Post your tomatoes

[Dave's Not Here]

I know some of you guys in warmer areas are a lot farther along than my cool zone 5... I'm more interested in seeing yours than looking at mine.... Also interested in how you support them.

Here's my main tomato patch for this year, I have a few more plants scattered around the yard but I prepared the soil best for these.

I dug a 3-5 gallon hole for each one and mixed in some halfway finished leaf/grass compost from my pile, a teaspoon or so each of blood and bone meal and a little peat to help break up the clay heavy soil a little more.

I found these 7ft tall plastic coated rebar stakes at Menards for about $2.50 each and they look like they'll last more than a couple seasons so I invested in a few (could still use a few more.) They might be almost tall enough. Last year I was using 5' bamboo stakes and 5' fence posts and they weren't tall enough and a couple of the bamboo ones fell over in storms. Plus the bamboo stakes are only good for a season or two before they start rotting.

Planted with no rhyme or reason in this order... I was just getting them in the ground.

Back row, near the bush line...

1. Belgium Giant
2. Belgium Giant
3. Brandywine
4. Cherokee Purple
5. Black Plum
6. Black Plum
7. Brandywine

Front row from the left:
1. Amish Paste
2. Amish Paste
3. Amish Paste
4. Cherokee Purple
5. Belgium Giant
6. Brandywine
7. Amish Paste
8. Amish Paste
9. Amish Paste

Short 3rd row

1. Brandywine
2. Cherokee Purple
3. Black Cherry

These were just tall scrawny starts that I buried deep, some have been in the ground for about a month, others only a couple weeks. I used the black containers with the bottoms cut off to keep the ravenous yard rabbits from eating the starts, which worked great, 100% survival rate... I'm probably going to leave them on there unless anyone has any good reason I shouldn't (please share if you do.)

Still working on sheet composting around them with cardboard and grass clippings.

 

[rkymtnman]

i just started 3 cherry and 3 stupice. short season here in CO. and in greenhouse only or the deer would make short work of them. also have 1 serrano and 1 jumbo jalapeno going.

 

[Dave's Not Here]

i just started 3 cherry and 3 stupice. short season here in CO. and in greenhouse only or the deer would make short work of them. also have 1 serrano and 1 jumbo jalapeno going.

I've got a couple pepper plants I (barely) kept alive under a 23w CFL over the winter that already have some big peppers on them, revegged peppers. They lived all last year and the winter in one pot, then I separated them about a month ago. This was from about a week ago, they're a Godfather and I forget the name of the other one offhand. I also have around 100 other pepper plants but they're just starts at this point.

 

[rkymtnman]

hell yeah. nice looking pepper on that one.

nothing better than a fresh tomato from the garden i think. we have a local farmers market where i can get the big beefsteaks that grow out in western CO (palisade). also have great peaches from there too.

 

[Dave's Not Here]

hell yeah. nice looking pepper on that one.

nothing better than a fresh tomato from the garden i think. we have a local farmers market where i can get the big beefsteaks that grow out in western CO (palisade). also have great peaches from there too.

Thanks! I want to reveg a couple more this winter, looks like the way to go. Fresh tomatoes and stuff out of the garden is what summer is all about to me. Sounds like you're up in the mountains.

 

[rkymtnman]

fresh veggies and margaritas on the deck are summer to me!

yeah, we're about 8700 ft. not sure what zone we are in. lots of sun but not much oxygen so things grow just slower than lower elevations.

what part of the country you in?

 

[BarnBuster]

looks good Dave. you put a lot of work into your patch. When i was growing tomatoes, i switched over and used cages made of welded steel wire 5' tall with a 2x4" opening in the mesh. kind of expensive to start with but they last many seasons and sure beat the PIA staking of the plants.

 

[Dave's Not Here]

looks good Dave. you put a lot of work into your patch. When i was growing tomatoes, i switched over and used cages made of welded steel wire 5' tall with a 2x4" opening in the mesh. kind of expensive to start with but they last many seasons and sure beat the PIA staking of the plants.

Thanks man, it was a bit of work. I'd sure like to find a few big free rolls of that mesh wire for concrete, looks like the way to go, the initial investment is why I haven't done that. I agree that staking can be a huge pain in the ass, gotta stay on it all the time. I think I'm going to mostly use plastic zip ties (as much as possible) to tie them up. .

 

[Dave's Not Here]

fresh veggies and margaritas on the deck are summer to me!

yeah, we're about 8700 ft. not sure what zone we are in. lots of sun but not much oxygen so things grow just slower than lower elevations.

what part of the country you in?

Midwest, bible thumpin, GMO cornfield county.

 

[TripleMindedGee5150]

Lots of growth this year. Lots of fruit in there. Hope they ripen right. G

 

[BygonEra]

I have 4 tomato plants right now: Brandywine, Cherokee Purple, Homestead, and German Johnson (1 of each). The German Johnson and Brandywine are doing great and around 3 feet tall.. other 2 are about 2 feet and not setting as many fruit but thats because they're at the top of a slope.. all planted on 4/20. In zone 7.

German Johnsons:

Brandywine:

 

[darkzero]

cherokee, black krim, mr stripey, brandywine pink

 

[racerboy71]

 

[racerboy71]

 

[racerboy71]

i went out to water the garden yesterday, open the gate, and this is what was greeting me... the dog wanted her belly rubbed..

 

[racerboy71]

i think i got like 9 tomato, a bunch of different peppers, bell, sweet banana, jalepeno, and umm, some others, basil, cucumbers and squash..

 

[brimck325]

cherokee, black krim, mr stripey, brandywine pink View attachment 3440088 View attachment 3440089

Have you eaten the black krim previously? I got a few out, but got a real late start. Hope to get a few.

 

[racerboy71]

Have you eaten the black krim previously? I got a few out, but got a real late start. Hope to get a few.

about when did you put your stuff in brim? i think i put mine in memorial day the last plant was in... mine stuff has been growing a ton the past week or so.

 

[racerboy71]

about when did you put your stuff in brim? i think i put mine in memorial day the last plant was in... mine stuff has been growing a ton the past week or so.

mine stuff, lolz, my stuff, and or mine w/ no stuff.. i hate being a grammar nazi..

 

[racerboy71]

where does everyone get their starts, or do you grow from seeds?? i have a bunch of different seeds, mostly tomato heirloom variety, and i grew a few out a few years ago, but not this year..
i spent close to like $150 on starts from like home depot or lowes or w/e.. i think i got close to 40 plants total, what a racket..