We Have an Ocotillo Competition Going!

Cathy and Bill think they have the largest ocotillo in Las Vegas. Does anyone want to challenge them? It is about 22 feet tall. Keep your eye on this posting. I will update it as I learn more.

They sent me a picure of its base.

Orange Tree Dropping Fruit

Q. My orange has lots of blossoms, they begin to set the fruit, but when the fruit becomes the size of a pencil eraser, the fruit drops off the tree. What is going on? I watered it, and applied fertilzer.

 

A. I have two questions that might shed more light: 1. Is this tree planted less than three years ago? and 2.  Is it a Navel type orange?

Sometimes it takes a few years for the plant to come into enough maturity to set and hold the fruits. . . . And dropping fruits is a common complaint with Navel Oranges. . . They set fruits and when the heat hits or the first dry wind and they slough off most, if not all their fruits. . . With time more and more will fruits will make it to maturity. . .. Most people are disappointed with the quantity of Navels but not the quality.

 

Terry Mikel

Yellow Vomit-Like Thing Could Be Mushroom Related

Q. I found this thing in the picture I sent to you under my Joshua tree this morning. It is about 6 inches long?  Is it mold?  I only water three times a week for 5 minutes

Yellow "Thing" Under Joshua Tree

A. I get a picture of this once a twice a year, usually in the spring when it is cooler, there has been rain and there is plenty of wood chips for it to feed on. This is called a slime mold. Kind of resembles vomit.

Slime mold on wood mulch at the orchard.

They can range in colors from yellow to orange and are related to mushrooms in a very loose sense. Like mushrooms they are a decomposer and feed off of decaying organic matter like wood mulches or undecomposed organic matter in the soil. We see them in the orchard a lot feeding off of decaying wood mulch.

Slime mold in a lawn. It is feeding on decaying grass either as thatch or clippings or both.

No treatment is necessary. It is a good guy since it breaks down woody debris. Does not attack living plants. If you want to be an industrialist, destroy it with the back of a rake and rake it into the mulch and soil. It will probably come back at some time but like a pest would but it is a pest only because we are afraid of it. I will post pictures of some on my blog.

Fungus Gnats Can Be Controlled With Special Bt Formulation

Q. I recently transplanted two house plants and now  have gnats coming out of the soil and infecting my entire house.  Is there any way to kill these little buggers or do I have to get rid of all the dirt and start over?

Since We Cannot Burn Bermudagrass in Early Spring Anymore We Are Forced to Use Equipment to Keep it Looking Good

Q. (Response to an eariler posting I made regarding a bumpy bermudagrass lawn). I have a TruCut reel mower. I think the lawn is flatter than the impression I gave you in my earlier question. The bumpiness might be more from uneven thatch, thus thin spots. I aerated it several times last year. Maybe I need to feed and mow more often. It can also be due to weight imbalance with speed of the mover, thus with a front throw, I notice that when the basket is fuller, the bouncing is less. The lawn has never been as nice as I want. I feel the peak season is short in this climate.

 

A. Las Vegas sits in what educated turfgrass professionals might call the "Transition zone". The US has three major turfgrass growing regions; climate suitable for cool season grasses like bluegrass, a climate suitable for warm season grasses like bermudagrass and this odd area in between these two climates we call the "transition zone". The transition zone is capapable growing both warm and cool season grasses equally POORLY. Kind of reminds me of those tools that are 8 in 1; they can do eight different jobs but none of them very well. Kind of like a Swiss Army knife or a Leatherman.

 

I was just looking again at your response to my eariler email and question on bumpy lawns.  One benefit of overseeding is that the process of overseeding helps to eliminate some of the thatch because you must dethatch the lawn sufficiently so that the seed used in overseeding can make good contact with the soil for good germination.

 

Burning a berumudagrass hayfield primarily for weed control at the Batesville Station of the University of Arksansas.
Photo courtesy of the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension (http://batesvillestation.uark.edu/3_.jpg)

Many years ago common bermudagrass would be burned in the winter to get rid of the dead surface grass and in the process any thatch accumulation. It is still recommended that bermudagrass hayfields be burned for numerous reasons including thatch removal and reduction of insects and diseases.

Years ago bermudagrass lawns were also burned in the rural areas of Nevada and probably still are in some places. This is smart for several reasons that I will not get into here. We didn’t have thatch when bermudagrass was burned in the winter. Because we cannot burn dead grass any  more due to local ordinances and safety issues, this dead grass remains and adds to the thatch layer.

Dethatcher, vertical mower or verticutter. It can be used for several things but commonly used to remove thatch from
thatchy lawns or turfgrass areas. Bermudagrass can be a heavy thatch producer.

