‘ Tis the Season for Tomatoes By Ashley Appling, Virginia Cooperative Extension – Culpeper County Horticulture Extension Agent
The enthusiasm of vegetable gardening is in full swing and one of my favorite vegetables are tomatoes. Tomatoes should be planted in full sun (at least 8 hours of direct sunlight) in a well - drained soil. Plants should be spaced at least 18 to 36 inches apart. Tomato plants should also be mulched using either straw, hardwood chips, or leaves to a depth of 2 to 3 inches. Your tomatoes should receive about 1 inch of water per week. Whether that comes through rain fall or irrigation. Tomatoes do require some form of staking so that the fruit is not touching the ground. Staking the plants will increase air circulation which in turn will decrease the incidence of disease. You can use anything from wooden stakes, bamboo stakes, wire cages, or basket weave techniques. Practicing crop rotation in your vegetable garden will also help decrease disease and insect pressure. An example would be to plant tomatoes and peppers in your garden the first year followed by green beans and/or squash in the second year. This type of crop rotation works well because tomatoes and peppers have a different set of disease and insect pests than do green beans and squash. Some common abiotic and biotic pests of tomatoes to look out for include blossom end - rot (which is a calcium deficiency), Septoria leaf spot, early blight, late blight, fusarium wilt, aphids, hornworms, and thrips.
Some really nice cherry type tomatoes to try are the cultivars ‘ Gold Nugget ’, ‘ Sungold ’, and ‘ Sweet 100’. Some wonderful slicer types include ‘ Big Beef ’, ‘ Celebrity ’, ‘ Brandywine ’, and ‘ Better Boy ’.
For more information about growing tomatoes or about tomato disease and insect pests contact the Orange Extension Office by phone (540) 672 - 1361 or by email ashappling@vt.edu.
Page 21 | June, 2021
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