By UC Master Gardener of Mariposa County – Helen Willoughby-Peck Red, yellow, green, orange, brown, purple, and even white, the quintessential tasty treats of summer will soon stop producing. Cooler weather and shorter days signal the end of our tomato growing season and your plants will begin to decline. Tomato lovers will soon be forced to consider tasteless and characterless ...

By Helen Willoughby-Peck, UC Master Gardener of Mariposa Most home gardeners who grow tomatoes have experienced a problem or two caused by diseases or environmental factors which contribute to poor production, foliage damage or plant death. Here are a few of them that you might encounter this summer and possible solutions. Tomato Fruit Set Failure and Flower Drop You might ...

By Helen Willoughby-Peck, UC Master Gardener, Mariposa County Walking in your garden every day is good for you and good for your plants. Observing your plants on a regular basis helps control pests that may be enjoying your tomatoes before you can. When caught early they are usually easy to control without insecticides or other drastic action. You can get ...

OAKHURST — Join the very first ever Idle Hour Winery & Kitchen Social Club Party! Enjoy a mask decorating workshop, a Cajun & Creole menu along with Zydeco & Jazz music at this New Orleans experience! Date & Time: Tuesday, February 21, from 3 – 8 p.m. Click here to reserve your table. Idle Hour Winery & Kitchen 41139 Highway ...

By Michele Nowak-Sharkey, Master Gardener of Mariposa County In the winter months, more time is spent inside than outside when it comes to the garden. Although there are still things do such as pruning and mulching, the dreaming part of gardening is reserved for the colder, precipitation-filled days of the year. However, before being swayed to purchase dozens of seed ...

FRESNO STATE — With the sun rising on the next chapter of Fresno State Athletics, the pride and tradition of the Bulldogs is, and always will be, rooted in the Central Valley. Over the course of the next trip around the closest star, Fresno State Athletics will show why the Bulldogs compete “For The V” – an iconic symbol which ...

By Bob Labozetta —  This final part of a three-part series on growing tomatoes in our hot, dry climate details proper cultivation techniques. In areas with no natural shade use shade cloth to cool tomatoes during the hours of most intense sunlight — usually between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Orient the shade structure so it is open to the ...

By Bob Labozetta —  Whether you sowed seeds in late February/early March or you purchase plants from a nursery or the Mariposa Master Gardeners Annual Plant Sale, make sure your transplants are young, stocky seedlings instead of larger plants. They will establish more quickly and suffer less transplant shock, soon catching up in growth to larger plants. “Harden off” your ...

By Bob Labozetta —  This is the first of a three-part series about growing tomatoes in the Sierra foothills. Parts two and three on tomato care will follow in the weeks to come. Tomatoes are adversely affected by temperature extremes. When temperatures stay over 90℉ during the day and the nights remain above 70℉, non-adapted tomato blooms often fail to ...

By Helen Willoughby-Peck —  Most home gardeners who grow tomatoes have experienced  problems with tomato diseases.  Tomatoes can suffer a variety of diseases and environmental factors contributing to poor production, foliage damage, or plant death. Here are a few of them that you might be seeing on your tomato plants this summer with possible solutions to ‘cure’ your plants. Tomato ...