We now substitute a gasoline-driven machine (called a dethatcher, vertical mower or verticutter depending on who you are talking to) instead of burning the dead grass. This of course uses petroleum, adds pollutants to the air and leaves this bermudagrass thatch that we have harvested for dumping somewhere. Or burning. Aren't we smart?

Lots of Variabilities in Garlic Size Could be Due to Many Things

Q. My last load of mushroom compost with chicken poop had redwood chips in the load.  The guy who delivered it didn't clean his truck bed before hauling over my load of compost.  So, I've no idea if this contributed to the smaller garlic bulbs OR if i did something wrong OR if was the early 90 degree weather W/ the cold/freeze snap we had 4 times this spring. Spacing was 4"/6" apart in a  triangle grid; the other bed was 6"/6". I used a tape measure to mark off the beds.

The garlic was screaming to be pulled; some of the bulbs had already begun to split. The Polish White (no photo) usually grows medium bulbs; I have small and extra small bulbs.  Just a few with normal size. Since the size of the bulbs was consistently inconsistent in both beds, I bet you anything it was the compost.  I found out much too late that the 'organic' fertilizer store I used was not the correct place.  There are two in town.  One with high quality compost (I used it the year before.  Last years harvest was exceptional), and the other with inferior compost (I used this year by accident).  Live and learn.

Oh, and when I was prepping the beds, I forgot to use the blood meal.  May have been better that I forgot.  I have others tell me they've gone out and found their beds torn from animals smelling the blood.  We have all sorts of wild life out here.



Readers garlic. Good quality but some irregularities in size. This can be caused by many things.
 

A. This was a question submitted from Texas. Okay. Here's the deal on size of garlic. Planting larger cloves results in larger bulbs. Use the smaller ones for cooking or drying.

                       Spacing. They should be no closer than 4 inches apart if you are pushing size. I use drip tape and I plant on either side of the drip tape in triangular spacing to give them more room.

                       Bulb size is diminished with salinity. If your chicken manure was pretty hot or the compost was somewhat saline expect smaller bulb sizes.

                       C:N ratio. If the carbon to nitrogen ratio (amount of nitrogen in the compost) is too high it will diminish bulb size. Ideal C:N ratio is around 20:1. If it gets above 40:1 you have to supplement with additional nitrogen.

                       Harvested too early. I couldn't tell from the pic but what told you to harvest the garlic? What are the indicators you use to harvest? The bulbs look a bit young but what I could see of the tops there appeared to be some dieback. In northern California they let the tops fall over. We can't do that in Nevada but harvest when about 1/3 of the foliage is brown which is early for other places.

                       Not enough phosphorus in the bed. Did you apply phosphorus at the time of planting? I supplement with nitrogen through the growing season by sidedressing with my favorite N fertilizer. If organic you can use blood meal or guano or fish emulsion. If not organic then sidedress with ammonium sulfate.

                       You should know the quality of your compost. They should provide a copy of the test results. Usual problems with compost are salts too high, C:N ratio wrong or too high, high concentrations of toxic minerals such as boron, compost unfinished and needs time to finish. It should not be hot in temperature when delivered. Compost is finished when it has cooled down and the microorganisms have begun to die off.

                       A little bit of redwood shouldn't hurt. However, it does have a stunting affect. We see this in redwood beds when flowers are grown close to the boards.

                       Remember to supplement the planting hole with phosphorus...bone meal...not blood meal. Then sidedress with nitrogen every 30 days. Others will say not to sidedress. Try both. Apply nitrogen (blood meal or equivalent) every 30 days along the row a few inches from the bulb on half the plantings. Liquid would be better such as compost tea if you are organic. If animals are a problem maybe use compost tea applications.

 

Lots of Nutrients are in the Soil and Water But Sometimes the Plants Can't Get to Them

Q. Are there any micronutrients in our hard Vegas water of significant quantity?   I ask because I'm wondering if say a fertilizer I use lacks a certain nutrient (say calcium), could it be made up for through regular waterings alone (assuming we remove soil from the equation and all things being equal)? Can we definitively conclude our water is calcium-rich or sulphur-rich or whatever rich?

 

A. Micronutrients are kind of a funny thing to try and predict. Yes, there are lots of many nutrients (micronutrients as well as major nutrients) present in our soils and water as well as calcium, magnesium and other major or macro elements but not a sizable amount of nitrogen, hopefully.

