Hi NoLaBelle,
Glad you found my potting plans for next year useful.
To answer your responses:
[Combine potting mix with composted cow manure, about 50/50.]
(You mean, as in adding composted cow manure such as Black Kow to the Pro-Mix or 3:2:1 mix? Like 50% Black Kow and 50% Pro-Mix for the growing medium?)
--> I'd read about this from a couple of sources, how cow manure provides such a great resource of nutrients. It's generally suggested to use 50% mixed with whatever else you're using. I might start off with 30%, just because I may not end up purchasing quite that much of it.
[Combine potting mix with trusted fertilizer, like Ferti-Lome Tomato and Vegetable Food.]
(I have two different kinds of Miracle Grow fertilizers for tomatoes and both have different rates of NPK. I suppose this would be considered a fertilizer NOT to trust? I also have fish emulsion. Where does this come in?)
--> I've heard mixed opinions about Miracle-Gro fertilizers, but generally I think they're OK. If you're looking to really optimize, then I'd go for something a little less commercial. If you do use what you've got on-hand, apply the higher nitrogen blend in the early part of the season and then transition to the lower nitrogen one in the latter half. As for fish emulsion, I've heard it's supposed to be a terrific source of calcium.
[Add pulverized eggshells in the root bed for long term calcium release into the potting mix.]
(I already have (and still saving) a plastic bag of egg shells in the freezer for when I finally do start my SWCs with tomatoes.)
--> One word of caution I have to make. Only use this mixed in with the potting medium as a "virtually free" very slow release source of calcium. Sprinkling it on top of the soil won't do much, and putting it in the reservoir will only stink it up (it doesn't break down very easily--definitely won't dissolve in water).
[If compost is available, make a compost tea and feed to the plant once weekly. Otherwise, use a periodic fertilizer regimen that contains micro-nutrients (like Food For Everyone micro-nutrients).]
(Would bagged compost be acceptable for this? I saw a video about making compost tea using an air stone in the mix. Along with the compost, they also added fish emulsion and molasses. I'll check into the "Food For Everyone" item.)
--> As long as it's good quality compost, it'll be acceptable for making tea. But from what I'm seeing, it only makes sense to do this if you're not going to buy a commercially available fertilizer.
I hope you find this info helpful. I've sure learned a lot having just "jumped in" to tomato growing this year. There are a lot of nuances to tomato growing that you just don't get until you do it yourself. However, the more well read you are before hand, the better. For instance, if I'd found Tomatoville prior to starting, I'd definitely not have used a top soil. I'd have gone with a potting mix and avoided a number of problems (including late BER).
Cheers,
~Gary