Tag Archive | blossom end rot

Grow a Potted Tomato: A Step-By-Step Guide

How To Grow a Potted Tomato

Young tomato plants.

This year’s plan is to grow two potted tomato plants on the deck, inside the fence and away from deer. But less than a week ago, it snowed! For the near future, we’ll be having temperatures in the 70’s F, and in the 50’s at night. It’s time!

Judging by the numbers of people shopping at the garden centers, I’m not the only optimist out there. Always check your local forecast to see if it’s safe to plant tender edibles. Our friends in the North are still shoveling snow. Sorry, guys. Here are today’s purchases, and the step-by-step guide on page 2.

Tomatoes

Warm temperatures turn thoughts to tomato plants, so off to the garden center I went. Since we rarely buy tomatoes from the grocery store in the winter, we’ve been looking forward to this moment.

In one of the pots, I’ll include a young flat-leaf parsley and a sweet basil I bought at the grocery store a few weeks ago. The two herbs will be planted on the south side of the heirloom ‘Rutgers’ tomato, so they won’t be shaded. I’ll remove tomato leaves that interfere with the herbs. In case raccoons and squirrels set their sights on a lovely ripe fruit, bird netting wrapped around the fruiting plants will deter them.

Unfortunately, direct sunlight is decreasing in the vegetable garden, next to the house, as the trees to the south grow larger. Even so, the new ‘Sun Gold’ cherry tomato will go into the garden; if any tomato will produce a crop, ‘Sun Gold’ will. Besides, it did well enough last year. It produces loads of bright orange super sweet tomatoes, great for salads and snacking. Bet you can’t eat just one!

Basil

‘Tuscany’ basil.

The garden center also had ‘Tuscany’ basil, a light green lettuce-leaf type, with huge puckered leaves. It is wonderfully sweet and lightly spicy, with a hint of fresh anise flavor. ‘Genovese’ and lettuce-leaf basil are among my favorites for Tomato-Basil Salad.

And I added to the cart a pot of ‘Siam Queen’ Thai basil, for the baked salmon. Basil needs warmer temperatures, so they’ll stay in pots for a while, and come inside at night. Potted basil will come indoors even in summer, during rainy or humid weather. That’s when Basil downy mildew becomes a problem.

Curly parsley, a rogue seedling with last year’s flat-leaf parsley, and arugula survived the winter and still look good enough to hold onto for a while. The enclosed deck is a warmer microclimate, where winter temperatures are always higher than on the other side of the fence.

Although there’s some potting soil around, I’ll need more to fill those large pots and a few others. So, I bought the largest bag of soil the garden center carries. There’s enough packaged fertilizer left over from last year.

Caterpillars, Anyone?

I always keep a supply of Bt for battling the caterpillar invasions. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is an organic alternative to substances I’d rather not consume, yet many people still consider it a “chemical”. It is not. Bt is a naturally occurring bacterium. An occasional spraying with Bt on the cole crops (kale, broccoli, cabbage, etc.) and on parsley and dill will save them from utter destruction!

The tobacco hornworm on a tomato leaf.

Sometimes, 1 or 2 tobacco hornworms attack our tomato plants. They look very similar to the tomato hornworm, which has V-shaped markings instead of the tobacco hornworm’s slashes (photo, above). They’re difficult to see because they blend so well with the foliage.

Left undisturbed, these larvae will develop into a type of hawk moth. But this very hungry caterpillar, as it grows, consumes large quantities of leaves, and leaves behind…well, you know what it leaves behind.

This nature nerd, as a young student, kept a tiny caterpillar indoors, and supplied daily rations of tomato leaves. Well, it grew enormous and wandered off to a secluded spot to pupate. My greatest fear was that my mother would find it. I finally found it, and donated it to a teacher’s Wardian case.

