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Member discussion regarding the methods, varieties and merits of growing tomatoes.

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Old June 10, 2012   #1
derek248
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Hello all, new to Tomatoville and loving it. A fantastic wealth of knowledge all about tomatoes. This will be our first year growing heirloom tomatoes. We have room for (4) 30 gallon smart pots. Started out by filling them with a good Foxfarm Ocean blend soil, Added 2 tablespoons of bone meal mixed into the top 2 inches and 6 tablespoons of Tomato Tone mixed into the planting hole. Watered them in yesterday and they already look "happy" being in their new home. Had a terrible time selecting just 4 varieties but here is what we ended up with:

Red Brandywine Landis RL
Green Zebra
Marianna's Peace
Black Krim

Planning to let them get settled a bit and give them a shot of Neptunes Harvest Fish and Seaweed. Any suggestions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
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Old June 10, 2012   #2
TightenUp
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tomatoes are susceptible to diseases so i would recommend preventing them before they happen instead of trying to cure them after they happen. for this i am using actinovate and exel lg.

i would use a mycorrhizae product. i am not sure of all the befenefits of mycorrhizae but some are increased fertilizer uptake and better root growth. i used "mycogrow soluble" this year and many people use a product called great white i think.

i also use a product called biota max. this product contains beneficial bacteria and beneficial fungi and maybe more goodies.

so far my container plants look absolutely amazing. knock on wood i havent had any disease issues and my plants are now large and flowering nicely.

i am sure others will chime in with more/different options. i am new to container growing and there are many great people here with years of experience who do things differently with success. good luck
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Old June 12, 2012   #3
Tapout
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Originally Posted by TightenUp View Post
tomatoes are susceptible to diseases so i would recommend preventing them before they happen instead of trying to cure them after they happen. for this i am using actinovate and exel lg.

i would use a mycorrhizae product. i am not sure of all the befenefits of mycorrhizae but some are increased fertilizer uptake and better root growth. i used "mycogrow soluble" this year and many people use a product called great white i think.

i also use a product called biota max. this product contains beneficial bacteria and beneficial fungi and maybe more goodies.

so far my container plants look absolutely amazing. knock on wood i havent had any disease issues and my plants are now large and flowering nicely.

i am sure others will chime in with more/different options. i am new to container growing and there are many great people here with years of experience who do things differently with success. good luck
I have to second the use of mycorrhizae products The idea of preventative maintenance has been around for ever for industries. Gardens are no different when it comes to preventative maintenance. It's far better to "never" have a problem then to try and cure one. Effective microorganisms is like oil in a engine it keeps things running smoothly and efficently. A healthy plant will fight off more problems then a sickly one.

There is tons and tons of information on Tomatovile about microorganisms "read read and then read some more" hehe the more you read and understand how they work the more you begin to think to yourself "wow these little things really do so much good if I only knew about them sooner" at least I know that's what I thought the first time I digested all the information.

Last edited by Tapout; June 12, 2012 at 03:10 AM.
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Old June 12, 2012   #4
derek248
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Originally Posted by Tapout View Post
I have to second the use of mycorrhizae products The idea of preventative maintenance has been around for ever for industries. Gardens are no different when it comes to preventative maintenance. It's far better to "never" have a problem then to try and cure one. Effective microorganisms is like oil in a engine it keeps things running smoothly and efficently. A healthy plant will fight off more problems then a sickly one.

There is tons and tons of information on Tomatovile about microorganisms "read read and then read some more" hehe the more you read and understand how they work the more you begin to think to yourself "wow these little things really do so much good if I only knew about them sooner" at least I know that's what I thought the first time I digested all the information.
Thanks for the advice. I will look into that. When should I start applying a 3-in-1 insect/disease preventer? I just planted them out about 5 days ago. Wanted to let them get a little head start first. Any thoughts?
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Old June 12, 2012   #5
zabby17
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Derek,

First of all, welcome to Tomatoville!

Second of all, you've planted one of my fave varieties, Black Krim. I find it early to produce, reliable, and fantastically tasty. Plus, it's fun to startle friends with this ugly tomato when they see how yummy it is!

I also love Red Brandywine, though I don't know what strain I have. But it's a great little tomato-producing machine, lots of lovely red globes and very yummy.

Marianna's Peace I haven't grown, and Green Zebra is new for me this year---reviews are very mixed on both so it'll be interesting to see what you like!

I few comments:

- I grow mostly in the ground, but usually have lots of peppers (much smaller plants, on average) and a few tomatoes in containers, and one tomato per 30 gallon pot seems very generous. If it goes well you might try two per pot next year.

- Sounds like everyone is doing fine, so I can't recommend messing with success, but most recommendations are against putting fertilizer right IN the planting hole. Earth Box instructions have you put it in a furrow some distance away; the method I follow in containers from a book called MOVEABLE FEAST mixes it in the bottom third of the container mix; Carolyn's advice for in the ground is to fertilize 10 days to two weeks AFTER planting; and while I don't have Tomato Tone brand, my vegetable fertilizer instructions always say to keep it away from the stem itself and scratch it in a 1-foot circle around the plants.

So you might think about that next time. If you look at Babice's thread, you'll see she's had yellowing in container seedlings and fertilizer too much/too close seems like the likely culprit (though nothign is certain in gardening, eh?).

As for mychorrizae, I'd never recommend against them, having never tried them, but I can tell you that I've grown an awful lot of healthy tomato plants with nothing but good dirt, compost and/or manure, sunshine, and water. Even in a container, if it's that large I've gotten away without fertilizing, but because container toms are watered more I do recommend regular fertilizing of some kind.

One advantage of container growing is that you are likely to have a lot fewer problems with diseases and bugs, because they have to come from somewhere. This is especially true if your plants are on a balcony or deck or otherwise far from, well, the ground and other plants. ;-p

So, not DISagreeing with tapout and tightenup, just pointing out that there are lots of different approaches to growing toms. You'll have to see what's right for you!

Best wishes,

Z
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