I really love your videos. They're very informative and done really well!! Could you please speak about the horrible effects of tobacco on tomato plants? I don't know if people really know how dangerous it is to the plants and even the soil.
Thank you sir!!! Question for you, do the plants have any problems with the tap water? We have very bad tap water down here in Texas….all kinds of chemicals including fluoride & chlorine. We do not even drink it (we get reverse osmosis water for drinking and cooking) and use a shower filter with charcoal because you can smell the chlorine when you turn on the tap. I am concerned about watering the plants with it. Any suggestions?
I cut everything that touches the ground... on determinante and indeterminate ... I don't prune determinant but I do prune indeterminate.. Sometimes I have go back later in growing season and cut lower branches again. Or secure them with twine, so they are not touching the soil.
About a year 1/2 ago you inspired me to grow a veggie garden with your pallet planter. We now have tomatoes, cucumber, zucchini, and bell pepper on our 8x10 apt patio this year. Thank you!🎉
Thanks for the very powerful recommendation. This 73 year old man just got the blessing of a subscription to this Dog and Gardner,... in that order... Very nice video.
GLAD TO HEAR 🦻 THAT YOU EXPANDED YOUR GARDEN BY 50 % THIS YEARS, BECAUSE AS HIGH AS THEY (VEGGIES ETC. NOW) ARE IN THE GROCERY STORE AND EVEN FARMERS MARKETS AS WELL NOWS, A PERSON/FAMILY NEEDS TO HAVE THERE OWN GARDEN VEGGIES AT HANDS ✋️ REACH THESE DAYS AND TIMES ⏲️ NOW!.!.! HAPPY GARDENING MY FRIEND'S AND GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY 👪 ALONGSIDES YOUR GARDENS AS WELL ALWAYS... 😃 😊 😀 TATA'S KEITH
I left a couple of suckers to grow big since I had heard if you cut the suckers off , put them in a jar of water, they will start to take root and you can then plant it and start another plant.
@stephaniegoss2696 I think it's a Yorkie thing. My dog is part Yorkie, and I just tested her to see if she would eat raw escarole. She didn't even hesitate to eat it. I got me a garden guardian. Now to actually get a garden.
Great video! Another thing I do for hornworms is go out in the garden at night with a black light flashlight. The hornworms glow like you wouldn't believe then you can pick them off and do away with them. And it's fun too :)
This is the first year I’m truly excited about putting in a garden…. Actually this is the first time I’m doing tons of research… I’ve probably watched 8-10 different channels explaining their methods… I now have that narrowed down to you as my go to guy… Have a great Memorial Day everyone… Thank you.. Steve from Pennsylvania.. A stones throw from Phillipsburg NJ.
Uh no. Great gardeners can give advice for anyone; they give you the base recipe to do something, and you experiment for your area. You must experiment. Gardeners know there's advice that would be different even between people living on the same road. I live in northern NY and the guy I watch mainly is David the Good (deep south) and then a couple more in Australia. Great gardeners teach you how to experiment, broadly.
@@RunninUpThatHillhWhat are you even replying to? What you've posted here is merely your opinion. And there is no reason to argue someone else's opinion. They said what they meant to say. There are some weird people in here. 😶
Thanks for the tip on leaving suckers on for hot climates. I live in Florida and they do get scorched. Also want to compliment your videographer. Whoever helps you with the channel does a great job. ❤❤❤❤❤ for tuck
Tuck is such a legend. Love this channel so much. Last year I had a gigantic Brandywine Pink heirloom plant that had multiple tomato hornworms, but they were attacked by parasitic wasps and were dead long before they could wreak their havoc.
Another way to find the horn worms is there a black light flashlight go out at night, shine it on your plants and the horn worms will show up like flashlights and pick him off that way also
This is our (wife and I) second year gardening and we have had very good success and it is because everything we learned about gardening came from you. Thank you immensely!
Eggshells can take a long time to break down, depending on your soil pH. Around here they take about a year in my compost, but I've heard that in some places they can last for decades. This is why I grind them up in my coffee grinder and sprinkle the dust on the beds early in the season, before I even plant the tomatoes.
If you crush up the shells really fine and let vinegar extract the calcium, it will work better. th-cam.com/users/shortsb9sjMk-ZbFc for more exact directions.
I love the point about not being impatient to plant tomatoes, that waiting a couple/few weeks later is fine and often better. This is helpful too for people starting tomato seeds; they grow fast so starting them inside too long before last frost probably just makes more work with up-potting, tending, just to plant them in cool soil that they sit in / don't grow for a while.
I truly learned a lot from this video. That was good to see all the pertinent points to growing healthy strong tomato plants, and how to deal (& prevent) with pests and disease issues, and watering, fertilizing, companion plants, etc. Great how-to and troubleshooting information. Thanks James and Tuck, always appreciate your informative videos and garden walk throughs!!
What a beautiful and healthy garden you have! First time I found your video and it is a great learning experience to grow healthy tomatoes with companion vegetsbles🎉😊.
I finally have a way that works for me on growing tomatoes. I start them indoors under plant lights, harden them off properly then plant them in my covered raised beds. I used to have such a blight issue etc. because of the rain during the summer, by growing under the cover of plastic I can control that. I usually leave one or both ends open during the day for good air flow and to let pollinators access to the flowers.
My dogs love tomatoes & cucumbers. They actually prefer cucumber slices after they’ve soaked in AC vinegar/water but they’ll eat them right off the vine. Lol
Thanks as always, James! Good to start another summer with you. PS I like the subtle-ness of your filmer. I almost forgot you had one. They flow well with the shots.
I've been removing the lower stems and suckers since last year and all my tomato plants were still producing in September....love Tuck, keep that cutie in the videos.
A natural tomato plant grows in a sprawling mound and roots from every node that touches the ground, making a large bush, taking in nutrients from every rooted node and getting covered in fruit. Commercial growers grow their plants up wires to many metres high and they strip off a lot of leaves. This makes them grow tall and they have higher walkways to pick the fruit. As home growers we are not going to do that, yet the received wisdom that has filtered down from commercial growers is to grow tomatoes vertically and clean stemmed.
Yes because it produces more fruits. A plant will put a lot of resources into creating new leaves while the goal is to produce more fruits. I worked in a hydroponic farm and we grew a lot of cherry tomatoes. Of course leaves are required for photosynthesis so you only remove the stems that have already been picked and the lower layers which have already been harvested. Plants last longer over the season and produces more fruits this way.
I stopped removing suckers and discovered that the fruit yield is much higher when i dont remove them, I usually allow the plant to make 3 or 4 main branches and then i consider removing them, the yield at the end of the season will be immense.
I'm pretty sure when I watch your videos I gain a few extra days on my life each time. That's just how good your videos are. Positive, informative, motivating, happy, bright, meaningful, timeless. You've got it all man. Keep up the great work as always. The gardening world is a better place with people like you in it and here to help! Never stop being you, James! 🤘👍👌🍅🍎🍒🍓🫐🌶
This is a super informative gardening channel for New Jerseyans. So many gardening channels are about growing vegetables in the south were conditions are much easier.