Spraying with Bt kills these hidden caterpillars if you can’t find them. It is more effective, however, when used on young caterpillars. But, if they have little things on their skin that look like grains of rice (photo, above), just pluck off the caterpillars and place them in the shrubs. A small female parasitic wasp laid eggs on or in the caterpillar, and the wasp larvae fed on and will soon kill the caterpillars. The “rice” grains are pupating wasps. And some little animal might appreciate a morsel such as this.

Big Pots

I bought two 7′ tall stakes and two 20″ diameter lime green pots, at first considered somewhat disagreeable, but now perfectly acceptable. This shade of green blends in with the greens and browns on the deck. When summer heat is a problem, light colors reflect some of the hot sun bearing down on the pots. This helps moderate soil temperature, which rises in a dark pot. Conversely, in the winter, black pots absorb warmth, keeping hardy herbs and cool season greens happy.

Discounted prices on vegetable transplants accomplished their intended effect: I bought more than I had planned. So, now there are 2 sweet peppers to plant, one a “green-to-red-when-ripe” bell, and the other a ‘Lunchbox’ orange.

Peppers

‘Lunchbox’ sweet peppers.

‘Lunchbox’ peppers are small and colorful (red, orange, or yellow—a separate color on each plant). I add them to omelets, salads, stir-fries, shrimp and vegetables with rice, and pizza.

They add great color accents as well as a higher vitamin C content than green peppers. In fact, one medium-large ripe lunchbox pepper has 100% of the RDA for Vitamin C.

It takes almost 3 weeks longer for a pepper to mature from the green stage to the colorful one. Normally, I would have waited a week or two for the pepper plants, but they were on sale…and it has been quite mild…

(“Weather Alert: severe thunderstorm watch, possible large hail, winds gusting to 60 miles per hour”. Time to move some things around outside.)

One More Tomato

The heirloom ‘Black Prince’ tomato is not as susceptible to cracking as some of the other black tomatoes. And the fruits are smaller. This one substitutes for the ‘Black Krim’ I was looking for.

If ‘Black Prince’ doesn’t do well enough, I’ll pull it out and plant something else. That’s one of the many advantages of living where the growing season is long. (***Update***: The ‘Black Prince’ has grown taller than the 7′ stake, and it is loaded with medium-sized fruits! I’ve already picked more than 20 richly flavored “black” tomatoes. Photo at end of Page 2. June 25, 2019)

And Zucchini

Zucchini with fruits.

The fourth of the four-for-$10 deal is a zucchini called ‘Black Beauty’. The seedlings have barely grown beyond the seed leaf stage, and they, with the basil, come indoors at night.

A 50-pound bag of aged cow manure rounded out the purchase.

I’ll plant the zucchini into a nursery pot, and later into the garden. But for now, the garden is still packed with cool season vegetables and greens.

Headings

Page 1: How To Grow a Potted Tomato, Tomatoes, Basil, Caterpillars, Anyone?, Big Pots (Peppers, One More Tomato, And Zucchini)

Page 2: A Step-By-Step Guide To Planting a Potted Tomato, Maintaining Your Potted Tomato, Temperature, Watering a Potted Tomato, Fertilizing a Potted Tomato, (How Often?, Blossom End Rot), Limiting the Suckers On Your Potted Tomato

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Vegetables in Containers: How To Grow Them

Jun17

2018

Updated 10/16/2024

No Garden Space? No Problem!

Growing Vegetables in Containers

Peppers and onions.

Before I started this blog, I managed the Edibles Department for a few years at an independent garden center in Charlotte, North Carolina. As some of our customers downsized to apartment living or to a condo with a balcony, they didn’t want to give up growing their own herbs and vegetables. So, they were glad to hear that they could grow vegetables in containers…as long as the balcony was on the right side of the building. And the right side for vegetables is the sunny side of the building.

Lack of direct sunlight and adequate growing space are limiting factors. Look around, though, and you might come up with some ideas. For example, some of our customers were given permission from their condo associations to garden in common areas. Running for open association board positions yourselves is one way to garner support. I encourage you to attend board meetings, bringing your neighbors, a plan, and a promise to maintain the site.