This chart shows the effect of how acid or alkaline soil water is on 12 nutrients available for plants through their roots.
Take iron in the center of the chart, for instance. The grey bar that iron resides in is wider on the left side and becomes
narrower as we follow the bar from left to right. The wide part of the band means there is plenty of iron available to the plant. As the band decreases in size, its availability to plants decreases as well. Also notice that the pH scale on the
 bottom increases from left to right. From this we can conclude that as the pH increases (becomes more alkaline) the amount of iron that the plant can get from the soil is smaller. Even though the total AMOUNT of iron is unchanged, what the plant
can get from the soil decreases as the soil (or water) becomes more alkaline. This breakeven point for the plant varies
but is basically a problem starting around a pH of 7.5. If we know the pH of a soil or water, we can get a rough idea
which nutrients, in general, will be a problem for plants or not.

 

Just because the micronutrients are present does not mean they will do the plant much good. They must be in a form available to the plant to use. Micronutrient (and major nutrients as well) availability to the plants depend on how alkaline or acidic the water is (pH) as well as what is called the oxidation/reduction (redox) potential of the water. As alkalinity rises (pH increases) the availability of iron, manganese and zinc become more limited. So in our soils, not just in our water, the alkalinity affects whether the plant can take up these micronutrients.

The quantity of iron in many of our soils is more than adequate for plants BUT because the soil is alkaline the plant can’t use them efficiently. By making the water or soil more acidic these micronutrients convert to a more available form and the plant can take them up. Thus we have those iron fertilizers that are mixed with sulfur to help make the soil more acidic (e.g., Ironite) and we have chelates which bind the iron in an a form available to plants and release it in this form so the plant can take it up and use it (EDDHA, EDTA, DTPA). Unlike Ironite, for instance, the chelates do not affect the acidity of the soil making the iron (or any of the other micronutrients) more available to plants.

Ironite is a product that combines sulfur and iron in a single application.
The reasoning is that the sulfur will lower the soil pH as it is "consumed"
by soil microorganisms. This lowering of the soil pH will then make
the iron residing in the soil close to it, more avaible to the plant.

Sprint 138 is an iron chelate. Chelates work on the priniciple
that this chemical "claw" protects the iron from chemical reactions
and allows the iron to be used by the plant. The chelate is EDDHA.
The chelate is then called Iron EDDHA or FeEDDHA.

Those are the two methods used to make micronutrients available to plants;

1. increase acidity, or
2. chelate (protect) the nutrient in a form available to plants.

So are the micronutrients in adequate supply in our water? No, but they are in high enough quantities in MOST soils in the valley to satisfy most plant requirements IF the soil were more acidic. So we end up applying a liquid calcium (usually calcium chloride) to the fruit in multiple sprays (usually five or more) as the fruit is developing to alleviate corky spot and bitter pit in a highly productive orchard. But our soil is LOADED with calcium and you would think…no… that’s impossible, it should never happen.

Just because there is a lot of something in the soil or water does not mean the plant can get to it. Sometimes, besides the pH being a problem, these nutrients may be “bound up” either as secondary minerals (calcium in the form of calcium carbonate = limestone).

Calcium carbonate does not dissolve quickly. So if crops have a high demand for calcium over a fairly short period of time (March through August) they may not be able to get enough of that mineral (calcium) from the bound form (calcium carbonate or limestone). For instance, on some cultivars of pears and apples their demand for calcium can be very high over a relatively short period of time during development and the soil cannot release enough calcium to keep up with this large and quick demand. Thus the plants become calcium deficient (from this deficiency we develop disorders like cork spot on pear and bitter pit on apple; they are the same problem, a lack of calcium, but given different names on different crops).

Bitter pit in Mutsu apple grown in the Las Vegas valley.  Even though it looks like a "cork spot" which is the name
given to this disorder in pears. The brown spot may "erupt" on the surface as a blemish like this and/or it may also
cause discoloration of the white flesh under the skin. Sometimes it does not appear until after harvest.

This is cork spot on Comice pear. Notice the green "dimples" on the outside of the skin. Also notice the brown discoloration just under the skin and reaching into the fruit. Both corky spot and bitter pit are due to a lack of available
calcium from our calcium rich desert soils of southern Nevada. Calcium sprays (in our case using calcium chloride)
sprayed on the fruit during development helps to alleviate these problems.

 

Golf course superintendents see this problem too in our arid West. These very expensive golf course greens and tees are built totally on sand. The grasses on these spots sometimes develop calcium deficiency even though the water contains LOTS of calcium but the sand may not. They must apply calcium to their greens and tees even though the soil surrounding the greens and tees and the water they are applying is saturated in calcium in bound up forms. Because they cannot return the clippings to these spots (interferes with play) the nutrients are carted off these areas and dumped after mowing. If they could return the clippings and let them decompose back into the grass it would lessen the problem.

