23 votes
Accepted

Since tomatoes don't need cages in the wild, how do they stay up?

The size of the tomato has been increased with human selection. Wild tomatoes are berry sized, so the plant doesn't need extra support. The same is true for most plants that humans have selectively ...
Ben Welborn's user avatar
  • 1,585
19 votes

Strange Fruit from Tomato Plant

That looks like a poorly pollinated cucumber (the type of distortion on the fruit is exactly what you'd see if pollination were uneven). Although I can't see any leaves, the stem looks like a cucumber ...
Jurp's user avatar
  • 18.6k
16 votes
Accepted

Can a tomato plant break by its own weight?

Tomato plants need some kind of support (as you see, they are a sort of vine). Especially when they are fruiting, the stem cannot support the weight of the tomatoes. It is normal to have the stem ...
Giacomo Catenazzi's user avatar
13 votes
Accepted

How should I repair a partially broken stem with lots of tomatoes?

That injury looks more like a "sprain" than a break. In other words, the stem is injured, but the tissue isn't completely severed. If you can immobilize it and provide additional support to keep the ...
Lorel C.'s user avatar
  • 3,639
13 votes

Are blossom end rot tomatoes edible?

Blossom end rot is a physiological disorder primarily caused by irregular or insufficient water supply, which disables calcium uptake. The fruits, or the bits that aren't affected, are not dangerous ...
Bamboo's user avatar
  • 132k
11 votes

Do seeds from fresh tomatoes need to completely dry before they will sprout?

Tomato seeds that have never been dried can germinate. I've tried it. Tomatoes can actually germinate inside the fruit, sometimes (wherein the fruit is still good to eat, at that). I've read that ...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
11 votes
Accepted

If I save seeds from sweet million cherry tomatoes will I get more sweet million tomatoes

Sweet Million are an F1 variety, so will not come true. Seeds saved from their first year may grow what are known as F2 types, which may be quite close to the original F1 Sweet Million, but any seed ...
Bamboo's user avatar
  • 132k
11 votes
Accepted

Plant recommendation for gift for kindergarten students

I recall doing something like this each spring (for several years) growing up, and the plant of choice was Marigolds (planted in a paper cup, as far as I recall) which were grown in class and then ...
Ecnerwal's user avatar
  • 23.2k
10 votes

Mushrooms instead of tomatoes

Too much water, most likely, for one thing, could be combined with poor drainage depending on the details of the pot and soil mix. Probably some other things [planting depth?] to not get any tomato ...
Ecnerwal's user avatar
  • 23.2k
10 votes

Plant recommendation for gift for kindergarten students

My two suggestions; Scarlet Runner Beans and the second is Carex testacea or Orange Sedge. Easy to grow, very pretty no matter its age, wonderful to tuck into any plant bed or pot, nice just left in ...
stormy's user avatar
  • 40.2k
10 votes

What variety is this tomato with long, milky green branches?

I'm afraid with over 20k tomato breeds and striking similarities among many of them (with crosses possible), there's not enough information for others to know what kind of tomato this is. Even if it ...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
9 votes

How can I grow tomatoes in a pot?

That's a small pot, and definitely not ideal. I recommend as much larger of a container as you can manage, even if you have to sacrifice drainage to make room. However, you can grow some kinds of ...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
9 votes
Accepted

How can I organically make the soil potassium rich?

I don't know of anything ubiquitous off-hand in the kitchen that is both high in potassium and ready to use on plants without composting or some other such. Kelp is supposed to have some. So, maybe if ...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
9 votes

What are these abnormal tomatoes on my tomato plant?

This looks like blossom end rot. Here is another source of info. According to the second link, which is from Clemson University: After tomatoes are planted, gardeners can minimize the potential ...
That Idiot's user avatar
  • 7,027
9 votes
Accepted

What should new tomato growers know about growing tomatoes?

It really depends on the variety. Some can stay on the vine for a long time after they're ripe (how long they can stay on is known as hang-time), and some have to be picked as soon as they're ripe. ...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
9 votes

Will applying twenty year old cow manure hurt my vegetable garden?

