Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteers of Buncombe County

Vegetables & Fruits

Information about growing edibles.

What Can Go Wrong with Tomatoes?

What can go wrong with growing tomatoes? Almost everything! What can go right with planting tomatoes in our home gardens? Enough to keep us growing them!

Tomatoes ripening on the vine_Todd Heft_CC BY-NC 2.0_Flickr
Tomatoes ripening on the vine

What’s the problem?
Let’s face it—there are lots of challenges with homegrown tomatoes. They wilt, they spot, they crack, they dot, they blotch, they rot. Whew! The list goes on. Few vegetables—or fruits, which are what tomatoes are—are more challenging.

Helpful hints
Try following these guidelines:

  • Decide on varieties that are well-suited to our area, bred for disease resistance, and meet your eating preferences.
  • Select healthy bedding plants or start indoors from seeds 6 to 8 weeks before the expected last frost date.
  • Wait to plant until after all danger of frost has passed, usually after Mother’s Day for Buncombe County.
  • Choose a location that receives at least six hours of sun a day.
  • Plant in well-prepared soil, rich in humus, with a pH level of about 6.0 to 7.0 (find out with a soil test).
  • Maintain uniform moisture and mulch.
  • Avoid overhead watering which can promote disease.
  • Stake or cage your plants because of their vining tendencies.

What to watch for
Although there are myriad tomato problems, most are rare. Five of the most common concerns and their solutions:

  1. Bacterial spot produces small chocolate brown spots on leaves and fruit. Recommended controls are to use treated seed, apply fixed copper bactericide, avoid overhead watering, remove old plant debris, and rotate your planting area.
  2. Blossom end rot caused by calcium deficiency produces dark-brown leathery spots on the blossom end of fruit. Prevent by liming your soil (based on soil test results) and keeping your plants evenly moist—be sure to water plants during dry periods!
  3. Sunscald produces papery white areas on the side of fruit facing the sun or yellow-orange blotches at the stem end that do not ripen. Proper planting and maintenance help prevent foliage diseases that can cause leaf drop and expose fruits to too much sun.
  4. Cracks in fruit also result from an uneven moisture supply. Tomatoes may need to be watered every 2-3 days, especially in dry weather.
  5. Flea beetles produce many tiny holes in leaves. Tomatoes will tolerate a great deal of flea beetle damage, but if damage is excessive, ask about an approved pesticide.

Preventing problems
To prevent disease in future years, do not compost plant debris. Plant tomatoes in a different location at least every third year. Then, watch your tomatoes grow! If you have a bad year, don’t give up! There’s always hope for the following season.

Consider the wisdom in John Denver’s song from his 1988 album Higher Ground:

Homegrown tomatoes, homegrown tomatoes
What would life be without homegrown tomatoes?
Only two things that money can’t buy
That’s true love and homegrown tomatoes! 

Article written by Mary Alice Ramsey, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer.

Learn more 

Gardening in the Mountains lecture:
All Things Tomato
by Dr. Randy Gardner, Professor Emeritus, Horticultural Science, NCSU
July 19, 2018, 10 a.m. to noon
Folk Arts Center, Asheville, NC
Watch for details in early July blog announcement. 

Growing Tomatoes in the Home Garden
by NC State Extension

Late Tomato Blight Is Here
by Debbie Green, Extension Master Gardener Volunteer, July 2015

The Legumes: Beans and Peas

What are “legumes”? Plants with seeds in pods, such as beans and peas, that belong to the Leguminosae (or Fabaceae) family. These delightful vegetables are among the most commonly grown in home gardens!

Beans ready to pick_by MARamsey
Beans ready to pick

Legume pros

  • Beans and peas are delicious and nutritious, providing protein, fiber, and complex carbs!
  • Seeds are large, easy to plant, and produce lovely self-pollinating flowers.
  • They “fix” nitrogen from the air so nodules on their root systems actually enrich the soil!

