The Tribune | Weekend | 11
Friday, November 19, 2021
gardening
November notes Good day, gardeners! The slight dip in temperatures and the decreasing daylight hours are a trigger for some fruit trees to put on a final growth flush of foliage, if they are thriving. Healthy citrus and mango can give a push of leaves in mid-November, typically followed by the setting up of the flowering stage. It is almost getting a bit late to prune either of these, but I continue to do so until the end of November, although I am only pinching new buds if a pest gets to the point of causing leaf damage. Mature trees have mostly finished their last flush but many trees around the island are particularly full of foliage this year due to the lack of any serious winds, thankfully. This may create a need to thin trees out to create more light for plants underneath, or to increase airflow through the tree. I have been doing one last pruning for plant or tree branching structure this week, setting the pattern for desirable outward or upward growth instead of inward or downward growth, unless, of course, that is desired (espalier, reducing height of fruit to pick). Generally, inward or downward growth is detrimental to overall plant or tree strength and structure. Cutting to the correct node is important then pruning fruit trees, and also for tomato plants. Nodes are the point of branching on a stem, where the leaf is attached to the stem and new buds emerge from. The direction that the leaf stem points, is generally the direction that the bud will also grow in. If a leaf is pointing outwards, new growth will grow outwards. If the leaf is pointing inwards, new growth will grow inwards. I top pinch my indeterminate tomato plants to control the height, to increase strength of the main stem, and to promote fruiting lower down towards the center of gravity (less need for supports). When walking past tomatoes, I pinch off the growing part of the plant above the highest flower cluster or leaf node at around waist or shoulder height (depending on growing conditions, ground, container, trellised, tied up, etcetera). This allows for a sturdier plant and yields more than enough tomatoes for my purpose, per plant. Seed packets or
ROOT vegetables like onions can now be planted vendors can tell you whether your tomato is determinate or indeterminate. Determinate is a bush type tomato that can be far more manageable for folks with minimal time to tend the plants. Indeterminate tomato plants will require support to remain upright, many of the favorites are indeterminate and will take a little more attention than determinate types. Fruit trees require less water now than a few months ago, but the winds that we get through the winter months will hasten drying rates on fruit trees, veggies, and landscape plants. Supplemental watering may be required, although at less of a rate than in the hot months. Mulch is beneficial to trees and tomatoes alike, as it helps prevent the ground or containers from drying out as fast and it places organic matter back into the soil. I am hustling to get nutrients onto plants that are flushing with a last push of new growth or that have used up the available nutrients applied a few months ago to make the best of this
growth flush, but at a reduced rate, before things slow down through the winter months when less nutrients are being used. Growing your own vegetables, herbs and edibles is much easier at this time of year. Root vegetables are happy being planted now, carrots, beets and onions, for example. Sweet potato and cassava can be planted anytime. Remember to keep a regular schedule for watering tomato plants. Irregular watering or overwatering leads to calcium being locked up in the soil and unavailable for use by the roots for transport to the fruit, which in turn leads to blossom end rot. No, Epsom salts do not cure this. There cure is found in adjusting watering schedules to maintain a not dry but a not saturated planting media, or by changing or amending the media to a more suitable mix whether in the ground or in containers. Annuals ought to be thriving by now, I am running behind on annuals due to supply issues of media and pots. When planting annuals, think towards March or
May when the sun is higher in the sky, most annuals prefer a bit of shade, and it helps to extend their life cycle. What is in the shade now, may not be shaded once the vernal equinox passes in the third week in March. Tender leafy greens and vegetables thrive from mid-November until around May. Leaves will stay a bit more tender when grown in a little shade as compared to the full sun. As always, I wish you happy gardening. • Adam Boorman is the nursery manager at the Fox Hill Nursery. You can contact him with any questions you may have, or topics you would like to see discussed, at gardening242@gmail.com. at gardening242@gmail.com.
