Perfect Fit Tomatoes

I have to say my spring tomato crop is looking good this year. Let’s take a look at the various selections I’m growing in my home garden. Each year at the Heritage Cottage Urban Nano Farm I grow a variety of different sizes of tomatoes, from micros, to determinates, to indeterminate varieties, always trying to get the best production I can. I also grow different colors from red, yellow, orange, black and also striped selections. Micro tomatoes are perfect for even the smallest of areas. These plants are great for space challenged gardeners, growing a whole tomato plant in a small pot. They are genetically selected for their small, compact size and are much smaller than their giant garden cousins. Micro Tom is the world’s shortest tomato at a mere six to eight inches tall with bright red fruit. Determinate varieties grow to a set mature size of about four to six feet tall and the fruit ripens over a period of about 6 weeks in my garden. These are perfect for the gardener who has a couple of plants growing in containers on the back patio. Indeterminate selections continue to grow and set fruit as long as there are favorable growing conditions. These can grow into BIG plants, up to eight feet and taller, so you need to allow space for what can eventually become a sprawling plant. You may even need a ladder. As you can see there’s a type of tomato for any gardener and gardening space. I’m horticulturist Gary Bachman and I’ll see you next time on Southern Gardening.