TOMATOES: Tomatoes are a staple for many locals who plant vegetable gardens.
The number of tomato varieties can be overwhelming, but the Penn State Extension recently shared advice on what to consider when choosing which varieties to grow.
Those tips were in an article by Allegheny County Master Gardener and Master Food Preserver Susan Marquesen.
According to Susan, seeds should be started five to seven weeks before they are put into the ground. Gardeners can opt to either purchase tomatoes plants from a nursery or start plants themselves from seeds.
Things to consider include:
• Whether the tomato plants are determinate (which are good for gardeners who have limited space or who want tomatoes to ripen at once for a project such as canning) or indeterminate (which can produce larger plants and give gardeners a longer period for using fruit).
• Whether you have a long or short growing season. Varieties can vary greatly in how long they take to bear fruit.
• Whether you are willing to use pesticides or fungicides. The fewer chemicals used, the more disease resistant the plants need to be.
• Whether you have a preference for hybrid or heirloom tomatoes.
• How you want to use the fruits. Some varieties work better for adding to salads, using in sandwiches or making into sauces.
• What kind of flavor you want.
Susan advises that, as tomatoes love heat, people should wait until after the danger of frost is over before putting plants in the ground.
While we’re on the topic of tomatoes, Penn State University just announced that a tomato created in its walls can now be found commercially.
“Valentine, a new variety of grape tomato that germinated in the breeding program of plant scientist Majid Foolad, now is available commercially after nearly two decades in development,” the university stated. Foolad is a professor of plant genetics.
The variety is available in the 2018 seed catalog for Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
Valentines boasts a “high lycopene content, disease resistance, high yield and sweet, firm fruit,” according to Penn State.
