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Ol Man Stillmanz plants and pods

Pam,

Yeah, I heard - my office manager's daughter, who lives down there, actually had to find a sweater to wear the other day!

I wish I had built a bigger and better grow chamber, one with a hammock and a place to sit my beer down beside me while I bask in the heat.

Seriously, though, I really cannot complain a bunch. The snowfall and freezing rain, especially if we have a slow warm-up, will soak into the ground. It's so pure also, not to mention it will drive all those evil insects further into the earth.

There is a method to God's madness.

Mike
 
Pam said:
Foliage applications of calcium for Blossom End Rot are pretty much a waste of calcium. It usually clears up on its own with out any intervention on the part of the gardener. The best thing to do is make sure there is plenty of available calcium in the soil *before* you plant and avoid high nitrogen fertilizers.
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Can you explain how the deficiency clears up on it's own? Thank you Pam.
 
It's not a true deficiency, it's a water management, mineral salt, or temperature issue. Anything that affects water and thus calcium ion uptake in the plant can cause blossom end rot, but as soon as conditions change, the deficiency clears itself up. The best preventative is to add calcium to the soil to increase the potential for the plant to take it up. I put a couple of calcium vitamin tablets in the soil around my tomato plants for an extra boost.


The problem with calcium sprayed on the foliage is that it doesn't penetrate deep enough into the plant's tissues to affect fruit development.
 
stillmanz said:
Pam can ph effect how a plant absorbs calcium?
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I didn't know the answer to that, being a dirt grower I don't pay as much attention to pH. However, a quick google tells me this:

"Field-grown tomatoes are usually planted into soil with a pH of between 6 and 6.5, but it is possible to grow them in more acidic conditions. However, as soil pH declines, the availability of calcium drops off, especially below pH 5.5. In this situation, plants have smaller soil reserves of calcium to draw on, so uptake can be restricted."
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