Unless harmful elements fell into your manure during those 20 years without your knowledge, it certainly shouldn't hurt anything. It might not be as potent as properly matured and composted manure, ...
Splambo's user avatar
  • 321
9 votes

Plant recommendation for gift for kindergarten students

Have you considered something as simple as Garden Cress (Lepidium sativum)? You can simply hand out a pack of seeds and a piece of cotton wool. The kids can then "plant" it themselves (really just ...
Tom Carpenter's user avatar
8 votes

How can I organically make the soil potassium rich?

Potassium is easily obtained via wood (or other plant material) fire ashes - "pot-ash" is the source of the name potassium (and while "potash" is now used more to refer to mined material, the ashes ...
Ecnerwal's user avatar
  • 23.2k
8 votes

Do seeds from fresh tomatoes need to completely dry before they will sprout?

No need to dry them out usually, and large varieties of tomato will grow exceptionally well with the right conditions. Here in Florida we just slice the tomatoes and lay the slices on top of the soil. ...
nick's user avatar
  • 81
8 votes

"Volunteer" tomato plant in my vegetable garden - good, bad, indifferent?

The answer really depends on how much space you have to grow tomatoes. The reason most people choose to start with tomato seedlings or plants in areas that are not tropical is that the growing season ...
michelle's user avatar
  • 9,464
8 votes

Is using tomato slices really viable for starting seedlings?

Think of how tomatoes grow "in the wild" fruit drops to the ground, slowly rots, and when conditions are right a new plant emerges. So cut open the fruit and cover it in soil, the results are not ...
OrganicLawnDIY's user avatar
8 votes

What should new tomato growers know about growing tomatoes?

Once they are red or ripe get them off the vine/bush! This promotes MORE fruit setting, ripening. Keep them cool and eat them sooner than later. Don't put in the refrigerator. Keep apples and ...
stormy's user avatar
  • 40.2k
8 votes

How do I ripen tomatoes?

Unless they're too immature, they will eventually turn red if you bring them in the house and wait. If you're planning to save seeds, though, people often say that the seeds cease to develop after you'...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
8 votes

What causes tomato plants to bear large fruit?

This is a very open question, and I like to see other answers. As you wrote, variety is the main driver. Cold weather and dry soil could stop the growth of a tomato. Position is also a determinant. ...
Giacomo Catenazzi's user avatar
8 votes
Accepted

White insects on tomato plant?

This is scale or mealybug, they are insects that suck sap out of the plant. So yes they are harmful and it is better for your plant to get rid of them. There are several ways to get rid of them (in ...
benn's user avatar
  • 13.1k
8 votes

Safe water for tomatoes

It is perfectly safe. In fact it is also legal to use gray water to water your plants. Some houses are designed to do this. Gray water is water from kitchen and laundry and in some cases also from ...
Rohit Gupta's user avatar
  • 2,095
7 votes

Why are my tomato plant seedlings dying?

Disclaimer: This answer is mostly based off of my own experience. Yes. That appears to be classic transplant shock. As Ecnerwal said, it could be cutworms, too, though. Anything that disturbs (or ...
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx's user avatar
7 votes

What could be happening to my tomato plants?

First, you should always know what you're using to fertilize your plants and why you're doing it. Anything sold as plant food/fertilizer is required to have a guaranteed analysis (3 numbers x-y-z) at ...
OrganicLawnDIY's user avatar
7 votes

Planting potatoes between tomatoes, bad or good idea?

It's harder to control blight when the two are planted in close proximity. Late blight caused a devastating epidemic in the 1840s in the North Eastern USA. http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/...
Graham Chiu's user avatar
  • 23.1k
7 votes

Will applying twenty year old cow manure hurt my vegetable garden?

Sounds like perfect stuff. You are going into winter, yes? If you are, just put it on top of the beds thickly. This will help keep the weed seeds already in the soil from germinating as well. In ...
stormy's user avatar
  • 40.2k

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