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What’s
an Heirloom?
Modern supermarket “hybrids,” are bred for their long shelf-life,
but classic “heirloom” varieties are picked for their superior
flavors.  There are hundreds of varieties of heirlooms that gardeners around
the world have carefully selected and preserved for
generations, so you’ll find much more than just red
tomatoes – you’ll
discover green,
yellow,
orange,
purple,
and even black
ones (man say these tastes best). Some will be sweet, some spicy and others
smokey; they’ll range in size from tiny cherries to giant fruit that
weigh over two pounds. |
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How
Do I Pick?
With so many heirloom varieties, nurseries and chain stores are only able
to carry a limited selection, so small gardeners have been stuck with
just a few options. Recently though, specialty
farms have begun shipping sturdy young plants direct to gardeners.
Some even offer themed
collections made up of popular varieties, so picking which plants
to grow is easy. You can find these collections and a huge selection of
individual
varieties through websites like the online gardening center, Windowbox.com.
They offer a range of packs, each with a different theme, including: beefsteak tomatoes
container growers,
high yeild plants,
huge fruit plants,
Italian paste & sauce,
weather tolerant,
cherry tomatoes,
and more.
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From
UPS to BLT
Once you’ve got the right plants for you, it’s just a matter of
raising them. Thankfully, heirlooms are hardy (they have to be to have lasted
so long), and they’re easy to grow. Most heirlooms are “indeterminate,”
which means they grow like a vine, and they’ll produce fruit all season
long – until the first frost. “Determinate” plants are more
like a bush, and they typically produce all their tomatoes in one batch.
Depending on which you’ve selected, they’ll require slightly different
care. Basically though, with sun, water, a little fertilizer
and pruning, you’ll be enjoying delicious tomatoes all summer long.
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Where
Do I get Help?
Many tomato growers share their knowledge on the web, and this increased
communication has helped the heirloom community expand significantly.
Many sites feature growing hints and tips as well as discussion forums.
Windowbox.com offers a detailed
tomato growing
guide (download here)
that is a great help throughout the season, and if that’s not enough,
their group of online experts
shares basic growing tips and answers specific questions.
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How To Grow Tomatoes In Your Vegetable Garden
by Dave Truman
Click here to order a Free Nature Hills Nursery Catalog
For many people, growing big juicy tomatoes is part of
what makes vegetable gardening so enjoyable. Whether purchasing plants
from your local nursery or starting tomatoes from seed, there are a few
basic steps to follow to ensure that you harvest an abundant crop at the
end of the growing season. There are many different varieties of tomatoes
to choose from, depending on whether you will be cooking, canning,
slicing, or eating miniature or grape-like varieties right off the vine.
Sweet 100ís are very abundant, and are good for salads as well as eating
fresh from the garden. Roma tomatoes are good for making salsa, because
the peels are not as tough as others so you don't need to peel the skins
off. Roma's are also known as the classic paste and sauce tomato. There
are Early Girls, Early Boys, Big Boys, Big Mamas, Sweet Baby Girls,
Beefsteaks, French Rose hybrids, Big Rainbow, specialty tomatoes and many
more. So start by choosing the kind of tomato you would like to grow.
Planting Tomatoes from Seeds
Tomatoes grown from seed will require six to eight weeks
before they can be planted in the garden. Purchase individual containers
or flats, starter soil or mixture, and the seeds of your choice. Fill each
container with soil, pressing it tightly to remove air and to avoid
settling problems after watering. Typically, seed companies print
instructions for planting right on the tomato seed package. Each variety
is a little different so follow instructions carefully. Prepare a label
identifying the type of tomato and the date started. You can make your own
from Popsicle sticks or purchase them at the store or garden center.
Save 25% or more on selected plants. Nature Hills Nursery Weekly Specials.
Insert your label in the pot and mist with water. Place
containers in a sunny window and keep seeds moist by placing a plastic bag
over them. Small greenhouse containers are also available at your local
nursery. Watch for seeds to germinate and remove plastic when plants
emerge. Wean out weaker looking seedlings to give strong ones more room to
grow. Keep moist by misting or watering tomatoes when needed. When plants
have a second pair of leaves it is time to transplant these seedlings to
your garden or a large pot in which they are to grow.
