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Mild Summer

Weather has been somewhat atypical.

(This article is recycled from a few years ago.)

Now that it is half way through September, it is impossible to ignore that tomatoes did not have a good season. Most of us who grow tomatoes were embarrassed by their performance until we realized that everyone else who grows them was also experiencing similar disappointing results. It was not because we did not water them properly. Nor was it because they lacked particular nutrients. They simply wanted warmer weather.

Plants that were put out early before the warm weather last spring did much better at first, but then decelerated as the weather became milder instead of warmer. Cool nights certainly did not help. Mildew, which typically slows a bit as weather becomes drier (less humid) though summer, instead continued to proliferate so that new foliage became infected almost as soon as it developed.

Earlier predictions that the weather would eventually get warm were not accurate enough for many of us who are only now getting enough tomatoes for fresh use, but not an abundance for canning, drying or freezing. There is still some time for most of the tomatoes that are on the vines now to ripen; but many will probably remain green by autumn. Some but not all of the last green tomatoes can ripen off the vine. Perhaps the only good news about all this is that there should be plenty of green tomatoes for pickling.

Sadly, tomatoes were not the only warm season vegetables to be dissatisfied with the weather. Green bean vines and bushes were generally healthy and made good beans, but did not produce very abundantly. Corn was likewise of adequate quality, but on smaller ears and less abundant. Even zucchini, which typically produces too much, was a bit subdued. Marginal vegetables that really prefer warmth, like eggplant and bell pepper, were downright disappointing.

Even if the weather gets warmer in the last days of summer, languishing tomato plants can not ketchup on production. They can be left to make a few more tomatoes, but will eventually need to get out of the way of cool season vegetables. Cabbage, kale, turnip greens, beets, radishes and all the slower growing vegetables that take their time through autumn, winter and early spring will want their space back soon. They will hopefully have a better season.

If possible, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and some of the larger cool season vegetable plants can be plugged in amongst the finishing warm season vegetable plants. Then, by the time the finishing warm season vegetable plants need to be removed, the next phase of cool season vegetable plants is already somewhat rooted and has a head start. This process works well in small spaces with good quality soil.

The main problem with this procedure is that it prevents potentially depleted soil from getting amended and well mixed between planting. It can also be a bit awkward to get the spacing of rows, furrows or mounds of the next phase of vegetable plants to match up with the previous phase. Smaller vegetable plants that get sown directly from seed into rows, like turnip greens, carrots, beets and radishes, really prefer customized bed preparation, after the warm season vegetables have been removed.

Posted on by tonytomeo

Warming Summer Weather

Dog Days!

My great grandfather could remember more summers in Sunnyvale than anyone else. He knew how unique every summer was and continues to be. Some summers are uncomfortably hot from beginning to end. Last summer though, was the coolest in recorded history!

Warm summers are of course best for the fruits and vegetables that like warmth. Peaches, grapes, tomatoes and rhubarb in my great grandfather’s garden always got the best flavor during warm weather. Warm but not too hot weather early in summer made the best ‘Bing’ cherries on my grandmother’s tree in Santa Clara.

Although cool summers are more comfortable for dogs, cats and people, they are not quite as conducive to growing fruits and vegetables. It is still too early to know what this summer will be like, but even though it is now getting warm, the warmth is developing late. The past spring was remarkably mild, with rain lingering later than it typically does.

Consequently, some fruits and vegetables, as well as some flowers and trees, are developing slowly. Peaches may be a bit smaller than they typically are, with slightly milder flavor. Rhubarb should have good flavor because of recent warm weather, but may develop a bit late because it got a late start.

Tomatoes are perhaps expressing the most dissatisfaction with the mild weather. Even tomato plants that were put out in the garden early in spring have grown slowly, and are not nearly as productive as they typically are by the beginning of summer. Some are not yet producing!

Fortunately and unfortunately, the weather has gotten significantly warmer. This may be uncomfortable for us; but is a party for the formerly bored tomato plants. Warmth of course promotes bloom and fruit production, and enhances flavor. If they get what they need, tomato plants that seemed sickly in the past may suddenly grow like weeds.

They should waste no time making up for lost time. Even if mild weather continues into summer like it did last summer, it will still get warmer than it has been. Maturing tomato plants will want more water and fertilizer (if used) as they get larger, and the weather gets warmer.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 4 Comments

Summer Warmth Continues Into Autumn

Dog days of summer are over.

