How To Grow Really, Really Big TomatoesNow for alot of us, we've been growing tomatos for a long time. Some people just like to go to their local home improvement store and buy what ever is available and stick it in the ground and see what happens.... And truthfully, there's nothing wrong with that.... But what I like to shoot for are large tomatoes. I mean the kind of tomatoes where if you just get one of them, it's enough for sandwiches for four people. You know what I'm talking about. I mean the kind of tomatoes where if you cut up two or three you've got enough to make spaghetti sauce... And to do this, you kind of need to pay attention to the variety of tomatoe you are planting, your soil condition, spacing (3-5 ft), and how much sun they are getting. So let's talk about it.The variety of tomatoe is important... It's just a fact. Some tomatoes just don't get any bigger than a fat plumb. Other's can get as big as a softball. Taste, texture, and internal composition of the tomatoe also play a part in selecting the variety of tomatoe you want. Who cares if you can make  a big fat tomatoe if it's just too watery for your taste or if you just don't care for how it tastes. With all of these thoughts in mind, I like "Better Boy", "Burpee Steakhouse", and "Burpee Big Daddy" tomatoes. They can get very big and have a very pleasant taste without being too watery. In addition, they are very hearty when it comes to the variety of soils they can grow in.Soil condition is also an issue. For folks in the midwhest US where the soil is black, you can grow just about anything but in the deep south where you have clay soil, you could have issues and it's best to amend the soil for the best results. There are people who believe in getting soil tests and this most certainly is the best way to figure out what your soil needs but there are other more traditional ways of making your vegetable garden bed successful. We recommend considering building your soil each year.  What do we mean by this? Please click here for more information regarding building your soil. In short, it means instituting a process of adding natural amendments to your soil every year. This includes compost, manure, fertilizer, and lime if necessary. By doing this, you will replenish the nutrients that plants absorb from the ground every year and create an environment where whatever you plant will have the best possible chance of thriving. For tomatoes, we recommend a product called fishnure. This is normally not something you will see at your loca Walmart or Home Improvement stores. Check out the link here. The last thing you want to consider is the sun, water and stand requirements . A good stand will keep your tomatoes from laying on the ground where that are accessible to vermin. In addition, stands keep your vines from breaking. Tomatoes love to have plenty of sun. They also like water around once or twice a week. They don't need a flood. Just enough that they're not thirsty. In addition, once they are standing up, what I've noticed is that tomatoes love a little top dressing. What is a top dressing? It's a little bit of compost/manure on top of the ground right around the base of the plant away from the main stem. This gets absorbed by the plant once the rain beats it in the ground and let me tell ya, tomatoes just love it. Depending on how big you want the tomatoes to get, you may consider pinching some of the blooms off the plant. By doing this, the plant will put more effort into the blooms that are left and this creates larger tomatoes.  Well, with every garden, experience is the best teacher. You will have to learn to fight off pests and weeds if they appear and you will have to watch for signs of any kind of disease or fungus. If you pay close attention to your plants, you will see exactly what they need and be able to react in time to ensure you get the best possible turn out. I hope that you have enjoyed this article. If so, please share it and we hope that you get some really big tomatoes you can be proud of.
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