Garden - specifically tomatoes. (house, buying, college)

[movingtodcfromseattle]

My daughter (almost 5) is begging me for a garden! I've never had a garden and was thinking of starting off small....maybe tomatoes. Any advice for things to look out for (including squirrels) in NOVA? Should I just grow them in pots?

[pseudo]

I know nothing about gardening but with the price of tomatoes these days - that is a great idea!

[statecollege]

If you have a sunny spot on your property to turn over and enrich some soil, plant in the ground vs. pots. The problem with pots is they evaporate soil moisture too quickly, so if you don't stay on top of watering, you could damage or lose your plants. The ground holds its moisture much better. Start now with a cool weather crop like spinach, lettuce, salad greens, or spring onions. Tomatoes, cukes, and many other vegetables don't grow much until May when the soil temp reaches a certain level, so it's fruitless to begin them earlier. Start the warm weather plants amid the cool weather ones so they get a head start before the latter bolt and go to seed, at which time you should pull them out. Tomatoes are an excellent idea. You won't need more than one or two plants to bear many fruit later in summer. Try one more vegetable with the tomatoes to give your daughter another plant to excite her. You definitely should do this for your daughter, particularly because it's her initiative. Who knows where this could lead: an interest in botany or biology; an understanding of the benefits of organic growing; or learning about the nutritional value of vegetables and other foods. Who knows--she may even want to marry a farmer some day!

[movingtodcfromseattle]

Originally Posted by pseudo

I know nothing about gardening but with the price of tomatoes these days - that is a great idea!

My thought exactly!!!

[movingtodcfromseattle]

Originally Posted by statecollege

If you have a sunny spot on your property to turn over and enrich some soil, plant in the ground vs. pots. The problem with pots is they evaporate soil moisture too quickly, so if you don't stay on top of watering, you could damage or lose your plants. The ground holds its moisture much better. Start now with a cool weather crop like spinach, lettuce, salad greens, or spring onions. Tomatoes, cukes, and many other vegetables don't grow much until May when the soil temp reaches a certain level, so it's fruitless to begin them earlier. Start the warm weather plants amid the cool weather ones so they get a head start before the latter bolt and go to seed, at which time you should pull them out. Tomatoes are an excellent idea. You won't need more than one or two plants to bear many fruit later in summer. Try one more vegetable with the tomatoes to give your daughter another plant to excite her. You definitely should do this for your daughter, particularly because it's her initiative. Who knows where this could lead: an interest in botany or biology; an understanding of the benefits of organic growing; or learning about the nutritional value of vegetables and other foods. Who knows--she may even want to marry a farmer some day!

That's exactly the info I was looking for!! Thank you so much. Do I need to worry about insects or other feasting on tomatoes? This is definitely the year we are going to plant. We bought our house this past fall in NOVA. One of the things we were looking at during the buying process was an area to plant a garden.

[CAVA1990]

Last frost date here is around April 15 (easy to remember) so wait until then to put tomato plants outside.

[normie]

Do you have a deck? I'd grow them on a deck or a blacony to avoid having them eaten by critters. They also have devices that grow tomato plants upside down. They look like hanging plants. I hear they work very well, and that keeps the critters from getting at them too.

[weezycom]

If you're outside the Beltway, you'll definitely need to invest in some wire mesh to keep the deer from eating your plants. Although last freeze is around April 15, tomatoes need warm ground for good root growth and so waiting to plant until mid-May generally makes for a better planting date. You can push things along some by surrounding young plants with plastic bottles filled with water -- acts as a heat trap and wind block and keeps them protected while they're setting roots.

Also, pick your varieties. You'll want indeterminate vines -- they set fruit all season -- some salad size (Early Girl, Rutgers are pretty reliable), maybe one grape/cherry (Sweet Millions), and some sandwich & salad 'maters such as Cherokee, German Pink, Mr. Stripey, Big Boy, Best Boy. DO NOT get Better Boy -- it's a mealy, near tasteless variety. If you can find Carmello plants, get some. Great flavor that has to be homegrown because the fruits do not travel well at all.

[movingtodcfromseattle]

bumping - We grew tomatoes, basil, arugula and strawberries last year. This year we're going a bit bigger with a 6x6 raised bed. I found a great garden planner on Gardener's Supply Company | Garden Supplies, Gardening Tools and Gardening Tips for Home Gardeners. My oldest is super excited and well I am too.

[HarryLou]

There is not too much that eats tomatoes...you may see the occasional tomato hornworm. The plant itself does not attract bugs, may be toxic. Get poles or cages in early -- best to keep the tomatoes off the ground. Leave plenty of room. Lots of sun. Enough water. Plenty of mulch, it seems to disappear quickly in the summer heat. Years ago we would feed them a big bucket of milk -- made from powdered milk that was cheap then.