The locally mild climate might be rather boring. Winter weather is not very cold. Summer weather is only sometimes very hot. Then, warmth does not often last for very long. Such climate might seem to be deficient in seasons. Summer seems to be the primary season, with just a few cool weeks of winter. Spring and autumn seem to be only brief transitions.

According to the position of Sirius, the Dog Star, the dog days of summer are done. They are the hottest days of the year for several climates of the Northern Hemisphere. The last was the eleventh of August. The final day of summer is the twenty-second of September. Such dates are less relevant here than elsewhere, though. Warm weather may continue.

Indian summer is more typical here than not. In some other climates, it is unusually warm and dry weather that continues into autumn. In this particular climate, it is not so unusual. Another difference is that it does not occur after earlier frost, as it might elsewhere. Some climates here lack frost anyway. Locally, warm weather is more lingering than fluctuating.

Some vegetation knows how to exploit such weather. Indeterminate tomato varieties can continue to be productive until a first frost. If they started soon after a last frost, they could get sloppy with rampant growth. That should not be a problem if production is the priority. With phasing as late as August, determinate tomato varieties can also produce until frost.

Most popular canna cultivars are hybrids of tropical and montane species. Because they are tropical, they are not accustomed to distinctly cool winter seasons. Because they are montane, they survive mild frost. Therefore, they grow until frost, and then resume growth as soon as they can afterward. Dahlia is similar, but maintains dormancy through winter.

Photoperiod also influences growth. Days gradually shorten through summer regardless of the duration of warmth. Some species are more responsive to this than others. Later in summer, crape myrtle can slowly begin to develop autumn foliar color. It does not require much chill to become strikingly colorful for autumn. It can do so while cannas still bloom and tomato plants still produce fruit.

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a Tale of Two Jacarandas

Jacaranda seedlings from this year will be ready to grow next year.

Los Angeles is about three hundred and fifty miles to the southeast of Los Gatos. Relative to the number of different climates between here and there, the climates of the two specific locations are surprisingly similar. Nonetheless, they are not completely similar. Winter weather is somewhat milder within the Los Angeles region, with only minimal frost. Some coastal climates there lack frost. Also, spring weather there is a bit warmer than here.

Jacaranda mimosifolia perform spectacularly with such mild winter weather and warm spring weather. Without frost, or even with minimal frost, they can grow taller than thirty feet, and eventually grow broader than tall. After defoliating for the end of winter or beginning of spring, they bloom for late spring, immediately prior to refoliation. Their awesomely vivid blue bloom is almost as profuse as their subsequent foliage. No other tree of comparable size compares to their floral color or floral profusion. That is why jacaranda are so much more popular within the region of Los Angeles.

Here, occasional moderate frost inhibits comparable performance. Trees are generally smaller and more compact, with more globular form. Vigorous growth that develops after frost damage can be structurally deficient, but heavy with lush foliage. Bloom is more sporadic amongst such vigorously vegetative growth. Although very pretty by local standards, jacaranda is not quite as exquisite as it is within the region of Los Angeles.

Nonetheless, I am growing some. A colleague brought me a seed pod from which I extracted seed. Fortunately, only a few more than two dozens seedlings survived a late frost last winter. Otherwise, many more would eventually be in need of homes. A few will likely inhabit our landscapes. A neighbor wants a few. Any extra jacaranda trees can be shared with other neighbors, like so much other surplus.

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Mild Weather Inhibits Summer Growth

Vegetative growth might be atypically slow.

The weather this year has been a cold hot mess! Both the worst frost since 1990 and the worst storms since 1982 occurred in one winter. Then, cold wintry weather lingered into spring to inhibit spring bloom. Now, cool and mild weather of spring lingers into summer to inhibit summer growth. This particular climate is innately mild, but this is a bit too mild.

Technically, the solstice on June 21 is the beginning of summer. Locally though, summer warmth typically begins about the middle of spring. It typically continues into the middle of autumn. Sometimes, it begins significantly sooner or continues significantly later. This is why the warm growing season here is so extensive. It is also why winter is rather brief.

Unseasonably mild weather obviously has a few distinct advantages. It is comfortable for those who are not so fond of summer warmth. It limits the need to increase irrigation that compensates for aridity and lack of rain. Bloom, although potentially late, stays fresher a bit longer with mild weather. A bit less spring bloom becomes a bit more summer bloom.

