The tomato is a warm season perennial that we grow in Canada as an annual. Tomatoes are packed with vitamin C, potassium, fiber and beta-carotene. Lycopene is also present in tomatoes and is being studied by research scientists in the field of cancer prevention.
I think everyone has at least 1 tomato plant growing in their yard each summer. We all wait eagerly for the first ripe one so that we pick it off the vine and munch on it straight away. There is nothing I can think of that tastes better than a home-grown tomato on a warm sunny day!
Tomatoes are very easily grown in your home garden and a pleasure for children of all ages. I’ve seen them in hanging baskets, in balcony pots, in front gardens, back gardens and growing on fences. Wherever, there’s a bit of soil, a seedling can be planted and produce enough fruits during the season for a family.
As Master Gardeners we have a huge network throughout Ontario that can be tapped for current information on anything concerning gardening. We have our fingers on the pulse of what’s happening within the environment and discuss our concerns through an internet group list. One such discussion last year produced these ideas for growing tomatoes that I find very exciting.
Ron Rossini from London Middlesex Master Gardeners, starts his tomatoes from seed in mid-February. By April 20th, they are in the garden and he is enjoying their fruit from mid-July until early Fall.
His method involves turning the soil as soon as it is workable in April and double-digging it. He allows it to dry out for a day or two and then covers the area with strips of red plastic mulch the width and length of the row. Openings for the plants are sliced into the plastic every 1 ½ to 2 feet. He then places filled water bags (Kozy Koats is one brand) over the planting hole and leaves them there for another few days until the soil below, and the water in the bags, reach an even temperature. At this point, the seedlings are ready to plant and can be given some transplanting solution to ensure that they are able to absorb the nutrients they desperately need at this critical time. Ron wraps the lower stems 1½” up from the ground with aluminum foil to further protect them. The plants are growing in an insulated area since the water bags are still surrounding them protecting against cooler temperatures and frost. Once the danger of frost has passed, the water bags can be replaced with tomato cages. Fertilize every few weeks and keep evenly watered to prevent blossom end rot. Ron also, recommends planting marigolds among your tomatoes to help deter the tomato hornworm.
Carolyn Daniel and Bruce MacNeil, Kitchener Master Gardeners, provided a particularly inspiring tip for growing tomato seedlings. They use it in Horticultural Therapy sessions and it might even be fun for a school group. Find a milk bag, fold down the sides in 1-inch increments until you have a container about 1 ½ inches deep. Make scissor cuts in the bottom of the bag for drainage, add a moistened seed-starting medium; 3 or 4 seeds and give it a spot in the light. As the seedlings begin to grow and become leggy, weed out all but the strongest one and pinch off its leaves except for 1 set. Roll up the bag by one pleat, then add more soil. As the seedling grows and produces more leaves, pinch, roll up the bag, add more soil and continue this process until you have unrolled the entire bag. You will have a very large root ball that can be easily transplanted into your garden once the plant has been hardened off. You can bet that you’ll be feasting on tomatoes long before your neighbours. They will be stronger, bigger and have less insect damage since the root is so strong and healthy.
Some of Ron’s top heirloom picks are Anna Russian (delicious, large pinkish red and heart shaped),
Goliath (a low acid beefsteak, circa 1800), Aussie (bursts with flavour, grows to 2 lbs). There are yellow varieties such as Sun Gold a great tasting cherry tomato., or Northern Lights that has a beautiful golden yellow exterior with a red blush on the blossom end that radiates into the center. An amazing black tomato called Carbon is really a purplish brown on the outside with a deep red interior.
It is unlikely that you will find these varieties in your local nursery. However, it is not too late to look for seeds through Seeds of Diversity or the Cottage Gardener and start them now.