Starting tomatoes

Back when I was a kid, I'd help Dad in the garden, or at least thought I was. I kind of remember Dad planting tomatoes that were Sioux tomatoes, which Mick tried but he wasn't impressed. I just may buy a few seeds and give them a try this summer. I don't know if Dad started his own seed or bought transplants. I don't think Dad put his tomatoes in a cage, so they just spread out on the ground.

When I first started to garden, I bought all my transplants or small tomato plants. Bought the cheapest ones I could find with no idea as to the variety. In time I became familiar with the diseases or problems that tomatoes end up with and the hybrids bred to resist these diseases. Some of the seed catalogs will list these diseases and the corresponding chart to identify the disease with some varieties of tomatoes being bred to resist a whole host of these diseases.

I finally picked several varieties that were pretty resistant to fungus or disease, but they were plain Jane red tomatoes. I started to get the itch to pick some that were bigger and better and more colorful and just might taste a little different than just a red tomato, so I started to grow heirlooms of all colors. Some were red, but some were pink or yellow or orange, and some were red and yellow and orange mixed. Then there were those that were black or purple or green or green and orange. On a normal year, we have grown 24 to 30 different varieties of tomatoes with most of them tasting a little different.

Once I started growing all colors and varieties of tomatoes, I couldn't buy ready-to-transplant heirlooms, so I had to start my own from seed. Where most are heirlooms and are open pollinated varieties I saved most of my own seed to use the following year. I find seeds that I've saved have a much better germination percent than seeds I buy from even reputable suppliers.

I do enjoy trying new varieties with different color schemes and different tastes. Some I've tried are Pineapple, Riesentraube, Prairie Fire, Ananas Noire, Abe Lincoln and Kellogg's. Some new ones I'm trying this year are Great White, Hungarian Heart, Granny Cantrell and Green Giant. I'll probably have a couple more new ones by the time you read this article. I have my favorite seed catalogues I buy from, but if an interesting sounding one comes up somewhere else, why not give it a try? One I tried last year was Gold Medal, and it was outstanding. One of the best I've tried in years.

I start my seed in small plastic containers that fit in a 1020 tray but most any container will work. Even the bottom of a one gallon milk jug. I plant my seed in one container and then transplant it later into something like a 10- to 12-ounce Styrofoam cup. I mix a good brand of seed starting mix with good potting soil at a ratio of one to one up to one to two parts to plant my seed into. I water the newly planted seed in with a homemade watering bottle where I've taken a plastic soda bottle and burned the lid full of holes. Once the tomato is about 3-4-5 inches tall I replant it into a 3 inch lightweight pot or a 10-12 oz. Styrofoam cup. I use straight potting soil to transplant them. I water in the transplanted tomato with a fertilizer, like 9-56-9 or a fertilizer with a high middle number.

When you start your own seeds, you will have to use lights of some kind otherwise the plants will get "leggy", and they'll be weak and hard to deal with. The key with using lights is to keep the light close to the top of the tomato starts. I like the light to be not more than 1 inch above the tomato plants.

I use plain Jane 4-foot fluorescent shop lights over all my baby plants. None of the bulbs I use are grow lights.

Phillips began life as a cowboy, then husband and father, carpenter, a minister, gardener and writer. He may be reached at phillipsrb@hotmail.com.