If turfgrass clippings are removed from the lawn area, this does not allow the nutrients to be recycled into the lawn area.
Mulching mowers are used to cut up the clippings into tiny pieces so that they decompose rapidly and release the
nutrients back to the soil where they were in the first place.

 

So a long winded answer to your question. Yes, there are lots of these nutrients around but often times they are unavailable due to the chemistry of the water, the soil and interactions with the plants.

 

Can I Prune My Shoestring Acacia Now?

Q. I planted a shoestring last Spring, and it is doing well. It has five lower limbs off of the main trunk and one of them is all most as long as the tree is tall. I was wondering if I can cut them off this Fall? They are so low they will be removed eventually any way. If I remove them will it help the main trunk to grow faster? Will it hurt the tree to cut them off now?

A. There are several things you can do about this. You will not hurt the tree to remove a few limbs (particularly lower ones) now. When I went to school and studied arboriculture, my professor would say two things I will never forget; the best time to prune is when the pruners are sharp AND if you know how to prune, you can prune using only your thumbnail. I have always strived in learning how to prune, what he meant by that. As time passed, I slowly learned.

 

In the desert we have to be a bit more careful in pruning because our environment is so harsh but the principles he taught me are still valid.

            Remove tree limbs very close to the trunk, making the cut with a sharp, clean and preferably sterilized pruning shears. Make the cut leaving a tiny bump (called the shoulder) intact on the trunk. Don’t cut flush to the tree trunk.

The shoulder of a limb attached to the trunk and where to make the cut in relation to the shoulder.

            Let me explain better where to cut. If you look at the limb, where it attaches to the trunk, you will see that it flare (become wider) at its base, at a point where it attaches to the trunk. Cut with the smallest cut possible but as close to this flair as you can. Do not leave a stub. Leaving this flair intact on the tree trunk is NOT leaving a stub.This type of cut, not cutting into the flair, will heal much faster than if you cut or remove the flair. You do not need pruning paint.

            If limbs are too long, yes, go ahead and cut them back now. Not a problem. You just do not want to make major cuts that change the basic structure of the tree now which opens it up to sunlight that might damage the limbs and trunk through sunburn.

            The fewer side branches or limbs you have (within reason), the faster the tree will grow in height. So remove smaller, weaker limbs or branches at the trunk. You can do that now as well.

 

Update on Grape Leaf Skeletonizer from Reader

I big thanks to Powell Gammill from Phoenix, Arizona, for sending these pictures along with his comments on grape leaf skeletonizers.

Attached are two pics I took last year that capture a female laying eggs (note precise characteristic pattern)

Grape leaf skeletonizer laying eggs on the grape leaf surface.
Picture courtesy Powell Gammill.

and a pic of newly hatched 1st instar larvae (and one 2nd stage) in uncharacteristic (non-line) feeding pattern (which I hope may indicate a viral infection is established around my vines) and a couple of organized egg clusters.  You can reprint them if you wish.

Grape leaf skeletonizer eggs laid (right bottom) with larvae hatching from eggs at center, bottom.
Photo courtesy Powell Gammill.

In addition to the Btk and spinosad, you can use dormant oil before leafing and horticultural oil to try and kill the molting larvae under the vines (but this would kill any emerging parasitic wasps as well).  By rotating treatments you can hopefully prevent resistance.  I have found a easy method of reduction is to look under the leaves and remove any infested leaves before they hatch or get large enough to move on.  They strip a leaf at a time and are not too hard to spot if they are still young and on a leaf.  Also the adults can't fly very well and look inelegant in flight.

Grape leaf skeletonizer adults.
Photo courtesy Powell Gammill.

As you said, if you pick the 3rd and 4th instars off manually do so with gloves and remove them as if you just drop them unharmed they may either find their way back to a vine or go to ground and cocoon. 

I think these were drying out getting ready to start flying.  Note, ours (Phoenix, AZ) have an orange head.  They too are reportedly irritating (cyanide?) to the skin...I know the larvae have irritating bristles.

Beautiful Moth Now, Deadly Assignment in Your Garden

I was working in the garage the other night, cleaning out some things and holding a small box. The overhead light was on so I could see the small box in front of me. Startling me, this flew in and landed on the box, attracted to the light.

Of course this is not my picture but can be found at

http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/pollinator-of-the-month/images/hawkmoths/eumorpha_typhon_lg.jpg This is the sphinx moth, hawk moth or sometimes we call them the hummingbird moth because they can pause in mid-air in front of a flower and sip up its nectar. However, my moth was gone as soon as I tried to get my camera. But the feds site will let me use their picture.

