Also snip off the horizontal wire at the bottom, leaving more stubs you can poke into the earth to hold the cage steady. Cut the sheet in half with wire cutters, leaving stubs of wire that can be twisted around the opposite sides to form a cylinder about 18" in diameter. Each sheet, cut in half, will make two 5' tall cylindrical cages. Instead we purchase sheets of concrete reinforcing wire, which is sold at hardware stores in flat rectangular sheets of heavy duty metal grid, with 6" X 6" openings, just the right size for reaching in to pick. Our favorite system is to train them in circular cages~and we don’t mean those flimsy ones you buy at the garden center, which are neither tall enough nor strong enough to support the weight of indeterminate (vining) varieties. The better your Tomato crop, the more important it is to support those heavy, leafy vines laden with ripening fruits. And who knows? Perhaps the Basil's strong scent repels insect pests that might otherwise prey on the Tomatoes. It's handy to be able to pick the two together. After all, they keep excellent company in the kitchen, whether you're serving fresh Tomatoes strewn with the pungent green Basil leaves or cooking both up into a luscious sauce for pasta. There's plenty of space in between them for bushy Basil plants. Certainly, they cause each other no harm, for we have often interplanted the two in a row, especially when we're training Tomatoes vertically on strings. If you can, group them together and run a soaker hose through the patch.Īccording to the theory of companion planting, Tomatoes and Basil benefit one another when grown in the same plot. Tomatoes, Cucumbers and Celery are especially thirsty. The more water a vegetable contains, the more water you need to give it in dry, hot weather. If they are pale, yellow or withered, you need to prepare the soil more carefully next time you plant. If the seed leaves stay healthy and green, you're doing something right with the soil in that row. They remain at the base of the stem as the plant grows. This is the first pair of leaves to emerge when a seed sprouts. If you're wondering if your Tomato plants (or any annual crops) are getting the soil fertility they need, keep an eye on the "seed leaves". With Tomato cages or tie plants loosely to rough Organic fertilizer under each transplant. Seedlings deeper than initially grown, incorporating Prepareįertile Tomato beds in full sun with lots of compostĪnd/or well-rotted manure. Off and to introduce to stronger sunlight. Spring frost, place outdoors for a week to harden Get leggy and flop over.) Fertilize lightly as needed, (Windowsills are not bright enough the plant will To 75☏ in a brightly lit, well-ventilated area. Tomato seeds in sterile seed mix 6 to 8 weeksīefore the danger of frost has passed, water lightlyĪnd provide bottom heat. It’s best to raise Tomatoes as transplants. We have listed the diseases to which select hybrids have been bred to be resistant~one of the true benefits of improved hybrids.
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