Great video. I'm late getting my tomatoes planted (containers) due to vacation and other things going on but being in MS we have a long growing season. Thanks for the tip about leaving a few suckers on the plant for us that have such hot summers. Never thought about doing that. I don't get many tomato hornworms but it doesn't take many to do damage. Thinking about doing what a friend did. She saw a Mockingbird with a hornworm and got the idea of moving some of her bird feeders and baths over to her small garden. It wasn't long until she started seeing fewer pests like hornworms, cabbage worms, squash bugs and vine borers, bean leaf beetles etc. Some of the birds like Mockingbirds, Robins, Brown Thrashers, and Catbirds didn't eat at the feeders but they loved the bird baths and that attracted them to the garden. She had some mealworm and Oriole feeders and those attracted Bluebirds, Orchard Orioles, different Wrens and Sparrows to the garden along with the baths. The birds didn't get rid of all of the pests but they helped a lot.
Those robins sure are great guardians to the garden. They are always combining the rows. The biggest damaging problem we have right now is new to us Voles! Ugh! Hopefully we are getting them all. Never had them before and they are worse than the gophers we had.
@dustyflats3832 Are you sure the voles weren't moles? I have moles. I leave them be because they eat Japanese beetle grubs in the soil! The little humps in my lawn don't bother me. Also, the brown paper wasps eat tons of flies and skeeter! They are the least aggressive wasp variety.
Thanks for the info on the tomatoes! I’m still learning! Tucker is so darned cute! He reminds me of my Max that I lost about a year ago. He was 17 years old! I still miss him!
This is everything I do for my tomatoes, so I'm glad to know I'm on the right track, since this is only my 3rd season growing tomatoes. A little tip for the suckers especially if you find one that gets pretty big before you notice it. Cut it off at the base with sharp, clean scissors and plant it into a small 4" pot and let it grow as if it is a seedling, keep soil moist until it roots, then water regularly, then once it is big enough plant it into your garden or into a 14"+ pot or grow bag and you have a new tomato plant that will give you a later harvest. If you live in a cold weather climate you want to make sure you are starting the suckers mid-spring or at the very beginning of summer, so basically right now, go find a sucker and plant it! ❤
I bought those plastic clips after seeing your previous video. I love them! I’m using them on so many. Peas, bean stalks and training some of my shrubs. Thank you! Love from Canada
I have never heard the "branch" growing in the crotch of the tomato as a sucker. I appreciate hearing that and why they are not helpful. 40 years ago when I planted my first tomato plant in the trailer court where we lived out by the mailbox, the mailman told me to remove those. We have not planted tomatoes again since then until we moved to a house with room for a vegetable garden. For the first time in 37 years I followed the advice from the mailman which I had never forgotten!!! Glad to know he was right.
I never prune my tomato plants although I do agree with you on removing the lower leaves. I have been growing tomatoes for decades and have conducted tests with plants that were pruned and unpruned the results were that I got 38% more tomatoes with the unpruned plants. Also the tomatoes were no bigger on the pruned plants compared to the unpruned plants .However tomato plants can grow crazy big and you need to keep supporting the suckers, so I occasionally remove some to keep it tidy.
🌷 @Frank Riccio … 40+ yrs ago, dear friends of my parents gave a ‘garden party’ (in Villa Park, CA) - we got to see their “little’ tomato plant. I nearly fell over when I saw it! It was truly as big as a small pick up truck! Their grandchildren had built a little fort underneath, with a little stool and a little table. This plant came up on its own; he never pruned it, he had not staked it anywhere nor did he feed it. I noticed flowers everywhere, also birds, bees, butterflies, lady bugs everywhere. His wife said he just “.. throws the hose under it once a week, then goes to the patio to have a beer.” :-). I’ve never seen anything like it since… My plants are usually very healthy and quite big but I work at it. :-)
I fell for the pruning talk a couple of years ago, and my yields have never come close to the pre-pruning years. I used to literally give tomatoes away by the bagfuls. So this year, I'm going back to the old way, and only pruning branches with yellow or browning leaves. Here in Missouri, the sun is brutal with the 90° plus days, and I'm convinced that pruning weakens the plants, and scalds the tomatoes due to lack of foliage.
@@davidjudd951 Funny because I came to the comments to see if I was the only one. 😆 I go to bed and wake up and my plants are absolute monsters 😂. Bad leaves go as I'm doing morning inspections....large suckers become some nice clones to keep succession harvesting going and otherwise they're on their own.
Hey James! Tuck is your best student! He never stops turning up to James' Grow School!! I'm here too on the other side of the world refreshing my knowledge after 6 successful growing seasons. I grow large slicing tomatoes in my Winter, when the pest pressure is the lowest, and I grow smaller cherry size tomatoes in my Summer! Never ending tomato story here in the subtropics. Let's Grow!
I've been a long time follower of your videos. Your production quality has improved SO much over the years. I love that Tuck enjoys the garden as much as you. And WOW - 1.15M subscribers!! This video was so info dense! Keep up the good work.
What's interesting is the "keeping them off the ground" part. Tomatoes are naturally vining plants. If their stems are in contact with the dirt, they'll just root themselves. I think it's all a matter of preference and what works for your garden. Mine is bursting with beautiful plants and fruits and there's absolutely zero way to keep up with all their suckers....nor do I want to. I'll just worry about keeping up with harvesting all the tomatoes 😆
That happened with my Mizuna as well. I got my seeds from Baker's Creek. Apparently the purple thin Mizuna will occasionally have seeds that will produce those wider green leaves. They look totally different but they're both Mizuna. I was confused, too.
That happened with my free package from Baker Creek as well. Only 2 of 10 looked as expected. I was a little disappointed because the regular way looks so cool. But the rounded leaf is still tasty and I used them in mixed sauteed greens.
Bro, your dog is a Gardening superstar. You, are a Fountain of information, and A very natural cultivator of fine foods... I am sure. Thanks I needed this video. Subbed and thumbs up for the dog... lol.
Your enthusiasm makes me want to run out and plant everything lol. I’m controlling myself so I don’t go hog wild without all the knowledge. I have a few plants out and I’m excited to try the single stalk on my cukes and maters. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and letting us see the boss eat veggies fresh from the garden. ❤❤❤❤ for Tuck!!
My new strategy is to leave two stems for each tomatoes, this way try to double the fruits, but still stay on the minimum side. At the same time try to prune more sunleaves to get the proper airflow and sunlight.
Love Tuck! How much? Watching you and Tuck inspired me to get a dog 2 years ago. Turns out, Xena my hound dog is not much of a gardener (but does love veggies. However, the 2nd dog I adopted last year, Xander (a bullie-boxer- terrier-hound mix) loves to garden. Thanks for all your inspiration!
James, you are back-to-back dropping every video I need to see. My friend suggested you to me after I told them I've been getting into gardening the last year. I'm forever grateful she turned me on to you dude you're videos and advice and personality are a treasure. Lets gooooo
Thank you so much❤❤❤❤❤I am a Jersey girl transplanted to VA. For the first time I am trying Rutgers tomatoes. Even with the milder weather this Spring they are doing very well. Thank you and Tucker for all of the tips. I can only plant on containers but last years yield was amazing. Happy growing and best to you all for a wonderful harvest
That's not my experience... I've definitely had hornworms in my tomato basil beds. I do think they improve the flavor of the tomato and take up excess nitrogen at flowering time giving higher yields. They certainly help keep the roots cool during our hot summers too.
