Dr JimZ Blog

It has long been believed that fish help to build up soil and improve plant growth. Native Americans in North America were known to plant their corn and fertilize it by burying a fish alongside it. Even with all the improvements to agriculture that have come during...

Tomatoes are some of the most popular plants that are grown in home gardens today. You will get the best tomatoes if you have high quality soil and provide added nutrients in the form of fertilizer. Tomatoes are considered “heavy feeders,” meaning they quickly use and...

Growing your own garden-fresh tomatoes is easier than you might think, but understanding how to water them is key. Garden experts recommend giving tomatoes 1-2 inches of water per week, but conditions like size, weather, and soil type must also be considered. We’ll...

Pruning tomato plants is an optional gardening task, but proper pruning can help prevent disease, produce more fruit, and help speed up ripening. Pruning is most effective when done throughout the entire growing season, so understanding the basics before you plant...

Growing great tomatoes usually includes the use of fertilizer that supplies nutrients the plant needs to thrive and produce plentiful fruit. In order for fertilizer to be beneficial, it must be applied correctly to prevent damage to the plant in the form of fertilizer...

To grow great tomatoes with strong roots, you should plant them deep in the ground so that approximately two-thirds of the plant is buried and only the top of the plant is out of the ground. To help illustrate, that means if you have a 10 inch plant, 6-7 inches should...

Tomatoes are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals, as well as other important plant compounds. They are rich in lycopene, vitamin C, potassium, folate, vitamin K, beta carotene and more, which can positively impact heart health, provide cancer prevention, and...

Blight refers to a family of diseases that mostly affect tomatoes and potatoes. Early blight is caused by a fungus-like organism (alternaria solani) and can cause major damage to all parts of the plant. While symptoms of early blight may not always entirely destroy...

Tomatoes can be successfully grown in containers, but they will require some extra help to get the required nutrients to produce plentiful fruit. When you plant your tomatoes, the potting media that you use will likely contain some fertilizer, but that will only last...

You may have heard that you should never refrigerate tomatoes, but is that true? Experiments on the subject, performed by Serious Eats, have shown that you should usually avoid refrigerating tomatoes, especially commercially produced ones, but home-grown or...

Every spring gardeners eagerly anticipate the time when they can start planting for the new growing season. Tomatoes are especially susceptible to frost, so many people start them from seeds indoors. These seedlings need the right nutrients to grow and flourish, but...

Ripe, juicy tomatoes are the perfect summertime treat for your family, but what about your furry family members? Are tomatoes safe for pets to eat, or should they be avoided. It turns out that the occasional ripe, red tomato is safe for pets, but the green parts of...

People who only know tomatoes from the supermarket would say that tomatoes are red in color, but any gardener knows that tomatoes spend the majority of the time green and only turn red at the very end. So, what makes a tomato red, and why does this change in color...

Farmers and gardeners have been using manure as fertilizer for many hundreds of years. Manure, combined with other organic material, helps to create a fertile soil and provides important nutrients for plants. If you raise horses or have access to a stable yard, horse...

Nearly every garden store sells some type of tomato cage to help support your tomatoes. Indeterminate tomato varieties benefit immensely from the extra support because they can become quite large as they continue to grow and set fruit throughout the entire growing...

Some gardeners swear by the use of powdered milk for their gardens, but what benefits could powdered milk possibly bring? Milk is high in calcium, which is a macronutrient that plants need. It also has fungicidal properties that can protect the plants. After we...