In response to Kenneth: The saga of backyard home gardening

Vaհe H Apelian

Most home gardening is done in the backyard. I have no recollection of seeing gardening done in the front yard, which is meant to be manicured, green grass carpet like. I will allude to it later.

Kenneth Martin, a fellow home gardener, wrote to me the following: “By the way, I’ve been meaning to write about my garden. I made some raised beds that I used last year and got a lot of tomatoes but this year not so many so far and the plants only produced a few with no more flowers. I wonder what I’m doing wrong? Last year I planted the tomatoes that just keep growing throughout the season but this year I wanted the plants to be shorter so I got the other version. Is that what I did wrong they only.”

Compared to my garden last year, this year same time my garden seems to be not as grown up. There are natural yearly variations, I cannot explain. But there are things I know that affect home, backyard gardening.

Tomato is the most common plant home gardeners use. If you have seen the movie Godfather, I am sure you recall the scene when the aging godfather was playing with his grandson when he had a heart attack and fell dead among the large tomato plants in their backyard. Those tall, season long tomato producing plants appear to be a thing of the past.  Presently in broad terms, there are two types of tomato plants. They are identified as determinate and indeterminate tomato plants. Determinate tomato plants grow to a predetermined size, producing a single, large harvest of fruit over a short period. Indeterminate tomatoes, on the other hand, grow and produce fruit throughout the entire growing season. Commercially grown tomatoes are determinate. They are planted and harvested once for the season. 

For home gardeners both types are sold. There is no identification for what type they are. As a general rule, I quote, “size is the biggest clue. If the plant says it is a bush variety, it is determinate. If the information states the plant is vining or will grow to over 6 feet, you have an indeterminate variety.” Keneth wrote, “this year I wanted the plants to be shorter so I got the other version”, implies that he bought determinate tomato plant, which means it will be flowering for a short, determined period of time.  

But why Keneth is getting a few tomatoes?

It is my experience that home backyard gardening is not as productive simply because our yards are killing fields. As a matter of fact, I dare say that the green lawns of the United State constitute one large green grass desert, where no flowers grow, and were insects, worms and other living creatures are indiscriminately killed. I quote, “Soil contains a wide variety of living organisms, including bacteria, fungi, archaea, algae, protozoa, nematodes, and various invertebrates like earthworms, mites, and insects. These organisms play crucial roles in soil health and ecosystem function.” Our lawns are not part of natural ecosystem. I wonder if the term “insecticides” apply to the chemicals or to us, people. If guns do not kill, but people do.  Chemicals also do not kill when stored properly but people kill by spraying them.

I have planted pumpkin, winter squash in my backyard along with zucchini. Pumpkin and winter squash vines spread up to eight feet and even longer. Zucchini plants can grow quite large, typically reaching 2-3 feet tall and 2-6 feet wide. These plants occupy a lot of space. Consequently, I planted them in my backyard and not in my Berlin community garden to make more room there for the different type of tomatoes, egg plants, hot and sweet, bell and banana type peppers, and a lot of onions, this year.

My pumpkin and winter squash plants are growing healthily but they are not productive. In the mornings I see them with wide yellow attractive flowers but there are no bees. Even though I spared our backyard from any kind of spraying, but our larger front yard, as well as our neighbors’ yards are killing fields that bees, butterflies and I imagine even birds avoid. Without bees, these beautiful, large, yellow pumpkin, squash and zucchini flowers wither away without producing a fruit. 

It may be that Keneth’s tomato plant/s is/are not as productive because there are not enough bees around to pollinate. There is an art and a science in home gardening too, let alone when it comes to feeding the insatiable earthlings, us.