@@jeas4980 I haven't since I've been using them. I've been using 1:2 basil to tomato plants though growing in between them. Brian on the "Next Level Gardening" Channel experimented both using them in most raised beds and not in another and only got hornworms in the bed where he didn't have basil pants growing.
I love seeing Tuck in your videos. Sadly we put our dog Sally to the long sleep. She loved the garden and would snack on bean leaves and squash leaves. Enjoy every moment with your sweet boy. I am going to follow your advice on the tomatoes. It makes a lot of sense. Thank you
Thanks. This is my 3rd year with tomatoes. My first year I stuck them in the ground and watered them and they went crazy, couldn't give away enough tomatoes. I did everything wrong but those plants rewarded me for it. Last year i did everything wrong, again, and from 4 plants got just a handful of blah tomatoes total. Trying to learn how to do things right this year and i appreciate your advice.
It's a newbie mistake to only consider the air temps and not also the soil temps. I've made the mistake of transplanting my tomatoes out early, when the temperatures were warm enough to not kill them, thinking that it would result in having a head-start on the season. The result was that they did not grow and just looked sickly because although the air temperatures are fine, the soil temperatures are still cold and the roots don't like being in cold soil.
Actually, the soil temps stay warmer than the air temps when they have those drastic swings. The soil temps are much less bothered by the air temp swings. It is like you being in a thermal sleeping bag at night when the temps drop. Your face that isn't covered is going to feel the temperature drop first WAY BEFORE your body will feel it nestled in the insulated sleeping bag.
The common error isn't soil temps necessarily. It's usually as soon as we see 50 degrees weather we go for it. However, I had two weeks of my plants in nights that were in the 40s and they turned purple. They are still nights in 50s but this week I think is the start of 60s at night. They did grow pretty good for the temps and time in the container, but I expect a much harder growth rate should temps stay above 60 at night. And I definitely don't single stem 😂 My super Sweet 100 has a nice 5 stems all growing out, all forming flower clusters. Time will tell what the yields will be. But planting early is definitely an error.
@@emilybh6255 The soil temps may not change as drastically as the air, but the soil temps are still too cold at first for the roots. That's my point, when the air temps start to get warm, the soil temps are still colder than the roots like.
I'm a new subscriber. You explain everything very simple and thorough. Loving your channel. Tuck rules!!! Never seen a dog love greens like that! Cool 😎
Love this video! Second time watching. I love your enthusiasm as well. I’m going to try pruning better at the bottom. Last year I planted so much and got little harvest. I do the string method but it was also extremely hot. Hoping for better harvest this year. 😊
Another tip .. Cut off the younger plants lower leaves before planting. Bury the tomato plant deeper to the first set of cut off leaves. This will provide a thicker stem, and where you had cut of leaves will produce roots . Making your plant steadier and produce more fruit
Yes in following his advice helps me greatly. Like rewatching older clips also. Usingxa journal helps greatly. Still adding the fish n fish water. James does mention about clipping the bottom leaves off the new plants but not sure which one it was....
Can u do a quick video on transplanting tomatoes? The deep hole method, the lay down method, how tall ur plants should be, how much to take off, how much to leave. Both indeterminate and determinate? I hope u see this
My great uncle told me that is where the term "green thumb" came from. If you pinch off enough tomato suckers your thumb gets a green tint to it, although today we just wash our hands, lol.
I always learn so much from your videos. My weather here in S. California has been tumultuous. I have whiplash going from drought to almost normal. My biggest problem right now is the rodent surge from the abundance of edibles! We have rats & mice that have become connoisseurs of my precious Milkweeds & succulents. But these suckers are wicked smart and avoid traps & baits. Trying baking soda & chocolate cake mix right now hoping it only works on rats & mice. I guess I am jealous of your sweet Tucker because a little curious dog would convince the rodents to skedaddle! Thanks for clear understandable information. You guys' rock!
Thank you for all the important tips ! I grew Roma tomatoes for the first time last year & it was a big challenge when the weather started getting extremely hot in New York last summer. I had bottom rot at first & was able to revive my tomato plant & harvest delicious tomatoes thanks to your videos & other wonderful TH-cam gardeners! 😄 🙌🏾 Can’t wait to start growing tomatoes & other veggies this year! Love watching Tuck munch on your veggies, he is so cute and a superstar! ❤😂
Using the suckers to start new plants gives you the advantage of being able to start more hybrid plants if you get like beefsteak or Big Boy tomatoes because it is part of a hybrid. Now seeds from the hybrid will more than likely be a throwback to one of the other of the plants used to create the hybrid
One year was late getting tomatoes for my garden. They were three feet tall, so pulled all the lower leaves off, dug very deep holes, watered the hole, planted, backfilled with the soil mixed with potting soil and Miracle Grow. Best crop of tomatoes ever. How did they ever get so tall?
James, I LOVE your videos! I have a brown thumb! You & Tuck are fun, and you give out so much information in an easy to understand way. Thanks for putting these videos out and showing what amazing results can be achieved! You're very inspiring James!
Great video as always. The only advice I would disagree with is using dishwashing liquid at a surfactant for the Neem Oil mix. It's safer use Insecticidal soap, which is specifically meant for plants, or a true soap like plain Castille soap. 🥰 Love Tuck. Glad he is doing so well. It was funny how he followed you, knowing he was going to get a treat.
I prefer yucca extract. It's a great wetting agent. Better than soap because there's zero residue. I'm not sure why people think they have to use any kind of soap. It always smells and leaves a film. Even Safers soap.
I have Merigold and those all four of them are dying off. I am going to try all the stuff that you said in the video. Thank you for the advice you inspire me so much. I have been gardening for two years now. Thanks to you.
I’ve used this exact neem oil and followed directions perfectly each time. I kept wondering wth is wrong with my plants. It was the neem oil killing them. I noticed specifically after spraying some harmful beetles on one area, an hour later it killed that whole stem! I haven’t liked neem oil so far!
Love the energy in your videos, James. Question: Do clones made from suckers on indeterminates produce just as much as the original plant? Essentially never having to buy starter plants ever again?
