GB 102 FFF Red Baron Peach, Tomatoes TRANSCRIPT
27:45
SPEAKERS
Debbie Flower, Ed Laivo, Farmer Fred
Farmer Fred 00:00
Garden Basics with Farmer Fred is brought to you by Smart Pots, the original lightweight, long lasting fabric plant container. it's made in the USA. Visit SmartPots.com slash Fred for more information and a special discount, that's SmartPots.com/Fred.
Farmer Fred 00:20
Welcome to the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast. If you're just a beginning gardener or you want good gardening information, you've come to the right spot.
Farmer Fred 00:32
Are you looking for a fruit tree with outstanding flowers in the spring? Well, look no further than the Red Baron peach. It's Fabulous Fruit Friday, and Ed Laivo is here from TomorrowsHarvest.com to talk about this tasty beauty with double red flowers in the spring and juicy, juicy peaches in the summer. Should your tomato plants really be in full sun? Well, as we're fond of saying on this show, it depends. More and more areas of the country are having unusually hot summers. And that can mean more tomato troubles. Can a bit of shade solve those issues? College horticulture teacher Debbie Flower has some thoughts on that. It's all on episode 102 of the Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast, brought to you today by Smart Pots and TomorrowsHarvest.com. And we'll do it all in under 30 minutes. Let's go.
Farmer Fred 01:29
It's Fabulous Fruit Friday, we're talking with Ed Laivo from tomorrow's harvest.com. Tomorrow's harvest is a division of Burchell nursery. And we'd like to bring Ed on and talk fruit trees every Friday here on Garden Basics. And I'm hankering for a peach. I'm staring out my window right now, and I've got peaches ripening here. And I'm getting hungry for a peach. Do you have one?
Ed Laivo 01:52
I do. I do. And I got a really exciting one this week as well. Simply because, you know, I'm really big into edible ornamentals. I really believe that the fruit tree now has taken a new place in our landscaping. And, you know, not only do we want trees that, of course, are beautiful, but we also want them to be functional, as well. So here's a variety that does both. And I mean, it does both so dramatically. It's over the top. Let me tell you, the Red Baron peach. It's the best Wow.
Farmer Fred 02:25
Named after Baron von Richtoven
Ed Laivo 02:28
it is. Don't ask me why. The Armstrong nursery and their wonderful hybridization team that existed for so many years, decided that in 1977, they were going to name a peach after a famous World War One German ace.
Farmer Fred 02:45
Yes. and developed down in Wasco, by the way,
Ed Laivo 02:49
Yeah, yeah. The Armstrong hybridization program, of course, was out of Ontario first, I think and then, of course, made its way after so many years up into Wasco. They just were so prolific for so many years. And we'll actually even talk about another variety later on the show that came out of that same program.
Farmer Fred 03:10
okay. For those who don't know, Wascois a little bit northeast of Bakersfield, if that helps you out? Now you said edible ornamental. So what is it? What's so ornamentally about the Red Baron?
Ed Laivo 03:21
Boy, I'll tell you what, this has a stunning red, double red flower. It really probably could be classified as an ornamental first, that happens to produce a lusciously wonderful piece of fruit. The red flower is so dynamic and very bold, because of course, it's a double flower. So it just makes this incredible impression in the landscape. And keep in mind, you know, this is a perfect tree for placing in a very select spot in your yard as an accent tree, something that you know really just brings to life your garden than the early spring and then kind of settles back in a production role to to you know, of course, bring you this incredibly wonderful fruit as well.
Farmer Fred 04:08
I would think you'd want to put it where you could see it from the kitchen window.
Ed Laivo 04:12
I think so. Absolutely.
Farmer Fred 04:15
This is a Freestone peach.
Ed Laivo 04:17
Yeah, yeah. Yeah, it's a Freestone peach and low chill, actually, I believe it's only 250 hours chill. So it's probably not a peach for all climates. I mean, that's probably one of the sad notes in this variety. It's probably a peach that's more suited for probably zone eight on the outskirts and Zone nine A and B, of course, would be its primary places where it does fine. Like for instance in Northern California. It does find down in Southern California. It does fine in Texas. so you know the warmer areas where peaches grow well. The Red Baron is absolutely, a number one variety.
Farmer Fred 05:02
But it is susceptible to damage if there is a spring frost.
