The May long weekend is traditionally the weekend gardeners put in the hot weather crops like tomatoes, beans, squash and peppers. I have good news and bad news on that front.

The bad news is that we haven’t really had enough reliable warm weather to put out tender plants like tomatoes and peppers, especially if they’ve been indoors or in a heated greenhouse up until now.

The good news is that the warm weather is coming and we’re ready at Dig This with a great selection of organic tomatoes, fertilizers, and tomato-related products to help you have the best crop of tasty tomatoes ever!

So between relaxing and gardening this weekend, drop by your favourite Dig This store to get the best selection.
 

Here are some tips gleaned from a number of sources for growing the best-tasting tomatoes ever!
 

1. Warm Up Your Soil Before You Plant
   
   Tomatoes love heat. Cover the planting area with black or red plastic a couple of weeks before you intend to plant. Those extra degrees of warmth will translate into earlier tomatoes.
    
2. Bury Tomato Plants Deeper Than They Come In The Pot
   
   Bury your tomato plants all the way up to the top few leaves. Tomatoes are able to develop roots all along their stems. You can either dig a deeper hole or simply dig a shallow tunnel and lay the plant sideways. It will straighten up and grow toward the sun.
    
3. Mulch!
   
   Mulch after the ground has had a chance to warm up. Mulching does conserve water and prevents the soil and soil born diseases from splashing up on the plants, but if you put it down too early it will also shade and therefore cool the soil. Try using red plastic mulch for heat lovers like tomatoes and peppers.
    
4. Give Them Something to Grow Up
   
   Drive tall stakes in next to each tomato when you plant it or place a tomato cage over each plant, so that the plant has something to support it and help hold the tomatoes off the ground. Be careful not to drive your pole or cage into the stem.  Twig or bamboo tripods and trellising are more aesthetic: just because it's a vegetable garden doesn't mean it can't look good!
    
5. Remove Lower Leaves
   
   Once the tomato plants are about 3' tall, remove the leaves from the bottom 1' of stem. These are usually the first leaves to develop fungus problems. They get the least amount of sun and soil born pathogens can be unintentionally splashed up onto them. Spraying weekly with compost tea also seems to be effective at warding off fungus diseases.
    
6. Water Deeply And Regularly
   
   Uniform watering is the key to nice fruit. Even watering can prevent leaf-end roll, blossom end-rot and "cat-facing", those misshapen crags and cracks on the stem end of the fruit. Moisture crystals and mulch help retain moisture in the soil. . Deep watering discourages fruit from cracking and allows the ripening fruit to develop their complex flavours. Too much water, just like too much fertilizer, interferes with the flavour development of your tomatoes. The idea is to strike a balance.
    
7. Feed Your Tomatoes
   
   Tomatoes are heavy feeders. Mix a handful of well-balanced organic base fertilizer into each transplanting hole. Feed with liquid fish fertilizer after transplanting, but when the first flowers appear, cut back on the nitrogen and give your plants liquid potassium and phosphorous to encourage blossom and fruit set. Potassium is crucial for tomatoes. Wood ashes are a good source, along with greensand. Liquid organic fertilizers are faster acting. Kelp is excellent at this time to ensure a good supply of trace elements
   
   There are two other elements important for fruit success. Calcium is required to avoid a nasty condition called blossom end rot. A usual source is dolomite lime but should not be used for tomatoes as it changes the ph balance. Ground up oyster shell is an excellent soil additive. I throw a good handful around the base of each plant and then water it in well. Magnesium is important for fruit set and production. Italian and English tomato growers have known this secret for ages, giving Epsom salts to their plants. A good handful around the base of each plant or mixed into a watering can will give your plants all the magnesium they need.
    
8. Avoid Disease
   Encourage good air circulation with staking and by giving ample room between your plants. Never water from above. Use drip irrigation or a watering wand to water only the base of the plants
   
   For more information, check out:
   http://gardening.about.com/od/growingtips/tp/Tomato_Tips.htm  and http://www.saltspringseeds.com/scoop/tomatoes.htm!
    

All Dig This stores will have organic tomatoes from The Garden Path, and some stores will also have ones we’ve started ourselves. All our tomatoes are organically grown and are $2.50 per 4" pot.  We have some many fantastic heritage varieties that I can't list them all!  Please drop by to see what we have and to discuss our favourite tomato growing tips!

If you think your tomatoes are just the best, why not enter our tomato-tasting contest?

As part of our 25th Birthday Celebration later this year, Dig This Oak Bay is going to host a "Tomato Tasting Contest".  We will serve samples of your tomatoes - and some we've grown our own - and have a vote on the best tasting tomato.  The winner will receive a $50 Gift Certificate from Dig This and a gift package of heirloom tomato seeds from The Garden Path.

Late blight a number of years ago that destroyed my lovely tomato crop had me so discouraged I actually stopped growing tomatoes for several years.

But I'm back again, now that I know some ways to avoid this disease.

Late Blight is a common fungal disease on the coast.  Leaves develop brown spots which eventually cause the whole leaf to turn brown and drop off.  If conditions are right for the fungus, the entire plant will die quickly.

The fungus spreads by forming spores that are carried by the wind.  The fungus grows only on tomato plants that are wet for over 48 hours at a time.  The dampness can come from rain, heavy dew, condensation in a greenhouse or tent or your sprinklers.

To minimize late blight:

1.  keep plants dry by placing them under an overhanging eave, on a balcony or a porch, or under a structure that you create.  The protection you give them must allow for ventilation and you must be able to get in to prune and pick the tomatoes. 
    
2. Don't water from overhead or with a sprinkler.
    
3. Water and feed regularly.  Fluctuations in temperature, soil moisture and soil fertility may cause fruit disfigurement.
    
4. Do not compost diseased leaves or plants.
    
5. Mulch!