Art in the garden: Growing the perfect tomato
Tomatoes are the most commonly grown vegetable in home gardens. They are easy to grow, produce a lot of fruit in a small space, and taste delicious.
Growing the perfect tomato is easy if you meet their basic cultural requirements. First, remember that tomatoes are warm season plants native to South America. Despite attempts by plant breeders, tomatoes still need warm air and soil temperatures — both for plant growth and to produce their fruit.
To grow the perfect tomato, soil temperatures should be at least 60 degrees for plant growth and even warmer for the plant to produce fruit. Wait to plant until the danger of frost has passed and the soil is warm.
You can grow tomatoes from seed. Seeds should be started indoors six to eight weeks before you want to plant them outdoors. It is also possible to plant seeds directly into the garden near the end of May, but plants will not have the time to grow as large or produce as many tomatoes. For these reasons, tomato plants — already lush at your local garden center and ready to be transplanted into our gardens — are the typical choice for most of us.
Choose plants that have tall, sturdy, straight stems. Avoid plants with yellow or dry leaves. And pass by plants that show any signs of disease or insect damage.
To grow perfect tomatoes, select a site in full sun. If full sun is not possible, plants will still grow satisfactorily in a spot that gets sun all afternoon.
When planting tomatoes, bury a few inches of the stem in the soil. Roots will form along this stem creating a sturdier plant.
Water your new transplant well and continue to water regularly until the roots have a chance to grow into their new home. A tomato needs about an inch of water per week. If this does not come through rainfall, supplemental water is necessary. Tomatoes growing in containers will need more frequent watering — daily on hot or windy days.
Choosing which variety to grow may be the most difficult part of growing the perfect tomato. Some grow their favorite varieties year after year. Others are always looking for new, different tastes.
Tomatoes differ in the time it takes them to mature, their ability to resist disease, the way they grow, the size of their fruit and the way they taste. When you read about maturity on a plant’s label, it is referring to the number of days from planting the seed to the first tomato.
When reading plant signs, a tomato’s disease resistance is indicated by letters: V for verticillium wilt; F for fusarium wilt; N for root knot nematodes; and T is for tobacco mosaic virus. It is advisable to select tomato plants that are resistant to common tomato diseases, but the very best way to grow the perfect tomato is to choose healthy plants and then give them their preferred growing conditions.
Tomatoes vary in the way they grow. Some are indeterminate. These grow continuously and will need staking. Others are determinate. They grow to determined heights, set their first fruit, and then grow very little. These bush-type tomatoes may or may not need staking.
Tomatoes also differ in shapes. Cherry or plum-type tomatoes are often eaten whole. Large tomatoes are often using for slicing. Paste tomatoes contain less water and are perfect for canning or making sauces.
Red is the traditional color of tomatoes, but you can grow yellow, orange or even pink tomatoes. Think of the beautiful salsa you could make with all these colors!
When it comes to taste, you will have to decide which tomatoes you think taste the best. I hope you enjoy lots of perfect tomatoes this summer!
Ÿ Diana Stoll is a horticulturist and the garden center manager at The Planter’s Palette, 28W571 Roosevelt Road, Winfield. Call (630) 293-1040 or visit planterspalette.com.