Ed Laivo 05:06
Yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah. Yeah. That's why you wouldn't want to grow it say, in seven. I wouldn't try it in zone 7 at all. Zone 8 if you've got good air drainage, really, really good air drainage, morning sun, then you could try it in Zone 8. I would almost say it's probably a peach that suited for good peach climates.
Farmer Fred 05:26
I imagine the skin would be red.
Ed Laivo 05:28
Yes. Oh, yes.
Farmer Fred 05:29
The flesh is yellow.
Ed Laivo 05:31
the flesh is lusciously yellow. I mean, it's just this really, really orangey yellow.
Farmer Fred 05:36
And is it more of a fresh eating peach?
Ed Laivo 05:39
Yeah, it is. It's one of those with juices running down your arms, you know, type of peaches. It has really intense flavor, lots of sweetness, and really, really juicy. So it's at its prime, it's probably not one of the more firm peaches. I think people have to kind of get out of the notion that firm is the only way to eat a peach. I would say that up until just recently, most peaches were considered to be ripe when they were soft, ripe, right? Yeah, firm is kind of phenomena of the last, say 30 years or so. Firm seems to have become more of a desired trait of fruit. And I really attribute that more to people's exposure to fruit in the grocery store. Because it had to be picked, you know, prematurely and for shipping. And so it came in always firm. And so, as much as we would not like to think about it, our tastes are influenced by of course, what we're exposed to. And the commercial growers have served us up a palette of very firm fruit because of the shipping requirements for many years on the calendar of when it ripens.
Farmer Fred 06:55
Is this one considered early, mid or late?
Ed Laivo 06:58
I call it kind of early, mid, early, mid, early mid. Alright. Yes, you can do that. You can do early. You can do early, late. You can do early, mid, mid, late, mid, early, late, late and late late.
Farmer Fred 07:20
Okay, so we're talking about July here then basically,
Ed Laivo 07:23
yeah.
Farmer Fred 07:25
Red Baron peach. All right. And it's available at tomorrowsharvest.com, I do believe.
Ed Laivo 07:30
Yep, it is. It is we've got beautiful trees. Oh my gosh. I mean, the stuff that we're growing this year, just because we've had such an extended warm period. It's been so mild. The trees just growing beautifully, wonderful branched trees. Definitely nice and full, and very healthy and just waiting for a home.
Farmer Fred 07:55
Tomorrowsharvest.com where you can find out more information about the Red Baron peach. You have time to answer a question or two here?
Ed Laivo 08:02
Sure.
Farmer Fred 08:03
All right. A text came in from Ashley who lives in Oklahoma City. And it's a fruit tree question. She says, I bought a bonanza patio peach two months ago. It's about a foot and a half tall. About a month ago, it had one tiny flower bloom and grew two leaves. But then they died. I nicked one of the main branches and it's still green inside. I taped the neck closed. Is my little tree dying? Or is it going to grow more leaves later?
Ed Laivo 08:31
You forwarded me the pictures and I looked at the pictures and I can assure you that that tree is dead. It's a tall graft or cut tall bud union on that peach. And I think it was if you just received it. Unfortunately, I think that probably came to you that way. And I would seek out some information from the company that you purchased it from to see if they might replace it for you. Because I can tell by just looking at the upper part of the of the variety that it's been really, really dehydrated for a long period of time so that that wood is sunken and gray and definitely has not been healthy for a while.
Farmer Fred 09:17
Or has been without water for quite a while.
Ed Laivo 09:20
Yeah, it could be, but it looks like it's something that happened a long while ago quite a while ago, not something that's happened recently. The tree is quite nice in its form. So to me it would say if it did happen after she got it, then it's because she absolutely didn't do anything to it at all, or lifted it out too long before she planted it. I mean, there are reasons, but it really does look like the damage is older damage. It doesn't look like it's new.
Farmer Fred 09:50
So check your warranty Ashley.
Ed Laivo 09:54
Yeah, but you know, the Bonanza peache is really cool. Because it's actually one of the first really popular, genetic dwarf peaches. And it too was introduced by the Armstrong nursery back in 1962, out of Ontario and again, you know, this is a long, long lineage of incredible California hybridizers from Herb Swim back in the 50s, you know, through the Armstrong's, and they've just really, during their time, introduced some outstanding varieties of fruit for the home garden. Yeah, they are huge contributors.
Farmer Fred 10:30
Explain what a genetic dwarf is?
