16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes
In pots (depending where the pots are (sun, shade) and temperatures , the contents of the pots (Soil and roots) can get heated. That is why potted plants will readily and it takes them much longer to recover. Problem can get even worse if the are too small and not watered thoroughly and frequently enough.
Zylo,
I wonder if your pots are too small for your plants. If they are big plants, it is possible that they simply cannot suck up the water that you give them.
It happened to me when I grew a yellow cherry in a 3 gallon container this winter. The plant is normally 6 or 7 feet tall, so I knew that the pot was too small, but I thought I would grow it anyway. I was home all day to water 2 or 3 times a day if it drooped, but it reached a stage where it simply couldn't get that water right up to the top of the plant...... At least I got some tomatoes off it!!!
Linda
Was reliable with good production for me. But I have few better ones now. One of my new favorite is producing loads in small containers. It is Early, does not take much space and good for canning and salads. Juice is just right.
Here is a link that might be useful: new favorite
If too much juice ( and reducing it) is a problem in making sauce, there are several method. I propose a very simple one here:
== after coring, dice your tomatoes and put them in a pot.
== Get a potato masher and LIGHTLY press the cubed/diced tomatoes. This will the most of the juice in the seed pocket out.
== Strain, to get the juice out then put it back in the pot and continue processing. In this process most of the seeds will get out too.
You can drink the juice or cook soup with it. Never throw away.
== cook until tomato is softened. Use a stick blender and blend/puree in the pot. Then sift/strain through a tight colander . This should get the skin, remainder of the seeds and any pulp out.
== simmer for desired consistency ... proceed with canning.
I find this method very handy and dandy in dealing with a lot of tomatoes at peak harvest time, short of begging friends and relatives to take some of them : lol
BTW: in this method the original volume is reduced by 2/3. and jar/can just 1/3 of raw volume. Some people freeze whole tomatoes. I find it a waste of freezer space.
So Amish or not, you can make sauce from any tomato and it is simple.
I personally like to foliage feed once the plants have been established. However, I also foliage feed seedling we start in the cold frame with a diluted very low number kelp solution concentrate, it helps with the development and weather distress if you will.
This AM 6 weeks after the seedlings were transplanted to the garden : (winter squash , tomatoes , potatoes plants and sweet potatoes plants these were foliage fed- as there has been rain and humidity so the foliage feeding was done early in the AM 8 :00 allowing time for absorption. I would agree that the ratio of solution and the time window is very important - We practice organic methods for our gardening
I personally like to foliage feed once the plants have been established. However, I also foliage feed seedling we start in the cold frame with a diluted very low number kelp solution concentrate, it helps with the development and weather distress if you will.
This AM 6 weeks after the seedlings were transplanted to the garden : (winter squash , tomatoes , potatoes plants and sweet potatoes plants these were foliage fed- as there has been rain and humidity so the foliage feeding was done early in the AM 8 :00 allowing time for absorption. I would agree that the ratio of solution and the time window is very important - We practice organic methods for our gardening
Carolyn, as I garden in limited space community veggie area, I have no way of rotating my plants, they are all nightshades, so if this one is vercillium which probably is, so my option is to graft next year to rootstock like Celebrity which has at least some resistance to vercillium and 2 types of fusarium just in case...
Fungal issues are run abound at community gardens but there is no resistant to Septoria and Early Blight rootstocks... not greatly familiar with subject so my way of thinking might need corrections...
Just broke down and finally bought aerated compost tea brewer, pricey one from KIS. Hoping this will help as well.
Here is my tomato haul, Noir De Crimee, Bychie Serdse, Koroleva and Biyskaya Roza. They probably need another couple of days of ripening...
Dwarf Rosella Purple is supposed to be as tasty as any black tomato, but it's larger than a grape or cherry tomato.
I really like cherry tomatoes too, and there are several early red and yellow varieties that do well in containers, but apparently no black ones.
You might like the taste of black cherry, chocolate cherry or black plum, but they all seem to be indeterminates. At least it will be fun to grow them on your balcony! One suggestion would be to grow them on strings that can be lowered and curled around, as they do in commercial greenhouses.