You will see them flying now, usually around dusk although they feed on the nectar of flowers and serve as very good pollinators, particularly of flowers with very long "throats". This is because their "tongue" is so long. But....there is a problem for gardeners.

This is the hornworm and it is the larva or immature (baby) of the sphinx/hawk/hummingbird moth. You will see them devouring grape leaves (one of their favorites), tomato leaves and other garden crops. They can be devastating this time of year and you might see them again in the fall.

 

It is your call but if  you want to control these "caterpillars" or larvae then use Bt (Dipel or Thuricide) or Spinosad for organic control. It will not harm the adult moth but will help in controlling the eating by the larvae. This will of course prevent the larvae that you kill from becoming more moths.

Watch for Grape Leaves Disappearing - Skeletonizer Flying

Q. I just sited my first grape leaf skeletonizer moth. I’ve learned that Bt will control the worms.   I’d like to try and minimize the larvae if I can by eradicating as many moths as possible. Can you recommend the best course of action, if any, to control the moth itself?

Grape leaf skeletonizer adult moth

A. Not a lot of people know what they look like. They are a dark, blue-black moth that resembles a wasp more than a moth. I will post a picture of the moth, eggs and damage on my blog for all to see. If you have grapes, everyone should start looking for these guys.

Grape leaf skeletonizer larva feeding ont he underside of grape leaf. This picture courtesy University of Arizona
and can be found at http://cals.arizona.edu/yavapai/diagnostics/Assets/Images/Insects/grapeleafskeletonizer1.jpg

            The adult only lives for about three days. Pretty much its sole purpose is to reproduce. The damage comes from the larvae eating the leaves, not the moth eating the leaves. The eggs are laid on the bottom of the leaf. The life cycle of the insect is about 60 days (two months). It takes about 7 days for the larvae to hatch from the deposited eggs.

            I know you want to control the adult in an attempt to control the young but it probably is not the best approach since the adult will be hard to kill. Soap and water or insecticidal soap will work IF the soapy water comes in direct contact with the moth. But since the adult does not eat the leaves, you would have to actually spray the adults to kill them.

            The larvae are fairly easy to kill since they eat grape leaves. You must spray it on the bottom of the leaves. Do this by pointing your applicator so it sprays up, on the bottom of the leaves. The Bt (Dipel, Thuricide) has about a one week residue on the leaves.

            Spinosad will also work and has about the same staying power but is a little harder on bees.

 

A word of caution: These larva are nasty critters. If a larva falls on your skin it will feel like you were burned by a matchhead.

Pruning Fruit Trees at Planting

Q. I planted some barefoot fruit trees earlier this year and unfortunately several did not survive. This was my fault since I didn't get them planted right away and the roots may have dried out.  I want to replace them with container nursery stock. The problem is that I want to prune the trees to knee to height per your ladderless orchard recommendations. All the nursery stock trees have limbs well above this height.  If purchased and planted now, can these trees be cut back to the lower height when planted and survive?

 

A. They can be pruned back provided the stems are not too large in diameter. Pick smaller container plants that are in good health. They will catch up or even surpass the size of larger container stock.

            I would make sure that the stem or trunk is well under an inch in diameter so you can cut them back. This should produce several new stems about 8 to ten inches below your cut.

            Some fruit trees sucker better than others. Peach and nectarine, for instance, have a harder time sending new shoots up after they have been cut if the diameter is too large. You should not kill the tree if you do this provided the diameter is small.

Insect Damage to Kiwi But Can't Find Insect

Q. I have a bit of a quandary. My male kiwi died and I did everything I could do to keep it alive. I then contacted Parks Seed and they sent me a new male free of charge, not even shipping. But then something started eating the leaves of my female kiwi. I searched every leaf and found nothing. I thought whatever it is must be eating at night and hiding during the day. I was right. It was a beetle. I found and identified the culprit; a black vine weevil. Now here is my question. If they have laid eggs in the pots (still in their one gallon originals) of my new male or the original female what do I do to stop the infestation if there are eggs or already larva feeding on the roots?

 

A. Kiwi is a bit cold sensitive for some parts of the valley. So be careful during the winter. However, we should be able to grow hardy kiwi here in most locations. You will have a hard time managing this plant in a 1 gallon container for any length of time. I would get it in the ground.

            Yes, it could be a black vine weevil or possibly root weevils which are more common here. It is possible the plant came to you with black vine weevil as a hitchhiker. Black vine weevil adults emerge in spring and cause plant injury by feeding upon blossoms, clusters, and small fruits.

