Ask a Master Gardener: Time to prepare for tomato planting

I think we finally broke out of the freezing cold weather we were stuck in. Spring is on its way; I can tell by the amount of garden questions floating around. I have had several questions about tomatoes, which is not surprising since tomatoes are one of the most popular crops for the home gardener. It is estimated 95 percent of people who have a garden grow tomatoes. We will start off with starting seeds at home and work our way through other questions in the next couple of weeks.

You can purchase tomato transplants, but there's something particularly satisfying about starting your own plants indoors. Also, by growing your own transplants, you can choose from among the many tomato varieties available as seeds but hard to find as transplants. I usually try to start a variety with a different shape or color or something just for fun, along with the staples I plant every year.

A family interested in having only fresh fruit should plant three or four plants per person. If you are planning on processing (canning, freezing, etc.), then five to 10 plants per person should be planted.

According to the county extension, late March is the time to start the tomato plants indoors to be ready to put in the garden by around the middle of May. The quantity of fruit produced and how early it is available can be influenced by the quality of the transplant when set in the garden. Take extra special care of the tomato seedlings so you can have "first tomato bragging rights" later.

As usual, it is wise to pick varieties well suited for our area. When selecting varieties, consider their productivity and disease resistance. Susceptibility to fruit splitting or cracking should also be considered. Fusarium wilt and verticillium wilt are two common problems that can be overcome by selecting wilt-resistant varieties and rotating the planting so these organisms are not able to build up in the soil.

Resistance to various diseases is indicated by the letters that follow the name of the variety. For example, the popular variety Celebrity VFNT would be resistant to: V=Verticillium wilt, F=Fusarium wilt, N=Nematodes and T=Tobacco mosaic. It is a good idea to pick a variety that has at least a VF rating for our area.

Here are a few varieties that do well in Mid-Missouri: Better Boy (VFN), Celebrity (VFNT), Early Girl (VF), Jet Star (VF), Lemon Boy (VFN), Mountain Fresh Plus (VFN) and Supersweet 100 (VF). Of course, there are others, but this is a start. The best practice is to try different varieties and see which works best for you.

I like to start my tomato seeds in a seedling flat with a sterile seed starting mix, the kind available at hardware and seed stores. This assures there will be no diseases carried into the new plants. Put about an inch of the starting mix in the flat and make shallow furrows with a pencil 1/4 inch deep.

Sow seeds by dropping them the furrow about 1/2 inch apart. Gently pinch together soil to cover each furrow, covering seeds 1/4 inch deep. Water gently and label each variety. Put the container in a warm place, 75-80 degrees, and be sure to keep the soil moist.

Watch them closely, and as soon as the seeds begin germinating and stems start to show above the soil, it's critical to provide a strong light source such as florescent bulbs or a very sunny window. If you are using florescent lights, keep them within 2-3 inches above the plants. As the seedling grows, the cotyledons (the first two leaves you will see) will wither, and what are called the first "true" leaves will form. When the seedling gets two or four true leaves, it will be time to transplant them into individual containers. This is called "potting up," and it allows the roots more room to develop. Pots that are 2-3 inches are good sizes to pot up to, allowing plenty of room for root growth.

Ideally, the tomato plant should be 8-10 inches tall and dark green with a stocky stem and a well-developed, healthy root system at the time it is transplanted into the garden. Producing a transplant of this size usually takes three to five weeks.

If you haven't decided to grow tomatoes yet remember the old saying: "There ain't nothing better in life than true love and a homegrown tomato."

Happy gardening!

Peter Sutter is a life-long gardening enthusiast and a participant in the MU Extension's Callaway County Master Gardener Program. Gardening questions can be sent to [email protected].