Growing Tomatoes

I love them. Planting, growing, and eating them. The best part for me is the smell of shoulder-high tomato plants coming into flower; it's as delicious to the senses as eating the first tomato of the season.

As for all gardening pursuits, there are many good tomato-growing information resources available on the Web. (See the links at the bottom of this page for a few.) Beyond those resources, here are some personal insights from my tomato-growing experiences...

Don't plant too soon. Even if there's no frost danger, tomatoes are not fooled by being planted early; that is, before the ground is warming and when night temperatures fall below 55 degrees. You can do it but the plants essentially sit there, not growing, waiting until the ground and nights are warmer. I have not tried any of the "tower of water" or red plastic sheeting techniques to rush the growing season. These may work but I've just accepted the reality here of planting around Mothers Day (or later) and harvesting tomatoes the first week in August (for Big Boy and Better Girl tomatoes).

Don't mulch too soon. Mulching is very important but if you mulch when the ground is still cool, it prolongs that condition. Wait until mid-June.

You can save a plant that's been badly damaged by thunderstorms and wind. A strong July thunderstorm can wreak havoc on plants that are staked or caged, breaking or nearly breaking off the individual vines that are laden with rapidly-growing tomatoes. Duct tape is not pretty but works for "bandaging" and stabilizing vines that are not completely severed. It must be applied gently, of course, and shaped carefully around broken vines. A more aesthetically pleasing bandage is made from melted candle wax shaped by hand over the near-breaks. The last time this disaster struck my garden - about 4 years ago (pre-drought days) - I used ugly old silver duct tape. It worked, and the tomatoes pulled through just fine. I think the birds appreciated the winking silver specks in the tomato patch, too.

Don't plant cucumbers near tomatoes. Cucumbers seem to be whitefly magnets.

Don't over-fertilize. Too much fertilizer (whether organic or non-organic) leads to very tall vines that don't produce much. Dried grass clippings work well but will contain lots of chemical fertilizer if the lawn has been "fed" in the Spring.

Tomato Links

Planting and growing tips from the Ohio State University Extension Service.

Advice for managing tomato-growing problems, from the University of Illinois Extension Service.

Tomato Q&A from Texas A&M's PLANTanswers site.

Tomato-growing forum.

A good year in the garden!

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