16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes
How do you guys purchase seeds or things for your garden, just in case you want them on time for summer? Would ordering now and using payday loans do? 'Cause a friend suggested me this could as she did. I was thinking. Hmm. :)
Soon as those babies pop out of the soil you will need a light source. If you have a protected spot on the patio that will give them some bright shade that might work.
They won't 'get to the size of [mine]' without a strong light source. Just a shop light from the auto parts store could work if you only have a few.
You are in zone 6? It will get cold again even though today was beautiful. It is too early for a cold frame for tomatoes. You can use a desk lamp and a compact fluorescent bulb on a few seedlings, but still would need more light as they grew big and they will by the time for you to plant outside. A shop light from Lowes with cheap 40 watt bulbs will open up a new world.
Take a look at this discussion from over on the Greenhouse forum. Great pics and should be right up your alley zone wise - or close anyway - if you have a good way of cooling when needed.
In my zone it wouldn't work as it gets way to hot in there after about mid-May but it should work for you.
Personally I'd limit it to determinate and bush varieties just so the size can be controlled. Perhaps New Big Dwarf, Cobra, Tropic just for suggestion.
Dave
Here is a link that might be useful: My Riga greenhouse pics discussion
You'll find that greenhouse growers are split between Determinate type and Indeterminite type plants. Personally I only stick with INDT varieties in my structures using the frame and stringlines as a support; I love it. For field grown tomatoes I use Det. varieties and 2' cylindrical cages.
As an answer to your question you can grow anything better in a greenhouse, hybrids and heirlooms. But for a good base tomato you should go with a proven "Workhorse" variety. I always grow Trust & Big Beef and for cherry types Favorita is exceptional. I've tried Rebelski last year and was impressed and this year I'm trying a few Caimen plants. I've been less impressed with Massada, Petenza, Geronimo and Caruso but others have liked them.
What I would suggest is that you look for a variety with Leaf Mold resistance and if any other foliar diseases appear then you can adjust your varieties another year. I've not had Late Blight problems inside my structures even when field grown plants had issues. For field grown Det. varieties I predominately plant LB resistant varieties.
Tatiana's has two more names for it: "Limbaugh's Legacy Potato Top" and "Pink Potato Top," and lists some vendors here -- hopefully someone who might have the right seeds:
http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Limbaugh%E2%80%99s_Legacy_Potato_Top#tab=Seed_Availability
Larger containers is the solution. Even smaller determinate varieties can develop BER when grown in small containers. Shoot, even cherry types can.
It simply isn't possible to maintain consistent soil levels of moisture and nutrients. Using a drip set-up on auto timers helps but takes a great deal of ultra-fine tuning and adjustment.
Dave
Glad to see your recommendations Carolyn, especially in light of a post I just made regarding wispy leaved foliage on most hearts. I was so tempted to try Danko (from Gleckler seedmen, among others I'm sure), but for the reasons I mentioned in that post, am extremely reluctant to do so. Hearts, I am told by my other Oklahoma friends and expert tomato growers, do not generally perform well here, and I'll leave it at that since I posted this question as a separate post. But, apparently, another issue is that we are anticipating another extreme heat, continued drought summer here. It is not exactly the appropriate time to test a heart.
Susan
I had great luck growing Sun Sugar in the past, but I couldn't find seeds or plants locally last year, so I grew Sun Gold. That one plant branched off in ten different directions and grew like crazy - I had cherry tomatoes for the entire neighbourhood! I've grown SG in the past, but never as successful as last year. I had thought Sun Sugar was the more vigorous plant but now I'm not sure. Taste-wise they were similar and if I remember correctly, the SS cracked less.
I prefer Sunsugar. To me, Sun Gold has an odd off-taste or aftertaste by midseason and I don't like them anymore. I eat Sunsugar all season and don't get tired of them. Also, in my summer-dry climate, Sun Gold splits when it's picked, and Sunsugar doesn't.
Tomato Timeline from fruit set to ripening. You can reduce watering to improve flavor but it doesn't really speed up ripening.
Dave
Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato Timeline
Just noting that the timeline Dave linked to was done by Paul, who used to be here at GW and uploaded all of the new FAQ's that seveal of us wrote and cleared with the then memebers who were here at that time, in fact solicited their opinions on what should be included and what not to be included.
You can find his name at the bottomof several of the Faq's we did such as How To Prevent Cross Pollination, the Foliage one and now I can't remember the others and if I go back to look I lose this post. LOL
I miss Paul very much and never had his contact data so don't know what he's doing these days.
Carolyn
Puzzlefan, I didn't take the timeto read the link Dave gave,and I probably participated in some of them, but I see you're in a zone 5 area so you have few if any soilborne diseases.Rootstock and grafting is directed against soilborne diseases.
What's most common in zone 5 and similar are the fungal and bacterial foliage diseases, and off hand I don't know of any rootstock out there that helps with foliage diseases.
Carolyn
TrpnBils
If you had good results with last year's seeds, you can probably get those seeds to germinate again this year. And if you liked em, and they did well...grow em
If you want to can some tomatoes, you might want to look at a determinate paste/Roma type of tomato.
It is only going to get harder on them. Right now, with care it should be relatively easy to do. Just carefully dump out the cup into your hand and carefully work the plants out of the soil and apart. Next time try to do it earlier.
But either way 2 of them have to go. If you don't want to risk it then snip off all but one at the soil line.
Dave
If you want better flavor go with Lucky Cross.
I get good production out of them.
Another vote for Lucky Cross, and if you like big ones, try Virginia Sweets. If you want a big oxheart bi-color, try Orange Russian 117.