Tomato Growing Thread 2022

At the end of the month I will put my plants in growbags in the interior of the balcony. I normally put 3 plants to a growbag & get good results but this year as I have a few extra plants I shall have to plant 4xgrowbag! There is simply no room for a 4th growbag nor for more pots - especially since the pigeons dropping have robbed me of a row that would normally go behind the long white troughs on the balcony floor up against the railings. I shall just have to give them extra fertilizer to compensate for the overcrowding!

 

Tomato gartenperle for baskets, I'm thinking not, more like a large container I guess, dwarfs the tumbling tom.

 

I seem to remember growing one by that name last year, it was a very untidy mess, had lots of cherry tomatoes and definitely a drooping growing habit.
Looks more like a standard type plant if it's the one on the left.

 

Yes the one on the left.

 

The first of the Alicante have set, hopefully more to come.

On a less positive note, I have had 2 more plants, Ailsa Craig and Sungold terminate at the first truss, very strange.

 

Intrigued by JWKs use of Microhyza. If its not giving away too many secrets how exactly do you go about it. I'm assuming it's at the potting-on stage?

 

It's used at the final potting or planting out stage.
Instructions are on the pack regarding making sure it is actually in contact with the roots.

 

First flowers are forming on mine, it's the early russian ones and bloody butcher. Impressed they are quicker than sungold, although I suspect will take lot longer to ripen

 

Santorini, storming ahead, just like last year. year.

 

My other three "early birds" are Red Robin, Bloody Butcher and Not Haley's Winbox.

 

I didn't sow my bloody butcher till march 13th, I assume you sowed yours in February? I am tempted next year to start a bit earlier.


Also that looks like you have grown a second stem from a sideshoot, I assume you would use the lowest sideshoot to do that?

 

It might even have been sown as early as late January, now that I have grow lights.

Bloody Butcher is one of those varieties in which the lead shoot often splits in two simultaneously at the first flower truss, as is the case with the plant in my photo. Which suits me fine, as I usually grow my cordons as doubles. However, in cases where I have to select a side shoot to grow on, I generally go for one on the second or third leaf node, as this avoids having so much extra foliage low down on the plant. This in turn makes it easier to feed and water the plant without splashing the leaves.

 

Thanks, I'll keep an eye out for the forking then. I had seen in a youtube clip of one of the Russian ones I am growing called gordost sibiri (pride of siberia) being grown as a double cordon to increase the yield a bit. It's also flowering so I might try it with that too.

 

It's certainly worth it with the shorter varieties such as BB and Stupice. If you read seed sellers' descriptions/cultivation tips for the recently developed Dwarf Tomato Project varieties, it is advised to maintain several stems.

 

The sole "Sci-Fi" from my 2007 seed, that went all "Quasimato" and refused to be a cordon , is testing out a tomato cage for me.