Archive for Category: Getting Started

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  • Why is fermentation better than drying seeds on a paper towel? The gel sac around each tomato seed contains certain chemical compounds that inhibit germination until the tomato ripens, and may contain tomato diseases. In nature, the fruits fall off the plant and slowly rot. As they do, the natural fermentation process destroys the gel […]

    Saving Tomato Seeds

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    Why is fermentation better than drying seeds on a paper towel? The gel sac around each tomato seed contains certain chemical compounds that inhibit germination until the tomato ripens, and may contain tomato diseases. In nature, the fruits fall off the plant and slowly rot. As they do, the natural fermentation process destroys the gel sac (including the growth inhibitors and any diseases) and allows the seeds to germinate when the right conditions are present, generally the following season. Saving...
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  • To get a bumper crop, stagger planting dates to extend the tomato harvest (see Harvest vs. Planting Date). Staggered transplant times will also reduce pest and disease problems, though it may not be an option if you live in an area with a short growing season. For people with longer, warmer growing seasons, start with […]

    Planting Tomatoes

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    To get a bumper crop, stagger planting dates to extend the tomato harvest (see Harvest vs. Planting Date). Staggered transplant times will also reduce pest and disease problems, though it may not be an option if you live in an area with a short growing season. For people with longer, warmer growing seasons, start with a small crop — just one or two plants — and then add plants as the season progresses. That way, you’ll have an early, mid and late harvest rather than having your crop come in...
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  • Tomato Types: What to Grow? Tomatoes come in about every color from white to purple, pink, yellow, orange, mottled, or, yes, striped. (No polka-dots.) Commonly grown varieties include Beefsteak, Big Boy, Brandywine and Boxcar Willie, to touch only on the Bs. Other cultivars include the suggestively named Mortgage Lifter, an heirloom variety popular during the 30s, […]

    Selecting Tomato Plants

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    Tomato Types: What to Grow? Tomatoes come in about every color from white to purple, pink, yellow, orange, mottled, or, yes, striped. (No polka-dots.) Commonly grown varieties include Beefsteak, Big Boy, Brandywine and Boxcar Willie, to touch only on the Bs. Other cultivars include the suggestively named Mortgage Lifter, an heirloom variety popular during the 30s, and Purple Haze, a large cherry tomato derived from Cherokee Purple, Brandywine and Black Cherry. How to decide what to plant? When...
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  • If you’ve decided to start growing tomatoes — and you probably have if you’re checking out this Web site — you have the pick of the crop. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of different varieties. They come in all shapes and sizes including bite-size cherry and grape tomatoes (the first round, the second oval), […]

    Planning a Tomato Garden

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    If you’ve decided to start growing tomatoes — and you probably have if you’re checking out this Web site — you have the pick of the crop. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of different varieties. They come in all shapes and sizes including bite-size cherry and grape tomatoes (the first round, the second oval), pear-shaped tomatoes called, of all things, pear tomatoes, your garden-variety slicing tomatoes, oblong paste tomatoes like Romas, and two-pound monsters. Growing your own gives...
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  • Most of us will probably want to buy seedlings rather than starting tomatoes from seed, since seeds take more time, effort and space. That said, only the most popular heirlooms are available as seeds, so if you’re hankering to grow an unusual heirloom variety, you’ll probably need to start your own plants. Timing Most seed-packets advise […]

    Starting from Seed

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    Most of us will probably want to buy seedlings rather than starting tomatoes from seed, since seeds take more time, effort and space. That said, only the most popular heirlooms are available as seeds, so if you’re hankering to grow an unusual heirloom variety, you’ll probably need to start your own plants. Timing Most seed-packets advise you to start seeds indoors about six to eight weeks before the last anticipated frost in your area, which is fine if you live in an area that gets frost,...
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