The fish gut fertilizer has boosted the tomatoes.... multiple levels of green tomatoes coming on..

The tomato plants pictured are around 14ft tall!!!

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triggers dog-pile egomaniacs

Hope yer maters don't taste like sardines. Seriously, those are some giant plants.

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John

Those are GIANTS!

Mine are about 2'.

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Thread Killer.

Watch them closely.

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Sure you did

Only room for three plants. Picked the first ones last week. Probably 150+ tomatoes on the three plants. Some the size of softballs.

Tomato Tone and Miracle Grow do it for me.

Klyde

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MONSTER MATERS !!!

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John

Absolute best non root crop fertilizer I ever messed around with was told to me by an old timer that always grew the best tomatoes and cucumbers. In the early spring he would take an old oil drum over to a buddy of his that owned cows, fill it half full of ripe cow manure, take it home, place it in a sunny spot in his garden and then fill it up with water, stir it up and let it sit. He had nice gravelly loam in the valley and set it up for irrigation watering. Once a week he would stir that mess up and with a long handled ladle feed his maters and cukes, squash, etc. anything that didn't get pulled and ate. I swear his mater plants could pull up roots and run around the garden, he had the best garden I ever saw. I used his method on a smaller scale and had great luck also, I've had good luck with fish fertilizer also but nothing beat that cow manure soup.

That's what my mother (God rest her soul) used to do. I remember as a kid going with my father to the local farm and loading the trailer with cow manure.

All the farms in the immediate area are gone now. Condos have replaced them.

Thanks for the memory.

Klyde

I have been picking ripe tomatoes since the last week of June, and they are still growing and blooming. I haven't got tired of tomato sandwiches yet, I doubt that I will. My magic potion seems to work. :-)

Leon

Compost tea composed of composted plant material, mule poop and
water with a couple table spoons of Epson salt added. I have been
giving tomatoes away since the 2nd week of July. Sizes range from
cherry tomatoes to soft ball.
Instead of canning we blanch in boiling water, core and freeze in
freezer bags. I have salsa from two years ago so don't need any
of that this year.

WOW...those are some pretty plants @KLYDE. Gave mine two shots of Miracle Grow and one handful of Tomato Tone early in the growing cycle and the rest has been composted fish guts with daily watering. Those are some mighty fine clusters.

Yeah the first couple of tomatoes tasted fishy; they've either gotten better or I'm getting used to the taste.

@jeffsmith, you're right I can't reach 14 feet to pick tomatoes. They are tied as high as I can reach and have grown about half way back to the ground. Should have said the vines are 14 feet long instead of tall Thanks for keeping me honest

Someone mentioned a calcium deficiency causing blossom end rot. I've heard of folks milking their tomatoes (watering them with milk). Never tried it and have no idea if it works.

Tomato sandwich for breakfast....****les!!

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triggers dog-pile egomaniacs

Bought a smaller bag of plant tone at the hardware. Walking through the drug store I noticed the same size bag at half the price I paid at the hardware. So I bought more plant tone, iron tone and miracle grow to “stock up”. Was on the internet and discovered epsom salt was highly recommended so I bought that. (Not the fancy epsom salt) The plant tone didn’t seem to be working so I put a small amount of epsom salt around the plants base and watered them. They looked better the next day. Even the hostas perked up. Wish I would have waited and just bought the epsom salt, Larry

sitting here eating a tomato sandwich and reading the forum. Yep, a hand full of epson salts added once a week is great, you can see them grow for the next couple of days. they love the magnesium. I also apply a small amount of Miracle grow about every 10 days

Had completely forgotten the Epsom Salt......gonna dose and water them right now ...... thanks

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triggers dog-pile egomaniacs

How do you all deal with horn/tomato worms?

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Thread Killer.

Pesky rascals. I went out the other morning and the top of my pepper plant was devoured. Was fine the night before. I knew right away what it was and had to look hard to find the culprit. Tug if war to get the bugger off the plant.

Those monsters will eat an entire plant in a day. I sprayed the plants with Sevin. Don't like to use it if can be avoided. Been noticing the little white moths flying and nesting on the plants. I believe they lay the eggs.

I'll keep the Sevin to a minimum.

Klyde

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If you look you can just pick them off. Or you can use bt
and when they eat the leaf with bt it eats them up from the
inside.

What is BT? Organic?

Thanks

Klyde

I pick them off and give them to my turtles.

But sometimes, I'm not around for a couple, three days to police the buggers, and as you all know, they can do A LOT of damage in just one day. So that's why I'm asking you all for non-toxic alternatives - know what I mean

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Thread Killer.

The chipmunks think that the I grew the tomatoes for them.

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Made it, Ma! Top of the world!

Just bought a plastic OWL and hung it high from a Shepard’s hook. We’ll see if the chipmunks eat the tomatoes. Should have bought a pellet rifle, Larry

bt is a natural bacteria, Bacillus thuringiensis, and yes it is
organic. If you have ever been around a lake or still body
of fresh water you have probably smelled it in the air. It
washes off with water, so, if it rains you will need to reapply.
And be sure to wash your tomatoes if picked soon after
using bt. This is the same bacteria that GMO corn uses to
fight the corn ear worm, the only difference is the bt is
inside the corn not on the surface, stay away from that.

Best things to use in the garden is Banty Chickens, I've watched them feisty little buggers jump a foot off the ground to grab a tater bug. My granddad loved a little Banty rooster his housekeeper kept, he'd get all over the big ole Rhode Island Red rooster and harrass them Red chickens too. He also loved the big hawk that occaisonally nailed one of the pullets, I think he loved the hawk for his finesse and freedom of flight. The housekeeper would yell at grandpa "That g##d##### hawk got another of my pullets." Grandpa would drawl "Hawks gotta eat too." One day I was eatin my mush, grandpa was lacing up his boots out on the porch drinkin his mornin cup of coffee. I heard his voice "GawwwwdDaammmn." His chair scraped back, I heard his corks clumpin on the porch, he opened the screen door and grabbed his Aught-Six that was always hung up handy. I jumped up wondering what was gonna get shot and heard him working the bolt, I just got to the door and saw him aiming skyward, followed by BOOM! He cleared the action and walked up the boardwalk towards the porch, I asked him "Grandpa what was that?" He said "G##D##### hawk got my rooster." I went out of the walk and looked up at the tip of old larch snag near the clearing and the feathers were still drifting off." A man has to set his limitations.