As we head into August on this trip around the sun, this feels like a good time to talk about all things tomato. We as gardeners and farmers know the joy and heartache of growing this little solanaceous darling and living in Southwest Colorado does not make it any easier.
I visit a lot of backyard gardens throughout the season and tomatoes are usually a topic of pride if they are growing well and producing beautiful fruit, or the topic of frustration if the plants are showing signs of insect damage, blight, sun scald or any number of other ailments that have led to small, stunted plants with little to know fruit. Yes fruit, we all remember that they are not classified as a vegetable.
So, I thought I would use this opportunity to share some fun facts about our beloved or beleaguered round friends. For instance, we all know that they are high in vitamins C, but did you know they are packed with vitamin K, potassium, and lycopene. They are also a great source of water in our gardens, often topping out at a plump 95% water in each juicy morsel.
Tomatoes are among the wonderful gifts we received from South America, along with squash, beans and corn (and a lot of our other favorites). Originally cultivated from the wild plants the fruit were small and bitter. It is believed that they were used as a condiment (yes, ketchup has been around for a very long time), but not likely kept in squeeze bottles. There are thousands of varieties cultivated all over the world now and they are often seen as a delicacy in regions of the world that do not have the right growing conditions.
Which brings me back to our own backyards and greenhouses. Many people have asked why tomatoes can be expensive at farmers markets and I patiently explain that this prima donna of a plant would much rather be grown in the Midwest or South, where the seasons are longer, humidity is higher, (we are not going to talk about blossom rot or slugs today) and they can take their sweet time reaching maturity on the vine.
If you want to experience the joy/sorrow of growing tomatoes I have a few suggestions. If you want to grow from seeds (my preferred method), know that they will not germinate if the soil does not reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Most of us use a heat mat under the seed trays to give them that little boost in temperature until they have their true leaves, and sometimes even a little longer if you don’t have a heated grow room. Timing is tricky in our region as well; if you start your seeds in March, you will have plants ready to go outside in May and we have all experienced freezing temperatures, snow, hail, etc. around here in May. So I would encourage you to fight the urge and wait until late April to start your seeds, otherwise those little darlings will get super tall and leggy and you will have to dig your tomato holes with a post hole shovel and stick them about a foot underground. I know from experience because I think I did that for the first five or six years that I lived in Colorado. They had a great root system, that’s for sure.
This advice is really geared toward the garden adventurer that does not have a high tunnel or other greenhouse structure to pamper your little darlings. Another thing to consider is our gloriously exfoliating winds each spring. When you have your plants ready to ‘harden off’, be sure to place them somewhere that they can feel air moving, but please do not let them feel that true Colorado spring wind yet. We must ease them into it, gently, kindly, over the course of a couple weeks. Another kindness you can give them is to plant them near a wind break of some sort. A fence or trellis, even a little shade cloth or a sheet tied between posts can help them establish without experiencing our desiccating wind.
Our soil can also present a challenge to this garden favorite, so I would highly encourage you to amend the soil with compost rich in nutrients and soil microbes. The tomatoes will love you for it. If you don’t feed your plants early, you will likely see slow growth, pale leaf color, brown tips and possibly disease set in. Trim leaves so they don’t drag on the ground and stake your plants if they are a vining or indeterminate type. It will make harvesting so much easier and keep them away from potential creatures, both large and small.
Lastly, don’t be hard on yourself if they don’t do great every year. Last year we only had 2 or 3 tomato entries at the La Plata County Fair, because it was a really tough year for tomatoes and they were just not ripe by the first week in August. I expect to see quite a few of your tomatoes this year, because as I have visited many homes, I have seen some beauties that could easily win a blue ribbon.
Happy growing.
Heather Houk is the Horticulture and Agriculture specialist for the La Plata County Extension Office.
