By Cindy Watter, UC Master Gardener of Napa County
The crown jewel of summer's edible garden is the tomato. It really is jewel-like, with so many brilliant hues. It has just as many flavors, too. Whether you crave the sugar-sweet pop of a tiny cherry tomato or the meaty, rich succulence of a fat beefsteak tomato, there is a variety to suit every taste.
Master Gardeners are always present to help you with your selection and give advice about successful tomato growing. See the link to reach us below.
The Master Gardeners ask for customer feedback every year. Which tomatoes did well for you? Which varieties were the tastiest? We use this feedback to decide which seeds to plant for the following year's sale. Visit our Facebook page and tell us all about them. https://www.facebook.com/NapaMG
Or send a photo to our Instagram page. https://www.instagram.com/ucmastergardenersnapaco/
Sun Gold is on the way to becoming the most popular tomato of all time. Its taste is a perfect balance of sweet and tart, and its deep yellow color with a hint of orange is attractive in the salad bowl, if it ever gets there. Most people eat this cherry tomato straight off the bush. It is resistant to pests, too.
Bodacious is a perfect name for a new Burpee variety described as "gorgeous, prolific and disease resistant." It is red, round and large—10 ounces and up—with "heirloom aroma" and an excellent balance of sweet and tart flavors. This is the perfect tomato for your sandwich.
Another first timer for the sale is Gardener's Delight, and it is. This bright red cherry tomato is a German heirloom, sweet and prolific. It will bear fruit all summer long.
It is tempting to plant your tomatoes the minute you take them home, especially if it is a sunny day, but be careful. Tomatoes need warm soil, and Napa can have cold nights well into spring. Remember that your plant has spent its life in a greenhouse. Before planting, put your seedlings outside for a few hours each day to get them used to outdoor light and temperatures.
Plant them when the soil is at least 60°F. Pick a place that gets sun for at least six hours a day. Whether you plant your tomatoes in a container, in a raised bed or in the ground, the soil should be moist to a depth of one foot. You want your tomato seedling to spread its roots and form a good base. Adding compost will improve soil texture, so the plant can easily access water and nutrients through its roots. As a result, you won't need to water as often.
Napa County Master Gardener Jill Pahl suggests planting the tomato slightly sideways, with only the top third of the plant above ground. Every single hair on the tomato stem will form a root if the stem is buried, and that will produce a stronger plant. Remove any flowers before planting. You want the energy to go into forming roots, not fruits, right now.
Mulch around the tomato plant to retain soil moisture. Some gardeners grow peppers and basil alongside tomatoes. Their leaves can shelter the tomatoes and keep them from getting scorched in a heat wave.
Napa County Master Gardener Rich Bruhns plants dozens of tomatoes in containers every year, and his yield is legendary. He makes sure his containers are at least 18" or more deep, uses good potting soil with some nutrients in it and gets new soil each year. he also waters by drip. The size of the container, the bigger the better, and consistent watering is very important when growing in containers. A light potting mix is important for drainage but the plant needs some nutrient too, but not too much. Keep in mind what is in the pot is all the plant has access to get all they need to grow good tomatoes. Once he has his set-up ready, he plants the tomato plant, waters and waits.
Tomatoes do need some nutrients; just follow fertilizer package directions and don't overdo it. If you are worried about deficiencies in your soil, send a soil sample to a lab for an analysis or do a home test kit yourself. The UC Masters Gardener office has a list of suitable labs and home kit are available at local nurseries and garden centers.
Avoid planting tomatoes in the same plot you used last year. When you rotate crops, you discourage diseases and parasites from getting established in your soil. Crop rotation also keeps plants from depriving soil of the same nutrients every year. Consider planting fava beans next fall to restore nitrogen to the soil and to keep your soil loose. Soil gets compacted when left bare.
Tomato plants need support. Put a frame or tomato cage around them the same day you plant them. Don't wait until they are falling over. Determinate tomatoes won't get any bigger after they set flowers. Indeterminate varieties keep growing and producing all summer and into the fall, and the vines will get quite large.
I have used the same Eiffel tower-shaped support for years. You can also make a support with thick dowels and gardener's tape, or even old rags tied to sticks. You can be creative here.
When flowers appear, you can shake them gently to aid pollination. I first heard about this technique a couple of years ago, and it worked. Bonus: it costs nothing.
We are looking at another dry summer. It is time to be miserly with water. Although tomatoes need more water when young, as they get established, they need less. Master Gardener Pat Hitchcock suggests slow, deep irrigation, with as much as a week between irrigation runs.