I’m in central Georgia, our typical growing season is early March through late September/early October. James is definitely correct in saying always prune off the suckers and lower leaves and grow on a single stem on indeterminate vining tomato varieties. Every year my tomato plants reach between 18 - 30 feet in length, because of this I grow them vertically up to about 7 ft and then grow them along a string horizontally, they produce throughout the season. I sell them for pretty cheap all through the season, but also give them away to my neighbors and family. I don’t use any synthetic fertilizers or harsh pest control methods. I use compost and vermicompost of my own making, rock dust, manures (cow and chicken), and blood/bone meals when I feel it’s necessary. I don’t till the ground, only about a square foot right where I intend on placing the plant will I amend and mix. In my experience tilling messes with the good bacteria, fungi, and needed microbes for healthy plant growth. Only disturbing the soil where you plant allows the small area to quickly get back in order. Also, if you have pests(insects), your plants aren’t truly healthy. Healthy plants produce optimum amounts of natural sugars and insects and other bugs like caterpillars digestive tracts can’t tolerate processing these sugars. Pests are there to break down, weak, stressed, and dying tissue. Healthy tissue doesn’t need broken down. This has been proven unequivocally at universities through studies, tests, and experiments. There’s a great video on YT about this that explains it and shows the data as well as the results of the studies done at the university level. It’s a game changer! One thing that was found is that synthetic fertilizers help a plant to look very healthy, but the sugar level is very low which makes the plant send out a plant pheromone signals to insects that it’s stressed, weak, and not healthy. When I discovered this 6 years ago I went organic and haven’t had a pest issue since. When using manures, compost, vermicompost, etc, the plant is able to just take up what it needs when it needs it, using synthetic fertilizers is force feeding the plant based on what the grower wants the plant to do and this is very stressful to the plant… I could go forever but I hope you get the point. Synthetic fertilizers also don’t produce as sweet or tasty of a fruit or veggie in my experience. I’ve also done many experiments myself in order to learn from them, not just for the 6 years since finding out the truth about plant health, but for 26 years of gardening and growing plants! Hope this helps someone!!!
AWESOME information. I suspected as much but didn't have the info to back it up. This principle can be the same for your own body/health. Bacteria and fungus feed on dying tissue.. if your tissues are vital, you can be exposed to certain organisms but they won't take hold & make you sick. Whereas others who are less healthy with a bad diet and sickly tissues lacking nutrients, will end up "catching" something. Part of not having all the nutrients you need - (just like the healthy-LOOKING plants fed on synthetic fertilizer ) - is because the veggies we eat, if they are "conventional" ie, grown on huge farms that don't use cover crops to renew the soil's nutrients (& are also drenched in Glyphosate) - no longer even HAVE all the nutrients they used to have. Anyway, great info. Thanks.
You're definitely right about pests not liking healthy plants, I grow a lot of houseplants and if they aren't healthy I take them to a different room from my healthy plants to rehabilitate them and if I ever find pests on my healthy plants I only have to spot treat with hydrogen peroxide and they are gone.
Thanks for the video! Please mention the zone you are in. Also, I have two cents for viewers' comments made here. If you don't prune your tomatoes, and you are happy with the results, fine. If you do prune your tomatoes, and you are happy with the results, fine. There are many factors that are not known in the comments. First of which is the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone that commentors are in. I am in zone 6, and growing videos like this one should mention the zone so everyone knows whether they themselves are in that zone or not. Other factors are soil, pests, wind, weather, etc., in a particular year besides the zone designation. I am in zone 6, and I regularly get better quality tomatoes by pruning, hot June - August and no windy or hard-rain storms. I have a dedicated good soil garden with a continuous supply of wood mulch in various degrees of breakdown. This year is twenty plants that I planted on May 27, 2023. The weather has been cooler than average, so I cover plants from about 4 PM to 10 AM, occasionally overnight. As of June 24, 2023, all plants are doing well with some tennis ball size tomatoes. Enjoy, and grow tomatoes!
I grow about 2 dozen tomato plants each year, several kinds, in an organic garden. I bought an inexpensive black light flashlight on Amazon. When it's dark I go out to the garden and shine the light on the tomato plants. If there are any tomato worms they show up white in the light. I pick them off into a jar. Works like a charm. I also put a mixture of eggshells and coffee grounds (that I save in the kitchen) around the base of the tomato plants and some years I have no worms. And lots of tomatoes!!
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I really love your videos. They're very informative and done really well!! Could you please speak about the horrible effects of tobacco on tomato plants? I don't know if people really know how dangerous it is to the plants and even the soil.
Thank you sir!!!
Question for you, do the plants have any problems with the tap water?
We have very bad tap water down here in Texas….all kinds of chemicals including fluoride & chlorine.
We do not even drink it (we get reverse osmosis water for drinking and cooking) and use a shower filter with charcoal because you can smell the chlorine when you turn on the tap.
I am concerned about watering the plants with it.
Any suggestions?
@@andreabrunkow93149😊post o😊😊😊😅
I cut everything that touches the ground... on determinante and indeterminate ... I don't prune determinant but I do prune indeterminate..
Sometimes I have go back later in growing season and cut lower branches again. Or secure them with twine, so they are not touching the soil.
The way you pop out of random places in the garden, dropping knowledge like a master M.C, is pure gold brotha. Need this energy in my garden.
About a year 1/2 ago you inspired me to grow a veggie garden with your pallet planter. We now have tomatoes, cucumber, zucchini, and bell pepper on our 8x10 apt patio this year. Thank you!🎉
Wow❤❤❤❤❤ that's amazing and inspiring ❤❤❤
Fantastic. Love to see success stories....
Love this!!
Another way to find hornworms is to go out at night with a black light. The hornworms glow bright in the black light and are easy to pick off.
That sounds like fun.
@katrina6627 yeah maybe if you are lucky enough not to get eaten alive by mosquitoss
@@shawndallas1262 another good reason to plant basil near the tomatoes. It's a mosquito repellent!
@@shawndallas1262 Lol
As a kid we would give a gentle shake to the plant. It made the worms make a clicking noise. That's how we knew they were on the plant.
Expanded my garden by 50% this year and James and Tuck are the reason. I keep learning more each year and I have been gardening for 42 years.
Thanks for the very powerful recommendation. This 73 year old man just got the blessing of a subscription to this Dog and Gardner,... in that order... Very nice video.
GLAD TO HEAR 🦻 THAT YOU EXPANDED YOUR GARDEN BY 50 % THIS YEARS, BECAUSE AS HIGH AS THEY (VEGGIES ETC. NOW) ARE IN THE GROCERY STORE AND EVEN FARMERS MARKETS AS WELL NOWS, A PERSON/FAMILY NEEDS TO HAVE THERE OWN GARDEN VEGGIES AT HANDS ✋️ REACH THESE DAYS AND TIMES ⏲️ NOW!.!.! HAPPY GARDENING MY FRIEND'S AND GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY 👪 ALONGSIDES YOUR GARDENS AS WELL ALWAYS... 😃 😊 😀 TATA'S KEITH
I left a couple of suckers to grow big since I had heard if you cut the suckers off , put them in a jar of water, they will start to take root and you can then plant it and start another plant.
They will. I grew a few last year in pots after rooting them. The tomatoes were not as big but I still had a few nice ones.
What kind of string do you use on your tomato ?
You can actually just stick suckers straight in the soil.
@@marymartinez9196 I use a nylon string.
@@sbffsbrarbrr Thanks. This will be the first time trying this.
Little man Tuck is so chill. I have never once heard him bark which is RARE for a Yorkie! We love you Tuck!!💓You too James!
Never ceases to amaze me how much Tuck loves vegetables. ❤❤🐕🐕
So cute
I know right !!!!! I love his dog !!!
@stephaniegoss2696 I think it's a Yorkie thing. My dog is part Yorkie, and I just tested her to see if she would eat raw escarole. She didn't even hesitate to eat it. I got me a garden guardian. Now to actually get a garden.
Ran out and pruned my tomatoes plants. Thank you so much for all your insight
Great video! Another thing I do for hornworms is go out in the garden at night with a black light flashlight. The hornworms glow like you wouldn't believe then you can pick them off and do away with them. And it's fun too :)
You wouldn't have to bother doing that if you had enough Basil planted amongst your tomatoes.
