Tomatoes are classified broadly as determinate or indeterminate, terms that refer to the plants and not the fruits. Indeterminate varieties sprawl all over the ground, taking up almost as much precious garden area as zucchini, and vines continue to grow and make blossoms and fruits until put out of commission at summer's end. We stake them and cage them to some order. In contrast, determinate varieties are moderate, tidy creatures. They grow to a point and stop. Because they take less space, determinants are a good choice for small plats and containers. An advantage for commercial growers is that the crop becomes ripe over a short period, making harvest simpler; but backyard gardeners who can't handle a glut of tomatoes may find this trait works against them. Once upon time, all tomatoes were indeterminate. Then, in 1914 the first determinate tomato appeared spontaneously, growing primarily in a Florida field. Breeders pounced on it as a template for commercial varieties to come. Most heirloom varieties are indeterminate, however., and some tomato lovers argue that indeterminate taste better. One theory is that they have more flavor-producing foliage per fruit than their modern completion. To explore this plants great diversity, you must start with the seeds. Sow them indoors six to eight weeks before the last frost date for your area. You can speed their germination by providing bottom heated temperatures between 75 and 85 degrees F. Don't worry about giving the seedlings light until you see the first true leaves. At this point transplant seedlings to pots from 2 to 4 inches in diameter. The seedlings should have cooler temperatures at this stage of their development, between 50 and 55 degrees. Cool nights and plenty of light prevent the plants from becoming spindly. Leftover seeds remain viable up to 5 years or so if stored in a cool, dry place. If seedlings look leggy and weak when it's time to set them out, plant them more deeply in the soil, the lower stems will develop roots and anchor the plant more securely. Allow 1 to 2 feet between determinate plants and stake indeterminate. In the 1800'S gardeners often allowed indeterminate romates to roam and set down roots, laterly, alont their wondering stems. But today the fashion is to use a stake or cage to save space and get the fruits off the ground. Another possible advantage is that supported plants catch more sunlight, which translates to better flavored fruits. Garden stores sell read-made cages, but you can save money by making your own.
HARVESTING HEIRLOOM TOMATOES
Pick tomatoes just before they become fully-ripe and vulnerable to injury and pests. Store at room temperature, not in the refrigerator, for best flavor and texture. A bit of wisdom runs against tradition in some households, in the 1800's, homemakers were instructed to serve tomatoes as cold as possible. If your summer runs out of steam and some tomatoes haven't ripened, harvest them green before the first expected frost, wrap them in the clean newsprint used for mailing packages, and allow them to ripen indoors, or eat them green. Unripe tomatoes at season's end needn't be thought of as the green flags of failure. In fact they once were a cash crop. Almost a century ago, Ida D. Bennett wrote in The Vegetable Garden that "green tomatoes are one of the most plentiful vegetables in the market" and are "almost equal to eggplant when nicely cooked." frying further develops the flavor of three tomatoes for which summer wasn't quite gracious enough.
SAVING HEIRLOOM TOMATO SEEDS
Tomatoes are self-pollinated. That is, the pollen of a blossom interacts with the egg of that blossom. This incestuous act, occurring out of sight behind the yellow wraps of the flower, ensures that the resulting seed will yield plant identical to the lone parent. There has been no interchanging of genetic material between plant. Keep an eye out for the one plant of a variety that performs best, in terms of adaptability, production, appearance, taste, or whatever characteristics are important to you. Harvest a few of the best tomatoes of those best plants when they are dead ripe, and scoop out the seeds. Place them in a jar; half filled with water for two days or so at room temperature. This curing process is thought to kill bacteria that might be on the seeds and pass on the next generation. The good seeds will sink to the bottom while the bad seeds will float to the top. Carefully pour off the pulp and bad seeds, keep filling the jar with water and pouring the pulp and bad seeds off until you have only clear water and seeds on the bottom of the jar. Now pour the water and seeds on to a piece of hardware screen (finely wove) and then after the water has drained off a little, flop the seeds on a glass place. Let dry outside, out of direct sunlight until dry. Put seeds in a jar to save until next year.
The Gardener's Guide to Growing and Storing Vegetable and Flower Seeds
by Marc Rogers
Learn how to select, harvest, and store seeds from more that 100 vegetables and flowers commonly grown in home gardens.
192 pages, 6 x 9, paperback,
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