How I plant tomatoes.....

[daveomak]

It has been suggested that stripping all the leaves up to about the top three is best... Then lay the stem and root ball in a trench.. Doing so allows roots to grow along the stem providing more nutrition for the plant...
Well, sometimes you can't bend the stem correctly, without breaking it, to get the plant pointed upright...
MHP gardener (U-Tube) found a solution to this problem from one of his readers and I'm passing it on with pictures....

Lay the plants, in their container, on it's side for about 2 days outside in the sun....
The tomato plant will reach for the sky and make planting easy....

Here are my 4 tomato plants I stripped the bottom leaves from and set on my BBQ... Yesterday, or the day before.. CRS is a big problem anymore....

When planting, the trench should be no more than 2.5-3" deep.. That will allow for oxygen to get to the stem and new root growth..... Dig a small pocket for the root ball to sit in comfortably... fill and pack the trench with some pressure, so the soil contacts the stem well... Water well....

 

[Wurstmeister]

Thanks for the tip. Will do that this weekend when we start our garden. Wait till the docs tell you to write things down. The obvious happens to me all the time - can never find where I laid the piece of paper until I don't need it anymore!!
John

 

[SmokinEdge]

What is the benefits in the end? I like the idea, but does it make more, or better tomatoes?

 

[indaswamp]

Yep...here's a few more....
I also plant them in a shallow depression, then as the vine grows, I snip more leaves out and replace the soil in the depression. I get a second flush of roots this way. Then, I'll trim the leaves again and mound the soil around the stem up 4-5 more inches....giving a third flush of roots. My stem bases are always larger 1 inch in diameter doing it this way.

Oh- put 1-2 eggs in the planting hole. cover with 1-2 inches of soil, then put the plant in. it'll give enough nitrogen for the first 4-6 weeks....

1 baby aspirin (crushed into powder)in 2 qts. of water....spray on transplants every week. The salicylic acid is a plant hormone that kicks the immune system into overdrive. the plant thinks it is under attack and makes changes to the plant sap which make it bitter. Thus when real pests attack it, they are unsuccessful.

 

[indaswamp]

What is the benefits in the end? I like the idea, but does it make more, or better tomatoes?

More roots=more fruits

Tomato is a vine. All those tiny hairs on the stem will grow roots when in contact with the soil. the above tips are how I get 30-40# of large tomatoes per determinate plant....

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Thats some good info.
I sure do miss a small garden.

 

[SmokyMose]

Looks like a good idea. Planning to pick up some plants this weekend....

 

[indaswamp]

Another tip- when your first tomatoes are about the size of a quarter, give them some potassium. I use potassium sulfate...about 1 TBSP. per plant 12" from the base in a circle. The Potassium kicks the nutrient absorption into over drive, It also makes the fruits sweeter. For every 330# of tomatoes your garden produces, they consume 1# of potassium which will need to be replaced. I run the ash from my smokehouse through my compost pile...137grams of potassium per kilo of ash. The compost takes care of the pH....

 

[daveomak]

I thought indaswamp note about aspirin was interesting.. So I looked it up..
Here's one gardeners information... Seems the nightshade family reacts to this treatment...

How to Use Aspirin (Salicylic Acid) to Trigger Tomato Defenses: Why is this a Good Thing.. Beef Up the Beefsteaks!

By Gary Pilarchik (The Rusted Garden) Tomatoes use a hormone similar to salicylic acid to trigger a response called 'systemic acquired resistance' or SAR. This response helps a tomato plant fight off bacteria, fungi and other diseases. This defense response is a naturally occurring internal...

www.therustedgarden.com

 

[daveomak]

Interesting read..

A Comprehensive List of Nightshade Vegetables - Gundry MD

Nightshades may potentially cause leaky gut, digestive issues, joint pain, autoimmune disease, and several other health issues. Here's why you might want to avoid filling your plate with nightshade vegetables.

gundrymd.com