Planting
Plants prefer full sun, loose freely-draining mildly acidic soil, and benefit from uniform moisture. Cultivate your site before planting time to kill over-wintering bean beetle larvae.

Varieties. Choose disease-resistant varieties. Space according to planting distances on the seed packet; note the recommended planting depth.

Planted row of beans with supports by MARamsey
Planted row of beans with supports

Supports. For vining peas and beans, establish your structure (stakes, teepees, or trellises) before planting. Supports must be sturdy and wind resistant, set several inches into the soil, and placed where they won’t shade sun-loving crops. Plant vining and field peas as well as pole and bush beans in double rows, with a trellis for support. In raised beds, plant shorter pea and bean varieties in blocks. Young plants sometimes need help wrapping around strings or poles, but once started, they will continue climbing on their own!

Peas. Soak pea seeds overnight before planting for earlier germination. Bush and vining peas (including the sweeter edible-podded varieties) prefer cooler temperatures. In Western North Carolina, plant bush and vining pea varieties between mid-February and mid-April. Plant field (southern) peas between May 1st and the end of June.

Beans. Beans split apart and/or quickly rot if oversoaked, so soak only briefly (a few hours) if you prefer pre-soaking. Plant bush and pole snap (green) beans from March to mid-July. Plant bush and pole lima beans and other bean varieties for drying from May 1 to mid-June.

Plant snap and bush beans in successive crops, but plant pole, lima, and dry beans (kidney, navy, and pinto) only once to ensure maturity. Look on the seed packet for the days until harvest.

Maintenance
Water. Keep your planting moist until seeds sprout—water plants close to the soil and avoid handling and working when plants are wet. 

Mulching once plants are 6 inches tall helps moderate soil temperature and moisture—keep mulch away from plant stems!

Remove weeds as soon as they appear. Watch for insects and diseases. Hand-pick Mexican bean beetles and Japanese beetles. Squish or hose off aphids. Remove dead or diseased plants—discard in trash rather than compost!

pea pod by MARamsey
Pea pod

Harvesting
Once pollinated, tiny peas and beans form! The NC Extension Gardener Handbook advises on harvesting:

  • Peas, “Edible-podded cultivars should be harvested when pods are well-rounded, but before seeds are more than half of their full size. Harvest shelling peas when the pods are well-rounded, and the seeds are fully developed but still fresh and bright-green. Pods are getting too old when they lose their brightness and turn light-green or yellowish-green.”
  • Snap beans, “Begin harvesting before seeds develop in the pod (when pods are about the diameter of a pencil). Beans are ready to pick if they snap easily when bent in half.”
  • Lima beans, “Harvest when the pods first start to bulge with the enlarged seeds. Pods must still be green, not yellowish.”

Note: Young and tender bean pods (snap, French, or string beans) are delicious. You can eat seeds within pods (butter or lima beans) before maturity and can leave seeds within pods to mature and dry (navy, kidney, and pinto beans). Preserve excess through canning and freezing, as well as drying.

After harvesting, cut the plants off instead of pulling them, so the roots decay in the soil providing nitrogen, enriching the area for your next season’s plantings! 

Rotating your legume crop location at least every three years minimizes insects and diseases. 

Conclusion
Legumes taste great and provide a powerhouse of nutrients. Their culinary uses are extensive— so why not try legumes in your garden this year? They are inexpensive, prolific, and easy to grow!

Article written by Mary Alice Ramsey, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer.

More information
NCSU Cooperative Extension
Garden Planting Calendar for Annual Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs in North Carolina

Cool Season Veggies: Growing Greens—Simple as Child’s Play!

Sprinkle lettuce seeds on soil, cover with soil, water, and in about 45 days you will be picking lettuce! Growing cool season greens is so simple that kids in early childhood programs often plant and grow them!

Greens_Billtacular_CC BY-NC-ND 2.0_Flickr
Arugala and mixed lettuces at Rutgers Student Sustainable Farm

What to plant
In addition to lettuce, consider planting arugula, collard greens, kale, mustard greens, spinach, or Swiss chard, depending on your family’s preferences. All greens are nutritious and fast-growing. Check the seed packet or transplant tag for planting depth, spacing, and time to harvest specifics.

