Master Gardener^sm Column for the Week of March 21, 2005
Charlie Spencer
Brunswick County Extension Master Gardener^sm Volunteer

The following information is provided by Extension Master Gardenersm Charlie Spencer and Dan Mullins, Extension agent in Santa Rosa County, Florida.

Warm days in March tempt us to get started with spring gardening activities. Though there are plenty of other things to do in the landscape during this month, it is too early for planting summer annuals and warm season vegetables. Real spring weather is still several weeks away.

The tomato is the most common victim of extremely early planting. It seems that we can’t wait to put some plants in the ground, expecting to be the first to feast upon the homegrown fruit.

Tomato, being a tropical plant, doesn’t appreciate being exposed to cold air and soil temperatures. Though we might provide special care such as covering the young plants during frosty nights, they usually struggle to survive and grow very little until spring arrives.

The growth and development of tomato, like other warm season plants, is driven by soil and air temperature. Until the soil temperature reaches about 70 degrees F. or greater and stabilizes, root growth is slow. The top portion of a tomato plant is equally sensitive. Growth will not occur, or will be very slow until both day and night temperatures warm up.

Even if you were able to somehow cause a tomato plant to grow in February or early March, it wouldn’t be able to set fruit yet. Successful pollination of tomato is governed by night temperatures and the minimum temperature for acceptable fruit set is about 68 degrees F. That’s the reason that the gardener who plants in early March generally harvests fruit at the same time as another who establishes plants two or three weeks later.

Tomato is used here as an example just because it is so popular and has perhaps received more study than most warm season plants. Even though I stress the need to wait until the weather warms up, don’t overreact and plant too late either.

Tomato plants set fruit best when night temperatures are between approximately 68 and 73 degrees F. It is possible to set out plants too late in the spring. They must have time to grow and produce flowers before extremely hot nights begin in July.

So when is the best time to plant the warm season vegetables and annual flowers? I can’t provide an exact date because each spring is different. Sometimes we have an early spring along the coast, providing safe planting conditions by late March. During other years, consistently warm weather is delayed until well into April. In general, it is relatively safe to plant between late March and mid-April.

While we are waiting, there are other gardening jobs that can be done. A spray containing horticultural oil emulsion, sometimes known as dormant oil, can be applied to shrubs for controlling over-wintering scale insects. Read and follow label directions carefully.

Send your gardening questions or comments to: Brunswick County Master Gardener Column, P.O. Box 109, Bolivia, NC 28422, or call (910) 253-2610. Enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope if requesting information or a reply. Answers may be printed in this column.

For further information or assistance, please e-mail:
Charlie Spencer, Brunswick County Extension Master Gardener^smVolunteer

Back to the Master Gardener^sm News Column Page of the Brunswick County Center of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service.

Back to the Home Page of the Brunswick County Center of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service.

This site is maintained by Kathy Walters.
URL Address: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/brunswick/
Date Created 3/9/2005