As in previous articles written about high alkalinity in the valley or the intermountain west in general, tomatoes require an acidic pH of 5.6 to 5.8. In order to achieve this, one must use a sulfur amendment to correct and hold this pH. Once pH is addressed the correct amount and type of nutrients must be given to obtain optimum growth, robust fruiting of plants and most important the delicious taste of a correctly grown tomato.
Hooper’s not only can show you the correct acidifier and nutrient base but also show you a way to fertigate (irrigate and fertilize at the same time) your plants automatically with one of our injector-timer setups.
Tomatoes require the right blends and amounts of nitrogen to grow. Animonical nitrogens not only produce too much lush growth, but also contribute to blossom end rot. Tomatoes require normal amounts of phosphorous, higher amounts of potassium, calcium and magnesium to do well here. (Deficiency symptoms will be listed on our website.)
Tomatoes can be grown in the ground here but it is an uphill battle for a number of reasons, high soil pH, cold soil, unable to move plants due to bad weather, frost, etc. Ideally, we recommend growing tomatoes in a container to avoid these problems. Hooper’s has the ideal inexpensive container for doing container vegetable gardening.
Desirable tomato varieties can vary from customer to customer depending on your location. If you live above or outside the valley floor, plants that bear under cooler temperatures or shorter seasons would include, Early Girl, Siberian, Manitoba, Glacier, Sub Arctic Plenty, and Alaskan Fancy. These tomatoes not only set fruit under colder temperatures, but also mature earlier than better known tomatoes. These tomatoes bear fruit in the 2-6 oz range. Maturity dates are from 55-65 days; maturity dates start from the time the plant has reached its final planting area.
The largest, best producing tomatoes grown here in the valley would include, but not limited to, Better Boy, Celebrity, Heartland, Fantastic, Supersonic, Husky Red, and Ultimate Opener. These tomatoes have a maturity date in the 70-day range.
Other tomatoes include cherry and grape tomatoes having a fairly early maturity date. These include Cherry, Sweet 100, Red Grape, Micro Tom, and Tumbling Tom. Yellow tomatoes are generally less acidic than reds. We will carry Yellow Pear and Golden Girl as usual.
Those that prefer the heirloom tomatoes will want Bonnie Best, Rutgers Select, Manitoba or Brandywine.
Tomatoes are usually grouped into two growth habits. Determinate varieties reach a certain plant height and then stop growing with most fruit borne over a 4 to 6 week period. Most "bush" types fall into this category. Indeterminate varieties continue to grow and flower throughout the season but have less mature fruit at any given time.
The uninformed grower can trace poor quality of fruit to a few common practices. Cracking of fruit usually stems from inadequate nutrient supply, too much water following too little water, or very fast growth with high temperatures and moisture. Ideal growing temperatures for tomatoes is between 70-82 F for days and 64 F for nights. Most tomatoes have a hard time absorbing nutrients below 60 F. Poor pollination can occur from stresses such as cold or hot temperatures, drought, and high humidity above 70% cause pollen to clump rather than disperse. Tomatoes are considered a perfect flower. Bees or the wind vibrating the flowers usually pollinates plants grown outdoors. Plants grown in a greenhouse usually must be hand pollinated to achieve good pollination. This is done by lightly tapping the stem holding the flower clusters. Do not tap the flowers themselves.
Blossom End Rot (BER) is not caused by an organism but by insufficient calcium in the fruit, even though adequate calcium is being supplied by nutrient values. If plants are left to wilt it is difficult for nutrients to reach the fruit, especially the uptake of calcium. Other factors can be high alkalinity/salinity of water or soil; high nitrogen levels especially ammonium forms. Ammonium nitrogen increases the demand for calcium. In our region magnesium deficiencies are common and calcium needs magnesium to be absorbed. It is good practice to spray your tomatoes with Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) at the rate of 2 tablespoons per gallon of water once a month.
Root damage, or very high temperatures and humidity can also cause BER. BER can be prevented in non affected fruit by using “Stop Rot” at a rate of 1 pint per 7-1/2 gallons sprayed twice a week until problem is corrected.
In summation, if you are used to growing tomatoes in the coastal regions of the United States you probably had acidic soils and water. Growing tomatoes in the Flathead means you will be growing in a completely different environment with our short summers, cold nights and most importantly our alkaline water and soils.
Pick tomato varieties that mature in less than 80 days, pay attention to the weather, watering and nutrient practices and you can grow tomatoes successfully in the Flathead Valley. Remember that growing tomatoes in containers and/or in a greenhouse environment requires more exacting conditions than simply growing them in the ground, but growing them in containers will usually give more tomatoes sooner and better quality fruit in return.
©2009 - Hooper`s Garden Center