research was done in Alabama I believe that showed rootballs planted deeper resulted in increased fruit set during high temps.

I got a leggy Roma seedling (maybe 10 inches high) and I trenched that sucker so that all that was poking out were two little leaves. Now it looks like a tomato tree. Definitely seems like a good way to do things.

Isnt there a difference in deep planting, and trench planting? I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong, but I thought trench was lying plants sideways, (in a trench) and planting deep was burying the entire plant ad deep as the top leaves--in a deep hole.Which is the way I've always done mine, and I've found heat dosent bother as bad.

You know you guys..... I never thought about that and I'm blown away now... Usually the root ball would sit couple inches below the surface and even with mulch and watering sometimes the extreme heat gets to it easier then as if the root ball was 1 foot into the earth.

VERY INTERESTING. It's been above 90 a few times and I didn't see any stress and fruits keep setting.

Keep in mind, these seeds were started 2.5 months ago. (late)

This one had problems when transplanted and planted deep. yellow leaves, wilting, ect...now on fire.

LOOK IN MIDDLE OF PICTURE. :)

I'm no expert but I just read on another board that high temperatures apparently do not bother the roots. People are having success growing in containers that are sitting on their paved driveways. Those roots have to get awful hot cooking in pots in the sun. Looks like their tomatoes are doing fine.

tomatovator, actually tomato plants don't like it above 92. They'll still grow but not produce fruits. The yeilds will be stopped or slowed.

Hey N-Stuff! Great Pics there man! and well done, Youve had a tough spring I remember....but look at Ya now!!!!
Its startin to pay off and you are one of the most Patient Gardeners around, so keep on a growin, before they start slowin, Thanks for the nice pics....Blane.

i'm telling you...it's been well above the 90's on and off for weeks here and my plants are still setting new fruit. i have itty bitty babies on my stupice, black krim, hillbilly, and green zebra.

i did sink them about a foot though.............and they're mulched very heavily.

i've grown tomatoes for three years now and i always have a continuous crop until november. our temps relent in the above 90 degree range through september.

Here in Sacramento it's been over 100 degrees a few times already and rarely under 90 for the past two weeks. All of my plants are still flowering and fruiting. The secret seems to be mulching and sufficient water. I've never had a problem and it's pretty much the same temp. each year since I've been here. I always have too many tomatoes for just our family to eat; we're already giving them away and unlike some of the folks in Texas that report that their tomatoes are finished by July, ours always produce through the first frost in October/November.

Mike

You got me excited about this now. Before planting them deep I was harvesting in October! Now I expect to harvest in November! Wow.

In fact reverse it. Because they're deeper, they actually stay warmer when the temps start cooling down in Oct/Nov.

I told you...this thought blew me away. lol

There is no doubt about the fact that the earth is a very good insulator. I posted a number of times last summer during our near record drought and heat wave about my tomatoes defying logic and continuing to set tomatoes in the high heat, both night and day time temps. The only thing that I could attribute it to was the possibility that my soak hoses covered with a good layer of shredded oak leaf mulch was keeping the ground cooler. I guess that might have also had some bearing on the night time temps being a bit lower too, not having so much to radiate back at night.
Bill P.

As I've stated before on this board I've had better production from those planted deeper. Depending on the plant when I put them out I go 6-10" usually. I get better production than those trenched in at 4". I do slant some of the bigger lankier plants. I mulch all heavily. I believe that really helps also. I use drippers with a small 1/4" soaker hose in a approx. 6-8" circle around each plant. This works well for me. Glad you are having such great success. Jay

NATURALSTUFF, WHAT DO YOU PUT IN BOTTOM OF HOLE ??? BILL W.

billtex, nothing extra. I just added some Lobster Compost, new top soil and tilled the soil deeper this year. I added Miracle grow solible food JUST ONCE. I hate using that stuff. It's not....natural. lol

Looks good, Natural. I hope you are encouraged. I would like to see more foliage on that Stupice, though. Did you prune it or something? I should be a lot leafier.

Hey, here are my other 2 Stupice. One in a pot and another one in a shadier area. The potted one is amazing but I know it wont last. Only the potted one has fruit set.

Have you got some planted at the new place (like the one just above) as well as at the old place, Natural ?
Bill P.

NATURALSTUFF..... AH LOBSTERS , WE DONT HAVE VERY MANY LOBSTERS IN TX. THATS ONE THING I MISS FROM LIVING IN GROTON.YOUR TOMS ARE LOOKING GREAT. BILL W.

gonefishin, Unfortunetly no. The soil needs to be prepared from scratch and plus I didn't close yet. I was supposed to last month but I'm hoping tomorrow it's final. owners are whacked out.

billtex, lol, I don't have Lobsters around me either, I meant buy the compost in the bags. See link below. That's exactly what I got from a local nursery.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lobster Compost

I just wanted to stop in and say I tried growing toms in the past and they always fell over no matter what I did to support them. Then a few years ago I was told by the greenhouse guy to plant them deep and also after they are planted bend them over on their side and cover the stem with soil as well, I did as he said and let me tell you I had the tallest tomato plants I have ever seen, and they produced fruit like no other I grew early girl (I think) as well as some cherry style, but these plants gave fruit until frost. Then I went and told the greenhouse guy and he told me to dig them trying to keep as much soil on the root ball as possible and hang them upside down in my garage and they would keep rippening. I did and they DID! No new tomatoes but the green ones rippened and otherwise would have froze.

This is the first year I planted my tomatoes very deep. I always planted transplants up to the leaves but this year I did it differently. I repotted the transplants in 4 inch pots into 1 gallon containers. Once they grew out of the containers, I removed all the bottom leaves and then planted them into the garden. There is at least 10 - 12 inches of stem below the surface. Like Naturalstuff said, the stem are very large which is good for me because I do not use cages. I support my tomatoes with a string. Since I have limited space on the string I get tomatoes right at the surface. It's a great technique.