33
votes
Do tomatoes really need support to grow?
Watermelons and pumpkins naturally grow as trailing vines across the ground. A tomato plant grows upright, holding its fruit up off the ground. They often need cages or stakes because the tomatoes get ...
- 5,839
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 ...
- 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 ...
- 17.5k
18
votes
Accepted
Which tomatoes grow the best in high temperatures?
Let me preface this answer by saying that due to my experience in 2016 contrasted with my 2015 experience, I personally think soil conditions and composition, kinds of light and light levels, and how ...
- 17.7k
17
votes
Do tomatoes really need support to grow?
Another reason to cage them is if you leave them on the ground, they are more prone to fungal diseases, and you really don't want those in your garden because they are hard to get rid of. I speak from ...
- 487
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 ...
15
votes
Do tomatoes really need support to grow?
In addition to the good points made by the other answers, at least in my experience, it's also important to keep the leaves and branches off of the ground, not just the fruit. Branches and leaves ...
- 301
13
votes
Accepted
Why are my tomatoes cracking and what can I do?
Cracking tomatoes happens when the (almost) ripe fruit expands and the skin can't hold up any more. (A bit like stretch marks...)
There are a few causes that typically lead to different crack ...
- 16k
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 ...
- 3,639
12
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 ...
- 131k
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 ...
- 17.7k
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 ...
- 131k
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 ...
- 21.1k
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 ...
- 21.1k
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 ...
- 17.7k
9
votes
Accepted
How far do potatoes really need to be from tomatoes to prevent disease/blight?
They should all be 3 feet from one another, the tomato plants and the potatoes. Its not to prevent blight, but to prevent disturbing the roots of the tomatoes if you dig up some potatoes nearby, and ...
- 131k
9
votes
Accepted
How long do tomatoes live for?
Sue encouraged me to turn my comments into an answer. So, I'll try to make them meet the criteria.
I've only ever heard of tomatoes living a few to several years at the most. Ecnerwal's answer sounds ...
- 17.7k
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 ...
- 17.7k
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 ...
- 17.7k
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 ...
- 6,997
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. ...
- 17.7k
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, ...
- 321
9
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 ...
- 40k
8
votes
How long do tomatoes live for?
Anecdotally, I met a "tomato tree" (not really a tree, just a vary large old tomato plant) that was reported to be 4-6 years old (likely started after the last serious hurricane) on an island in the ...
- 21.1k
8
votes
Accepted
Do tomatoes require pollinators to bear fruit?
For the most part, no, tomatoes don't require pollinators. Because of the way tomato flowers are formed it is very common for pollen to fall off of the stamen (male-part) onto the stigma (female part),...
- 5,839
8
votes
Why are my tomatoes cracking and what can I do?
The cracks are a physical injury caused by the tomato plant going from too dry to wet too fast. When the plant goes through a sudden change like that the fruit goes from being short on water to ...
- 5,839
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 ...
- 21.1k
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. ...
- 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 ...
- 9,444
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 ...
- 8,497
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible