By BRUCE SCHWARTZ | Contributing Writer
Will April showers bring May flowers? How about let’s wait and see. As this column is being written on Monday, April 1, the upcoming weekend, another storm with unsettled weather was heading this way.
I am happy to report a Palisadian-Post reader has told me that her citrus trees look better since she applied the fertilizer program I recommended. I would like more readers to try this fertilizer program on their citrus trees. I would walk anyone through the process if they want.
In April, if you plant tomatoes in the Southern California coastal region and in the San Fernando Valley at the same time, the tomatoes planted in the valley will have fruit ready to pick two to four weeks earlier.
Why? The cool marine layer. The marine layer along the coast can last up until mid-July, whereas the valley will have many more sunnier and hotter days than the coast. That is why Southern California commercial tomato growers along the coast (such as in San Diego County) do not start planting until June and July.
The hottest months along the coast are August, September, October and November. The Santa Ana winds can make it hotter at the coast than inland. This is ideal for tomato production. When the Central Valley is finishing their tomato crop, the coastal region is just starting to harvest.
What I am suggesting is that the planting schedule here on the coast can go into July and August, and—depending on the weather—you can still be harvesting tomatoes at Christmas.
I am not suggesting that you wait for June to plant tomatoes. I am saying you have a greater window of planting dates in this area. You can plant early season, mid-season and late season. Technically, you can start harvesting tomatoes from July to December.
Tomato varieties are determinate and not determinate. Determinate tomato varieties ripen early and then the plant quits producing. Indeterminate tomato varieties produce tomatoes for a longer period of time, up until the frost. We rarely get a frost in the Palisades. That is why you will see tomato plants growing into the next crop year.
I like the cherry tomato variety called “Sweet 100.” If you like sweet, true tomato flavor—and a lot of them—this is a good non-determinate variety.
“Early Girl” is another popular variety, appropriately named because it is an early variety. There is also the famous “Beefsteak tomato.” It is known for slicing.
There are so many varieties that it is tough to recommend a variety. That is why I like the Sweet 100 because the sweet tomato flavor is hard to beat.
The heirloom varieties also have distinct flavors. “Brandywine” is a good heirloom, but the yield can be light.
Heirlooms are an “open pollinated” variety. That means the seed from the fruit will grow that same plant as the parent.
Hybrid tomatoes mean that the pollen of two varieties are crossed to make a new variety. The seed from a hybrid will not be the same as the parent. Only open pollinated seed will produce the same plant as the parent.
John Atwill of Grow More and I want to host a seminar on fertilizer and plants to anyone interested in listening, so stay tuned for more information.
Atwill is like a college professor with great knowledge of chemistry and plant nutrition. Of course, I am not so bad at it myself.
Bruce Schwartz is a 24-year resident of the Palisades Highlands. He was an agricultural consultant for 20 years, specializing in soil nutrition for crops grown in the Central Valley. He was named Pacific Palisades’ Citizen of the Year in 2017 and a Golden Sparkplug award winner in 2013, and is a member of several community organizations. To reach Schwartz, call 310-779-1773 or email bruceschwartz@rodeore.com.
