16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes

I buy my Jet Star F1 seeds from Harris Seeds since they were the ones that bred it along with Supersonic F1 and Moreton Hybrid. I like all three but Jet Star F1 is my favorite.

Carolyn

I'm glad to find this blog but not happy about it. I also planted Jet Star for the first time spring '13 and my plants and trusses look exactly like those at the beginning of this blog. They have from 12-25 blossoms per truss, some look like 2 trusses near enough to be a double. The fruit setting appears it is going to be like a grape or Porter Tomato. They are setting fruit very good even in this East Texas heat, but they sure ain't jet Star.
Like some others the seed packet is Ferry-Morse 20 Pelleted Seeds, bought from Wal Mart Feb '13 dated 2012 LOT J1. The pkt has an 800 number, wonder if they'd answer? Larry

I have used Kelloggs PatioPlus in containers before but I live in a very hot arid climate. The product does contain manures and compost as I recall which could allow the container to become compacted and waterlogged. Most container growers advocate a soiless mix, based on things like sphagnum peat moss, perlite and bark.

Tomatoes tend to be fast growers and heavy feeders. Growing them with only organic ferts in a container can be challenging. In addition to watering issues you could be seeing some nutrient deficiency.

I throw my hat in with the "no rocks in the bottom of the pot" clan.

Thank you all for your help.

How often do you think I should water them and how much do you think I should give them each time I do water them?

Also, should I add some type of wicking now? Is that still possible? and if so, what do you recommend?

Thank you!

Why is it that just the tops are wilting or drooping and not the other plants?

There could be any number of reasons. Maybe the ground level is a bit lower there and so the water collects there. Maybe the soil in a particular spot doesn't drain as well - that is common. Maybe the soil grubs are thicker in that area. Maybe those particular plants weren't planted as deep so are more shallow rooted.

Maybe they are a different variety - you don't say what they are - and different varieties respond in different ways. Maybe before the storm even came those particular plants were already root stressed from over-watering or poor drainage - most people way over-water anyway - so the storm affected them more. Those are just a few of the possible explanations.

The tops, the new growth, reflect what is going on with the roots before the rest of the plant does so that is why you see the tops drooping - they are root stressed/damaged.

Bottom line is, just like any plant, they will either adjust to the growing conditions and recover or they won't and will die. But they certainly don't need more water. That would be the worst thing to do for them.

Dave

Agree. It is very common and assuming the plant is in a big enough container so that it isn't rootbound then they pose no problems. As mentioned their appearance is an indicator of overly wet conditions or a rootbound plant. If the wetness is due to the weather you can't control it other than to insure well-draining soil and make sure you don't over-water. If other symptoms of stress develop I would suspect the plant may be rootbound.

Dave

I'd take that sucker off and stick it in another pot - bonus!

Mine were about 5' up here in the north.

We'll see how they do here. Got everything in except for 6 Mark Twain I'll try to do tomorrow. Of course I have backups (extra) of everything except the Camp Joy and Cheeseman's, now DH tells me we're supposed to get another 2" of rain tomorrow (had over 2" on Friday, 3.5" last week, 7" since May 19).

Hi, I asked this question, about suckers, and overwhelming response is DO NOT CUT ANY SUCKERS!!! This is like having a sailboat, and throwing away the sails, and then wondering why you are going nowhere -
this is the link to why not to prune suckers:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/tomato/msg0609471311477.html?14
have a nice day - oh, and i think they are toast, plant are definitely ruined.

Here is a link that might be useful: read about how to grow tomatoes.

"they are toast, plant are definitely ruined."

Absolutely disagree. As has been stated, lots of people trim the lowest leaves/branches of their tomatoes to help with airflow and soil being splashed on the leaves during watering. Assuming the kids didn't strip the plants bare and the top is still growing well, I think you'll be fine. You might get some reduced production, but that is a far cry from completely ruining the plants.

What varieties of tomatoes are they, and where are you located? More information can help fine tune your answers. :)

Kathy

This is from the About.com: Home Cooking page on Tomato Storage and Selection Information:

"Refrigeration is the enemy of the tomato as it nullifies flavor and turns the flesh mealy. The culprit is a compound called Z-3 hexenel, which accounts for the tomato's scent and taste. The development process which turns tomato's linolenic acid to the Z-3 that makes our mouth and nose sing is hindered by cold. If you must refrigerate a tomato, take it out about an hour before using it to let it return to room temperature to revive any lurking Z-3."

I hope that helps.

Betsy

Here is a link that might be useful: 5 Common Mistakes that Ruin Your Fresh Tomatoes, and How to Avoid Them

Betsy,I am so happy you posted that link. If you ask 100 people on the street why super market tomatoes are tastless 90 will say "because the are produced in hothouses." The information also tells use why saving seed from a beautiul store bought tomatoe is a bad idea.
And for those who have always known the 5 tips,it's comforting to see from the pictures that home grown tomatoes arn't supposed to have unblemished skin. Kinda like a lady with perfect skin ,soft hands and long manicured nails. You know she doesn't wash dishes nor garden so that's 2 strikes starting off.

Does seem like weather, possible drainage & transplant issues, combined. The bad part is the plants are now prone to infections. I'd snip, or partially snip any branches hanging too close to the ground, those often get infected first.

Hard to tell from the pics, but yes, you should probably swap out any plants that look heavily affected. You may also want to begin treatment sprays, a few popular ones that work well are serenade, copper, sulphur, daconil (google search). You can alternate between two different sprays, just spread it out over a week or two, or right after rainstorms.

This post was edited by sjetski on Sat, Jun 8, 13 at 9:25

When I pulled them out I did spray them with Fungonil.I mulched with newspaper and grass over top so that there would be less soil splashing onto the leaves. Sprayed again today.

I don't know whether to take off the diseased looking leaves as that is only what some of them have. So I figure some leaves is better than none. I will have to wait on my container tomatoes to get suckers before I can replace them so I will have to wait either way.

This post was edited by Reach_For_The_Sun on Sat, Jun 8, 13 at 21:45

Ha...I knew there had to be something I was missing! I'll check out our sprayer and kick myself for not figuring that out sooner. I was crouched down this morning trying to spray up and thinking there had to be a better way!

Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm learning something new!