@@emilybh6255 I always have plenty of basil around my tomato plants. I don't know about your garden, but I have some tough, mean and nasty hornworms.
@@emilybh6255 😢
Thanks for the basil tip .... I've never seen a hornworm in garden .... They must don't live in Louisville Kentucky
Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge 😊
This is the first year I’m truly excited about putting in a garden…. Actually this is the first time I’m doing tons of research… I’ve probably watched 8-10 different channels explaining their methods… I now have that narrowed down to you as my go to guy… Have a great Memorial Day everyone… Thank you.. Steve from Pennsylvania.. A stones throw from Phillipsburg NJ.
His content delivery is great, efficient, educational and entertaining.
You will learn a lot from this channel. He is a wealth of information.
James is the go-to source on TH-cam for us mid-Atlantic/east-coasters.
Uh no. Great gardeners can give advice for anyone; they give you the base recipe to do something, and you experiment for your area. You must experiment. Gardeners know there's advice that would be different even between people living on the same road. I live in northern NY and the guy I watch mainly is David the Good (deep south) and then a couple more in Australia. Great gardeners teach you how to experiment, broadly.
@@RunninUpThatHillhWhat are you even replying to? What you've posted here is merely your opinion. And there is no reason to argue someone else's opinion. They said what they meant to say. There are some weird people in here. 😶
Thanks for the tip on leaving suckers on for hot climates. I live in Florida and they do get scorched. Also want to compliment your videographer. Whoever helps you with the channel does a great job. ❤❤❤❤❤ for tuck
I agree with the skill of the Camara person. 😊
I often wondered who this invisible person is. They do a great job following him, often predicting what he is going to reference.
Me three! Always been curious who is behind the camera. They do a great job!
Me four , I been following James for 5 to 6 year's now and I always wonder who's behind the camera 😅.
Maybe I missed it. Should I grow tomatoes in Tampa Florida in the shade or sunny area?
Tuck is such a legend. Love this channel so much. Last year I had a gigantic Brandywine Pink heirloom plant that had multiple tomato hornworms, but they were attacked by parasitic wasps and were dead long before they could wreak their havoc.
Team wooder not water! south Jersey represent! Love the Videos
❤❤❤for tucker
Well thanks! Nah I’m just joking around. ❤’s for tuck as well!
@@TuckerBrown-oq6pq 😂
@@TuckerBrown-oq6pq thy are for u both
What is happening
Another way to find the horn worms is there a black light flashlight go out at night, shine it on your plants and the horn worms will show up like flashlights and pick him off that way also
This is our (wife and I) second year gardening and we have had very good success and it is because everything we
learned about gardening came from you. Thank you immensely!
Eggshells can take a long time to break down, depending on your soil pH. Around here they take about a year in my compost, but I've heard that in some places they can last for decades. This is why I grind them up in my coffee grinder and sprinkle the dust on the beds early in the season, before I even plant the tomatoes.
If you crush up the shells really fine and let vinegar extract the calcium, it will work better. th-cam.com/users/shortsb9sjMk-ZbFc for more exact directions.
I love the point about not being impatient to plant tomatoes, that waiting a couple/few weeks later is fine and often better. This is helpful too for people starting tomato seeds; they grow fast so starting them inside too long before last frost probably just makes more work with up-potting, tending, just to plant them in cool soil that they sit in / don't grow for a while.
I truly learned a lot from this video. That was good to see all the pertinent points to growing healthy strong tomato plants, and how to deal (& prevent) with pests and disease issues, and watering, fertilizing, companion plants, etc. Great how-to and troubleshooting information. Thanks James and Tuck, always appreciate your informative videos and garden walk throughs!!
I was doing OK, but this really tells it all about how to grow tomatoes. I'LL be back, as a new subscriber. Best I have seem ...................
What a beautiful and healthy garden you have! First time I found your video and it is a great learning experience to grow healthy tomatoes with companion vegetsbles🎉😊.
I finally have a way that works for me on growing tomatoes. I start them indoors under plant lights, harden them off properly then plant them in my covered raised beds. I used to have such a blight issue etc. because of the rain during the summer, by growing under the cover of plastic I can control that. I usually leave one or both ends open during the day for good air flow and to let pollinators access to the flowers.
Tuck is the only dog that I have ever seen to love his veggies!! Way to go
Tuck!!! 🎉
My Milo loved veggies, especially green beans an Tami grape tomatoes. He always came out to the garden with me!
My dogs love tomatoes & cucumbers. They actually prefer cucumber slices after they’ve soaked in AC vinegar/water but they’ll eat them right off the vine. Lol
Brand new gardener here, your videos are so helpful and easy to understand!! Thank you!
Thanks as always, James! Good to start another summer with you.
PS I like the subtle-ness of your filmer. I almost forgot you had one. They flow well with the shots.
Yup! They are a pro and we have a good connection I think, from doing it for many years together
I've been removing the lower stems and suckers since last year and all my tomato plants were still producing in September....love Tuck, keep that cutie in the videos.
Another AWESOME video. Thank you James. Give Tuck lots of love for me. He is soooo CUTE! ❤️
A natural tomato plant grows in a sprawling mound and roots from every node that touches the ground, making a large bush, taking in nutrients from every rooted node and getting covered in fruit. Commercial growers grow their plants up wires to many metres high and they strip off a lot of leaves. This makes them grow tall and they have higher walkways to pick the fruit. As home growers we are not going to do that, yet the received wisdom that has filtered down from commercial growers is to grow tomatoes vertically and clean stemmed.
Yes because it produces more fruits. A plant will put a lot of resources into creating new leaves while the goal is to produce more fruits. I worked in a hydroponic farm and we grew a lot of cherry tomatoes. Of course leaves are required for photosynthesis so you only remove the stems that have already been picked and the lower layers which have already been harvested. Plants last longer over the season and produces more fruits this way.
I stopped removing suckers and discovered that the fruit yield is much higher when i dont remove them, I usually allow the plant to make 3 or 4 main branches and then i consider removing them, the yield at the end of the season will be immense.
Not removing suckers will get you more tomatoes per plant. Training lets you put more plants in a space.
James, I love Tuck❣️🐶. When you remove those suckers, can you root them and plant them and expect to get tomatoes?
I just love seeing Tuck! I can’t believe all the veggies he loves to snack on! ❤❤❤
I'm pretty sure when I watch your videos I gain a few extra days on my life each time. That's just how good your videos are. Positive, informative, motivating, happy, bright, meaningful, timeless. You've got it all man. Keep up the great work as always. The gardening world is a better place with people like you in it and here to help! Never stop being you, James! 🤘👍👌🍅🍎🍒🍓🫐🌶
This is a super informative gardening channel for New Jerseyans. So many gardening channels are about growing vegetables in the south were conditions are much easier.
I love, love seeing Tuck in your videos. Your gardening suggestions on watering tomatoes are very help. Thanks!!
I sure love to watch Tuck following you around the garden and always looking for something to nibble on lol.