Neighborhood community gardens are another possibility, although there often is a waiting list. With so much emphasis on eating healthy foods, little pocket parks and community gardens are popping up all over the country.

For Your Convenience

A young tomato damaged by a squirrel.

Another reason to grow vegetables in containers is simply to have them close at hand when they’re needed. A few steps out the kitchen door to a handful of cherry tomatoes and a ripe ‘Flavorburst’ sweet pepper for today’s salad has its charms.

Keeping the pots elevated on the deck prevents some animals, such as deer and rabbits, from making off with the fruits of your labor. Won’t stop the raccoons, though. (***Update***: Or the squirrels; one thought this little green tomato had something to offer. Discard any fruits that have been chewed on by animals. If needed, I’ll wrap the potted tomato plants, growing on the deck, in bird netting. June, 2019.)

Sun? Not So Much

The choices for edibles in a shady spot are limited. The ones that might succeed in bright shade are arugula, cilantro, parsley, lemon balm (interesting research with Alzheimer’s), French sorrel, and seasonal leafy greens. With just a bit more sun, basil, rosemary, oregano, and maybe a cucumber plant could grow for you.

Reflected light counts, to a degree, including light bouncing off light-colored walls. And a white surface under the pots reflects more light onto the vegetables in containers.

Remember to monitor the sun’s path throughout the seasons. Once trees drop their leaves in the fall, your balcony or patio might receive more direct sunlight than it did in the summer. This opens up all kinds of possibilities for potted cool-season greens and vegetables. Pay close attention to expected temperature changes for the duration of your crops.

Fruiting plants, such as tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and squash need at least 6, and preferably 7 or 8 hours of direct sun. These vegetables also need warm summery weather.

Approaching Summer Solstice

Our vegetable garden is now receiving the maximum amount of light, with the sun directly overhead. In the springtime of the last two years, heavy rains caused the tree canopy up on the berm, to the south, to swell with heavy, overhanging branches. Trees now cast considerable shade early and late in the day for most of the growing season. So, I planted fewer tomato plants and more greens.

Two large ‘Big Beef’ tomatoes are beginning to ripen, and a whole lot of ‘Sun Gold’ and ‘Mexico Midget’ cherry tomatoes. So, even with less-than-ideal conditions, there will be something to harvest.

At Julia’s Request

Several family members from New Jersey and California recently visited us in North Carolina. I promised Julia this article about growing summer vegetables in containers.

Vegetables In Containers: Which Ones?

: Potted green onions.

: Potted tomato.

Sweet and hot peppers, tomatoes, and eggplants can be grown in containers, as well as zucchini, yellow summer and Patty Pan squashes, cucumbers, and green beans. Also, it’s easy to grow most herbs in pots. Green onions, carrots, potatoes, and peas can grow in pots!

It’s just a matter of the details. One of those details is to look for dwarf or bush varieties of the crops you want to grow. There’s even a variety of corn (‘On Deck’) that grows in large pots.

One of the popular combinations I used to sell included a sweet or a hot pepper planted with two herbs. Theme combinations (‘Jalapeño’ pepper/cilantro/Greek oregano; ‘Carmen’ frying pepper/Italian parsley/Italian oregano) grew in 14″ pots. Customers found them irresistible if they were bearing fruit.

Growing more varieties of leafy greens in containers has become a priority as our garden becomes more shaded. In addition, greens can grow all year in regions with moderate winters.

Starting With Tomatoes

Much of the information in “Starting With Tomatoes” also applies to other vegetables in containers.

Potted ‘Indigo Blue Berries’ cherry tomato ripens to orange and black.