Unseasonably mild weather also has a few disadvantages though. Less gardening work is needed to manage desirable vegetation. However, more gardening work is needed to manage undesirable vegetation. Weeds generally need less warmth to grow, bloom and seed. Some desirable vegetation is still too complaissant to compete without assistance.

A few other pathogens likewise exploit this unseasonably mild weather. Slugs and snails hide from arid warmth. They must stay within cool and damp situations through midday. Mild weather allows them to stay out later, and emerge earlier. Their favorite vegetation still grows too slowly to recover from their damage. Tropical foliage is most susceptible.

Fungal disease is similarly more problematic with unseasonably mild weather. A primary difference is that fungal pathogens are about as inhibited as vegetation is. They gain an advantage only because soil stays continuously damp longer. Even without automated irrigation, cool soil dries slower than warm soil. Roots consume less moisture while cool. Roots that consume minimal moisture are generally more vulnerable.

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Dog Days Of Summer Warmth

Every lawn has its dog days.

Summer began more than a week ago. Subsequently, the dog days of summer continue from the third of July to the eleventh of August. These forty dog days are the twenty days prior to and after the twenty-third of July. That is when the Sun aligns with Sirius, the Dog Star of the constellation of Canis Major, or ‘the Great Dog’. Dogs are actually uninvolved.

Nonetheless, dog days actually are a time for dogs to languish through much of the most unpleasantly warm weather of summer. Although local climates are generally mild, warm weather is not rare. It merely seems to be less oppressive than in other climates because of less humidity, and perhaps more of a breeze. Coastal influence is a major advantage.

Dogs drink more water during the dog days of summer because they lose moisture, with warmth, while panting. Vegetation also needs more than typical quantities of moisture to compensate for increasing evaporation from foliar surfaces. Aridity and any wind, both of which render warmth more comfortable for dogs and people, increase such evaporation.

Also, for most exotic (nonnative) vegetation, regular watering helps to sustain growth that warmth stimulates. Lily of the Nile can likely get enough moisture through the local rainy season to survive through the dry season. However, it is healthier and more appealing if occasionally watered to sustain its most vigorous growth during the dog days of summer.

Many plants are native to climates that supply rain in conjunction with warmth. They rely on moisture for normal growth. Various bananas, canna, angel’s trumpet and giant bird of Paradise grow very vigorously with sufficient moisture. Unfortunately though, insufficient moisture is very distressing to them. Drought tolerant species have a distinct advantage.

Turf, bedding plants and vegetable gardens need abundant water during the dog days of summer. Although some can survive with less than others, none are exempt. Most potted plants, especially those in hanging pots, are likewise dependent on systematic watering. Even if the weather is too warm to enjoy other gardening, watering can not be neglected.

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Warmth Accelerates Early Spring Bloom

Deciduous fruit trees should remain dormant.

Unseasonable warmth and dryness has been great this winter. Such weather is often an advantage of this locally mild climate. Chill never gets too harsh. Rain does not continue for too long. However, even by local standards, the weather has been unusually dry and warm for quite a while. Although appealing to people, it can get disruptive horticulturally.

Obviously, a lack of rain eventually becomes a lack of moisture. Some evergreen plants, potted plants, ground cover plants and lawns may already need watering. Although rain, or lack thereof, does not affect availability of water from municipal sources, it determines when irrigation with such water becomes necessary. It will be sooner than later this year.

Obviously, warmth accelerates this process. It draws moisture both from intact evergreen foliage and the soil below. (Dormant deciduous plants still do not lose as much moisture without foliage.) Unseasonable aridity (minimal humidity) and wind intensify the effect of unseasonable warmth. Desiccation is not the worst consequence of the weather though.

Unseasonable or premature warmth might stimulate premature spring bloom and growth. This can be very disruptive for plants that rely on sustained chill to maintain their minimal dormancy requirements. Peonies that are marginal where they normally experience their minimal chill requirements might be dissatisfied with inadequate chill through this winter. 

Even for plants that do not require much or any chill, premature bloom can be vulnerable to normal aspects of wintry weather if and when it resumes. Flowering cherry trees might bloom during sustained warmth. Such bloom would be quite susceptible to damage from resuming winter rain. Resumed chill might stall premature magnolia bloom until it molds. 

Prematurely developing fruit, accelerated by unseasonable warmth, is also vulnerable to resumption of wintry weather. Heavy rain, which is still possible through the remainder of winter, can dislodge freshly pollinated flowers, or small fruit as it begins to develop. More developed fruit is vulnerable to rot or mold during cool and damp weather prior to spring.