Re: watering tomatoes

At 8:18 AM 6/29/99, richard sargent wrote:
>I've always thought that tomatoes should not be watered after they start
>to set fruit. I've had pretty good results with that method. But since my
>tomatoes all failed last year, probably due to el nino, I'm open to other
>suggestions. For example, someone keeps writing to a gardening newsgroup
>saying that tomatoes should be watered every day and are the one exception
>to infrequent deep waterings.
>
>I'm in Berkeley, California. What are your experiences and opinions?
>
>Barbara

        Commercial growers in the Central Valley of California(sandy-loams
and sandy soils, extremely high summer temps) water their tomatoes approx.
four times between planting and harvest.  They flood irrigate with as much
as two feet of water at each watering.
        There are several reasons why anyone growing tomatoes would want to
maximize the time between waterings.
        1.  Tomatoes are extremely drouthy.  Few plants can rival the root
surface area of a tomato.
        2.  The greatest danger to tomatoes are usually soil-borne
organisms, particularly fungi:  Fusarium, Phytophthora, Verticillium,
Pythium.  All are dependent upon water-motile spores, i.e. they need
standing water within the root zone in order to reproduce.  Dry soil
greatly inhibits their ability to propagate.
        3.  Tomato pollination is dependent upon warm night time
temperatures.  Damp soils lower night time temps.

       I suggest a two inch thick mulch of grass clippings to aid water
retention.
Jerry Heverly, Oakland, CA
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