Ed Laivo 10:34
Well, you know, it's kind of funny, the genetic dwarf kind of throws out this, I think a wrong impression. Genetic dwarf just happens to be of all of the percentages of fruit that you're going to get from natural crosses, a percentage of them can come up and be stunted. And have this stunted characteristic. I think at a time they were just discarded. And because there really was no purpose for him but I can I add that at one time, white peaches and nectarines were discarded for the same reason, because they were just considered to be inferior. So there were very few of them kept not until the probably into the early to mid 1900s did white peaches and nectarines start to become really really popular and really start to gain hold. And in part I got to tell you because of some of the great introductions that came out of the Armstrong nursery, so I mean that in all credit to him, I love the history, their contributions tremendous. So genetic dwarf doesn't necessarily mean anything other than the physiology of this particular plant was different from the seed and there was an abnormality in the seed that actually created this short, you know, stunted plant, then the next seed from that same tree may have produced the standard plant, and the next seed may have produced the white, you know, fleshed fruit and the next seed produced, you know, a yellow.
Farmer Fred 12:02
So we should point out that a genetic dwarf fruit tree does produce normal size fruit.
Ed Laivo 12:10
Yeah, it does. And it produces a tremendous amount. if there's any real failing I think with the genetic dwarfs,, it's that they over produce, and thinning is absolutely required. I used to stick thin the genetic dwarfs because they were just so much of a pain to thin.
Farmer Fred 12:29
Okay, explain stick thin.
Ed Laivo 12:31
Well, the thing is, when you get well, I would just get a stake and just go in and just kind of, you know, like circle it, knock it around in the tree like I was stirring a pot of beans and just knock fruit out of it. Because they can actually load up so much that they'll break limbs. They're brittle, the genetic dwarfs are typically very brittle. And so it's not uncommon for them, if you leave the fruit on them, for them to break entire limbs off.
Farmer Fred 13:00
it is the hardest thing for backyard gardeners to do: thinning a fruit tree. they think they're not going to have anything left. This is the time of the year to be out there, thinning the fruit while it's still small.
Ed Laivo 13:13
I think along with size control, thinning is the most important thing you do. I've thinned my trees up on my hill here twice. I'll be doing my first summer pruning on them this week.
Farmer Fred 13:25
We should explain for people who don't know what thinning actually is. And you're just trying to leave some room, about the width of a fist between all the remaining pieces of fruit because sometimes in fruit trees, they come up in clusters.
Ed Laivo 13:38
Yeah, yeah. And some varieties you know, it's ironic, but some varieties will grow full size fruit and don't even need to be thin. I mean, but other varieties. if you don't thin them the fruit never sizes up. Or because the clusters are so tight, they become susceptible to disease like mildews and things like that. So you know thinning actually becomes more of a task to get good size to keep your limbs from breaking because of the overload of of fruit on a lateral limb.
Farmer Fred 14:15
Been there done that.
Ed Laivo 14:17
Yeah, and then also I think, you know for air circulation Yeah. And and good sunlight you know exposure because you know, fruit needs a certain amount of sunlight, you know, of course to get it sugar up.
Farmer Fred 14:29
There you go. Thin your fruit trees. Oh, and floss every day.
Ed Laivo 14:34
Yeah,yeah. Yeah. floss. Your fruit trees. Yeah.
Farmer Fred 14:38
All right, the Red Baron beach. Check it out at tomorrow's harvest.com we always learn something new about fruit when we talk with Ed Laivo from Burchell nursery and tomorrow's harvest.com and thanks for telling us about the Red Baron peach.
Ed Laivo 14:53
My pleasure, Fred.
Farmer Fred 14:59
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Farmer Fred 16:23
We'd like to answer your garden questions here on the garden basics podcast. Sarah writes us from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Debbie, and she says it gets hellish in the summer as of now there is some shade cast on my garden on my vast majority of tomatoes in the mid afternoon they get about six hours of direct sun but all look healthy and most already have little tomatoes growing. Alright, should I trim back the oak tree that is shading them or do you think this shade might be beneficial come June and July with its high humidity and above 90 temps? The leaves are still coming in on the oaks so I think the shade will get thicker soon, it starts throwing shade at about 3pm. By the way Debbie Flower is here. Yeah, our favorite retired college horticultural professor and the way things are getting warmer in the summertime and for longer through the season too. Here in California we could start getting 100 degree days in May and the heat can go through early October even. I'm beginning to think that some afternoon shade for tomato plants is beneficial.