“I stop watering completely late in summer to save on water,” says Hitchcock. By then the plants have set all the fruits they can ripen by autumn anyway.
Nothing is as delicious as a freshly picked tomato warm from the sun. Enjoy your tomato plants and contact us for help with your tomato garden questions.
Got Garden Questions? Contact our Help Desk. The team is working remotely so please submit your questions through our diagnosis form, sending any photos to mastergardeners@countyofnapa.org or leave a detailed message at 707- 253-4143. A Master Gardener will get back to you by phone or email.
For more information visit https://napamg.ucanr.edu or find us on Facebook or Instagram, UC Master Gardeners of Napa
- Author: Monica Finigan, UC Master Gardener Napa County
Tomatoes are a mainstay in most summer gardens. Delicious in warm-weather salads, they are also essential to many cooked dishes. And the plants require far less water to grow than many other vegetables. Here are some tips to help ensure a successful harvest.
Wait to plant until all danger of frost is past and the soil is sufficiently warm. Cool weather makes tomato plants more susceptible to diseases and pests and slows plant growth.
Prior to planting, “harden off” tomato seedlings by placing them outside for about a week. Put them in a sheltered location, and then gradually expose them to garden conditions. If frost threatens, bring the plants indoors or cover them.
Choose stocky transplants six to eight inches tall with healthy green leaves. Check the bottom of the container. If roots are growing out the bottom, the seedlings may have been in the pot too long and may be root bound.
Water seedlings a few hours before planting and make sure the soil in the planting area is moist. Pinch off all but the top two sets of leaves. Carefully remove each seedling from its plastic pot without handling the fragile stem. Loosen the roots. Set the seedling in a planting hole deep enough to cover the exposed stem when the hole is backfilled. Those little hairs on the stem will form roots if buried and will help give your plant a good foundation.
If the seedlings are in biodegradable pots, you can plant them in the pot, but break up the pots slightly so the roots can easily grow into the soil.
Fill the planting hole with soil, press the soil firmly around the plant, and then water the area thoroughly.
Tomatoes need full sun and plenty of room to grow. If planting in a pot, choose a large one. If planting in the ground or in raised beds, space seedlings 24 to 30 inches apart. If you don't intend to stake or cage them, they will need even more room.
Most tomato plants benefit from some type of support. Cages or stakes keep them off the ground, maximize space and make harvesting easier. I like the rectangular wire cages that collapse for winter storage.
Place cages around seedlings soon after planting to avoid damaging the plants. Insert two strong stakes on both sides of the cage to provide support when the plant becomes heavy with fruit. Check the ultimate height of the variety you are planting to determine the height of the cage you need. The openings in the cage should be large enough to accommodate your hand at harvest time.
If you prefer to stake your plants, select stakes six feet long and one and one half to two inches wide. Drive them one foot into the soil four to six inches from the plant. As the plants grow, pull the stems toward the stakes and loosely tie them at intervals of ten to twelve inches. Use strips of cloth or other flexible material. Prune the plants to a few main stems to keep them from becoming too heavy.
Tomatoes need regular watering. Fluctuations in soil moisture can promote fruit cracking and blossom-end rot. Keep the area weeded. Weeds compete with your tomatoes for nutrients and water and can harbor pests. A three- to four-inch layer of mulch will minimize weeds and help retain soil moisture.
Don't fertilize until the plants are flowering and fruits are forming. Too much nitrogen fertilizer in the beginning will encourage green growth but will delay fruit formation. Once the plants start fruiting, give them a nitrogen fertilizer every four to six weeks. Follow the instructions on the label. Place the fertilizer alongside the growing plants in shallow grooves or on the soil surface. Water it in thoroughly.
Harvest tomatoes when they reach full color. Store at room temperature—not in the refrigerator—to enjoy their flavor at its best.
Tomato Plant Sale: U. C. Master Gardeners of Napa County will hold their fourth annual Tomato Sale and Education Day on Saturday, April 23, from 9 a.m. until sold out, in a new location at 1710 Soscol Avenue, Napa. Choose from 28 varieties, including heirlooms and new varieties in a range of colors. These healthy, Master Gardener-grown seedlings include types for fresh eating and for sauce.
Master Gardeners are volunteers who help the University of California reach the gardening public with home gardening information. U. C. Master Gardeners of Napa County ( http://ucanr.edu/ucmgnapa/) are available to answer gardening questions in person or by phone, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to Noon, at the U. C. Cooperative Extension office, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Suite 4, Napa, 707-253-4143, or from outside City of Napa toll-free at 877-279-3065. Or e-mail your garden questions by following the guidelines on our web site. Click on Napa, then on Have Garden Questions? Find us on Facebook under UC Master Gardeners of Napa County.
