Bert Swope
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Plant tomatoes in an area where they will receive six to eight hours of direct sunlight each day, preferably early morning sunlight. When mulching with straw or leaves to protect the soil from erosion and keep moisture levels even, mulch with straw for even coverage and prevent weed growth while keeping soil evenly moistened.
Early season tomatoes
Home tomato growers need to be ready to harvest the fruit as soon as it begins ripening in order to avoid issues associated with overripeness (cracking, splitting, insect feeding and diseases) while simultaneously increasing your crop’s output for meals and preserves.
Starting your early season tomato garden starts by choosing an early season variety like Early Girl, Bush Early Girl, Juliet or Husky Cherry Red that will ripen within 70 days after transplanting into your garden. These varieties include Early Girl, Bush Early Girl, Juliet or Husky Cherry Red.
An increase in soil organic matter prior to planting will increase crop vigor and improve its yields. Two weeks before you plan on sowing seeds, bulk up the soil by digging in quality compost or aged manure and keeping plants well mulched will also help keep soil moisture levels balanced during the hot temperatures of summer.
Use mygardeningplanner to start your tomato seeds indoors between late February and mid-March if growing them in a greenhouse, and late March or early April if planting outside. When the weather allows it, choose an area of maximum light – consider creating microclimates of warmth using water filled teepees to expedite development while protecting from frosts.
Tomatoes for slicing
Tomatoes grown for slicing should be firm, meaty, and full of flavor. There are various varieties to choose from when growing tomatoes for this purpose, including heirloom varieties like Mortgage Lifter. This variety boasts large pinkish beefsteak-shaped fruits that reach over one lb in weight and produce early; additionally, it’s notable for having low acidity, which works perfectly in salads!
When selecting tomatoes for slicing, they must be harvested when fully ripe to ensure sweet and flavorful fruit. Overwatering may result in blossom-end rot, damaging your tomatoes‘ sweetness. Furthermore, supporting your plant with stakes or cages helps prevent stems and vines from collapsing or collapsing while increasing air circulation around it.
Gardeners sometimes attempt to save seeds from store-bought tomatoes, but it can be challenging. Instead, it may be wise to purchase a specially tailored seed packet designed for growing tomato plants as each seed is covered with gel that inhibits its germination until anchored into the soil – as well as harbor disease and pests – potentially making saving seeds difficult or impossible altogether. Finally, since most grocery store tomatoes are hybrids, their offspring may differ significantly from what was harvested initially.
Tomatoes for canning
Home canning has become increasingly popular, and you can create some delicious tomatoes at home if you choose the appropriate varieties. Canning tomatoes can be used in recipes like tomato juice, salsas, sauces, ketchup, and catsups. When selecting tomatoes for canning at home, selecting ones with high fruit yield, low seed count, and excellent flavor is important. These traits should all provide reliable fruits that stand up well under heat exposure during canning processes and have high acidity levels for the best results.
The Supersauce’ tomato, available from many seed companies, makes an excellent selection for canning tomatoes due to its giant fruits (some can weigh two pounds!) that provide plenty of flesh for canning with its delicious taste reducing sugar requirements. Although indeterminate varieties require additional support like staking, indeterminate varieties like this are worth the extra effort as their fruit production makes up for it! A comparable canning tomato variety would be Sweetie, which produces 1.5-inch sweet fruits so sweet that canning sugar needs will decrease substantially; both varieties can be grown directly in gardens or pots.
The Amish Paste tomato is another excellent canning tomato due to its perfect balance between meat and juice, few seeds, and determinate type that produces all its fruits simultaneously, making it ideal for large batch canning projects. Although other paste tomatoes may also work, these three have been tested and proven reliable when canning large batches.
Tomatoes for sauces and pastes
When crafting homemade tomato sauce, San Marzano heirloom is your ideal choice. Dense with little moisture or seeds, its dense consistency yields a thick sauce with rich flavors. Other great varieties for canning include Black Prince (an heirloom with deep red fruits that keep well) or Sausage, which yields plenty of small, meaty tomatoes with a classic tomato taste.
Tomatoes intended for canning or paste are typically less juicy than those intended for slicing, as their purpose is long cooking down into creamy sauce or paste. A great example is Big Mama tomatoes; modern hybrid varieties that produce large lemon-shaped paste tomatoes with low water content and small seed cavities are excellent choices that contribute heavily to sauce production.
Planting tomatoes in their ideal locations will allow them to produce their best fruits. Tomatoes need full sun and an acidic, rich soil full of the required nutrients; conducting a soil test will reveal any deficiencies; organic amendments like kelp meal or liquid seaweed will provide vital vitamins such as nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus to your tomatoes‘ blooming.
If your garden is smaller, try growing determinate tomato varieties that do not require staking or caging, such as Bush Goliath (slicing tomatoes), Oregon Cherry (cherry tomatoes), or Paisano (determinate plum/paste tomato). These will remain compact while only needing support from sturdy tomato cages or stakes for support.
Tomatoes for salads
Tomatoes add vibrant hues and flavors to summer salads. Heirloom varieties offer an array of hues and tastes, such as traditional flavors such as Brandywine tomatoes or sweet or acidic in nature.
Tomato plants thrive in deep, well-drained soil. If you have clay soil, untilling will help improve drainage, while adding organic material and compost will increase its nutrient levels and add organic matter that improves its nutrient profile.
Finding the appropriate variety can make a dramatic difference in the quality of your harvest. Look for varieties bred to thrive in our short growing season and decide between determinate or indeterminate plants — the latter ones stop growing after bearing their fruit while the former continue growing and setting seeds throughout.
Once your plants have been established, mulch with newspaper, grass clippings or leafy garden debris to maintain moisture and warmth, as well as keeping weeds at bay. Tomato plants require consistent watering; fluctuations can lead to split fruits; aim for keeping the soil evenly moist. They may also benefit from periodic feedings with continuous-release fertilizer with calcium content, such as Miracle-Gro Performance Organics Edibles Plant Nutrition Granules for periodic fertilizer application to help prevent blossom end rot, reducing yield, and preserver end rot which prevents bloom end rot from developing!
Tomatoes for the patio or a container
No matter your tomato cravings – be they heirloom beefsteaks for grilling, juicy cherries for snacks or piquant paste tomatoes to can and make into sauces – many varieties are well adapted to container growing. Tomatoes are warm-weather plants, so they must receive at least six hours of direct sun per day and access to regular water sources.
Tomatoes require regular fertilization to maximize growth. Choose a high-quality potting mix containing nutrients with low clay content, then apply slow-release fertilizer as directed on its package at planting time and during subsequent feedings. For extra calcium supplementation, sprinkle in some bone meal every few weeks to prevent blossom end rot.
Container plants can be raised both inside the garden and on patios and porches. Still, patio or porch locations offer more advantages due to close proximity, protection from animals that feed on them, and better control over watering conditions. Tomatoes thrive when planted using an ageratum-based Miracle-Gro Performance Organics All-Purpose Container Mix that offers plenty of room for roots to develop, such as Miracle-Gro Performance Organics All Purpose Container Mix.
Seek compact and bushy determinate tomato varieties like Marglobe or Celebrity that require minimal space, like Marglobe or Celebrity (opens in new tab). With careful training, these plants can even form vertical vines over the edge of their pot to add visual interest to your garden or kitchen table.