Linda
http://www.heirloomtomatoplants.com/Small%20Plants,%20Patio%20Garden%20Plants.htm
There are two black varieties listed here that are short, although larger than a cherry.
Linda
It so happens that as you know, SanMarzano is a BER prone. It has nothing to do with the containers size. But on the other hand you should've supplemented your potting soil with some form of calcium. For example, MG Shake n Feed granular slow release has calcium in it. Or adding some dolomitic lime could also be another option.
But Your plants look very healthy and happy, to me.
I don't want to hi-jack this thread, but I'll respond quickly and say that I did incorporate dolomite when I "prepped" the buckets in mid-March. When I transplanted in mid-May, the dolomite had distributed nicely within the moist mix. I think my localized climate with cool nights at the time of first blossom set (mid 40s) combined with very warm days nearing 100 contributed more to the BER than calcium. All in all, no complaints. It's fun learning what works well and what doesn't work.
probably you sliced them too early ?. Let some stand/sit for a while and then see what happens. This can be done both on and off the vine. IMO, color alone might not be the sole indication of ripeness.
This post was edited by seysonn on Thu, Jul 10, 14 at 14:44
Thanks Sharonie, for clarification.
I am happy that JBT is a great tasting tomato. I am also growing Kumato and Cherokee purple in that category. I have grown CP before and liked it a lot.
moosemac, you may have unveiled a secret. Sometimes original color might not indicate ripeness.
Growing Indigo Berries this summer, just started harvesting them last week.
They started out very dark purplish, but when fully ripe, are almost a rose color with little splotches of dark brownish coloring on the "shoulders". So they don't really stay indigo once they are ripe and at their best to consume :(. Seems to defeat the purpose, unless you like growing them ornamentally so that they can look pretty on the plant before they mature.
Flavor wise, they're okay. Not terribly sweet, but a good strong tomato flavor.
Overall, I wasn't impressed. Probably won't be growing them again.
You don't say where you live and garden which is important since Curly Top Virus is only found in western states, is transmitted by Beet Leaf Hoppers and is a real problem for folks who especially live near sugar beet fields.
The leaf hoppers descend ,not just on one plant,but usually almost all plants in a garden.
So no, I doubt CurlyTop Virus,
Curly leaves, upside down leaves, etc., can be due to several reasons , but methinks I'll let others describe those since I'm still recovering from lack of sleep from the wicked storms of yesterday and days before and am going to take a nap after I'm through at GW right now.( smile)
Carolyn
Here is a link that might be useful: Curly Top Virus
Thank you so much Carolyn!
I do NOT live in western US. (NorthEast actually) Phew! Well, that at least eliminates 1 virus from the list. Lol.
Sadly, I've had such poor luck with my tomato plants this year. Up to date I have lost 3 seedlings. 1 to heat stroke (maybe??) and the other 2 were malnourished and perhaps infected. I of course helped their demise by overpruning them.
Now, I am left with 5 tomato plants. All of different variety.
2 were from the previous batch (which have been pruned...but seem to be thriving)..and there are 3 newbies.
Of the 5 remaining, the Celebrity (which I purchased for it's disease resistence) is the only one with this curly leaf issue.
It has been relocated, but still same amount of care.
I am washing my hands between care of the plants (just in case).
The other 4 plants are
husky cherry red, patio, big boy, and yellow gold.
HOPING at least 1 of the 5 produces an edible batch of fruit to enjoy during it's season.
Hence my username. LOL.
Wish me luck, and thanks all for the support!
Happy and healthy growing to ALL! :)
The herbicide theory is not convincing, the way you have outlined it. UNLESS the county/neighbors used herbicide that its drift touched your plants.
One of the such herbicide contamination tests is to plant tomato seedlings in it . It will show better because the younger plants are more sensitive to it. Now your plants have been there for months and the herbicide residue was hiding somewhere !!
Your plant is fine and normal. Lower leaves, especially those shaded, will get yellow and dry up or fall off eventually.