Going for a Fall Crop!
Extending your Season - Your summer game plan..
 

People have asked, "Can I extend the tomato growing season?" If you feel, you have at least 2 1/2 months of warm climate conditions before the first frost, then you can go for a Fall Crop.

This is what you can do for the 2nd Crop... 

Start your second crop, approximately mid-summer or 10 weeks before a frost... by taking  small cuttings from the suckers. If you know someone who has nice Tomato plants, ask them for a cutting or two or three, etc., Please make sure the cuttings go immediately into a glass of water. 

There are people experiment with plant cuttings and extend the Tomato season throughout the year.


Cuttings in a glass of water

These are the basic steps:
  • Look for some of the sucker shoots on your tomato plants that do not have a bud on them,
  • Cut approximately 8" of the sucker or new growth.
  • Use a razor's edge to make these cuttings.
  • Put the stem in water for a couple of hours, 
  • Plant these suckers directly into your garden or first use a peat pot. Make sure the soil is loose and moist. Mound the soil around the shoots,
  • Put a basket over the top of the cuttings (@5days) to protect it from the hot, direct sun.

  • Water constantly for four days. 
Remember, that when you clone, the growing timeline will have to be extended into fall.  In order for these plants to produce abundant tomatoes, they will have to be protected when the nights start to get cool. 

Root System 4 days in glass of  water.

Be creative and place a thin protective plastic sheet to cover the plants at night. And don't keep the cover on during the daylight hours; otherwise, the plants will burn.

Click for Tip

Cuttings can be had from the sucker shoots or from the top of a mature plant.  Tomato plants can be pruned and people can clone new plants from this growth. 

Note: Organic fertilizer is key for tastey and healthy tomatoes.
 

 

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