16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes

That is a baby yet compared to what it will be by mid-summer.

You chose a variety that is normally a giant plant and are using a support system and container that will have difficulty supporting it. By nature it isn't a container variety no matter how big the container. Pays to know the nature of the variety before hand. :)

So while pruning it would normally NOT be recommended and trimming it will cost you fruit production and stress the plant, given the growing conditions you have for it you probably won't have a choice but to prune its top growth. Just don't do more than is absolutely necessary and don't try to do it all at one time.

Dave

Thanks for the responses.

im a newbie and i'm just proud that i havent killed it yet.

All you want is a arguement with a question like yours. Flavor is subjective. So you'll never get the answer you're looking for.

Just for future reference when it comes to varieties Mr. Stripey is a seldom recommended variety while Cherokee Purple always gets very high reviews.

Since you are buying transplants and it is already late for zone 7 planting you may find them well picked over already and the only choices left for you are the commonly grown hybrids like Better Boy, Celebrity, Bradley, etc. Personally I'd stick with the Better Boy of those 3 although Bradley is ok too. If you can find one of the Brandywine or some Arkansas Travelers (both heirlooms) grab those.

Since you will be planting late fruit set will be delayed on most of them as the hot weather will be coming on soon. But keep them well fed and well watered and hopefully we will get some cooler days that will allow for fruit set.

Dave

I have grown several varieties of yellow cherries and they all tended to split when picked ripe. I think it is just how they are. Eat 'em quick.....

Try Sun Sugar. It's a very similar variety with less tendency to split.

3rd pic

Get rid of any BER tomatoes asap! That problem will usually resolve itself as the season progresses. For the leaf issue, if they were mine I would begin spraying with my fungicide of choice. Just curious. what is the reason for the black plastic mulch?

Planting deep is good advice for long season areas so long as the soil temp at planting depth is above 60 degrees. The root system will develop deeper which contributes to more fruit production. Do not plant deep any time the soil temperature is below 60 degrees. This applies to early season plantings in southern climates and most plantings in northern climates. The low temperature is equivalent to putting your feet in an ice water bath for the plant.

When you are dealing with cold soil temperatures, mound the soil up 6 to 8 inches high, then cover it with black plastic. Set a plant into the top of the mound through the plastic, putting it about half the length of the stem into the soil. As temperatures rise, remove the plastic and mound soil up around the plant until another 4 to 6 inches has been added to the mound. The black plastic will absorb heat and transfer it to the soil mound. The mound will warm up faster when the sun shines and cool down slower during rain.

DarJones

I half remembered this deep planting advice from my father in law about 30 years ago. So this year I planted deep but forgot to remove the bottom set of leaves. Seriously. Remembered after a few days but decided it would be worse to dig them back up. Luckily no ill effects. They are all off and running and doing well about a month later.
This is the first veggie garden I have had in about 20 years so I have been reading GW like mad.

I also have 3 stems coming out of the main stem about 2 inches from the ground and the leaves on them are turning yellow they have holes and shriveled and those leaves at the end of them stems lay on the ground

This post was edited by John_JJ on Tue, Jun 4, 13 at 21:05

the leaves on them are turning yellow they have holes and shriveled and the tips of them touch the ground

Those I would remove. Nothing is gained by leaving discolored or damaged leaves on the plant. Most of us remove the lower branches that touch/drag the ground. Some will remove any up to just below the first bloom cluster.

Dave

Neem oil worked for me last year. I had tons of them. Spray every square inch of the plant.

Thanks a lot for the suggestions. I will try to first flush it off with a gentle jet of water ... then if they persist try the hand method... then the soap water ... then the garlic ... then the neem :)

Didnt know this was so common on the forum. Thanks so much !
G

The middle bucket has a celebrity, the two buckets left of that are just called "patio tomatoes", the two other buckets are called Better Bush maybe?... I will look at the tags next time I go out to make sure. The Better Bush are by far the best producers so far. The celebrity has a ton of blooms and a few small tomatoes so far. The Patio's have a ton of blooms and a lot of small tomatoes. The ones in the ground are Better Boy's and so far they are not doing as good. Hopefully the new round of fertilizer will prod them on.....They are very sturdy plants and such a deep green color. The green bean plants are still pretty small but they are producing green beans. The cucumbers have not bloomed yet and seem to be slow growing, could be because they are somewhat in the shady part, in between the buckets maybe....but it is what it is.. lol and still fun. I can see a lot of fresh tomatoes and salsa in my future

RB.. the one in the corner is a different variety, it's a Celebrity...It was also smaller then the other's when I bought it... and actually the two biggest ones get less sun then all the others.

As soon as all of my seedlings have emerged, I take them off of the heat mat.

They go straight outside if the weather allows during the day, and into the garage at night. On particularly cool nasty spring days, they stay in the garage under grow lights during the day.

I like to expose them to full sun and weather from the beginning, before any true leaves form. This way the plant grows pre-hardened off.

Of course, I am growing about dozen plants I can easily move back and forth. If you had a large number, this may not be practical.

So you think it's better to start them inside under grow lights even when it's warm and sunny outside?

The ideal way is to start them in a greenhouse where they have all the advantages of limited spectrum, UV blocked sunlight (and supplemental light when needed) but in a temperature and air circulation controlled environment.

But that isn't practical for most small home gardeners. So yes, the next best method is indoors under lights and fans until they are established and old enough to be gradually exposed to outdoor elements.

Not only does it give you a head start on the season but it results in transplants that, if it is done properly, are almost as good as greenhouse grown plants. The problems with transplants that can result from growing indoors under lights are due to the grower not understanding how to do it properly not because they are grown indoors.

Dave

Thanks for the advise. One of the reasons I was thinking about using the mulch was due to the fact that it has been very windy and the clips are not holding the cloth. I have pushed dirt on top in places and that helps, that is what one of my neighbors does. I have always put mulch over the cloth and have found that the ground stays damp better.
Now if I can get my daughter to get the tractor out and bring me a few buckets, I will be all set!

Yes, I've used dried grass clippings as mulch for tomatoes right over the soaker hoses. I usually don't have enough, so also use straw.

Just about any medium to large slicer catfaces for me in the Pacific Northwest. Cool weather during fruit set seems to make it more pronounced. Here is one last years' Paul RobesonâÂÂs with an innie.

That one's really pretty!

I guess I need to grow more medium-large slicers. I've been growing a lot of saladette types...