Debbie Flower 17:25
Yes, I have my tomato gardens planted on the south side of my light colored stucco house. And I have actually fried tomatoes on the vine and the vine went with it. So yes, in our very hot and dry we are in a dry climate. We do have that problem. And too much sun can become an issue there were a lot of people who lost their cherry tomatoes last year Sweet Millions.
Farmer Fred 17:49
No, no. Do not cast aspersions on the Sweet Million.
Debbie Flower 17:52
Okay.
Farmer Fred 17:54
That's my favorite. Sun gold, a very popular yellow variety, were cracking like crazy. The Juliets were suffering. It seems like the thinner skinned cherry tomatoes were having a hard time of it.
Debbie Flower 18:06
Yeah, they were just drying out on the vine. And the vines, too. We saw pictures that people sent in the vines were drying up as well. And so, too much sun yes can be a problem with tomatoes. However, Sarah is in Baton Rouge, and it's very humid there. And so I would say to leave the tomatoes where they are, she said she went overboard she has, she didn't say that. She said she went kind of crazy and got lots of different kinds of tomatoes. And that's really cool, because she'll get to decide what she likes what grows well for her, but I would leave the ones that are in the shade and see how they do. they may enjoy that shade. My one concern is that in Baton Rouge humidity can be very high, it can be almost 100% with temperatures near 100. And that is that hellish environment she talked about in June and July. And that high humidity can allow what's called free water to form on the tomato fruit or on the leaves. free water which is just a droplet for us we get do in California, or raindrops were all over the country or this high humidity that can drop out of the environment onto the plant at whatever time of day. And that for if it's on that for six to eight hours, then it'll it allows the fungus and bacterial diseases to germinate from their spore stage and enter the plant so she might start seeing bacterial or fungal diseases and or fungal diseases on the leaves and or fruit of the plant. And if that's the case, the message is don't plant your tomatoes there next year.
Farmer Fred 19:38
Yes. And and some varieties will perform better than others. So stick with the ones that work.
Debbie Flower 19:42
Yes. So watch your plants, you're gonna have to go out and do what every good gardeners do. And that's visit the plants on a daily basis and look for things, like insects like ants and disease problems spots on the leaves. How would she know what to look for Fred?
Farmer Fred 19:57
There's going to be all sorts of interesting issues. Anything that could be caused by too much water as far as overhead irrigation or rain or high humidity or even sunlight one of those issues that it could be is the cracking of the tomato. When you see tomato fruit cracking near the stem, that radial cracking usually happens during rainy periods when rains follow long dry periods, but fruit exposed to the sun may also develop cracks. And when you can see that cracking, there's not too much you can do about it except to maintain a uniform water supply.
Debbie Flower 20:31
Right. And there are some cultivars or types of tomatoes that are more readily susceptible to cracking and others that don't do it as much. So that's something to take note of, then.
Farmer Fred 20:42
You have your ugly ugly diseases that can happen because of water irregularities. Probably the most common one is what we in the industry like to call "BER." blossom end rot. Which is, I don't care what you say, what you think it is. It's operator error. Yes, it is. And it has to do with irregular watering, sandy soil, wrong Ph. It's not usually a lack of calcium. So when that person at the nursery tries to sell you some calcium to put on the plant, the last time I checked, calcium can't be absorbed (directly) by a plant.
Debbie Flower 21:17
Yeah, it has to break down.
Farmer Fred 21:18
yeah, there's probably plenty of calcium in the soil but what happens down in the root zone, when you have that irregular watering you have root suberization which is just a fancy term for the roots cork over and can't absorb the calcium.
Debbie Flower 21:33
Yeah, and and if you have irregular watering, during those dry periods, the calcium has to be in a form available for your plant to absorb it into its roots. It can't get to the plant because everything travels to the plant into the plant and through the plant in water. And so you need enough water. but if you have too much water, then the roots will rot. So irregular watering can lead to a lack of calcium in the plant and you can get that blossom end rot in the tomato. Usually it is not a lack of calcium in the soil. It is the inability of the calcium to get into and through the plant.
Farmer Fred 22:07
And you can't apply calcium to the outside of the plant because it just rolls off the leaves and the fruit cannot absorb it. You're not going to cure that tomato that already has blossom end rot. Right. What you can do is harvest it cut off the ugly part, serve the rest.
Debbie Flower 22:21
Right. And then change your watering habit so that the plants get regular watering so it can get calcium from the soil.
