Tomatoes 101

Everyone loves tomatoes and they can be grown in the garden, raised beds or in containers.  I grow varieties that grow over 6 feet tall and varieties that are perfect for containers.  Tomatoes love sun and water (feel the soil, if the top inch is dry, it’s time to water). 

Some common problems with tomatoes is blight and blossom end rot.

Blight: There is two types of blight: early and late.  To treat early blight apply copper spray to plants.  Copper spray can be found at greenhouses or any big box store.  Also trim off branches that are affected.  Later blight is harder to treat and prevention is key.  For more tips:  Treating Blight

Blossom end rot: is caused by an imbalance of calcium.  Some tips to prevent it is to make sure tomatoes are evenly water, before you place the tomato plants in holes place a little bit of bone meal in the hole, or place crushed egg shells around tomato plants if you notice blossom end rot starting.

There are two ways that tomatoes grow: indeterminate or determinate.

Indeterminate plants grow big and will need support to keep them upright.   They will bloom, set new fruit and ripen fruit all at the same time throughout the season. These grow best in a garden or raised bed due to how big they get and the amount of space they need., If you are attempting to grow them in a pot, it needs to be a very large pot as these plants tend to get very big.

Determinate plants stay smaller (tend to be bushier) and can benefit from a small cage.  All the tomatoes from the plant ripen at approximately the same time (usually over period of 1- 2 weeks).  These tomatoes are perfect to grow in containers.

There are many different kinds and varieties of tomatoes.

Plum or Romas: these tend to be meatier and have less water.  They are perfect for canning or making salsa.

Cherries: these are small tomatoes that are often very sweet. They are perfect as snacks, in Greek salads, or in other salads.  I sell lots of different colors and some plants that get massive, some plants that stay tiny, and some plants that tumble over the pot.

Heirlooms:  these are varieties that have been around for a long time, they have thin skin, and amazing flavor.  Heirlooms come in many different colors: pink, yellow, green, orange, black, striped, red, white, and purple.

Tomatoes are one of my favorite veggies and if you have a garden or some containers I highly recommend growing a variety of tomatoes.