Welcome back to our ongoing look at growing tomatoes. Last week we took a thorough look at starting tomatoes from seed. Today we are going to jump right in with a look at buying plants.
For those of us who don’t have the space or inclination to start our tomato plants from seed, there is always the option of buying them from a nursery or other local producer. Try to avoid big box store greenhouses as they simply have a focus on pushing through as many plants as possibly for profit. Smaller greenhouses and local producers are much more dependent on repeat customers so they will do everything possible to ensure that you get only their best. If price is your sole consideration, then the big box stores can’t be beat. Your selection, when buying plants instead of starting from seed, will be greatly reduced. What you will gain is healthy vigorous plants, ready for the garden. There are just a few very important things to look at. First, healthy tomato plants should have thick strong stalks and the distance between leaf nodes along the stalk should be quite close. A purplish blush on the stems of tomato plants can be a very positive sign of good health. The leaves should also be quite dark green and without any curls or yellow, brown or black lesions. Light coloured leaves and outright discolourations are a signal that something is wrong. Also, take the time to gently remove the tomato from its pot and examine the roots. Healthy growing roots should be a nice bright white colour. As the roots become rootbound and/or diseased they change to a brownish colour. They will often bounce back from this but you will lose precious growing time while that happens. Check the roots, stems and leaves closely for aphids. It is not uncommon for nursery stock to carry small infestations which can subsequently run wild through the rest of your plants. Another thing to avoid when selecting tomato plants is flowers and or fruit. If you buy your plants later in the season you may not have a choice but to accept a few blossoms. These should be removed from the plant immediately. When you plant your tomatoes, you want the initial energy to go into producing roots but plants with existing flowers will simply try to finish growing fruit at the expense of their own proper health and growth.
Another important consideration when selecting tomato plants is understanding whether you want heirlooms or hybrids as well as determinate or undeterminate. The debate between hybrids and heirlooms has some pretty staunch supporters on both sides. I personally like a mix to get the best of both worlds. Hybrids are generally bred with factors such as disease resistance, appearance and increased yield in mind. Heirloom plants are older varieties that have been around for generations. They are usually far superior in flavour and variety but they are more prone to disease and “ugly” fruit. This ugliness is only skin deep and often hides stunning and unique flavours that you just can’t find in the prim and proper hybrids.
As for determinate vs indeterminate, it’s all a matter of space. Indeterminate plants are vines that never stop growing. In their native habitat they can live for years and sprawl over a massive area. In the garden indeterminate tomatoes will require sturdy stakes. Tomato “cages” are useless for these energetic growers. Indeterminates tend to produce more fruit which ripen gradually on an ongoing basis. Determinate plants generally grow less than a meter in height and stop. They can be staked or caged. Determinates are also the best patio tomato as they won’t outgrow their pots. In general, determinate tomatoes will produce less fruit simply because they are smaller plants. With a lot of determinate varieties the fruit will all ripen within a fairly close window. This is of particular importance to home canners who prefer their paste tomatoes to be ready all at once. A fair number of the beefsteak tomatoes are also determinate so if you plant a few of them, get ready for some BLTs!
Once you get your new plants home, don’t rush them straight to the garden. First, tomatoes should not go into the ground until the soil is warm and the danger of frost is absolutely past. Second, tomatoes coming from a greenhouse situation will need to be gradually acclimatized to outdoor life, a process known as hardening off. Exposure to direct sun and wind should be limited to an hour or so per day at first and slowly increased until they are ready for full time garden life. Sunburn and windburn can literally destroy an unprepared young tomato plant in just a few short hours. Plant on a calm cloudy day if at all possible.
Next week we should be able to wrap up our tomato talk. See you then.