Farmer Fred 22:27
Another thing that can cause blossom end rot and this is something that gardeners would do when they see something like blossom end rot happen. Well, they do two things. Oh, it needs water, or Oh, it needs fertilizer. And too much nitrogen fertilizer can just expand the blossom end rot. Plus there are varieties that are just prone to it like a lot of the paste tomatoes. Yes. The Romas, the San Marzanos. So avoid those that get BER.
Debbie Flower 22:53
yes. So observe your plants and see what problems they show and take notes. And then they're all those speckles.
Farmer Fred 23:00
Yep, yeah, you got bacterial speck. You got black mold. You got late blight. And again, Spring rain, overhead irrigation, or when temperatures are near 70. That's that free water again. Yes. does all this.
Debbie Flower 23:14
Yes, it does.
Farmer Fred 23:15
So there are some ugly tomatoes out there. If you go to the Farmer Fred Rant blog page, and look up one post I did many years ago called Tomato Troubleshooter. We'll have a link to it in today's show notes. You can see pictures of everything we're talking about. So you know what to find, including what a tomato hornworm looks like, in case you don't know.
Debbie Flower 23:37
All right. So Sarah just needs to watch the plants she's got and in the shade. Take notes about what problems exist on which type of tomatoes. hopefully she's keeping the tags there so she knows which tomato is which cultivar, and learn from it. Maybe some are going to do really well under that oak tree and others are not, and that's great information for next year.
Farmer Fred 23:57
Yeah, exactly. And remember, besides having the tags with the tomatoes name on it next to the plant, you should write it in a garden diary for indoors because during the night those tomato hornworms take those signs and mix them up and just play havoc with your brain that way.
Debbie Flower 24:13
They are powerful.
Farmer Fred 24:15
Yes, they are. So basically keep double sets of records. Yes. All right, Debbie Flower. I hope that helps Sarah.
Debbie Flower 24:23
I hope it helps her too. Good luck, Sarah. Sounds like you're really into this and I love that.
Farmer Fred 24:27
And thanks for listening to the podcast.
Farmer Fred 24:39
The warmer weather means that fruit trees and berry bushes will soon spring to life with the promise of tasty, nutritious fresh fruit for you and your family. So what are you waiting for, a website with more information? Okay, you've got it. It's tomorrow's harvest.com. That's your go-to site for a complete line of backyard fruit trees and bushes. Tomorrow's Harvest fine line of fruit trees is the result of 75 years of developing, testing and growing. Three generations of the Burchell family have been at the forefront of research and development of plants of the highest quality and all of these beautiful, edible plants have been carefully cultivated for your home garden. Look for tomorrow's harvest fruit trees at better retail nurseries. And if your favorite nursery doesn't carry any of tomorrow's harvest fruit, nut and berry varieties, you can order them directly from tomorrow's harvest.com. And they'll come to you in Plantable Paper Pots, ready for you to stick directly in the ground, pot and all. Let the Burchell family's three generations of experience take root in your home orchard, Landscape and Garden. Tomorrow's harvest. It's goodness, you can grow. If you want to find out more about their nutritious and delicious fruit and nut varieties, visit tomorrow's harvest.com.
Farmer Fred 25:58
The Garden Basics with Farmer Fred podcast has a lot of information posted at each episode: transcripts, links to any products or books mentioned during the show, and other helpful links for even more information. Plus, you can listen to just the portions of the show that interest you, it’s been divided into easily accessible chapters. Plus you’ll find more information about how to get in touch with us. Leave an audio question without making a phone call via Speakpipe, at speak pipe dot com slash gardenbasics. it’s easy, give it a try. And you just might hear your voice on the Garden Basics podcast! If you’re listening to us via Apple podcasts, put your question in the Ratings and Reviews section. Text us the question and pictures, or leave us your question at: 916-292-8964.916-292-8964. E-mail: fred@farmerfred.com . If you tell us where you’re from, that will help us greatly to accurately answer your garden questions. Because all gardening is local. In the show notes you’ll find links to all our social media outlets, including facebook, instagram, twitter, and youtube. Also, a link to the farmerfred.com website. And thanks for listening.
Farmer Fred 27:18
Garden Basics comes out every Tuesday and Friday and is brought to you by Smart Pots. It’s available just about anywhere podcasts are handed out. And that includes Apple podcasts, I Heart Radio, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Podcast Addict, CastBox and Google podcasts. And for Northern California gardeners, check out this podcast: the Green Acres Garden Podcast with Farmer Fred, also available wherever you get your podcasts. Thank you for listening, subscribing and leaving comments. We appreciate it.