Alway's Love ❤️ ❤❤❤ seeing Tuck in his garden mode. He bring"s himself right to the source. 🥕🥕T.U.for all your hints & Imformation on planting.🌱🌱🌱🍅🍅🍅🔆
I like your enthusiastic approach to teaching us sustainable gardening. I love Tuck! ❤
Great video. I'm late getting my tomatoes planted (containers) due to vacation and other things going on but being in MS we have a long growing season. Thanks for the tip about leaving a few suckers on the plant for us that have such hot summers. Never thought about doing that. I don't get many tomato hornworms but it doesn't take many to do damage. Thinking about doing what a friend did. She saw a Mockingbird with a hornworm and got the idea of moving some of her bird feeders and baths over to her small garden. It wasn't long until she started seeing fewer pests like hornworms, cabbage worms, squash bugs and vine borers, bean leaf beetles etc. Some of the birds like Mockingbirds, Robins, Brown Thrashers, and Catbirds didn't eat at the feeders but they loved the bird baths and that attracted them to the garden. She had some mealworm and Oriole feeders and those attracted Bluebirds, Orchard Orioles, different Wrens and Sparrows to the garden along with the baths. The birds didn't get rid of all of the pests but they helped a lot.
Those robins sure are great guardians to the garden. They are always combining the rows. The biggest damaging problem we have right now is new to us Voles! Ugh! Hopefully we are getting them all. Never had them before and they are worse than the gophers we had.
@dustyflats3832 Are you sure the voles weren't moles? I have moles. I leave them be because they eat Japanese beetle grubs in the soil! The little humps in my lawn don't bother me. Also, the brown paper wasps eat tons of flies and skeeter! They are the least aggressive wasp variety.
I laugh every video. Love Tucker!!😊 your knowledge is awesome. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the info on the tomatoes! I’m still learning! Tucker is so darned cute! He reminds me of my Max that I lost about a year ago. He was 17 years old! I still miss him!
So sorry on your loss of Max. God knew what He was doing when He created pets for us to love.
This is everything I do for my tomatoes, so I'm glad to know I'm on the right track, since this is only my 3rd season growing tomatoes. A little tip for the suckers especially if you find one that gets pretty big before you notice it. Cut it off at the base with sharp, clean scissors and plant it into a small 4" pot and let it grow as if it is a seedling, keep soil moist until it roots, then water regularly, then once it is big enough plant it into your garden or into a 14"+ pot or grow bag and you have a new tomato plant that will give you a later harvest. If you live in a cold weather climate you want to make sure you are starting the suckers mid-spring or at the very beginning of summer, so basically right now, go find a sucker and plant it! ❤
I bought those plastic clips after seeing your previous video. I love them! I’m using them on so many. Peas, bean stalks and training some of my shrubs. Thank you! Love from Canada
I have never heard the "branch" growing in the crotch of the tomato as a sucker. I appreciate hearing that and why they are not helpful. 40 years ago when I planted my first tomato plant in the trailer court where we lived out by the mailbox, the mailman told me to remove those. We have not planted tomatoes again since then until we moved to a house with room for a vegetable garden. For the first time in 37 years I followed the advice from the mailman which I had never forgotten!!! Glad to know he was right.
Tuck follows your every move, so adorable. I think he understands what you’re teaching. Or maybe he’s waiting for some veggie treats.
I never prune my tomato plants although I do agree with you on removing the lower leaves. I have been growing tomatoes for decades and have conducted tests with plants that were pruned and unpruned the results were that I got 38% more tomatoes with the unpruned plants. Also the tomatoes were no bigger on the pruned plants compared to the unpruned plants .However tomato plants can grow crazy big and you need to keep supporting the suckers, so I occasionally remove some to keep it tidy.
🌷 @Frank Riccio … 40+ yrs ago, dear friends of my parents gave a ‘garden party’ (in Villa Park, CA) - we got to see their “little’ tomato plant. I nearly fell over when I saw it! It was truly as big as a small pick up truck! Their grandchildren had built a little fort underneath, with a little stool and a little table. This plant came up on its own; he never pruned it, he had not staked it anywhere nor did he feed it. I noticed flowers everywhere, also birds, bees, butterflies, lady bugs everywhere. His wife said he just “.. throws the hose under it once a week, then goes to the patio to have a beer.” :-). I’ve never seen anything like it since… My plants are usually very healthy and quite big but I work at it. :-)
I agree
I fell for the pruning talk a couple of years ago, and my yields have never come close to the pre-pruning years.
I used to literally give tomatoes away by the bagfuls.
So this year, I'm going back to the old way, and only pruning branches with yellow or browning leaves.
Here in Missouri, the sun is brutal with the 90° plus days, and I'm convinced that pruning weakens the plants, and scalds the tomatoes due to lack of foliage.
@@davidjudd951 Funny because I came to the comments to see if I was the only one. 😆
I go to bed and wake up and my plants are absolute monsters 😂. Bad leaves go as I'm doing morning inspections....large suckers become some nice clones to keep succession harvesting going and otherwise they're on their own.
@@TravelinMama73 Agreed!
❤ A Heart for Tuck and a ❤ for you, James! Thank you for the always-relevant gardening tips and advice! 🌱🍅
It's a wonder I've ever gotten a single tomato off my plants 🌵, just shows how forgiving nature is.
It depends on if it is indeterminate. The trimmings is more suited to those. I trimmed determinate and did not get much tomatoes.
Hey James! Tuck is your best student! He never stops turning up to James' Grow School!! I'm here too on the other side of the world refreshing my knowledge after 6 successful growing seasons. I grow large slicing tomatoes in my Winter, when the pest pressure is the lowest, and I grow smaller cherry size tomatoes in my Summer! Never ending tomato story here in the subtropics. Let's Grow!
I've been a long time follower of your videos. Your production quality has improved SO much over the years. I love that Tuck enjoys the garden as much as you. And WOW - 1.15M subscribers!! This video was so info dense! Keep up the good work.
What's interesting is the "keeping them off the ground" part. Tomatoes are naturally vining plants. If their stems are in contact with the dirt, they'll just root themselves.
I think it's all a matter of preference and what works for your garden. Mine is bursting with beautiful plants and fruits and there's absolutely zero way to keep up with all their suckers....nor do I want to. I'll just worry about keeping up with harvesting all the tomatoes 😆
That happened with my Mizuna as well. I got my seeds from Baker's Creek. Apparently the purple thin Mizuna will occasionally have seeds that will produce those wider green leaves. They look totally different but they're both Mizuna. I was confused, too.
That happened with my free package from Baker Creek as well. Only 2 of 10 looked as expected. I was a little disappointed because the regular way looks so cool. But the rounded leaf is still tasty and I used them in mixed sauteed greens.
Bro, your dog is a Gardening superstar. You, are a Fountain of information, and A very natural cultivator of fine foods... I am sure. Thanks I needed this video. Subbed and thumbs up for the dog... lol.
Your enthusiasm makes me want to run out and plant everything lol. I’m controlling myself so I don’t go hog wild without all the knowledge. I have a few plants out and I’m excited to try the single stalk on my cukes and maters. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and letting us see the boss eat veggies fresh from the garden. ❤❤❤❤ for Tuck!!
My new strategy is to leave two stems for each tomatoes, this way try to double the fruits, but still stay on the minimum side. At the same time try to prune more sunleaves to get the proper airflow and sunlight.
