Winter Tomatoes in Fl. (Plus veggies and garden pics)

[Ginger2778]

Wonderful photos! We have a salmon pink queen myrtle as part of the landscaping on our complex's streets. Also blue and purple. They are all stunning! I love your gingers too, much nicer and more natural than the "designer" ones you see at libraries and such. I love crushing a piece of leaf, smells so good.

[MsCowpea]

Barb, Haas does not do well in Florida or so we were told. We got one anyway and it is not great. We must have about 10 avocados but only half are
proper grafted trees. Some are in lousy locations (too shady, etc.). I don’t remember the name of Derek’s favorite (huge) tree. It was recommended to us at nursery almost 19 years ago. The avocados are quite big and people who love avocados say they are great. He gets Unbelievably amount of avocados but many branches have broken.

ADDED- I JUST LOOKED AT THE AVOCADO LINK I POSTED. I think Derek’s tree may be a Monroe. Sort of rings a bell.

That is a mat of several banana trees with probably 5 bunches forming. Not my favorite banana though. I have a dwarf variety someone gave me that I like much better. But it isn’t easy to grow-more disease prone. We did get lots and lots of rain.


Marsha, I bought some edible ginger and forgot to plant it so tomorrow I will put it someplace and hope it lives. I didn’t know the leaves of ginger smells nice when crushed.

[Growing Coastal]

On the experiments with Coco Coir Slabs, I kept one going and it was a huge producer of perfect tomatoes. Then ALL of the tomatoes started getting BER. The entire time I fed the plant Masterblend formula. The plant was strong and had no problem setting fruit.

I read just giving it more Calcium Nitrate doesn't work, so I made the masterblend solution stronger (more of all 3 ingredients) and the new tomatoes were eventually BER free.

My current best plant (looks and quality fruit) from September is grown in a rockwool slab. Unfortunately, ii's in a really bad area for wind.

I have grown a couple of varieties of tomatoes that had a lot of the 1st fruit get BER. After making fertilizer adjustments they still got BER but, I noticed, only if I let them get dry. Those two varieties did much better at not getting BER if I watered them a lot. More than any other plant would want. Then I got good fruit from them.
They were Paul Robeson and Stump of the World, both grown in pots.

[MsCowpea]

With those slabs too bad you can’t set up a continuous fertigation system. I was surprised to see coir slabs in massive greenhouse I visited as I have never had any luck with coir but it has probably improved. Something does seem off if you needed to use so much Masterblend.

[arnorrian]

So beautiful.

[MsCowpea]

Thank you for comments.

Pruning??? Bah humbug! Make a ladder. ( That ladder really damaged the branch rubbing on it. Needed carpet stapled on.) There are a fair amount of avocados though many dropped. This is not DH favorite tree, that one is even bigger.

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Trying to kill a gigantic stand (mat) of bananas by chopping them down and then smothering but they still pop up.
Called 1000 Fingers but they never did squat.

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Here is a section of 1000 Fingers that didn’t get cut down. They are super tall. You can see a hand developing but they never do well.

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Some yellowing of prehistoric pothos we are trying to get rid of. We cut through the root that went into the ground and hoping they can’t live
epiphytally (?)

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Cover crop and self seeded pole beans

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[MsCowpea]

Scotch bonnets on ‘hospital’ trailer. Took off 2/3 of leaves , Look decidedly worse now compared to their former selves prior to me unnecessarily dosing them with micronutrients. ( see previous picture of healthy plant). Trashed 3 smaller plants as they looked awful and i can regrow them before the fall.

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[Ginger2778]

That banana looks so hopeful. Wonder why it doesn't do well. I see a whole bunch of pineapple tops. I love growing pineapples, so easy! We actually ate our first one of the year today. So sweet! I admire you both for working in this heat and humidity. It's really hard. I cleared the last of my tomatoes and the 3 eggplant plants out today because bulk pickup is Saturday.

[MsCowpea]

I don’t know why 1000 fingers never produced much. They were massive big , healthy banana plants and we gave them probably 15 years to do something. I got it more as an ornamental novelty though you can eat the bananas which are about 1 1/2 inch. I saw one and thought ‘how unique’ . The bananas form all along the whole stem so it can be a 6+ foot long stalk of bananas but didn’t happen on ours. (Derek, not me, can do all that work in the heat for hours and hours. I do as little as possible when it is brutal outside.)

[MsCowpea]

Marsha, forgot to tell you I went back to mango guy who sells his fruit and asked him about pruning. He says he prunes religiously. Tips off every single branch after they fruit and they are pretty big trees (20 to 25 feet??j but he gets a ladder and trims the whole tree. Said you won’t get fruit without pruning. Of course, he was talking to the choir, the non-believer was at home.