Beginning with America’s favorite, tomatoes grow well in pots. Will it be a beefsteak or a cherry? An heirloom or a modern hybrid? A slicer or a sauce-type? Determinate? Indeterminate (it keeps growing until frost, bearing fruit all summer)? Black, red, yellow, or orange? Striped or solid? There are many thousands of varieties of tomatoes to choose from!

‘Terenzo’ tomato.

A dwarf tomato called ‘Terenzo’ (photo, right) can grow in a 10″ hanging basket, but a ‘Cherokee Purple’ heirloom or a ‘Big Beef’ needs something considerably larger. For the large varieties, I use pots at least 20″ in diameter.

The long-vining indeterminate cherry types (‘Sun Gold’, ‘Black Cherry’, ‘Mexico Midget’) can grow in a pot as small as 14″ in diameter, but they’d be happier in bigger pots. You’ll need to pay closer attention to water and fertility when using smaller pots.

Vegetables In Containers: Types Of Pots

Each kind of pot has both advantages and disadvantages.

Summer vegetables generally fare better in larger pots rather than smaller pots. Although the pot looks enormous compared to the transplant’s diminutive size, don’t be tempted to plant more than one tomato per pot.

You’ll be amazed how quickly that one tomato plant fills a 20″ pot. A new transplant in a large pot runs a greater risk of root rot during rainy weather. But, placing it under an overhang will prevent this loss. It’ll be different once more roots and foliage have grown.

An indeterminate tomato, such as ‘Cherokee Purple’, ‘Sun Gold’, or ‘Black Krim’, can share a 20″ diameter pot (photo, below) with a couple of herbs, such as parsley and oregano. Plant the tomato toward the back of the pot, on the north side (northern hemisphere), and plant the herbs near the southern rim.

Terra Cotta

Terra cotta looks good and has some weight. But clay is porous, so water vapor passes through the pot to the air outside, quickly drying the soil. If you want to use your large clay pots, you could line them with food-grade plastic and punch some holes in the bottom for drainage. This will slow down the evaporation process.

Certainly, use clay pots if you prefer, but prepare to water more often.

Ceramic Pots

Ceramics are beautiful and heavy, and they can be expensive. Soil temperature rises uncomfortably on the sunny side unless the pot is shaded. Try using light colored pots in the summer, which will reflect most of the heat.

If you’re unsure of the safety of the glaze, line the inside of the pot with food-grade plastic bags, poking several holes in the bottom for drainage. Choose a different pot if a sticker on the bottom warns “Not for direct contact with food”.

You could also plant the tomato in a large nursery pot, and then insert it into the decorative glazed container. Make sure both pots have drainage holes. This “double-potting” allows air circulation around the interior pot and eliminates concerns about questionable glazes.

Tomato ‘Rutgers’, sweet basil, and Italian parsley in a 20″ wide pot, April, 2019.

Plastic and Vinyl

These pots are inexpensive, readily available, and easily moved. They’re also the most likely to blow over in windy weather. But this is the first choice for most gardeners. Most of these pots last a few to several years in the sun, but, eventually, sunlight will degrade the material.

Wood Containers

Untreated cedar or redwood and half whiskey barrels are suitable for growing vegetables in containers. Check to make sure the pots drain freely.

Reservoirs and Other Considerations

Earth boxes and plastic pots often have built-in reservoirs or detachable saucers. And you can purchase caster kits and trellises for increased functionality. Some gardeners have the option to move their plants from the morning sun on one side of the deck to the afternoon sun on the other side; wheels make this so much easier.

Caution: some of the reservoirs are too deep before the water begins to exit the overflow hole. This can cause young plants to rot if the soil stays sodden all the time. You could drill a hole in the side, below the overflow hole, reducing the capacity of the reservoir. Or simply tilt the pot to allow excess water to drain. Older plants, full of foliage, will absorb water in the bottom of the planter, as long as it isn’t raining for several days straight.