In early 2008 I was watching the news on television. The economy had started its decline and the story concerned a woman in Pennsylvania who had been laid off from her job. She was filmed pushing a shopping cart out of a grocery store and was asked what she had purchased with her final paycheck. She proceeded to show the reporter all forms of processed foods in cans, boxes and plastic containers.
The first thing that struck me was here was someone who had just lost their source of income, but they had also gained something they may not have had before and that is time. Now she could prepare more time-consuming but less expensive, more nutritious food for her family. Yet she had chosen to purchase food that required minimal preparation time, was costly and for the most part lower in nutrition.
The second thing that struck me was that this woman now could have the time to devote to gardening for food to feed her family. I don’t know if she had a yard with room for a garden, had access to a community garden plot or had a friend or relative with room for a garden but if she did, then gardening for food was right for her. She could feed her family fresh veggies and also preserve some of the bounty of the garden for later consumption. Eating more nutritious food at a lower cost is a win/win situation. This is especially true as the bounty of summer gardens begins to fill our tables.
I’ve been gardening for food for many years, not because I can’t afford to buy processed foods but because I want the freshest, most nutritious organic and non-genetically engineered food possible. I want to know where my food comes from, how it was grown and I want it year round. I started with several 4 ’x 8’ raised beds and every year I added one or two more until I now have 32 raised beds. No one needs 32 raised beds for a family of two, so much of what I grow is given away and I take great pleasure in being able to do this.
Gardening for Food includes home-grown veggies such as tomatoes, summer squash and eggplant that you plant in the spring to eat in the summer plus winter-planted veggies such as garlic, onions and potatoes that can be stored and enjoyed months after harvest. The garlic we grow usually lasts for almost a year. Onions will last for months and we never have to buy potatoes between June and December.
Another spring or early summer veggie I love are shell beans as they last forever, and when you grow your own and get used to eating beans that are less than a year old you realize how much more flavorful they are at a young age. A few years ago we started growing Floriani Red Flint Corn, which is widely planted in Italy for grinding and making polenta. You’ve never had polenta as rich and flavorful as that made with your own Floriani Red Flint Corn.
Last but not least are the veggies that are planted in late summer to early fall. These include broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, chard and lettuces. It’s very rewarding to watch them grow and be available to you.
Gardening for food also includes preserving some of the harvest through canning, freezing or drying so that you can enjoy the production of your garden months later. In our house, there is no such thing as too many tomatoes. Some of what isn’t eaten fresh is skinned and seeded, becoming first tomato sauce and then catsup, chili sauce, BBQ sauce, marinara sauce or reduced until it becomes tomato paste. Other tomatoes are canned whole or chopped up and canned as salsa. Chile peppers are roasted and then frozen for use later in many southwestern dishes. We dry chiles, tomatoes and herbs for use as seasonings year round.
It’s been over five years since I saw this story on the news, but I haven’t been able to get the woman out of my mind. My hope is that one person will read this article and start gardening for food and then tell another person until we have everyone eating less expensive and more nutritious food day in and day out.
Vegetable Workshop: Napa County Master Gardeners will lead a workshop on “Cool Season Veggies” on Sunday, August 18, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Yountville Community Center, 6516 Washington Street, Yountville. Learn how to grow your own vegetables even when days are short and nights are cold. The key is starting while weather and soil are still warm. Learn which vegetables will thrive in cooler temperatures, how to protect them from heat when they are getting started, and how to time plantings for months of harvest. Cost is $15 per person ($10 for Yountville residents). Class size is limited and pre-registration is required. Register through Town of Yountville, Parks and Recreation: Mail in or Walk in registration (cash or check only). For additional information, call (707) 944-8712 or visit their web site.
Master Gardeners are volunteers who help the University of California reach the gardening public with home gardening information. Napa County Master Gardeners ( http://ucanr.org/ucmgnapa/) are available to answer gardening questions in person or by phone, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to Noon, at the U. C. Cooperative Extension office, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Suite 4, Napa, 707-253-4143, or from outside City of Napa toll-free at 877-279-3065. Or e-mail your garden questions by following the guidelines on our web site. Click on Napa, then on Have Garden Questions?
Open Garden Days: Napa County Master Gardeners welcome the public to their demonstration garden at Connolly Ranch on the first Thursday of every month, from April through October, from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Master Gardeners will be on hand to answer questions. Connolly Ranch is at 3141 Browns Valley Road in Napa.