June 9, 2016

Good morning, it really was a surprise when I looked under the covers to find that what were supposed to be Oregon Spring Toms were actually cherry tomatoes. Somehow I must have pulled seed from the wrong seed container. Only problem I don’t remember ever buying cherry toms. Since I grow pink eggs I do not feel the need. Could a seed company have sent the wrong seeds? Who knows? Anyway the chickens said “yum”.

I did not want the hole in the bed (about 12 feet), so I took cuttings from the first bed of toms where the OS toms were located.

Cuttings are pretty cool. It is said that the rooted cuttings are the same maturity as the plants they were taken from. It will be interesting to see how quickly these plants start to bear.

Tomato cuttings are very easy to do. Make cuttings of the growing tips of the tomato plants, otherwise referred to as the apical meristem. I like to cut two to three leaf nodes. Fill a cup with moist soil, dibble a hole with a pencil, insert the cutting, wet the soil to settle around the stem, cover with a plastic sheet, check daily to make sure soil stays moist and Valla rooted cuttings once the growth resumes. Let the pots fill with roots; acclimate to the sun and out plant. Done, that is except for waiting for the toms.

Another way which is as successful but for only small quantities is to root them in a jar of water. I suggest only 4 to 5 cuttings (max) per jar. More and I find that the cuttings just rot. It also helps to change the water daily. This takes 4 to 5 days. Once the roots form they can be transplanted and then allowed to fully root for transplanting.

I plan to fill the rest of my sweet beds with cuttings using an adaption from the first method of tomato cuttings.  With sweets I cut a piece of sweet potato vine (does not have to be the tip) that has at least 3 leaf nodes. The big leaves are clipped off (slows plant transpiration and wilting), Use a dibble with a diameter of about ½ inch, make a hole in the soil and wallow out the hole. This is a very easy way to root cuttings (the cutting does not need to be rooted just a bear stem). The cutting is put into the hole clean up to the tip which is just above the surface. The hole is collapsed around the cutting. Water thoroughly and cover with a blanket or 2 layers of agribon 70. Check daily for dampness and once the tips start to grow increasing exposure to full sun can begin. I have had better than 90 percent of the cuttings survive in a bed out of about 180 cuttings. If only I could grow a mother plant through the winter to start my sweets outside in the spring.

This week I will be harvesting:  chard, kale, carrots, summer squash, green beans, and tomatoes. I also have garlic and bulb onions. These two crops will have drying foliage that can be cut off IF they are to be eaten immediately. Otherwise leave the foliage on until you are ready to eat them. Please email as to availability.

I can be reached at markdirtfarmer@gmail.com or go to http://redwagonfarm.blogspot.com/ Happy gardening!!!