It is a good idea to harden off or acclimatize a plant
to outdoor conditions before planting by setting it out in direct sun
during the day and bringing it in at night. After a few days, the tomato
plant will have adapted to the new surroundings and can be transplanted in
the desired location. Place plants directly outdoors after the threat of
frost in a shady location, out of the wind and protected from heavy rains.
Purchasing Started Plants
If you prefer to purchase plants from your garden center
or greenhouse, select dark green plants that are stocky in size and that
do not have any fruit. The fruit will stunt the plant growth and the total
yield will be reduced. Tomatoes are one of the few plants that will
tolerate being planted deeper than they sit in the pot. So a taller plant
can be placed a little deeper if preferred. As mentioned, harden off the
plant before moving it to a final location.
Preparing Garden Soil For Tomato Plants The soil should
be deep, loamy, and well-drained for the best harvest. Tomatoes prefer a
slightly acidic soil with a pH of 6.2 to 6.8. The term pH balance refers
to acidity or the alkalinity of your soil from a numerical scale of 1.0 to
14.0. The neutral point on the pH scale is 7.0. Higher than 6.5 indicates
alkaline soil, lower than that indicates acidic soil.
Test kits are available at garden centers or through
local horticultural organizations. To raise the soils pH, work agriculture
lime into the soil. Use sulfur to lower the pH of alkaline soil. Using
fertilizers and compost amendments will also change the soils pH over
time. Adding decomposed organic compost will improve any soil structure.
You can purchase or make your own compost. Once you have cultivated your
garden area and prepared the soil, it is ready for the plantings.
Planting The Tomatoes
Inspect all of the transplants, looking for insects,
wilting or blight. Plant only healthy plants. Tomatoes prefer full sun, so
choose an area with at least six to eight hours of sun per day. Practice
crop rotation in your vegetable gardening by planting tomatoes and other
vegetables in a different spot every year. Tomatoes prefer to be planted
by chives, parsley, marigolds, nasturtiums, garlic bulbs, and carrots.
Avoid planting tomatoes by potatoes or members of the cabbage family.
For large healthy tomatoes, give them plenty of room to
grow. Space plants twenty-four inches between rows and leave twenty-four
inches between plants. With your shovel or spade, make holes slightly
larger than the plants. Tap gently on the bottom of the individual
container, loosening the soil and gently removing from the pot. Tomatoes
are susceptible to cutworms, but placing a 3-4 inch nail next to each stem
before planting or wrapping strips of newspaper around the bottom of the
stems will help prevent these pests. A paper cup surrounding the stem also
works well.
Upside-Down Tomato Garden
Place tomato plant in hole and back fill with soil until
it is well compacted. Place a rack or cage around each individual plant to
help support future growth. Water around the base of the plant, avoiding
the foliage. Do not over water or soak the seedlings as this can promote
disease and rot. Water early in the day to discourage blight.
Using a rake, spread organic mulch, such as weed-free
straw, over plants at least two inches deep. These is an effective way to
prevent weeds, preserve water and keep the soil warm, thus reducing the
maintenance required for vegetable gardening. Fertilize the plants
throughout the growing season with compost or organic matter. Water when
needed and inspect leaves periodically for the signs of tomato blight and
insects. If blight is discovered, remove any infected leaves and destroy
them. Treat plant with a fungicide. Be sure to remove all debris from your
garden in the fall, as blight can survive on the dried tomatoes over the
winter.
Most tomatoes take 100-days to bear fruit, so follow
these easy directions and get ready to harvest the fruits of your labors
and enjoy that first BLT of the season.
AeroGarden Cherry Tomato Seed Kit
Items Needed For Growing Tomatoes:
- Tomato seeds or plants - Containers or flats - A small
greenhouse kit or plastic bags - Starter soil or mixture - Marking pen -
Popsicle sticks or labels - Rake - Spade and shovel - Water, sun, adequate
soil and patience
Click here to get $20 off any order for $50 or more of perennials at Gurneys.com!
Save 25% or more on selected plants. Nature Hills Nursery Weekly Specials.
About the Author
Dave Truman offers helpful advice about
vegetable gardening on the
Vegetable Gardeners website. For more helpful tips and to receive your
free guides to composting, mulching and pest control, visit
http://www.vegetablegardeners.com - goarticles.com
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