Must Love Tomatoes

or a Challenge

(page 1 of 2)

Tomatoes: they are a labor of love to grow in this climate. With only 60 frost-free growing days to count on in our beautiful Valley (July 4th through Labor Day, and even then, not always), temperamental tomatoes are not an easy plant to grow. Still, for many gardeners, tomatoes are a passion and delight. South Valley residents may have a bit of a growing advantage over their northern neighbors, but tomato growers throughout the Valley must be willing to coax, cover and closely nurture these slowly ripening beauties if they actually want to have and eat their tomatoes, too. Talk to a few of the Valley’s most experienced gardeners and they’ll tell you tomatoes are not worth the effort for the crop. Still, I love my homegrown tomatoes. Even though I can’t always count on a bumper crop, nothing beats eating a juicy, warm tomato fresh from the garden. If it’s the only homegrown tomato I’ll eat all summer, it’s worth it!

There are no great secrets or foolproof systems for growing tomatoes successfully in the Wood River Valley. Those of us who have been growing tomatoes (or attempting to grow them) through the years have tried a variety of planting methods with different seeds or plants. Some gardeners grow their tomatoes in containers so they can move them into a sheltered area on frosty nights. Some gardeners have better luck when their tomato plants are firmly planted in the ground. Tomato growing takes experimentation. What works for a neighbor or a friend five miles away simply might not work for you. Knowing your immediate gardening environment can help you make better decisions about where and how to grow tomato plants successfully at your home. Remembering that the weather through some summers simply won’t accommodate tomato growing will keep you sane.

After gardening 25 years in Ketchum and Sun Valley, Susan Michael has had time to see what really works when it comes to growing tomatoes in the cooler, north end of the Valley. Michael lives out in the Board Ranch on Warm Springs Road beyond the ski lifts. In the shadow of Bald Mountain, it is one of the colder drainages in the Wood River Valley. “The most important thing to know about tomatoes is they need more constant temperatures,” Michael explains. Temperatures here, however, can fluctuate more than 40 degrees on any given summer day. Where Michael lives, she finds that she grows tomatoes most successfully in five-gallon pots. By keeping her plants in pots she is able to move them through the seasons to give them the best sun exposure and bring them inside during a hard frost.

Michael also emphasizes the importance of using the right soil with the right plants. “Getting the right plant in the right soil,” Michael explains, “is the best way to get good results.” The right soil, as Michael describes it, should be good, composted garden soil, not bagged potting soil or bagged compost. “Get real compost, from your own compost pile if possible,” Michael suggests. This, she explains, not only helps in growing healthy plants, it also really improves the flavor of the tomatoes. If growing tomatoes from seed, which Michael recommends, be sure to get seeds with the shortest maturation periods. Michael points out that even if you don’t have a lot of space in your home for starting seeds, it’s possible to start just 10 to 12 seeds in late March or early April and then pick the two best seedlings to transplant to pots in June. If starting tomatoes from seed is simply not possible, Michael explains the importance of buying locally grown seedlings that are accustomed to this Valley’s temperature conditions. “Definitely don’t buy a mature plant. Chances are, the fruits already growing on it will be the only fruits you get.” Cherry tomatoes have worked really well for Michael at her home. She doesn’t get enough of a crop to can or freeze tomato sauce, but she and her family are enjoying a few tomatoes every night from late August through October. “Tomato growing isn’t always successful and it depends on the year,” Michael concludes. “Give it three years. If it doesn’t work after that, then it’s time to give it up.”

Wood River Organics’ Judd McMahan, like Michael, also recommends using containers to grow tomatoes north of East Fork. McMahan suggests planting the Whippersnapper, a one-inch, oval-shaped cherry tomato; the Koralik, a small red cherry tomato; and Kotlas, a golf-ball size red tomato, in containers. These plants have 50 to 60 day maturation periods, are cold tolerant, and produce well in containers. >>>