His enthusiasm is infectious. Oh my I am excited this year.
Love all your tips for gardening! Here’s to you and Tuck!❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Love Tuck! How much? Watching you and Tuck inspired me to get a dog 2 years ago. Turns out, Xena my hound dog is not much of a gardener (but does love veggies. However, the 2nd dog I adopted last year, Xander (a bullie-boxer- terrier-hound mix) loves to garden. Thanks for all your inspiration!
James, you are back-to-back dropping every video I need to see. My friend suggested you to me after I told them I've been getting into gardening the last year. I'm forever grateful she turned me on to you dude you're videos and advice and personality are a treasure. Lets gooooo
Thank you so much❤❤❤❤❤I am a Jersey girl transplanted to VA. For the first time I am trying Rutgers tomatoes. Even with the milder weather this Spring they are doing very well. Thank you and Tucker for all of the tips. I can only plant on containers but last years yield was amazing.
Happy growing and best to you all for a wonderful harvest
Thanks for the growing tips! I use my tomato plant suckers as clones to grow more plants which tripled my harvest!
Better yet, just make sure you have mustiple bushy Basil plants near your tomato plants and the hornworms won't bother them at all.
Will oregano help also??
I started a ton of basil and plan on doing that as well.
That's not my experience... I've definitely had hornworms in my tomato basil beds. I do think they improve the flavor of the tomato and take up excess nitrogen at flowering time giving higher yields. They certainly help keep the roots cool during our hot summers too.
@@jeas4980 I haven't since I've been using them. I've been using 1:2 basil to tomato plants though growing in between them. Brian on the "Next Level Gardening" Channel experimented both using them in most raised beds and not in another and only got hornworms in the bed where he didn't have basil pants growing.
@@LovingDeantheGodMachine333 I only know Basil works for sure for me and for another TH-camr who did a video on the subject.
I love seeing Tuck in your videos. Sadly we put our dog Sally to the long sleep. She loved the garden and would snack on bean leaves and squash leaves. Enjoy every moment with your sweet boy. I am going to follow your advice on the tomatoes. It makes a lot of sense. Thank you
James, you sir are a blessing. You go into great detail to help people to grow their best garden. Thank you. You and Tuck❤❤❤ are fantastic.
❤️ 😍 Tucker!! We have a Tucker too! 3 1/2 yr old 3/4 Pomeranian 1/4 Mini Pinscher.
Do you use Epsom salts on your tomatoes?
Tuck, you do an awesome job buddy!
Thanks. This is my 3rd year with tomatoes. My first year I stuck them in the ground and watered them and they went crazy, couldn't give away enough tomatoes. I did everything wrong but those plants rewarded me for it. Last year i did everything wrong, again, and from 4 plants got just a handful of blah tomatoes total. Trying to learn how to do things right this year and i appreciate your advice.
Tuck cracks me up!! Thank you for the tomato pruning info!
I love that Tuck helps you in the garden. What a cutie!
It's a newbie mistake to only consider the air temps and not also the soil temps. I've made the mistake of transplanting my tomatoes out early, when the temperatures were warm enough to not kill them, thinking that it would result in having a head-start on the season. The result was that they did not grow and just looked sickly because although the air temperatures are fine, the soil temperatures are still cold and the roots don't like being in cold soil.
Actually, the soil temps stay warmer than the air temps when they have those drastic swings. The soil temps are much less bothered by the air temp swings. It is like you being in a thermal sleeping bag at night when the temps drop. Your face that isn't covered is going to feel the temperature drop first WAY BEFORE your body will feel it nestled in the insulated sleeping bag.
@emilybh6255 right, and the constant breakdown of organic materials in the soil also keeps the warmth. Blessings and namaste
@@seanharris5592 Not to mention, if you plant them DEEP, like you should. Helps,
The common error isn't soil temps necessarily. It's usually as soon as we see 50 degrees weather we go for it. However, I had two weeks of my plants in nights that were in the 40s and they turned purple. They are still nights in 50s but this week I think is the start of 60s at night. They did grow pretty good for the temps and time in the container, but I expect a much harder growth rate should temps stay above 60 at night. And I definitely don't single stem 😂
My super Sweet 100 has a nice 5 stems all growing out, all forming flower clusters. Time will tell what the yields will be. But planting early is definitely an error.
@@emilybh6255 The soil temps may not change as drastically as the air, but the soil temps are still too cold at first for the roots. That's my point, when the air temps start to get warm, the soil temps are still colder than the roots like.
I'm a new subscriber. You explain everything very simple and thorough. Loving your channel. Tuck rules!!! Never seen a dog love greens like that! Cool 😎
Thanks!
Thanks for the generous contribution Eddie! It means a lot to me and the little boss! 🐕😁❤️
Love this video! Second time watching. I love your enthusiasm as well. I’m going to try pruning better at the bottom. Last year I planted so much and got little harvest. I do the string method but it was also extremely hot. Hoping for better harvest this year. 😊
I love seeing Tuck. He is absolutely adorable. Thanks for your helpful tips and tricks.
Another tip .. Cut off the younger plants lower leaves before planting. Bury the tomato plant deeper to the first set of cut off leaves. This will provide a thicker stem, and where you had cut of leaves will produce roots . Making your plant steadier and produce more fruit
Yes in following his advice helps me greatly. Like rewatching older clips also. Usingxa journal helps greatly. Still adding the fish n fish water. James does mention about clipping the bottom leaves off the new plants but not sure which one it was....
The little guy is the most educated gardener I’ve seen.. Tuck, you are so adorable.
Can u do a quick video on transplanting tomatoes? The deep hole method, the lay down method, how tall ur plants should be, how much to take off, how much to leave. Both indeterminate and determinate? I hope u see this
Hornworms also glow under those UV black lights. You can go hunting for them in the dark with one of those lights.
Thank you
My great uncle told me that is where the term "green thumb" came from. If you pinch off enough tomato suckers your thumb gets a green tint to it, although today we just wash our hands, lol.
I always watch this channel for two reasons is the extra knowledge I gain from watching James the second one is the adorable Tuck he's so beautiful
I always learn so much from your videos. My weather here in S. California has been tumultuous. I have whiplash going from drought to almost normal. My biggest problem right now is the rodent surge from the abundance of edibles! We have rats & mice that have become connoisseurs of my precious Milkweeds & succulents. But these suckers are wicked smart and avoid traps & baits. Trying baking soda & chocolate cake mix right now hoping it only works on rats & mice. I guess I am jealous of your sweet Tucker because a little curious dog would convince the rodents to skedaddle! Thanks for clear understandable information. You guys' rock!
So much good information, thank you.
Homegrown tomatoes are seriously the best! Thanks for the tips James! 🙏🍅
أرغب في الحصول على الحبوب الأصلية
Thank you for all the important tips ! I grew Roma tomatoes for the first time last year & it was a big challenge when the weather started getting extremely hot in New York last summer. I had bottom rot at first & was able to revive my tomato plant & harvest delicious tomatoes thanks to your videos & other wonderful TH-cam gardeners! 😄 🙌🏾
Can’t wait to start growing tomatoes & other veggies this year!
