Tomato Tuesday - 2018 & 2019

I just noticed we have not started this years thread.  I have been sitting in Yolo's garden dreaming of tomatoes and I did start some seeds on 4/13.  Today I noticed they have true leaves and roots poking out of the soil blocks so I up potted.  They could wait, but this coming week is busy and I would rather err on the side of lots of room to grow.  And today being Tuesday....  or not, but Tuesday is traditional, here are some pictures.



Soil blocks with roots starting to grow out.


All potted up.


Here is my light set up. Notice the tin foil to reflect any stray light beams back on the plants.  The lights are just LED shop lights.

Nice light set up!

I'm in!

I've always purchased tomato transplants but this year I decided to start from seed.  I planted three varieties of tomato:  Cherry, Roma, and Better Boy.  I started them on a heat mat and placed them in a south facing window with crinkled aluminum foil attached to the back of the shelving unit to better reflect sunlight.  But we had too many cloudy days and the tomato plants became leggy.  When I set them outside, the high winds broke the main stem of one of the Cherry tomato plants.  I will plan on adding grow lights next year.

I don't want the plants to go to waste so I'm going to plant them using the trench method.  The roots may have to extend into the next square so that the main stem grows upward in the center of the square.

I'm going to start a couple of Mortgage Lifter tomatoes by direct seeding into the garden.  I've never planted tomato seeds in the garden so this should be interesting.

I seem to recall an article that showed that in places where it gets hot, really deep trenching helps the tomatoes handle the heat. I know lots of people d a sideways trenching, but hot summers might be a reason to go deeper instead.

Some unnamed culprit harmed the top of my newly planted cherry tomato plant last year. It recovered by throwing up two main stems and proceeding on wards.

I am growing Striped Roman, Coure di Bue, and SunGold cherry.

countrynaturals wrote:I'm in!

Lovely! What kind is it?

farmersgranddaughter wrote:I've always purchased tomato transplants but this year I decided to start from seed.  I planted three varieties of tomato:  Cherry, Roma, and Better Boy.  I started them on a heat mat and placed them in a south facing window with crinkled aluminum foil attached to the back of the shelving unit to better reflect sunlight.  But we had too many cloudy days and the tomato plants became leggy.  When I set them outside, the high winds broke the main stem of one of the Cherry tomato plants.  I will plan on adding grow lights next year.

I don't want the plants to go to waste so I'm going to plant them using the trench method.  The roots may have to extend into the next square so that the main stem grows upward in the center of the square.

I'm going to start a couple of Mortgage Lifter tomatoes by direct seeding into the garden.  I've never planted tomato seeds in the garden so this should be interesting.

You can do the grow situation really cheap without grow lights.  All you need is fluorescent lights and I used an old literal heating pad, covered with foil!  I love Mortgage Lifter, and many times you can find Brandywine.

Thanks, Scorpio! 

It occurred to me that starting the Mortgage Lifter seeds on a heat mat would result in quicker germination than if seeded directly into the garden given current outdoor temperatures.  I planted the seeds this morning and plan to transplant as soon as they sprout.  I planted them in a plastic food storage container instead of cells so I could  easily remove them for transplanting.  We'll see if this works. 

I'm keeping a journal of my first efforts to start plants indoors.  You should see all of the side notes (in capital red letters) of things I should do differently next year.  I remind myself of my 5th grade English teacher.  Hoping my amateur efforts result in at least a "B+" this year. 

Got all my maters planted out for Tom Tuesday.   They're all "cherry" type, since I can't grow the big ones outside in our climate -- way too hot for too long. 

Way to go, Suz!   I read that as cherry pie, and my brain floated off into wondering how a cherry tomato pie would taste.

Here is a cutting from the tomato growing in the citrus tree's pot.  It has produced cocktail tomatoes all winter.  So I took a cutting and at last I see roots!

I managed to get another 9 tomato starts planted Tomato Tuesday Eve.  These are in the BTE.  I'll post a photo when the trellis system is finished. The dirt is so amended that the 1/2" EMC poles just kept sinking!

Photo of my  overcrowded indoor tomato seedlings forest. There are several varieties and I need up pot some of them.

sanderson wrote:I managed to get another 9 tomato starts planted Tomato Tuesday Eve.  These are in the BTE.  I'll post a photo when the trellis system is finished.  The dirt is so amended that the 1/2" EMC poles just kept sinking!