            I would follow the same recommendations for growing it as our fruit trees; plant it in the ground with lots of compost at the time of planting, water it in thoroughly and stake the plant to keep it from moving, mulch the surface of the soil with organic mulch.

            If you collect some from the leaves at night and send it to the state entomologist through the State Department of Agriculture we can get this resolved.

            Control efforts are usually directed against the larvae living in the soil. Root weevils come out at night, as you have discovered, and chew on the edge of leaves leaving the edges of the leaves very raggedy looking. Control is difficult but they usually do not cause extensive damage that would kill the plant.

            When they feed on ornamentals we usually just ignore root weevils. If it is black vine weevil you would be looking at applying an insecticide to the soil in the container in an effort to control the larva or immature forms. You would need to look for an insecticide which lists that it controls vine weevil, can be used as a soil drench and is labeled for fruit crops.

Roses Growing Weaker After Installing Rock Mulch

Q. I have some well-established rose bushes (15 years) in our front yard. Five years ago we converted to desert landscape and the landscaper put about 3 inches of small rock in the area containing the roses. They seem to be healthy although the density and beauty of the blooms was weaker last year.

            I've been using liquid Miracle Gro. Is there a better liquid fertilizer, or should I consider pulling the rock away from the bases and fertilize through the soil. Thanks.

 

Not the readers rose but what can happen to roses over time growing in rock
mulch and little care.

A. Miracle Gro products are fine but I would also add a separate iron fertilizer. Go to your local nursery and get a one pound canister of iron EDDHA. Follow the label directions but I find it more effective to mix in a teaspoon of the product in a gallon of water and water it into the rootzone of each plant.

Some of the Miracle Gro specialty fertilizers. Actually any of these would interchangeable. Miracle Gro might disagree
but these labels are mostly to help novice gardeners select a fertilizer for specific plants.

            Each rose should get maybe one teaspoon January – March, a once a year feeding. Although best applied early, an application will work now. They should be all right if you keep it on this fertilizer schedule. Select a product that has a big middle number. There are several different ones to pick from and I don’t know their product line off the top of my head.

This is the correct iron chelate to use in our high pH soils.

            Feed roses about every two months lightly starting January – October. However the iron is needed just once a year. Do not neglect soil improvement as well by using composts and organic mulches that decompose into the soil. Roses will really appreciate wood mulch much more than rock mulch.

African Sumac Limbs Splitting

Q. Could you please give me some clue as to why my 10 year old African Sumac tree has started to get split limbs. They are splitting laterally along the length of the branch. I have had to cut off two branches in the last week because of this splitting.

A. This is the first I have heard of this problem with African sumac. Who is making the decision to remove the limbs and what is the reasoning behind it? I would be curious because there are unscrupulous maintenance people who will point out something to a homeowner and recommend a job to make money. Also, there are uneducated maintenance people who will point out something to a homeowner and recommend a job to make money.

            Sometimes natural furrowing of the bark can be mistaken for cracking. I have had several homeowners get concerned and send pictures and that is all it is. I have had African sumacs split due to snow loads on the branches but that is reasonable.

            Most reasons for cracking would be excessive weight on the limbs. Are you sure there are no children doing pull-ups on some limbs?

            This is a stretch but if the tree were growing very rapidly and pruned incorrectly I could possibly see that limb cracking might occur. Without a bit more information that is about all I can tell you with the information you gave me.

Has anyone else seen this? I would love to get some pictures so I can see the problem.

Pine tree limb splitting due to lack of taper along the limb. The weight of the branch on the end was too much for it
after a light snow. The tree was thinned to allow for less resistance to wind to lessen blow over. Improper pruning caused
the limb to not develop good taper resulting in splitting.

Moruga Scorpion chili and Bhut Jalokia Pepper Plants Available Until 5/12/13

Hi, I just subscribed to your blog, looks nice. I have 7 Moruga Scorpion baby chili plants, and 1 Bhut Jalokia that need a good home. I am out of garden room. They are free to a good home. Contact if you are interested.

Sincerely, Craig

 

Send me an email, Extremehort@aol.com and I will get hold of Craig for anyone who is interested.

 

Worlds Hottest Pepper http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinidad_Moruga_Scorpion

 

Previous hottest pepper

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naga_Bhut_Jolokia

 

 

Tomatoes Not Setting Fruit? Shake It Up Baby!

