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If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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Posted by gonebananas 7/8 (My Page) on Thu, Nov 12, 09 at 11:49
| How do you best deal with nematodes? Assume here no terribly infected condition beforehand (presently grass or woods).
Prior solarization?
Dead fallow for a year beforehand?
Sesame or marigolds for a season?
Deep mulching after planting?
Generous watering and fertilization? (Hope to outgrow.)
Graft on LSU Purple? (Or whichever selection is thought to have some resistance.)
One thing I don't like about grafting is the rare deep freeze that may kill below the graft line. But winter burial of the graft in dense mulch might take care of that. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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You overlooked the easy one, "Potting" it!
Potting is good on both extreme end conditions of temperatures as well as ground soil conditions if you can provided some needed ptotection from extreme heat in summer or extreme cold in the winters. |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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Dig deep, dig wide, fill with compost, cow manure, horse manure, organic compost and much heavily make sure the manure is not fresh but composted you can add some lime and fertilize once it takes
Sal |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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| Thanks, but I'm afraid you overlook the essential words: "have to." I grow a dozen or so kinds in 10-25 gallon pots. I'm tired of the critical watering hassle in common periods of 100 degree summer days and I want a lot more figs per bush. I want fig trees. But I live in a region of sand and nematodes. I see figs here and there in yards, so I know some will make do even with nematodes, but what is the best way (including with relative ease) to reduce the stress on more sensitive types? |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What's The Best Tactic?
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| "Dig deep . . ." Thanks. I wondered about that. It is similar to what you would do to grow bananas here. Additionally, especially if doing all that digging anyway, do you have any idea whether adding clay or silt helps, say simply by making the soil more loam like? |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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I realize you have lots of trees to plant, but have always read to plant them next to a slab building, so the roots under the slab are protected from the nematodes.No real simple solution.
Tim |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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| As with you, I too have read many times about the use of adjacent slab buildings and read these in seemingly knowledgeable sources. Unfortunately buildings here are mostly on masonry pillars (have crawl spaces). I wonder now if that would make any difference and have always wondered how it would work anyway. But I think I have just now figured it out. I'll bet the advice comes from flat coastal plain or river valley or delta areas where the water table is only a few feet down. Moist soil within rooting depth and no other plants to act as nematode sources thus exist. Bare dirt crawl spaces should still be fine with this at such locations. The problem here is deep water tables. While there are no troublesome nematodes below houses, the soil is usually bone dry as well for many feet down. |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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| Sounds like you're gonna need a drip irrigation system, even if you plant them in the ground. Many here use drip irr. for their pots, too! Tim |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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| Sorry I missed the words "If you have to". But the following may give you the feelings almost as "If you have done so":
http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post?id=2325930&highlight=pots |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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| That picture is outstanding! You're right. With careful trimming, drip irrigation, and careful fertilizing and watering you can get a tree in a big pot! I actually might try that with one and leave it in my yard (the mini orchard property will be ~25 miles away). I have some 45 gallon pots now and could eventually get larger ones relatively easily, up to about 200 gallons. It doesn't get cold enough here to freeze big pots solid. Great picture. (BTW: I thought the Missouri comment was both funny and clearly made in good humor.) |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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gonebananas
You have a good memory to remember that comment! (This post will sound funny if written like: "You have a good memory gonebananas" ) |
RE: If You Have To Grow In Hot Sand Soil What Is The Best Tactic?
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| I too have a good memory! Cecil |
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