Hello from Duxbury, MA

[omom320]

Hello fellow gardeners!

Greetings from the coast of Massachusetts -- where the soil is sandy and the summers are way too short! I'm so glad I found you -- I am a first year vegetable and organic gardener and I need some serious tomato advice!

I planted about 25 each of Brandywine Red and Delicious tomatoes about a month ago, started from seed. Soil amended with lobster compost. The plants are doing great; they are about 2.5-3' high with thick stems and lots of blossoms and other than some of the leaves being a little too big for my perfectionist streak, they are doing well.

My problem: I planted them waaaay too close together. They are about a foot apart. The first bed was planted traditionally, roots down. The second bed is trenched. (Doesn't seems to be much difference in development but I'm curious to see if this affects production.) I would like to move some from the first bed to space them a bit better -- any advice as to whether or not this is a good or bad idea!? And if not a good idea, any alternatives? Also, I am scouring the postings for general info as to care and tips etc, but feel free to offer your best overall advice - as I said - I'm new to this! Thanks all and happy gardening!

[dice]

Greenhouse operators commonly prune tomato plants to a single
stem and grow them close together. You could try that. Pruned plants
tend to ripen a fruit a little earlier, and that might be of value in itself
growing two mid-season to late mid-season varieties in a cool, rainy
summer in the Northeast. You may also want to top them around
the first of September to force them to ripen immature fruit that are
still on the vine before first frost.

Transplanting in general, not just tomato plants, usually costs two weeks
of adaptation when they just sit there (perhaps growing roots). You can
shorten it by dipping the roots in some kind of liquid fertilizer solution
before placing them in their new locations and filling in around the roots.

Here is a diagram of two-stem and three-stem pruning (text is in French,
but the diagrams are self-explanatory):
http://www.tomodori.com/3culture/taill_sur_2-tiges.htm

Figure that single-stem pruning is basically the same thing, without the
additional stems.

[les matzek]

welcome aboard omon for
tomatoes you have come
to the best place,regards.

les

[kath]

Welcome to Tomatoville! I don't know what would happen if you tried to transplant now, but I wouldn't try it. I did move pepper plants late in June last year and it set back production quite a bit. Last year I grew some tomatoes as close as 14" apart with fine results. As suggested above, I kept them pruned to a single stem. As long as the plants have good soil, water, air circulation, etc. they should be fine. I'd be sure to fertilize adequately. This year I've got pairs of plants trained to a single stake with 2-3' between stakes and they're tall and setting fruit like crazy.

[cleo88]

Welcome, omom!

I am also south-of-boston and I agree, it doesn't stay warm long enough for my maters, but what can you do? (Other than get really frustrated and post rants after you have a glass of wine.)


I vote for you pruning, not transplanting - no time to waste having your plants idling while they adjust to the shock of transplant. Pruning is also supposed to get you bigger fruit (although fewer of them).

I am growing some early varieties this year to see if it pays off given our short growing season. I did have one baby tomato on May 28, but it still ain't ripe - just hasn't absorbed enough heat units with our hot-then-cold weather this year. So the jury's still out, but I'll be posting about it when they do ripen.

[FILMNET]

Just bend them away from each, I am in Beverly. Ma