During Memorial Day weekend, Warner’s Nursery will hold its annual Tomatopalooza, our yearly celebration of all things tomato.
Step one is taking care to select a seed or tomato that either grows quickly or does well even in cool climates.
Some of our favorites live up to their names, like Early Girl, which produces meaty tomatoes early in the growing season, and Siberian, which can withstand colder weather. Better Boy, Celebrity and Stupice are other great varieties of full-size tomatoes that do well in Northern Arizona.
Meanwhile, most smaller “cherry” tomatoes tend to germinate and grow quickly, so they are all good choices. We’re particular fans of the compact Sungold, a bite-size golden color beauty with a thin skin bursting with flavor, and the Sweet 100, which produces huge clusters of half-inch fruits that are very sweet and high in vitamin C.
Whether you start from seeds or from seedlings, your first step is to make sure that your tomatoes get a good start growing indoors before you bring them out to your garden. If you are planting from seed, you’ll want to start your plants about six weeks before the anticipated transplanting date, which will be the final frost of the spring.
Your best results will come from sowing seeds about a half-inch deep in a well-drained starting mix. Keep your baby plants warm to promote faster germination. Keep the potting material moist, but not soggy, while awaiting germination. Apply moderate watering slightly, once seedlings break through the soil.
Even if you purchase your plants as seedlings, or “starts,” you still need to have them indoors first to protect them from Northern Arizona’s late frosts. And even after you put them into the ground after the “last” frost, remember that our region’s weather is fickle. We sometimes get frosty nighttime temps well into June.
To protect your plants, think about getting season extenders, those tubes you fill with water and surround your plant with. They absorb the heat of the sun during the day to keep your plant warm at night. A frost cloth will also help.
Tomato plants are hungry and thirsty things, so remember that they will need regular fertilizing and plenty of water. Some common tomato problems are caused by incorrect watering, so we recommend a drip irrigation system to take the guesswork out and ensure that you get a nice long, gradual soak.
Another tip is to not plant tomatoes in the same soil as last year, as this can allow disease to spread.
This brings us to the common diseases we see in tomato plants. Several tomato issues self-correct during the season. For example, we sometimes see phosphorus deficiency in our local tomato plants. Now, it’s not that our soil lacks phosphorus, but when the soil is still cold, it’s hard for the plant to absorb it, which is yet another reason why you shouldn’t transplant your tomato starts too early. However, once temperatures rise, the problem typically corrects itself. Other problems, like aphids and whiteflies, can be rectified by using insecticidal soap. Still others, like tomato hornworms, can literally be picked off by hand.
However, there are other, more serious issues that can arise that need more attention and might even require you to just get rid of the affected plant. Early blight is caused by a fungus and typically can be seen during hotter months. This is one that might attack both the leaves and fruit of your plant. The leaves drop off, making your tomatoes susceptible to sunburn. Sanitation (i.e., removing the affected plants) is your best option here.
All of this work is worth it when you have those delicious tomatoes for salads, sandwiches, soups and so much more.
During Memorial Day weekend, Warner’s Nursery will hold its annual Tomatopalooza, our yearly celebration of all things tomato. We hope we’ll see you there to pick up some plants or accessories like tomato cages and season extenders, or just to ask questions about the best way to cultivate these amazing edibles. FBN
By Misti Warner
Misti Warner-Andersen is the manager of Warner’s Nursery & Landscape Co., located at 1101 E. Butler Ave. in Flagstaff. To contact Warner’s Nursery, call 928-774-1983.