Mosquitoes and Tree Roots

Add a piece of Mosquito Dunks to prevent mosquitoes from maturing in the secluded reservoir. They need only a few days in warm weather to complete their life cycle. Or tip the container to drain all excess water.

A pot sitting directly on soil anywhere near trees or shrubs will invite their roots to invade. Believe me, they will try to grow in that beautiful composted soil. Elevate the pot off the ground. This also facilitates drainage from the pot.

A few pieces of broken flagstone or “pot feet” raise the pots above the surface of the deck, helping to preserve the deck’s finish.

Saucers

Use saucers under the pots, but don’t let water remain in them for more than an hour. Plant roots need oxygen as much as they need water. Water in the saucer prevents air from entering the bottom of the pot.

Saucers aren’t absolutely necessary, but help if the soil has gone too dry. Just keep filling them until no more water is absorbed by the soil. In tall pots, though, the force of gravity will prevail over capillary action, preventing water from reaching the top of the root ball. So, you’ll also need to water the top portion of soil.

During long periods of rainy weather, I remove the saucers, or turn them upside down and keep them under the containers. This is impractical, however, if the pot weighs 50 pounds. Consider removing the saucer and using a few pieces of broken flagstone or brick to elevate the pots, if necessary.

Potting Soil

Reused polyester fiberfill covers the drainage hole.

Before filling the pot, place a small handful of polyester fiberfill (from a hobby store) over the drainage hole. This prevents soil from eroding through the hole, and prevents earthworms and other critters from entering. If you pull some of it through the hole to a point at the bottom, excess water will continue to drain if there’s soil in the little cone. This is helpful for potted plants that rot easily during long stretches of rainy weather (succulents, lavender, thyme, sage). This synthetic material doesn’t rot, so it’s reusable.

Use a good quality potting soil that drains well, but has peat moss to hold moisture. In addition to the peat moss, the mixture will have perlite (white particles that help drainage), pine bark chips (drainage), lime (to adjust the pH), compost or a starter charge of fertilizer, and often a wetting agent (to help the soil absorb water).

Amending the Potting Soil

Feel free to experiment with mixtures of different materials. Soils with a lot of bark (pine fines, wood products) in the mix tend to dry out faster. You can mix in smaller-particle loamy topsoil, spongy peat moss, aged manure, or compost to help slow water loss. Water-absorbing crystals might help, too. But moisten them before you add them to the soil. If you don’t, you’ll understand why I italicized the word “before”.

Adding a layer of undyed mulch on top of the soil helps conserve water and keeps the soil a bit cooler.

While some gardeners add rocks to the bottom of the pot, I never do. It was thought the rocks increased drainage, but the opposite is true; they create a perched water table in the layer of soil right above the rocks. Water percolating through the soil profile is held in this layer by capillarity, and often rots roots trying to grow there, limiting the useful volume of soil.

Headings

Page 1: Growing Vegetables In Containers, Sun? Not So Much, Vegetables In Containers: Which Ones?, and Starting With Tomatoes (Vegetables In Containers: Types Of Pots, Reservoirs and Other Considerations, Mosquitoes and Tree Roots, Saucers, Potting Soil (Amending the Potting Soil)…

Page 2: Transplanting the Tomato, Water, Going Away?, Staking, Fertilizing Vegetables In Containers, Blossom End Rot, On PH, Pollination), Peppers and Eggplants, Cucumbers, Squash (Squash Vine Borers), Green Onions (Bunching Onions from Seed), Leafy Greens, and Picking Vegetables In Containers

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Tomatoes: Stake, Water, and Prune

May8

2018

How Are the Tomatoes Doing?

A staked ‘Rutgers’ tomato.

The recent stretch of warm, sunny weather has helped the tomatoes and peppers double in height. It’s time to secure them to stakes or to cage them if you haven’t already done so. Once the last of the broccoli side shoots have been harvested from our garden, a zucchini will go there. And cucumber ‘Diva’ will be planted after the cauliflower has been picked, but that’s a while off.