Love watching Tuck munch on your veggies, he is so cute and a superstar! ❤😂
Using the suckers to start new plants gives you the advantage of being able to start more hybrid plants if you get like beefsteak or Big Boy tomatoes because it is part of a hybrid. Now seeds from the hybrid will more than likely be a throwback to one of the other of the plants used to create the hybrid
Yep, or even worse they can just be sterile seeds.
One year was late getting tomatoes for my garden. They were three feet tall, so pulled all the lower leaves off, dug very deep holes, watered the hole, planted, backfilled with the soil mixed with potting soil and Miracle Grow. Best crop of tomatoes ever. How did they ever get so tall?
Hey Tuck! ❤️
Can't help but love that little guy! You, too, James.
Thanks for this video: gardening is great and everyone should give it a try!!
Tucker is so cute ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️
I love your ground. Did you just put wood chips down over the whole yard or did you have grass before?
Yup, I used cardboard and contractors paper then laid down thick layers of wood chips
James, I LOVE your videos! I have a brown thumb! You & Tuck are fun, and you give out so much information in an easy to understand way. Thanks for putting these videos out and showing what amazing results can be achieved! You're very inspiring James!
Great video as always. The only advice I would disagree with is using dishwashing liquid at a surfactant for the Neem Oil mix.
It's safer use Insecticidal soap, which is specifically meant for plants, or a true soap like plain Castille soap.
🥰 Love Tuck. Glad he is doing so well. It was funny how he followed you, knowing he was going to get a treat.
Thanks for sharing.
I prefer yucca extract. It's a great wetting agent. Better than soap because there's zero residue. I'm not sure why people think they have to use any kind of soap. It always smells and leaves a film. Even Safers soap.
@@Energia-977 do you buy your yucca extract or just grow it and make some?
@@davidthedeaf I just buy it.
@@Energia-977 is there a brand you get? I have not seen anything in a store or nursery. Where would I find it?
I have Merigold and those all four of them are dying off. I am going to try all the stuff that you said in the video. Thank you for the advice you inspire me so much. I have been gardening for two years now. Thanks to you.
DOG TUCK = your aprentice listening to your lesson very closely - well done!
I’ve used this exact neem oil and followed directions perfectly each time. I kept wondering wth is wrong with my plants. It was the neem oil killing them. I noticed specifically after spraying some harmful beetles on one area, an hour later it killed that whole stem! I haven’t liked neem oil so far!
Love the energy in your videos, James. Question: Do clones made from suckers on indeterminates produce just as much as the original plant? Essentially never having to buy starter plants ever again?
YES!
Just planted several types of tomatoes. Thank you for the information.
I’m in central Georgia, our typical growing season is early March through late September/early October. James is definitely correct in saying always prune off the suckers and lower leaves and grow on a single stem on indeterminate vining tomato varieties. Every year my tomato plants reach between 18 - 30 feet in length, because of this I grow them vertically up to about 7 ft and then grow them along a string horizontally, they produce throughout the season. I sell them for pretty cheap all through the season, but also give them away to my neighbors and family. I don’t use any synthetic fertilizers or harsh pest control methods. I use compost and vermicompost of my own making, rock dust, manures (cow and chicken), and blood/bone meals when I feel it’s necessary. I don’t till the ground, only about a square foot right where I intend on placing the plant will I amend and mix. In my experience tilling messes with the good bacteria, fungi, and needed microbes for healthy plant growth. Only disturbing the soil where you plant allows the small area to quickly get back in order. Also, if you have pests(insects), your plants aren’t truly healthy. Healthy plants produce optimum amounts of natural sugars and insects and other bugs like caterpillars digestive tracts can’t tolerate processing these sugars. Pests are there to break down, weak, stressed, and dying tissue. Healthy tissue doesn’t need broken down. This has been proven unequivocally at universities through studies, tests, and experiments. There’s a great video on YT about this that explains it and shows the data as well as the results of the studies done at the university level. It’s a game changer! One thing that was found is that synthetic fertilizers help a plant to look very healthy, but the sugar level is very low which makes the plant send out a plant pheromone signals to insects that it’s stressed, weak, and not healthy. When I discovered this 6 years ago I went organic and haven’t had a pest issue since. When using manures, compost, vermicompost, etc, the plant is able to just take up what it needs when it needs it, using synthetic fertilizers is force feeding the plant based on what the grower wants the plant to do and this is very stressful to the plant… I could go forever but I hope you get the point. Synthetic fertilizers also don’t produce as sweet or tasty of a fruit or veggie in my experience. I’ve also done many experiments myself in order to learn from them, not just for the 6 years since finding out the truth about plant health, but for 26 years of gardening and growing plants! Hope this helps someone!!!
Thank you, can I somehow contact you? I have some questions about this knowledge
AWESOME information. I suspected as much but didn't have the info to back it up.
This principle can be the same for your own body/health. Bacteria and fungus feed on dying tissue.. if your tissues are vital, you can be exposed to certain organisms but they won't take hold & make you sick. Whereas others who are less healthy with a bad diet and sickly tissues lacking nutrients, will end up "catching" something.
Part of not having all the nutrients you need - (just like the healthy-LOOKING plants fed on synthetic fertilizer ) - is because the veggies we eat, if they are "conventional" ie, grown on huge farms that don't use cover crops to renew the soil's nutrients (& are also drenched in Glyphosate) - no longer even HAVE all the nutrients they used to have.
Anyway, great info. Thanks.
What if you don't know if you planted determinate or indeterminate? My labelling skills aren't too good!
You're definitely right about pests not liking healthy plants, I grow a lot of houseplants and if they aren't healthy I take them to a different room from my healthy plants to rehabilitate them and if I ever find pests on my healthy plants I only have to spot treat with hydrogen peroxide and they are gone.
Thanks for the video! Please mention the zone you are in. Also, I have two cents for viewers' comments made here. If you don't prune your tomatoes, and you are happy with the results, fine. If you do prune your tomatoes, and you are happy with the results, fine. There are many factors that are not known in the comments. First of which is the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone that commentors are in. I am in zone 6, and growing videos like this one should mention the zone so everyone knows whether they themselves are in that zone or not. Other factors are soil, pests, wind, weather, etc., in a particular year besides the zone designation. I am in zone 6, and I regularly get better quality tomatoes by pruning, hot June - August and no windy or hard-rain storms. I have a dedicated good soil garden with a continuous supply of wood mulch in various degrees of breakdown. This year is twenty plants that I planted on May 27, 2023. The weather has been cooler than average, so I cover plants from about 4 PM to 10 AM, occasionally overnight. As of June 24, 2023, all plants are doing well with some tennis ball size tomatoes. Enjoy, and grow tomatoes!
Hi James love your videos, always such good info. Q? Do you use the neem oil spraying as a preventative or just when you see the bad bugs?
I grow about 2 dozen tomato plants each year, several kinds, in an organic garden. I bought an inexpensive black light flashlight on Amazon. When it's dark I go out to the garden and shine the light on the tomato plants. If there are any tomato worms they show up white in the light. I pick them off into a jar. Works like a charm. I also put a mixture of eggshells and coffee grounds (that I save in the kitchen) around the base of the tomato plants and some years I have no worms. And lots of tomatoes!!
Please make a teeshirt with Tuck eating veggies! He is adorable!