gardenguy

gardenguy · February 15, 2007

i have been growing tomatoes for over 20 years,, but i was in california.... i have moved to phoenix arizona...
last year was my first year here,,,,,,,,,,,, gee it was hot...
going to grow tomatoes in a raised bed,, this year.,,,made out o wood.....
any ideas on trying to keep things cool......

thank's
Gardenguy.

sirtanon · February 16, 2007

I'm in Phoenix myself.. Southwest Valley - Buckeye to be precise. Whereabouts are you?

As far as keeping things cool.. make sure any containers or beds you use are light in color - White, silver, tan, etc.. Anything dark and the plant will literally bake from the roots up.

Mulch is a MUST. Again, light mulch is good. The soil dries out QUICK during July and August here, so make sure you water frequently and have GOOD mulch. At our house, we use lawn clippings - they work GREAT.

During the summer, two words. SHADE and CLOTH.

...and if you can manage a misting system of some sort, even better.

biermaster · February 16, 2007

what you have to think about is we really have two short seasons. Is possible for plants to hold from the spring to fall season but you will be fighting the heat, humidity, and the fungal problems associated with them. Mulch is the biggest key to growing. I mean twice what you are use to using and drip irrigation on a timer that you can use twice a day from 1st of July to end of September. Shade is the other big requirement. If you are using a raised bed, the build a frame over it using pvc or wood and then cover by about 15 May and remove when the heat comes down to 90 during the day for at least 10 days. You can easily over water so watch the leaves. Folger sprays, Asprin, and Teas, as well as soil drenches work for me. I would seriously think of putting either foam board or cardboard on the inside of the frame to help keep the roots cool. You might want to think about adding some green sand to your bed if the are on alkaline side. You want to transplant early as possible, like this weekend. You are a little lower than I am and my average frost day is 15 March but that hasn't happened for a number of years so I shoot for the late transplants in on the 1st and the earlly ones in the ground about the 15th of Feb. You should be about two weeks earlier. You can grow tomatoes here but the fall tomatoes are normally the better ones and if the frost holds off or you cover you can pick for Christmas. You want early,short season varieties for the spring season. Bloody Butcher, Romma, New Big Dwarf and cherries have given me tomatoes most of the year. There are other things you can do such as cut the plants back in the heat so they start producing new growth which helps produce blossoms when it does start cooling down. Western Gardening Book by Sunset is great for California but you should look at Gardening In the Southwest Desert as a guide.

Sherry_AK · February 17, 2007

Hi, Gardenguy! Welcome to T'ville. As you can imagine, I can offer no advice about hot growing conditions, but I wanted to thank you for visiting my web site and leaving a nice note.

I'm sure you'll get lots of good information here.

Regards,

Sherry

February 15, 2007	#1
gardenguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: phoenix arizona Posts: 1	gardenguy i have been growing tomatoes for over 20 years,, but i was in california.... i have moved to phoenix arizona... last year was my first year here,,,,,,,,,,,, gee it was hot... going to grow tomatoes in a raised bed,, this year.,,,made out o wood..... any ideas on trying to keep things cool...... thank's Gardenguy.

February 16, 2007	#2
sirtanon Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Phoenix, AZ (zone 9b) Posts: 796	I'm in Phoenix myself.. Southwest Valley - Buckeye to be precise. Whereabouts are you? As far as keeping things cool.. make sure any containers or beds you use are light in color - White, silver, tan, etc.. Anything dark and the plant will literally bake from the roots up. Mulch is a MUST. Again, light mulch is good. The soil dries out QUICK during July and August here, so make sure you water frequently and have GOOD mulch. At our house, we use lawn clippings - they work GREAT. During the summer, two words. SHADE and CLOTH. ...and if you can manage a misting system of some sort, even better. __________________ I could sail by on the winds of silence, and maybe they won't notice... but this time I think it would be better if I swim..

February 16, 2007	#3
biermaster Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Tucson,Az Posts: 58	Az gardening what you have to think about is we really have two short seasons. Is possible for plants to hold from the spring to fall season but you will be fighting the heat, humidity, and the fungal problems associated with them. Mulch is the biggest key to growing. I mean twice what you are use to using and drip irrigation on a timer that you can use twice a day from 1st of July to end of September. Shade is the other big requirement. If you are using a raised bed, the build a frame over it using pvc or wood and then cover by about 15 May and remove when the heat comes down to 90 during the day for at least 10 days. You can easily over water so watch the leaves. Folger sprays, Asprin, and Teas, as well as soil drenches work for me. I would seriously think of putting either foam board or cardboard on the inside of the frame to help keep the roots cool. You might want to think about adding some green sand to your bed if the are on alkaline side. You want to transplant early as possible, like this weekend. You are a little lower than I am and my average frost day is 15 March but that hasn't happened for a number of years so I shoot for the late transplants in on the 1st and the earlly ones in the ground about the 15th of Feb. You should be about two weeks earlier. You can grow tomatoes here but the fall tomatoes are normally the better ones and if the frost holds off or you cover you can pick for Christmas. You want early,short season varieties for the spring season. Bloody Butcher, Romma, New Big Dwarf and cherries have given me tomatoes most of the year. There are other things you can do such as cut the plants back in the heat so they start producing new growth which helps produce blossoms when it does start cooling down. Western Gardening Book by Sunset is great for California but you should look at Gardening In the Southwest Desert as a guide. __________________ Freedom doesn't mean you can do as you want but to do what is "right"

February 17, 2007	#4
Sherry_AK Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Alaska Zone 3/4 Posts: 1,857	Hi, Gardenguy! Welcome to T'ville. As you can imagine, I can offer no advice about hot growing conditions, but I wanted to thank you for visiting my web site and leaving a nice note. I'm sure you'll get lots of good information here. Regards, Sherry