Check with your local Master Gardeners office to see what else is safe to plant now, or look online for a handy planting schedule available from your local agricultural extension office. Keep in mind, though, that these are only guidelines. Weather trends and microclimates will dictate what’s safe to plant.

And Peppers?

Healthy pepper plant with red and green fruits

Sweet bell pepper.

Since the varieties of peppers that I planted don’t grow taller than 3′, the tomato cages will be used to support them. The metal cages are only about 3′ tall, once the prongs are anchored into the ground. These short cages are useless for tall tomatoes.

Peppers and tomatoes are in the same family (Solanaceae), by the way, so they need many of the same growing conditions.

As the plants grow, steer the young side shoots through the openings. A sweet bell pepper loaded with 5″ fruits will appreciate the extra support for the limbs. A high wind or a pelting rainstorm can cause heavy branches to split from the main stem. Small-fruited pepper plants can be staked, caged, or allowed to grow without support.

Keep an eye on the weather, though. A forecast calling for windy conditions might prompt you to put something in place before the storm arrives.

Determinate Or Indeterminate Tomatoes

Tomato varieties are categorized as either determinate or indeterminate. This pertains to their habit of growth and when they set fruit.

Determinate tomatoes generally stay short and set fruit within a concentrated period of time. Varieties such as ‘Roma’, ‘Celebrity’, and ‘Patio’ permit the grower to harvest most of the fruits at once—good for canning or making sauce. Although determinates tend to be short, some varieties will grow quite vigorously and might require staking.

Indeterminate tomatoes, such as ‘Big Beef’, ‘Sun Gold’, ‘Nepal’, and ‘Cherokee Purple’, continue growing throughout the season, and often produce right up to frost.

Even though both the cherry tomato ‘Sun Gold’ and the heirloom ‘Cherokee Purple’ are indeterminate tomatoes, the latter may grow to only 5′, whereas ‘Sun Gold’ can grow twice as tall. Learning about the different varieties you want to grow will indicate what kind of staking or caging you’ll have to do. You can always add a taller stake later, if needed.

Staking

Because we grow indeterminate tomatoes, we use 7′ or 8′ tall vinyl-covered metal stakes. Oak or bamboo stakes are available, as are collapsible wire cages. A decorative trellis is both attractive and functional. Anchor the supports far enough into the ground to prevent them from falling over.

Shoe laces make perfect ties for tomato plants. They’re soft and they can be retied as the stems grow in girth. You can also use twine, twist-ems, clothesline, or anything else that won’t cut into the stem. Some gardeners use ties in a figure-8 fashion, around the stake and around the stem. Or simply loop it once or twice around the stem and stake.

Check frequently through the summer to make sure the stem isn’t being constricted by the ties. Don’t tie so tightly that there is no room for movement or growth. Some bending and swaying in the breeze strengthens the plants.

Staking elevates foliage off the moist soil, decreasing the likelihood of disease.

‘Sun Gold’ cherry tomatoes.

Young Plants

Consider the balance between the amount of foliage and the number of fruits. A young tomato plant with only a few leaves will not be able to support ripening fruits. It could show early symptoms of nutrient deficiency.

Examine the newest growth at the top of the plant. The tip growth of a very young plant might show signs of withering, or turn tan in color, or simply refuse to grow if it is also trying to supply nutrients to ripening fruit. Boron, a micronutrient needed in tiny amounts, is critical for new growth. The growth tip will sacrifice itself and future growth in order to do what a plant wants to do, which is to set seed in its fruits.

It’s best to remove all fruits on a very young plant. A sparsely-leaved plant struggles to get enough carbohydrates (the products of photosynthesis) into the fruits. This contributes to slow growth and mediocre flavor.

Suckers

As the tomato plants grow, add more ties, every foot or so, to prevent the tops from flopping over. At the same time, take a look at the stems, and decide which suckers will have to be pruned. Don’t confuse the suckers with the flower stalks that arise from the stems. The flowers are yellow and quite conspicuous.

