Tips for home garden tomatoes
“The Calhoun City Schools Board of Education is committed to recognizing the Class of 2020. We will postpone the ceremony until it is safe for our students, staff and community to participate,” said Coker. “We are heartbroken for our seniors and all students impacted by this pandemic and will continue to explore all options available to us as we move forward. While we are disappointed, we want to be responsible and safe. Thank you for your understanding and support.”
Coker also said meal pickup and delivery services have been revised to limit exposure and contact with groups of more than 10 people. Meals will be delivered and available at feeding sites on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, students will receive hot meals along with bagged lunches for the following days. On Thursdays, students will receive two breakfast meals and two lunch meals to ensure they have meals for Friday.
Those would prefer to pick up a lunch or breakfast may do so by visiting Calhoun Elementary School between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Someone will be stationed behind the school where carpool pickup/drop off is located. Additional Meal Pick-Up Locations include Belmont Baptist Church (275 West Belmont Drive) and The Voluntary Action Center (343 S. Wall St.) at the same times. Note that these locations are in addition to the pick-up location at Calhoun Elementary School and bus routes.
The virus
People are likely the most contagious when they’re symptomatic, a report from the Centers for Disease Control comes together to help a local family. Students who contributed articles to the newsletter include: Leah Cain, Jaycee Cochran, Madison Ensley and Emily Grace Walker.
Three members of the TOME Team also won individual TOME Service Awards
and Prevention stated — but they also may be contagious prior to showing symptoms.
That’s been a game changer said state Department of Public Health Director Dr. Kathleen Toomey in a press conference on Wednesday.
For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks.
“This is absolutely not just like the flu,” Toomey said. She said it’s more deadly and we have no immunity to COVID-19.
For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
The Georgia Department of Public Health reported there are now 60 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Floyd County as of noon on Wednesday.
That’s an increase of 10 cases since Tuesday’s 7 p.m. numbers were released and double the number of confirmed cases since Monday.
While health officials have said there is no question that the spread is now community wide, they’re attributing some of the higher numbers to increased testing capacity.
A ramp-up of laboratory testing surge capacity began Tuesday and the state is expecting they’ll be able to process over 3,000 samples per day. for volunteering their time serving as reading buddies for younger students. This reading support activity was coordinated by teachers Katie Edwards and Terrie Fitzwater. Recognized TOME Club Members include: Sofia Bautista Bravo, Mia Vicente and Emily Grace Walker.
The difference between state cases and hospital cases has to do with how those numbers are reported. The state reports cases by county of residence while hospitals report numbers by patients being treated.
Patients treated at a local hospital may live in another county. Also, those who have tested positive but have mild or moderate symptoms may be released from a hospital to self-quarantine at home.
Regionally, Bartow County has been hit hard by the virus with 144 confirmed cases. Wednesday’s report lists four deaths, up three from Tuesday. All four of the deaths were people ranging from 69 to 90, three of which had preexisting health conditions.
Statewide, Georgia had 4,638 confirmed cases as of Wednesday morning, an increase of over 500 cases than the 4,111 reported late Tuesday. Over 20,000 tests have been administered statewide, an increase of over 4,000 tests from Tuesday’s numbers.
There were 952 Georgians hospitalized with the illness and 139 deaths. Many of those who have died resulting from a COVID-19 infection already had underlying health conditions, according to DPH reports.
Of the Georgia cases there are 532 cases which aren’t attributed to a county and two deaths.
Most gardeners would not feel their home garden was complete without tomato plants. In fact, some people will grow a large number of tomato plants while others will at least have a few. I would say it is a fair statement that in many communities it can be a race to see which gardener can have the first vine ripen tomato.
Today, I will be sharing tips on this garden favorite that may assist you in tomato gardening success. I will be sharing information from a UGA publication by Bob Westerfield, UGA Extension horticulturist.
For starters, we are still too cool to plant tomatoes. I strongly recommend waiting till after the danger of frost has passed, which is normally the middle part of April. I will add that many experienced gardeners may wait longer before planting transplants. Remember that tomatoes are warm-season plants that grow best at temperatures between 70-80 degrees F.
Tomato plants prefer spots that will provide at least eight hours of sunlight daily too. If you plant too early the plant roots will be in cool and damp soils. You also run the risk of cold damage to the plant foliage due to late freezes.
Selecting your tomato variety for the garden is full of options. I will back up for a minute on variety selection. Which varieties should I grow? That is a question that only you the grower can answer.
What is your goal with the tomatoes? First, in tomatoes you will have determinate and indeterminate varieties. The determinate varieties will normally produce most of their crop at one time. Thus, they work better for some that like to have a lot of ripe tomatoes at one time for canning. Determinate tomatoes will often produce an early crop so you have to plant successive plantings in order to harvest over a longer period of time.
The indeterminate varieties will set fruit along a vine cluster along a vine stem that will grow all season. These varieties if harvested will continue to produce fruit even up to first frost.
Second, in choosing a garden variety, take advantage of resistant varieties. There are varieties that have been hybridized to be resistant to certain disease or virus issues for example. This can be a help in certain situation, but remember that resistance does not mean plants are totally immune to some issues. You still have to follow good gardening practices. You should see the resistance a certain variety has on the plant label when purchasing.
Third, keep in mind again that you have a lot of variety options in regard to tomatoes with many different shapes, sizes and colors. You can plant a newer variety or different variety from time to time, but keep in mind the ones that work for your area.
I will add that for some people the variety they grow is a family tradition. You may find that you grow the same variety that a parent or grandparent grew.
Mulching can also be another tip to keep in mind in growing tomatoes. Mulching should be done after transplanting. Mulching will help conserve soil moisture and will help combat weed issues. Mulch should be applied to a depth of 2 to 3 inches. Newspaper can come in handy too. You can lay the newspaper about three sheets thick around plants, then place the organic mulch on top of the newspaper. The newspaper will aid as a weed barrier and also help on the conservation of moisture.
Selecting a garden site close to a home where you have access to clean water is important. Tomato plants will need 1 to 2 inches of water per week depending on the soil type. At some point, we will be dry again and you may have to irrigate. The tomato plants may need watering once or twice a week.
I will add that those one to two good irrigation events are much better than light and frequent irrigations. I say this often, but will say again that drip irrigation or soaker hoses are so much better than sprinklers.
Ideally, you want to keep the foliage of the plants dry. Wet foliage can lead to disease of the plants. Drip irrigation and soaker hoses can help conserve moisture and again help keep plants foliage dry. Our info states that hoses can be laid near each plant above the ground, but under the mulch layer.
One of the biggest issues you can experience with tomatoes is blossom-end rot. Many of you have seen the dark, sunken, water-soaked area at the blossom-end of the tomato. This is a calcium deficiency in the tomato. One key is to maintain your soil pH between a 6.2-6.8 and supply adequate levels of calcium through applications of dolomitic limestone and gypsum.
Avoid drought stress and even extreme moisture. This is where mulch and the deep irrigation events one to two times per week can help. Avoid excessive nitrogen application which can slow the calcium up-take. There are foliar commercial products for blossom-end rot, but are only short-term solutions.