Growing tomatoes
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
By Beverly Harvey
Few things in life can compare to sinking your teeth into a plump, yummy homegrown tomato. It doesn’t matter how you choose to eat them. Sliced and placed between two pieces of white bread thickly slathered with mayo and seasoned with coarsely ground black pepper. Or eaten as-is straight from the backyard garden. Homegrown tomatoes are pure heaven to savor.
Once you’ve enjoyed eating fresh tomatoes picked from your own garden, store-bought varieties just won’t do. Commercially grown tomatoes can be bland and blah. Mass-produced tomatoes are missing something essential deep down in their seed-filled souls. It just isn’t the same.
When it comes to tomatoes – for many people – it’s either homegrown or the highway.
Alas, there is much more to growing tomatoes than simply putting plants in the ground and waiting for a bumper crop to appear. I sat down to talk with University of Georgia Greene County Cooperative Extension Service Agent, David Daniel, and Master Gardener Extension Volunteers, Sherry Deaton and Donna Stallings. The tomato-savvy trio shared a host of homegrown tomato how-tos and know-how.
Which to choose
For a bushy and compact plant that produces tomatoes that ripen around the same time – which is ideal for canning enthusiasts – choose a determinate variety. If you’d rather have a lanky plant with a vine-like stem that produces tomatoes all season long, go with an indeterminate variety. Hybrid tomato plants tend to be more disease-resistant and heartier than their heirloom cousins.
How to choose
It can be a challenge to grow tomato plants from seeds. Many people choose to start with transplants instead. Look for plants with no yellow leaves. If a plant has flowers or fruit, remove them before planting. “You want it to spend its energy getting a big root ball,” Sherry says. Plants with “bush” in the name are determinate. Plants named “big,” “beef” or “boy” are indeterminate.
When to plant
Plant tomato plants between mid-March and early May. Sometime after the last frost and before the start of 90-degree temperatures. “Tomatoes won’t set blooms after 90 degrees,” Sherry explains, noting that the flowers eventually become tomatoes. “So I want as many flowers on that plant as I can before we reach 90 degrees.” If there is a frost, Sherry and Donna suggest placing a 5-gallon bucket over or a plastic garbage bag around plants overnight to protect them.
Where to plant
Tomato plants are tropical plants. Put them in an area that gets at least 8 hours of full sun
every day. They can be planted in the ground, raised beds or containers. Having good soil is critical. “You can’t have good plants without good soil,” Donna says. Tomatoes thrive in loose, loamy soil with good drainage, a good bit of organic matter, and a pH level of between 6.2 and 6.8. Choose an area where tomatoes or root vegetables were not planted in the previous two years.
How to plant
Mix a handful of 10-10-10 fertilizer in the soil for each plant. Remove all leaves and branches at least halfway down the plant. Place about two-thirds of the plant into the soil. “Each one of those little hairs can become a root,” Donna says, referring to tomato plants’ fuzzy stems. Planting the plants deep into the soil will ensure “a big, huge root ball … to hold that plant up,” Sherry says. Space tomato plants at least 4 feet apart.
How to support
Tomato plants need proper support to stay upright, productive and healthy. Sherry recommends using a 6-foot-tall cylinder, rectangle or 2-foot-square wire cage around each plant. She discourages using cone-shape wire cages, which can topple over and don’t hold up well. Make sure wire cages have openings wide enough to allow fruit to easily be harvested. One-inch-square, 6-foot tall wooden stakes with twine or cloth strips can also be used as support.
How to water
Place mulch around each plant to keep in soil moisture and to avoid having soil splash up on plants, which can spread disease. Tomato plants require 1 to 2 inches of water a week. Water plants every other day for two weeks, then every three days, which can vary depending on the amount of rainfall. Use drip irrigation, soaker hoses or water by hand, making sure to keep water close to the soil and away from the plant.
How to maintain
Pinch off suckers that grow in the “V,” or elbow, of branches until tomatoes are the size of a Ping-Pong ball. Suckers don’t produce fruit and take nutrients and energy away from the plant. You can also limit flowers to just three per cluster or one to each branch to produce larger tomatoes. When you pick the first tomato, it’s time to fertilize the plant again. “Throw another handful at the bottom of the plant,” Sherry says.
When to harvest
Some people like to harvest tomatoes from the plants only when they are ripe. Others like to harvest tomatoes when the fruit is still bright green or light pink. If you pick tomatoes before they are ripe, do not place them in a windowsill. Instead, place tomatoes loosely spaced on a countertop or table away from sunlight. Never store tomatoes in the refrigerator. “Refrigeration takes away the flavor,” Sherry says.
Did you know?
University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service offices, including Greene, Morgan, Putnam and Baldwin counties, offer a variety of classes, workshops, publications, soil tests, water tests, site visits and other services for local homeowners, gardeners and farmers – all free of charge or for a nominal fee.
For more information, visit the website ugaextension.org or contact your county’s UGA Extension office.
Baldwin County Extension
320 Linda Drive NE
Milledgeville, Georgia
478-445-4394
Greene County Extension
1180C Weldon Smith Drive, Suite 110
Greensboro, Georgia
706-453-2083
Morgan County Extension
440 Hancock Street
Madison, Georgia
706-342-2214
Putnam County Extension
663 Godfrey Road, Suite 101
Eatonton, Georgia
706-485-4151
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This story appeared in Lakelife magazine, Volume 11, Issue 2 and is the property of Smith Communications, Inc. No portions of the story or photos may be copied or used without written consent from the publisher.
