Fertilize and watch them grow

To the Editor:

I have been growing tomatoes in various varieties and ways for over 50 years mostly as a hobby but I like a big garden fresh tomato to eat too.

There are hundreds of stories about the hundreds of varieties. Tomatoes originated in South America, some are called family heirlooms, each variety has its faults and good points. Some tomato stories are quite interesting and intended to promote that seed. Over the generations, the varieties which are the most popular change. Many of the large plants and tomatoes are hybrids and "crosses of the old beefsteak."

People grow tomatoes every way including upside down. In container gardening the experts say a 5-gallon plastic bucket in the smallest amount of soil container with good soil, TLC and fertilizer. Container growing must have drainage in the bottom of the container or believe it or not, the plant will drown if kept watered.

Our worst problem with tomato growing is disease. There are no disease-free varieties, but some are more disease resistant than others. Black end rot is a big problem today with all kinds of "medicine" from the old remedy of Epsom's salts to miracle sprays designed to protect tomato plants from any disease known. Usually when black spot starts, it is too late to stop so one might just as well pull up the plants and try again next year.

My favorite variety since it was first introduced over 20 years ago is "Big Beef" because of its disease resistance.
I have never had much luck with container gardening, so am trying a new method this year. I have taken a 3-gallon plastic container with four holds around the bottom edge, pack it full of the new super potting soil with extended fertilizer, soak it good, plant the tomato, then place that 3-gallon container inside a larger one, one large enough to hold fertilized water at least halfway up the inner container and this is important, with enough room between the walls of the two containers to slide one's hand around and between. That allows air to enter.

Keep the space between the walls of the two containers at least halfway up the side of the smaller container full of water/fertilizer mix. Just take 2 tablespoons of any favorite fertilizer, sprinkle in the space between the two container walls and let the garden hose do the mixing.

I water every other day and fertilize every other week. It is amazing how much water/fertilizer a big tomato plant will "take up" in just 24 hours. So one has to carefully check the containers and plants each day.

I call this method a variation of container/hydroponics. If it works, I will use 5-gallon buckets as the inside container with one of those bid plastic feed tubs for the outer water container. I should be able to grow tomatoes the size of bowling balls with the larger containers next year.

I have only picked two ripe tomatoes so far, each with black bottom end rot, so things don't look hopeful. The vines are loaded with good-sized tomatoes though.

Tomatoes like and need sunlight, so containers should be placed where the sun shines longest and best. If I go to the larger container method, my water bill next year will climb out of sight and those outside big plastic feed buckets deteriorate in sunlight over a year or so.

I hope some other tomato growers will try this method too. I plan on growing three "Big Beef" next year and three "Gypsy" sweet peppers which to me are unbeatable.

The spooky thing about my "Gypsy" pepper growing is if grown in a garden, row of say 6 or more plants, one plant for some reason will produce more peppers than all the rest combined. For years I've had this occur.

Ben J. Brinkley
Harrisburg