: Tomato sucker removed.

: Tomato flowers.

Some more basic terminology: A sucker is the common name for the new shoot emerging from the angle between the top of a leafstalk (the petiole) and the stem (photo, above left). The side branch starts out as an axillary bud and grows rapidly. There are axillary buds above most leaves, and the branches, too, will sprout even more suckers. So, you see why it’s important to inspect your tomato vines frequently.

A tomato’s compound leaf.

Suckers that are not removed will soon become main stems. The main reason I sucker tomatoes is for increased air circulation. This helps prevent many kinds of diseases from infecting the plants in this humid area. Many gardeners have commented that limiting the number of stems results in fewer, but larger, fruits.

Also, tomatoes will develop better color and flavor, and contain more antioxidants, if they’re exposed to gentle rays of the sun. This is especially true for the “black” tomatoes, such as ‘Black Krim’, ‘Kakao’, and ‘Cherokee Purple’.

A few more terms for you: The tomato leaf is a compound leaf, composed of the petiole and several leaflets, attached by petiolules. And the main rib of the leaf is called a rachis.

How Many Main Stems?

Index finger points to a sucker.

Tomatoes are weedy plants and will grow lots of side branches. For most of the growing season, I keep only 3 or 4 main stems growing on each plant. Near the end of the season, I’m less particular about controlling growth. By then, I’m thrilled to harvest anything off the vines.

Since each of those side branches will try to grow, any suckers that I don’t want to grow into main stems will be removed.

Limiting the growth of foliage encourages better air circulation, helping prevent diseases from ruining your crop. Some growers permit only 1 or 2 stems to grow, but I don’t believe enough products of photosynthesis get to the ripening tomatoes. Just a hunch.

The plant has one thing on its mind, and that is to procreate! In order to do that—well, yes, after pollination—the fruits have to be adequately nourished until the seeds mature. And since all nourishment comes from photosynthesis, the plant needs to have enough leaf surface, and enough direct sunlight, to carry out this vital function.

Can I Root Those Suckers?

If, in early summer, you wish you had planted more tomatoes, you can root healthy 4″ to 5″ long suckers. They root quickly in 3″ or 4″ pots of moist soil, kept humid and in light shade. Simply bury the whole stem in each pot, keeping only a couple of leaves above the soil surface. You can also root them directly into the garden, kept moist and shaded until roots become established.

If it wilts all the time, remove a leaf or two from the bottom of the stem, or cut large leaves in half. A big, leafy cutting won’t be able to root or absorb water fast enough to keep the leaves turgid. Make sure the cutting has good contact with moist soil. Perhaps rooting cuttings in a glass of water will work better for you.

When the cuttings start growing, gradually introduce them to more sun before they’re finally planted out. Tomato suckers root fast, so if you don’t see results within 10 days, start new ones.

The sucker is genetically identical to the parent plant, so the fruits will be the same. This applies to both heirlooms and hybrids.

Limb It Up

Since the first suckers will appear near the bottom of the plant, you might be inclined to let them develop as Main Stem #2 and Main Stem #3. Always keep disease prevention in mind when dealing with tomatoes. I prefer to snip out those bottom suckers and, instead, let the plant start branching 10″ or 12″ above ground level.

As the stem grows taller, remove the bottom leaves, too. That’s right; this permits free air flow underneath the plant. And the soil surface will dry faster, further decreasing the incidence of disease.

Headings

Page 1: How Are the Tomatoes Doing?, And Peppers?, Determinate Or Indeterminate Tomatoes, Staking, Young Plants, Suckers (How Many Main Stems?, Can I Root Those Suckers?), and Limb It Up

Page 2: Sun Scald, Blossom End Rot: Tomatoes and Peppers, Watering Tomatoes, Deer, and They’re Weeds, After All!

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