[Ginger2778]

Marsha, forgot to tell you I went back to mango guy who sells his fruit and asked him about pruning. He says he prunes religiously. Tips off every single branch after they fruit and they are pretty big trees (20 to 25 feet??j but he gets a ladder and trims the whole tree. Said you won’t get fruit without pruning. Of course, he was talking to the choir, the non-believer was at home.

It totally works. BTW - if you want some, I can drop you off a bagful, of my Kent mangos. They are fabulous tasting, and I have loads! Driveway drop,off to keep us safe.

[MsCowpea]

That is so sweet of you to offer but I actually have more mangos than Derek and I can eat or freeze. But I appreciate your thoughtfulness!!! We got lots from a neighbor and I just bought 25 pounds more from the mango guy, who happens to be Vietnamese. He gave me a taste of a mango sauce he makes which is used as a condiment. I really liked it so I got the recipe and will try to make it soon. It has scotch bonnet peppers in it so right up my alley. Thought about making Jamaican chutney as well - I had a great recipe but need to dig it up. You are lucky to have such productive trees as you are so nice to share the bounty and still have a bunch to dry and eat for hubby and you.

[Barb_FL]

Need clarification on the mango pruning. So the mango guys, picks the fruit and the tips off each branch that produced the fruit? This would be easy for me. Where does he make his cut? at the end of the stem holding the mango or higher?

Also, my Kent mango tree is now producing a lot of new growth ; probably because of the many inches of main in the last 2 weeks. Should I do any pruning of these?

Last year was a Kent Mango bust because of bad hail in late March. This year had a ton of blossoms too early, really bad cold windy rain in late January that fried them, they bloomed again and a decent amount of small Kents produced and still on the tree. I don't think they will get big at all. I did pick 28 really big mangos the other day before the squirrels got them.

My other Mango tree - the chocanon was a major producer last year - it's on the other side of the house and was not affected by the hail. This year, not much at all. It could be the every other year theory or lack of pruning.

Marsha - on the picture you posted the other day, it had 3 tip points. but I don't see that.

I originally thought to prune when the season was over but I like the idea of pruning as I pick fruit.

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Tomatoes - I am taking down my plants also. I don't even care if there are tomatoes on them. I will pick them green and give away. I don't want to be outside; it was brutally hot today - 88 but a real feel was higher especially in my hot backyard.

[MsCowpea]

Barb, funny you should ask about new leaves and pruning. I just saw this video 2 days ago -don’t know if it applies to your situation or not.
I just don’t know if I would be brave enough to take all that off. She just cut and cuts but never a branch with fruit.



She has many many mango videos and also has one showing how to prune an overgrown tree. I need to watch all her pruning videos again.
I have pretty much seen all her other videos.

I think I confused you on the pruning. The man I get mangos from doesn’t prune the branch as he picks the fruit. At least I don’t think he does. But I will text him and ask. I think all the fruit is picked and he laters goes back and trims back each branch if I am understanding him properly. He Said you cut above a node but I am not sure how far you go back. I think some of that depends on how tall you are trying to maintain the tree. I will let Marsha answer as I have no experience doing it properly.

[Barb_FL]

Her young growth is further along than mine, but otherwise the same. Thank you. I need to rewatch the videos Marsha posted to.

[MsCowpea]

Barb, I found this video and I find it easier to understand. Watch the whole thing and they talk about tipping the branches.
They also show how to train small tree and how to heavily prune trees that are too big.

[Ginger2778]

Her young growth is further along than mine, but otherwise the same. Thank you. I need to rewatch the videos Marsha posted to.

Barb, also study the diagram I posted earlier, it really helps you learn what grows from where you prune or tip.

[Ginger2778]

Barb, I found this video and I find it easier to understand. Watch the whole thing and they talk about tipping the branches.
They also show how to train small tree and how to heavily prune trees that are too big.

I just watched this video from start to finish. It was just fantastic. Thank you for posting it.

[Barb_FL]

I just watched this entire video. What great insights. It would be fun to get a new mango tree and start it right from the start.

I will be sure to take before and after shots.

[Ginger2778]

I just watched this entire video. What great insights. It would be fun to get a new mango tree and start it right from the start.

I will be sure to take before and after shots.

Everyone says Glenn, Lemon Zest, Pickering, and Cac are fabulous tasting mango varieties, do you have a new variety in mind? I am trying Carrie for the first time this year great taste but too soft. And Nam Doc Mai is overrated, it's good, but it's just sweet, could use a bit more acid. I hope my Lemon Zest produces fruit next year, the mango Facebook page folks are crazy about it.