Pound in three or four foot tall rebar far enough into the ground to be sturdy.  Then take a small piece of wood and drill a hole in it the size of the rebar but smaller than the EMT conduit.  Slip the small piece of wood over the rebar and then slip the EMT conduit over the rebar.  The conduit will sit on the small piece of wood and will not sink farther into the soil.  The tall piece of rebar will be sitting far enough above ground to support the conduit.

Here is a picture of the very first trellis I built in 2012 and it is still standing.  You can see the small pieces of wood under each EMT conduit.  That keeps the conduit from sinking into the ground at uneven amounts.

yolos wrote:Take a small piece of wood and drill a hole in it the size of the rebar but smaller than the EMT conduit.  Slip the small piece of wood over the rebar and then slip the EMT conduit over the rebar.  The conduit will sit on the small piece of wood and will not sink farther into the soil.

What a coincidence!  I told my husband what was happening with my trellis set-up and he said he would make wood blocks like you described!!  He got home this morning (working in AZ for a week) and I expect to have the trellis corrected by tonight!

The wood blocks worked! I will post a photo when all is finished. It is just a free standing trellis visible from the street.

I had to raise the lights for the tomatoes this week.  I dropped the lights on them.  Only one plant was harmed, its growth tip was broken off.  I see today that it is now sending out 3 new shoots to replace the one broken off.  Of coarse I thought it a goner and bought a replacement of a variety I was curious about (Gramma Mary's paste).  Some how they must all squeeze in the greenhouse.  I got hte peppers potted up too.  And got them mixed up so I have no idea which is which.  I think I still know with the tomatoes.  As soon as I post this I am making labels!  

Wow, Turan!  Your plants are so much further along than anything here...i think it will make it!

Some of my tomatoes are blooming.  Others are only a few inches high.  I ran out of room on my heat mats and had to wait until some were up potted and moved to another spot to start some more varieties.  Same with peppers.  Blooms on a few but mostly about 8 in inches high.  I've moved most to their permanent buckets now.

Oh, just looking at pictures of tomatoes makes me happy! I want to rub my hands over their leaves and smell them. I love the "tomato seedlings forest". I look forward to my own "wall of tomatoes", even if they do shade out the stuff in the middle of the SFG bed. They are my favorite children and I have a hard time telling them "no". 

hammock gal wrote:Oh, just looking at pictures of tomatoes makes me happy! I want to rub my hands over their leaves and smell them. I love the "tomato seedlings forest". I look forward to my own "wall of tomatoes", even if they do shade out the stuff in the middle of the SFG bed. They are my favorite children and I have a hard time telling them "no". 

       You'll get no argument here. 

walshevak wrote:Some of my tomatoes are blooming.  Others are only a few inches high.  I ran out of room on my heat mats and had to wait until some were up potted and moved to another spot to start some more varieties.  Same with peppers.  Blooms on a few but mostly about 8 in inches high.  I've moved most to their permanent buckets now.

What's your opinion on "nipping/removing" initial/first blooms?

Windsor!!! Hi there! I see you changed your avatar.

As far as removing first flowers, I just leave them as they may be the only good tomatoes if another leaf-hopper transmitted virus comes along as has happened two earlier years. Also, early pollinators may come back if they find flowers early in the season.

Like sanderson, I do not nip off first flowers, they are the first fruits to ripen. 

I planted the tomatoes in the greenhouse yesterday. They were feeling the heat earlier but are now feeling perky again. Summer tomatoes, here we come!

Just because I like seeing the names of them, here is a list of the tomatoes I'm growing this year. I have no self control. The poor things in the middle of my SFG box are going to get shaded out again! Oh well.
Paul Robeson (from last years seed, because I loved them so much)
Chocolate Sprinkles (well, I just loved the name)
Sungold (I heard so many raves about these)
Mystery Heirloom (from Ginger Blue)
Yellow Heirloom (from Ginger Blue)
Hungarian Heart (for my Hungarian dad)
Big Boy (my Italian landlord from long ago, used to grow these, and I miss him)
Early Girl (")
I really need another SFG box.