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Re: EarthBox tomatoes not ripening properly

Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:12 pm
by Ginger2778
PS1452 wrote: Mon Jul 27, 2020 11:00 am
Growing Coastal wrote: Mon Jul 27, 2020 10:42 am How does one check the ph in an Earthbox? PH that is off can affect nutrient uptake.
That is certainly a valid point. I do have a pH meter, and no I haven't checked it. Being a first year box I would expect it to be on the low end since the lime may not have had a chance to fully "activate" in it.
Yes, this!
I just ordered a pH meter.

Re: EarthBox tomatoes not ripening properly

Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2020 3:21 pm
by PS1452
So I've checked the pH and the average is around 6.0, which as I expected is on the low side but tolerable. BUT...the soil temp is over 90 degrees, confirming my suspicions that the roots are too hot. We'll be investigating ways to shade the boxes, and how to get water to them in the afternoon that isn't super hot from laying in the sun heated hose all day.

Re: EarthBox tomatoes not ripening properly

Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2020 5:35 pm
by Ginger2778
PS1452 wrote: Mon Jul 27, 2020 3:21 pm So I've checked the pH and the average is around 6.0, which as I expected is on the low side but tolerable. BUT...the soil temp is over 90 degrees, confirming my suspicions that the roots are too hot. We'll be investigating ways to shade the boxes, and how to get water to them in the afternoon that isn't super hot from laying in the sun heated hose all day.
An excellent idea about the water. Do you have many earthboxes, I am asking because maybe you can turn the hose on full, and just hand water with cooler water. I do that with all 48 of my Earthboxes. I only need to water about every 3 days, it takes about 25 minutes.