more than 60 peppers this year so far of about 7-8 inches long and thick walled. They are covered with shade cloth like all sweet peppers should be in the deep South which is zone 9-11, not zone 7-8 which to me is hardly what I would call deep South. Many plants are still hanging on and I am setting more fruit on many for a second round and have had them in the ground over 6 months now and should make it to over 8 or more months. I also hit them a few times with calcium nitrate.

Last edited by beefyboy; March 26, 2017 at 09:59 AM.
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Old March 27, 2017   #81
WilburMartin
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I am going Early Girl and Stupice - going for an early harvest, and replanting in August to get a fall harvest. Also looking for Sungold to happen here - south Mississippi, where the weather and the women are HAWT! (sorry - couldn't resist)

Also - poblano peppers and Rosa Bianco eggplants, plus a ton of herbs, mostly basil
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Old March 27, 2017   #82
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I got you there - SE MS here

everything tasted good early, but the heat prevented many late season plants from developing

I wish my passion was peppers and eggplant, as they rocked my garden last year
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Old March 27, 2017   #83
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigVanVader View Post
No amount of book learning can teach you about real life application. Educated idiots as I like to call them ... You can never learn anything if you don't try and I don't tolerate closed minded or rude very people well, but I digress.
As a lawyer with a PhD, I'd appreciate if you didn't stereotype so much - we all have things about which we are not proud; but that's not what we talk about, at least not very loud
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Old March 29, 2017   #84
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Hello Wilbur! sorry I missed your post til now. I grew an early girl from pinetree out of Mass. (superseeds.com) that was leap years ahead of the typical early girl in flavor. I will have to look it up again, it has been quite a few years now. Plant was more indeterminate, not short like E.G. I know you know about heat, Mississippi is no easy area to grow and like my situation, your timing has to be good. lol
I am trialing Ambrosia Gold and Ambrosia Orange in the fall to see how they compare against Sungold. It would be nice if they were as sweet and early as they claim, for it is an OP and supposedly does not split.
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Old March 16, 2018   #85
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Wow, I just finished reading this entire thread; Whew! Strong opinions on every side.

I only started growing tomatoes regularly about 4 yrs ago. My patch is somewhat compact, 9'X18', in which I typically grow 27 plants on 9 wire cages. As was mentioned numerous times in this thread, the heat downheah can be brutal. The daytime heat seems not to be the biggest issue for my plants, but overnight, when it many times doesn't drop below 80. I do notice a slowing of fruit set during those times, but not total shutdown. Since my patch is so compact, I'm thinking about putting a big fan out there this year to just keep some air circulating and provide a little cooling during those times. Is that crazy? I'd welcome any thoughts or suggestions.

Thanks,
Jon
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Old March 17, 2018   #86
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For myself, Bill is some one I would pretty much take his advice to the bank. He has put in many years of practical experience and shares what he does and finds freely and generously with everyone by posting.

Though things differ between my growing conditions and his ( and many others), a lot of times, I get good solid ideas for my area too, as well as others. Taking an idea from some one else's experience can often help or lead one to a better outcome than not, especially in gardening.

Trading information can save a lot of errors and maybe help others get a better turn out for their work and efforts; after all, we all want good gardens and getting more/better productivity is a result I look for since I want to eat from my garden. Other's are selling and need to maintain or increase production, so it helps them as well.

I *like* a good lively discussion, but dislike rudeness.
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Old March 17, 2018   #87
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I asked pretty much this same question some time ago now. All I can say is that Bill was a lifesaver with invaluable information. Yes I took it to the bank and have since reaped the rewards of the investment. Thank you Bill for sharing your knowledge and experience in a very caring and in-depth manner!
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Old March 20, 2018   #88
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Hey Beefy I am just going by what I heard and that is the tomato originated in Central or South America. I have only that to go by so I may be completely wrong on it being a tropical plant. I do know that as long as diseases and pests don't take them down they will live and produce for over 9 months down here although they do slack off in the worst heat. I have just figured out a way to make the most of their ability to keep on keeping on and taking advantage of what I observed over the years.

The best production usually comes in the first five to seven clusters with the first couple producing the largest fruit typically. So just by chance and trying to replace plants dying of fusarium I found that staggering the planting dates optimized the chance of good fruit during the hottest months. I also noticed some of the varieties do much better in the hotter weather than others. So I try to maximize my use of the plants that do poorly in the heat by setting them out as early as possible. Then following up by gradually increasing the percentage of plants that can produce fairly decent in the hotter months. Instead of babying those plants that are planted earliest in hopes of keeping them alive long enough for them to again produce some fruit in the fall I now just remove them from the garden and June through July try to set out a mix of hot weather and cooler weather plants and hope they can survive the plant out in the midst of the summer heat. I have found ways to maximize my success at setting them out in those hottest of times by early heavy mulching and watering the beds and trying to plant on rainy overcast days and as near evening as possible.

I know that few plants will have massive production during those hot months but it is so nice to have fresh tomatoes during that time and I enjoy the challenge. Although I didn't enjoy the TYLCV that disrupted my late season last year. I know of no way to completely rid myself of the massive whitefly invasion that brought it to my garden last year. I am just hoping that it is not going to be an annual occurrence like TSWV and spider mites.

After years of trying different varieties over and over during the hottest months of the year to just see which ones can be somewhat consistent I have found one that is just head and shoulders above the others summer after summer and that is Indian Stripe PL. I have had one variety or another do a bit better once in a while but year after year ISPL does the best. The only drawback to it is like most of the black varieties it does terrible if you have a very wet season and that is the reason I keep planting a good variety. Of the black tomatoes only Spudakee and Gary O' Sena have done fairly well in wet seasons so I try to have a couple of them in my later plantings along with Prudence Purple which though a pink does surprisingly well in the heat. Hopefully the TYLCV won't show up this year and I can find out if 1884 can do good along with a few others I would like to try in the hotter months.

I'm not trying to grow market amounts of tomatoes during the hottest months but it is nice to have some fresh ones for our family and friends. I know I won't be able to keep up the work of growing in the hottest weather if my health continues to decline but as long as I am able I'm going to give it my best shot. It only takes a few minutes each day very early in the morning to do most of the work involved and the regular spraying which needs to be done very late in the day. I don't make a habit of spending much time in the garden during the middle of the day from mid May til October but if I can muster the energy I will try my best to grow a few good tomatoes each week during that hellishly hot time. If my experiences help others then I am more than happy to keep posting the results both good and bad.

As to my peppers I don't think it is so much a matter of how they are being fertilized but by the increasing frequency and virulence of bacterial leaf spot which has become quite bad around here in the past few years. If it doesn't improve I may have to cut back on bells which I thoroughly enjoy and resort to more easily grown types like Marconi. I have grown them with awesome results in the past but I prefer the thicker walled sweeter bells; but another year like last year and I will have to set out a few just for insurance.

Bill
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Old March 24, 2018   #89
ScottinAtlanta
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Bill has given me a lot of great advice about growing tomatoes in the South, and I have prospered due to him. Thanks, Bill!
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Old March 25, 2018   #90
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Edited to remove off-topic posts and for thread continuity.

Rather than everyone responding to an offensive post, I'd appreciate it if you'd report it via the report post feature. I am notified immediately and it makes it a lot easier on me, since I won't have to delete a bunch of posts.

M.



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