Q. I have only gotten into gardening in the Vegas area the last 3 years and have been successfully growing tomatoes the first 2 years. But I noticed last year that I didn't get nearly the same number of tomatoes that I harvested in previous years. I have a raised bed that I started with a blend of about 4:1 of cheap compost and our desert soil.  The soil level is at least 2 1/2 feet deep.  Each year I have continued adding compost from my own yard and vegetable scraps, at least 3-4 inches of compost each year. I have periodically used a Star Nursery fertilizer as well (the one designated "for vegetables/fruits"). 

 

The watering for the tomatoes is set to a timer such that during the full heat of summer the plants get watered twice a day (about 10 minutes each time), less frequently when the temperatures are lower. There is microtubing with an adjustable drip emitter used to water the plants. The watering scheme has been unchanged the past 3 years. The plants get full sun all day.

So last year the tomato plants themselves grew well and I saw lots of flowers, but the tomatoes just never developed. This was even before the heat of summer hit. I think I harvested about a third of what I did the year before.

 

I noticed a lot less honey bees this past year in general as well. I have grown other mixed vegetables that have all done well so I am assuming the nutrient content in the soil is ok. Is there anything I could be doing differently to help get more tomatoes?  What about Mason bees? Are there flowers I can plant to attract bees for better pollination?

 

A.  Let's look at the list of things that could affect fruit production. These would include the right temperature range, wind, good soil preparation, disease, pollinators such as bees, humidity, sunlight and a few other things as well. If we have a long, cool spring we can expect to potentially have good production of fruit. If the spring is erratic and goes from cold to hot in a short period of time we can expect poor fruit production. I will tell you a little trick you can use in a bit but I want to make sure you read the rest of what I have to say. Little tricks do not work all by themselves. You have to do the whole package to be truly successful.

 

Irregular Production

 

Let me first comment on the irregular tomato production. Our desert climate is not the best climate for tomato production. We have a very short spring sometimes. The spring months as well as the corresponding fall weather, are the best times for tomato production here. When it gets too hot, tomatoes stop producing. Tomatoes are very sensitive to both hot and cold weather and have a more narrow acceptable temperature range than peppers or eggplant which are in the same family.

 

Tomatoes do not set well above 90°F and don't set it all when it stops 95°F. If bees are not working during the cooler parts of the day, you will get poor fruit set. Pollinators are very important and if they are not working when you need them or they have a very narrow window of opportunity then production will be down. Fruit set in the cool spring usually means you will get tomatoes in June and July and then they stop producing Et al. in August because it was too hot for fruit set.

Soil Improvement

Desert soils that are raw (never in production before) are ripped deep with an irrigation
trencher prior to preparation to open the soil for organic matter additions.

You have to be very careful about compost and if you use cheap compost your garden could be in trouble. When I prepare our desert soil for production I use an equal mix of good compost and native soil to begin with and I construct raised beds with outside walls. I will use compost that I know is good quality or make my own. I emphasize this... there is no good quality compost available for sale in Las Vegas. They are making some compost at the Las Vegas Springs preserve which is pretty good stuff but they are not allowed to sell it. 

 

The second year of production I add about half of the amount I used the first year. The third-year I add about the same amount as the second year. By the third year, that desert soil will become extremely productive. At that point, I only add compost to the area that I'm planting, not the entire growing area.

 I typically modify the soil to a depth of about 12 to 18 inches. However, I do rip the soil as deep as I can with an irrigation trencher when I first began constructing the raised beds.

 I strongly suggest not to use any compost without knowing what's in it. I am going to put a caveat here... the last time I looked one bagged compost that didn't seem too bad was Kellogg's. However, I believe they were using biosolids from Southern California. I believe the bag said not to use it for vegetables. I think this was available either from Lowe's or Home Depot but I have not looked for quite a while.

Good Varieties

Yellow pear tomato

You don't mention which varieties of tomatoes you are using and that can have a huge impact on production. Usually, varieties like Early Girl, Celebrity, Jet Star, Big Boy, Better Boy, and a grape tomatoes, yellow pear and cherry tomatoes will set when others do not. A couple of those plants are good indicators that least you are getting pollination.

Check your varieties and make sure they get in early. Try to keep them out of windy locations and you mention full sunlight but make sure they have a minimum of six hours.

Pollination and Pollinators

 It is not just getting flowers that are heat tolerant, you need flowers that are blooming at the right time as your tomatoes. Having bees coming to your yard during the heat will not help tomato production. They need to be blooming at the same time and this usually means spring flowering perennials and fruit trees.

I was only taking a guess about mason bees. Rather than encourage that type of be which might struggle in our climate I would encourage you to look at our native leafcutter bees which pollinate alfalfa and other legumes. You might also consider clovers and other legumes as a mix for attracting bees.

