Tomatoes (Part 1)

After last season’s paltry tomato turnout I’ve decided this season to try just about anything to make sure this year we get plenty of wonderful tomatoes. Last year my parents bought me a tomato from Love Apple Farms and I joined their mailing list to learn more about my tomato and receive tips about growing vegetables in general. Recently I’ve been getting lots of emails from them with all sorts of great tomato tips. I’m incorporating what I can into my tomato strategy for this year and keeping my fingers crossed!

Here are the varieties I’ve purchased this year:
St. Pierre (an early, old French market variety, great tasting, small Early girl size fruit; Flatland Flower Farms seedlings from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery)
Black Prince (deep garnet fruits load up on these plants that stay fairly small, medium-sized and full of juice and good, rich flavor; Sunnyside Organics seedling from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery)
Green Zebra (clusters of med-sized cherry, ripens with green stripes and amber flesh; Sunnyside Organics seedling from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery)
Sungold (heavy yielding English hybrid, clusters of golden cherry tomatoes; Edible Schoolyard Plant Sale seedling and Sunnyside Organics seedling from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery)
Jaune Flamme (small bight orange fruit, great flavor; Edible Schoolyard Plant Sale seedling)
Super Sweet 100 (supersweet tomato that can produce a 100 small cherry tomatoes on a single strand; Edible Schoolyard Plant Sale seedling)

In addition to the information I've listed below, Love Apple Farms also sent some great planting tips, including transplanting the seedlings to one gallon pots to help them get more established before planting them in the yard, and a laundry list of things to help amend the soil and hopefully produce happy plants.

Here is my shopping list of things to put in the bottom of our tomato planting holes:
1. A fish head (for slow release nitrogen and calcium).
2. Two handfuls of Sustane 4-6-4 all purpose dry organic fertilizer.
3. One handful of bone meal (for extra calcium and phosphorus).
4. Three or four crushed chicken egg shells (for even more calcium).
5. Two aspirin tablets (for added immunity to disease).
6. A handful of worm castings (for all around good health).
7. A tablespoon of humic acid (for stress help).
8. A teaspoon of mychorrizal fungae sprinkled on the root ball.

For even more information and tips from Love Apple Farms visit these links:
Love Apple Farms website
Instructions on How to Grow Better Tomatoes
Hot to Plant A Tomato

Love Apple Farms Top 10 Coastal Tomatoes (in general they suggest focusing on small-fruiting tomatoes, for example cherry types and others just a bit bigger):
Black Prince
Jaune Flamme
Matina
Japanese Oxheart
Black Plum
Brandysweet Plum
OSU Purple
Siletz
Gajo de Melon
White Cherry