When to plant
North Carolina is blessed with three growing seasons—spring, summer, and fall—so gardeners can enjoy vegetable crops nearly year-round. Cool season crops prefer the spring and fall when temperatures are below 70 degrees. These crops can take light frosts, and some will even tolerate temperatures in the upper teens. Sow seeds directly into the ground or start with transplants from early March to early April and again in July or August, depending on the particular plants. (See online planting calendar listed below for specifics).

Growing Vegetables at Childcare Centers_photo by NC State Extension
Planting veggie seeds, easy and fun for children

Where to plant
Greens like full sun—6 to 8 hours of direct sun a day. Your plants will also do better in a weed-free environment.

Soil & fertilizers
Leafy greens thrive in a variety of soils—you can also grow them in containers. They prefer well-drained soil, rich in organic matter that is slightly acidic—a pH of 6.0 to 6.5—although spinach prefers a pH of 6.5 to 6.8.

It’s best to do a soil test before you start to see if you need to lime your garden and for specific fertilizer recommendations. Soil test kits can be picked up at the NC State Extension, Buncombe County, 49 Mount Carmel Road, Asheville, NC.

For average soil, work 3 pounds of 10-10-10 per 100 square feet into the soil before planting. Or you can side-dress plants after they start to grow (apply fertilizer about 4 inches from stems on both side of the plants) using 3 ounces of 10-10-10 per 100 row feet.

Maintaining your greens
If you are starting with seeds, keep them continuously moist until they sprout. After your seeds emerge, your garden will prosper if it gets at least one inch of water a week. Veggies grown in containers tend to dry out faster than garden soil and need to be monitored daily during dry, warm, or windy conditions. Thin your seedlings as they grow to provide the recommended space between plants. Base additional side-dressing with fertilizer on how the crop looks. Does it have good color and strong growth?

Managing insects
Green leafy veggies are subject to attack by aphids, and those in the Brassicaceae family—arugula, collards, kale, and mustard—will attract cabbage worms and cabbage loopers.

Follow an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach to reduce insect damage:

  • Look at your plants regularly.
  • Identify any pests.
  • Decide if the degree of damage requires action.
  • If so, consider a combination of treatments: mechanical (picking or washing off insects), cultural (keeping your plants healthy, rotating crops using trap crops to attract insects), biologic (using predator insects or parasites to control harmful insects), and chemical (use of insecticides).
  • Evaluate your success!

Best leafy green varieties for Western North Carolina

Lettuce
Head: Strains of Ithaca, Salinas, Pennlake
Romaine: Romulus, Signal, Medallion
Green Leaf: Salad Bowl, Slobolt, Royal Green, Green Vision, Grand Rapids
Red Leaf: Royal Red, Red Sails, Ruby
Butterhead (loose head): Butter-crunch, Nancy (a.k.a. Boston head), Esmeralda, Ermosa
Kale
Winterbor, Toscano, Improved Dwarf Siberian, Red Russian, Redbor
Spinach
Chesapeake, Hybrid #7, Tyee, Melody, Old Dominion
Collard greens
Vates, Morris, Georgia Southern, Blue Max, Heavi Crop
Swiss chard
Bright Lights, Ruby Red/Rhubarb Chard

Article written by Kay Green, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer.

Learn more
Western North Carolina Planting Calendar
by NC State Extension

NC State Vegetable Gardening Resources
by Dr. Lucy Bradley, Extension Urban Horticulture Specialist, NSCU
Provides links to Extension vegetable publications.

Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners
by Cornell University
Rates and reviews hundreds of varieties.

Contact Us

Buncombe County Extension Office
49 Mount Carmel Road
Asheville, NC 28806
Helpline 828-255-5522

Events

Keep up with our events by subscribing to the blog or checking our Events Calendar.

Explore the Archives

Back to Top