Don’t Be a Couch Tomato – Grow Your Own Tomatoes!
Nothing tastes more delicious than home grown tomatoes. If you’ve never grown your own, now is the time. It’s easy, fun, saves you plenty of money, and it’s a great way to introduce kids to gardening.
But with more than 700 kinds to choose from, how do you select and grow the right tomato for your garden?
Growers can be Choosers
With more than 700 kinds of tomatoes to choose from, it’s clear there’s a lot to consider when choosing tomatoes for your garden. So do yourself a favor – consider the following:
- How they Grow. Do you want your entire crop to ripen all around the same time? If so, you want tomatoes known as ‘determinates’. If you prefer to have tomatoes that ripen throughout the season until they are killed by frost, look for indeterminates. You should also consider whether you will need a stake, trellis, cage or container as well as how much space will you need to grow.
- Disease resistance. Unfortunately, some of the best tasting tomatoes are less resistant to disease – a gamble you might not want to take. If you don’t want to take this risk, you might want to choose disease resistant varieties.
- Seeds or seedlings? Seeds offer a wider selection, but established plants save time and effort. Remember to start seeds early indoors – 6 to 8 weeks before the last expected frost.
- Heirloom or hybrid? Think time-tested vs. new and improved. Heirlooms are old varieties that produce seeds identical to the original plant, so you can grow an identical plant the following season. Hybrids cross two varieties to bring out desired traits. Hybrids are more resistant to disease and generally produce more fruit, but many believe heirlooms just taste better.
- Flavor. Whether for sauces or slicing, we grow tomatoes for one mouthwatering reason: the fruit.
Which tomato is right for me?
For starters, take a look at these 6 favorites: