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Finally, it’s tomato planting season in Colorado. Or is it?
When is the right time to plant tomatoes along the Front Range? Is it still too cold, is the soil dry enough, when is the next snowstorm, but I want to plant!
Technically, we didn’t have consistent nights in the 1950s to officially plant warm-season crops, the vegetable and herb plants that require warmer nights for continued growth. Cool season crops like spinach and kale shrug and grow happily when nights are in the 40s, even high 30s if they have been growing for a few weeks.
If you’ve been putting off planting tomatoes (and peppers, eggplant, green beans and other warm-season crops), you’ve probably made a good choice. Or if you use cold frames or keep them nice and warm at night under covered tunnels, good for you. You have a chance to win the first ripe tomato during the Fourth of July contest.
I’m old fashioned. I want to plant tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, beans and eggplant in the ground at a temperature of 65 degrees. Partly cloudy day with steady nights above 55 degrees and a slow warming trend ahead. Lately it’s still been in the cold 40s at night. But we’re getting close. My official planting goal is in a few days as it looks warmer and warmer. (Does it get too hot too quickly? Probably.)
Let’s give tomatoes the best chance this season to grow healthy, abundant and hopefully disease-free.
You should have purchased or grown your own warm season transplants by now (or soon). If they have been grown in a garden center or under lighting in your home, they will need to be strengthened by acclimatization for the transition to outdoor life. slowly over a period of days. This universal process is called “hardening off” and is recommended for any plant, not just tomatoes that grew in it. There’s nothing worse than having your well-cared for seedlings croak on the first day from abrupt exposure to mile-high sun, wind and heat.
Start by placing the plants outside in a shady, windless spot for a few hours, then increase the time outside each day. After a few days, move them to a sunny spot for half a day and then put them back in the shade. Bring them indoors or into a garage at night when temperatures are still around 40 degrees. Keep an eye on their water needs; they dry quickly in small containers. After about four to six days they should be ready for primetime breeding.
The sunlight location you choose should match what the vegetable or herb needs for optimal growth. Try to rotate where you plant from year to year to help prevent soil-borne diseases and pests that can be introduced by certain crops.
Plant deeply in good soil that has been prepared with an amendment or fertilizer. A soil test would tell you exactly what the soil may be lacking in nutrients (too much or too little) and recommendations for improvement. Take the test early next spring if you forgot this year.
Water the seed well a few hours before transplanting so that the root ball stays together and is easier to place and plant. Pick any flowers growing on the plant while it is in the container; when planted, the transplant will focus on root growth versus energy for flowering and fruit.
Dig a wide hole where the tomato will be planted, deep enough to leave only the top growth. Carefully cut off any side branches down to the top growth. I clean my little scissors beforehand so that there is no chance of disease transfer from last year or yesterday. (Also sterilize tomato cages. Why take any risk?)
Then carefully remove the plant from its container, even from peat-based containers, which will not break down easily in our soil as they do in other parts of the country. Carefully place the plant at the bottom of the dug hole. Gently fill the soil around the plant, watering when half the hole is filled with soil. Finish adding more soil to fill the hole and water again. Only a few top leaves should be visible.
Where side growth is removed, roots develop in the planting hole, making the plant much stronger. Place a stake or stake next to the root ball to support the plant as it grows. (Adding it later may damage the plant roots.) If planting in a pot, use the same procedure if the container is deep enough.
Planting a tomato on its side in a ditch works well if a deep hole cannot be dug in the garden space. Dig a long trench the length of the plant. Remove the side shoots and leaves and carefully lay them along the trench, with the remaining top leaves at the end. Cover the soil along the entire length of the plant so that the soil is level with the rest of the area. There should be no hill; if there is, the ditch is not deep enough. Place the stake next to the foliage. Water along the soil-covered trench as new roots will grow there.
(Check out my Denver Post video about planting leggy tomatoes.)
After planting, place a large cage over indeterminate tomatoes (varieties that produce fruit until frost and grow very large). Smaller, determined or compact (dwarf) tomatoes often do not need to be staked, but it is not a bad idea to do so. Mulch the plant with chemical-free grass clippings, weed-free straw or biodegradable paper.
Keep an eye on the weather – always. If high winds or storms are forecast (please, fair please, no hail), make sure you cover your plants before the downpours hit. Buckets, plastic trash cans, and even large boxes with weighted rocks or boards on top will work in a pinch. If you wish, go a step further and invest in inexpensive rebar or garden stakes and place them around the plants that need the most protection. Then clamp on lightweight tarps, floating row cover or mesh to protect against hail and heavy rain.
Unfortunately, storms can destroy a garden in minutes if you are not prepared.
Betty Cahill speaks and writes about gardening in the Rocky Mountain Region.
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