Growing Tomatoes

tomatoes Growing Tomatoes The tomato is by far the most popular vegetable grown at home. Tomatoes reward gardeners handsomely for their small investment of time and space. Plants sold at nurseries are usually the best ones for the local climate. Tomatoes with small fruits come on both large and small vines. Early-fruiting tomatoes need less heat to ripen fruit than other varieties. In climates where spring and summer nights are warm, plant them to get ripe tomatoes as early as six weeks to two months after setting out plants. In climates where spring and summer nights are cool or cold, plant this kind to get tomatoes at all.

Some tomato varieties were developed to grow and bear in soil that is infested with organisms that can otherwise be fatal to tomato plants verticillium wilt, fusarium wilt, and nematodes. The variety names and seed packages either say so or they carry the letters V, F, or N after the variety name to indicate resistance to any or all of these troubles.

How to plant

The choice of tomato varieties in stores is often limited. Send away early for seeds, and start them indoors six weeks before frost danger is past. Harden off tomato plants, including purchased plants, before setting them into the garden. Tomatoes cannot withstand frost; wait until late spring to transplant into the garden. Set plants out when they are 6 to 10 inches tall, 24 to 48 inches apart. Work a complete fertilizer into the planting bed according to label directions. Set the plants in deeply you can bury as much as half to three quarters of the leafless part of the stem. Roots will form along the buried part of the stem and make the plants grow stronger.

To save space and make tomato growing easier, install stakes or tomatoes cages before you plant. Unstaked vines will sprawl across many square feet and some fruits will lie on the soil, often causing rot, pest damage, and discoloration. A 6-foot-long stake (at least 1-by-1 inch) driven into the ground at least a foot from each seedling is the simplest method to install. A cylinder of welded wire is more trouble to install but makes it easier to train vines. Put stakes at opposite sides of each cylinder and tie it firmly to them. Poke vine branches into openings in the cylinder as the plant grows.

Care

Cut off the suckers that form between the branches and main stem to open up vines and to encourage opening of fruit. Irrigate tomato plants frequently during the early part of the season, less frequently after fruit begins to set. Tomatoes will pollinate reliably at 65^° for late varieties, at 60^° for early varieties. Dig in a bushel of compost or rotted manure for each plant, mulch with straw or plastic, and feed with a complete fertilizer. Some of the heaviest yields recorded have been made with the full-season, controlled-release fertilizers. Tomatoes should be watered deeply at least every 10 days during dry spells. Blossom drop can be caused by too much or too little water.

Harvesting

For fresh use, harvest at the stage of ripeness that most appeals to you. For juice or canning fruit can remain on the vine for several days past the best harvest stage while you are waiting for enough fruits to ripen to make preserving worthwhile. Large green tomatoes will ripen in several weeks in a cool, humid dark place (around 60^°).

In containers

Although any tomato plant can grow in a large enough container, the midget varieties are best suited for pots with a soil capacity of 1 cubic foot. Provide tubs with a soil capacity of 3 cubic feet for the standard sized plants. Set stakes in the soil at the time of planting and tie foliage to them as it grows. Small-fruited cherry and pear tomatoes are ideal for hanging baskets.Tomatoes are also well suited to hydroponic culture or you can grow tomatoes upside down.

Share and Enjoy:

Growing Vegetables