Gardens Gone WILD — Key Takeaways
Prune tomato suckers early and strip all growth below the first fruit set (10–12 inches) to prevent disease, especially after heavy rain — waiting makes the job exponentially harder.
Key takeaways
Straw mulch sprouting? Pull before it seeds or you inherit a weed bed
Straw mulch sprouting? Pull before it seeds or you inherit a weed bed
- Sprouted straw mulch isn't rooted in soil — pulls out easily by hand with no tools needed.
- If left to go to seed, seeds enter the soil and become a far harder, longer-term weed problem.
Diseased tomato plants must go to burn pile, never compost
Diseased tomato plants must go to burn pile, never compost
- Composting diseased plant material risks spreading pathogens back into the garden in future seasons.
- With 130+ plants, removing one sick plant is the right call over babying it with copper fungicide.
Don't prune tomatoes before rain — open wounds invite disease
Don't prune tomatoes before rain — open wounds invite disease
- Gardener delayed pruning intentionally during 10+ days of rain to avoid exposing fresh cuts to wet conditions.
- When forced to prune during wet spells anyway, prioritize airflow: strip all growth below first fruit set (10-12 in).
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In this video
- 1mGarden State of Affairs: Rain, Neglect, and What's Growing
- 5mHarvest Tour: First Tomatoes, Cucumbers, and Squash
- 13mBerry Patch and Fruit Tree Update
- 22mPeggy Martin Rose and New Garden Bed Plans
- 26mTomato Pruning Lesson with Jeremiah
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