 

Finally the Hint

There are two ways of getting tomatoes to set fruit without pollinators. One is the use of applied hormones you can spray on the flowers to set fruit (parthenocarpically) without bees. These are sprays you can buy in the nursery.

The second method is a technique that green house growers use when they grow tomatoes because they dont have pollinators in their houses either. An electric toothbrush. It appears that the physical visit of a bee to the flower is not the only thing that trips the setting of fruit but the vibration caused by the wings of the bees. So when temperatures are good and you see flowers, walk over to your tomatoes and gently flick the flower clusters with your finger or use an electric toothbrush and vibrate the flower clusters for a few seconds to improve flower set.

 

Effect of High and Low Temperatures on Tomatoes and Peppers

The Effect of Extreme Temperatures on the Tomato and Pepper Crop

Author: Janice LeBoeuf - Vegetable Crop Specialist/OMAF Creation Date: 16 June 2004 Last Reviewed: 2 December 2004   Freezing and chilling injury in tomato and pepper plants Although frost occurs, by definition, when the temperature drops to 0º C at 1.5 meters above the ground, this may or may not result in freeze damage to crops. The actual temperature at which freezing will occur depends on such factors as plant species and variety, plant vigor, soil conditions, surface cover, duration of the freezing temperature, thawing conditions, cloud cover, and wind conditions.   In tomato, freezing causes a darkening of the leaf or stem tissues. Damaged areas later wilt and turn brown. It may be difficult, initially, to determine whether the growing point has been killed and damage may become more evident on the day after the frost. Peppers are more sensitive than tomatoes to freezing temperatures and may be injured or killed by a light frost.   Tomato plants are also susceptible to chilling injury at temperatures between 0 and 5º C. Chilling can cause stunted growth, wilting, surface pitting or necrosis of foliage, and increased susceptibility to disease. Low soil temperatures also stunt plant growth and prevent root development. Temperatures below 10ºC during flowering can interfere with pollination and result in catfacing of fruit.   Pepper plants experience chilling injury with prolonged temps of 0-10º C (32-50ºF). Injury may show up as puckering of the leaves and stunting of the plant.   The effect of temperature on flowering in tomatoes and peppers It is well known that flowering, pollination, and fruit set of tomatoes and peppers can be adversely affected by temperature extremes. The effect of various temperatures during flowering and fruit set of peppers and tomatoes is shown in Tables 1 and 2.   Table 1: The effect of temperature during flowering and fruit set of tomato Temperature Effect on flowering, pollination, fruit set Greater than 35° C (95° F) Reduced fruit set 18.5 – 26.5° C (65-80° F) Optimum for fruit set Less than 13° C (55° F) Misshapen or catfaced fruit may result Less than 10° C (50° F) Poor fruit set     Table 2: The effect of temperature during flowering and fruit set of pepper Temperature Effect on flowering, pollination, fruit set Greater than 32° C (90° F) day temp. Pollen sterility occurs, flowers may drop 16° C (61 ° F) Optimum for flowering and fruit set Less than 15.5° C (60° F) or greater than 24° C (75° F) night temp. Poor fruit set   What you may not think about when you see blossoms and fruit developing, is that low temperatures experienced by the plant weeks before flower buds were visible, can also affect flowering and fruit set.   A tomato plant which experiences temperatures below 15.5ºC (60ºF) for extended periods of time will begin to flower profusely. These flowers may remain open on the plant for several weeks, without fruit being formed. Larger flowers and increased branching of clusters can show up as a result of low temperatures experienced by the plant weeks before flower buds are visible. Believe it or not… Daytime temperatures of 15.5°C (60°F) with night-time temperatures of 10°C (50°F), four to five weeks before a tomato flower cluster blooms, may result in misshapen or catfaced fruit. Fact… Night temperatures of 7-10°C (45-50°F) during pepper flower development can cause the fruit to be smaller than normal, or somewhat misshapen. Chilling and freezing injury of tomato and pepper fruit The fruit of warm season crops like tomato and pepper can be injured by low temperatures. Chilling injury occurs in tomato fruit if they experience temperatures of 10ºC for longer than 14 days or temperatures of 5ºC for more than 6 to 8 days. Tomato fruit exposed to a shorter duration of low temperatures may still be prone to storage problems, even if obvious injury did not occur in the field. Pepper fruit can be injured by prolonged temperatures below 8ºC.   Frost injury is more severe than chilling injury. Tomato and pepper fruit are usually damaged between 0 and –1ºC. http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/info_tomtemp.htm