So your tomato seedlings failed. Maybe they got too leggy and laid over in the wind or burned to a crisp in the Texoma sun. I'm very sorry. It's so disappointing when you lose new plants, especially if they were of a specialty type.
But not to worry! These things happen. You can still have tomatoes in your garden. Head on over to your local nursery or home repair warehouse, and pick you a few tomato plants. Yes, I know it's late in the season, but the stores still have them. Once you get them home, you'll need to get them into the ground quickly, so they can root in and get to growing. Here are a few quick tips on that:
1. Use the good soil. Do not plant these guys in our black gumbo, or even the sandier soil that we find in Texoma. The gumbo is a super sticky root choker, and the sandy loam is like concrete when it's dry. I'd recommend a raised bed, especially if you're in a black gumbo area like me. If you've got sandy loam, then you can mix some of that into your garden soil, but go easy. Remember: concrete. I personally use compost mixed with a little sandy loam. You can outsource these from places like Texas Pure Products or buy them by the bag in stores. You want uncompacted, well-draining, nutrient rich soil for hungry tomatoes. You can also grow tomatoes in a pot. Just make sure the pot is big enough to fit plant and cage, and be aware that it may require more watering than a garden bed.
2. Bury those babies. You want a good root system working for your plants, so go ahead and bury them until just a few of the topmost stems are out of the soil. That means planting some of the green main stem in the soil. Do it. That buried stem will convert to root, and give your plant a good root system to feed lots of lovely tomatoes growing up top. This will also ensure that the strong winds that come up on us suddenly don't snap your newly planted babies in half. You probably know this already, but break off the bottom of those compostable cups before you plant.
3. Stake them early. Tomatoes are a pain to get into a cage after they're grown out, so do yourself a favor, and cage them while they're small. And do cage them, please. You'll have less stem breakage once they're heavy with fruit if you take this step. I once lost a whole 4 foot long branch worth of tomatoes from not caging a plant properly. It split off in the wind before the blossoms (loads of blossoms) could fruit. Never made that mistake again.
4. Mulch. That's right. Get some mulch around the plants. I know that seems weird to do in a vegetable bed. We're accustomed to mulching flower beds, but tomato beds? Sure! Mulch serves several purposes, including keeping weeds down (spurgeweed and johnson grass, anyone?), holding moisture better in the soil underneath, and slowly providing nutrients to the soil as it composts in.
5. Water like crazy. Last but not least, give them lots of water. I've never known tomatoes to mind the heat much, but they need lots of water to do their thing. Don't make mud of their soil bed, but don't let these guys run dry either.
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| One of my tomato beds. The PVC & mesh keep the cats out. |
And those are the quick tips. Feel free to send us a message if you need more detailed info, or are having a problem not covered by the above. Happy gardening!
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