It was a cloudy day today but this picture still gives you an idea of this year’s tomato structure. It was made specifically for growing tomatoes. The structure is supported by four 10 foot fencing posts driven deep enough that there should be no stability issues. The rest is mainly bamboo that I’ve dried from a stand of bamboo that I’ve been trying to get rid of for years now. Each plant is in a 10 to 20 gallon grow pot (made of fabric) and filled with potting soil. The reason for the fencing is that I have a semi-lame cat named Daniel (after Lieutenant Dan) who thinks the grow pots are his and he loves to lay on them. The fencing is high enough that he will not try climbing over. The other cat that we belong to could easily make it over but she isn’t interested. I have left a few of the half-filled pots specifically for Daniel in his favorite places.
On this day there is no sun because we had a good rain last night and more is on the way. I am always thankful to the good Lord for rain. There is a larger garden area on the property but because of Oak trees, some pine trees, and a nice hickory tree that I refuse to cut down, the area designed for a garden gets little sun. So, this is my effort in a sunny area. This area did pretty well last year. I know the plants are too close together but I’ve packed them closer together before so I continue to experiment. Every year this thing looks a bit different. It is larger this year as each year I’ve continued to add more pots. I’m behind the professional growers because I start my plants from seed and am in no hurry as we have such a long growing season. If you click on the picture to enlarge it you might be able to see the little yellow flowers where a few tomatoes are already forming. I have several varieties in this small area so I know I might get some cross pollination but that only makes things more interesting. In this space there are Beefsteak tomatoes, Betterboy tomatoes, Cosmonaut Volkov tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, and a few Sun Gold cherry tomato plants.
To keep the foliage and disease down, I pinch out the suckers of the plant varieties that are indeterminate. The Romas (determinates) are the only ones I don’t bother doing that with. This keeps things under control as the season continues. Each plant will only have one main stem growing up each piece of bamboo. To keep certain bugs away, each pot contains one or more marigold plants. Some say they also keep snakes away. By the end of the season, I should have marigolds in many places. They are so easy to grow and transplant.
I do use a touch of miracle grow when the seedlings are developing and I make sure to use a pinch of lime in my growing media. By the time the plants are the size of the ones in this picture, I use only organic fertilizers and the pest control is all safe for humans. I spray the plants a few times a year with a BT/Cal-Mag/Kelp combo spray that I mix that is over 95% water. That keeps the hornworms down some. I do end up having to remove some hornworms by hand every year.
And that’s this year’s attempt. I’ll probably write two more posts on this thing during the growing season. I’m curious to see how it does and you might be too.
God’s blessings…
Chris Reimers
Wings of the Wind 
Impressive work, Chris. Home grown tomatoes are the best! Do keep us updated on the garden progress.
Thank you, Sue. They are the best and every year is different. Thank you for your kind comment and I will definitely give an update in a month or two.