Accidental Indoor/Outdoor Tomatoes continued By Ed Powers
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| Pictures of indoor tomatoes before they were shortened and planted outside. Picture taken May 27, 2016. |
When we last left my Indoor tomato saga it was April of this year and most were still doing well. They began to bloom again in earnest indoor in early may. The temperature had began to moderate to between 45 degree at night an and in the day. While these temperatures feel great to us it is still too cold for tomatoes. By this time the tomatoes were really growing. They were 3 to 4 feet high and beginning to flower and form small tomatoes. It was suggested to me that I put the tomatoes out on June 1 and when I do cut them back to between 9 inches and 14 inches. Also cover them when I put them out. I did that and covered with a white material that protected them but also let moisture in. And because I have rodents and deer in the area I covered their area with a plastic bird netting. I had constructed a small raised garden for them plus a few other plants. I also started some tomatoes from seed to compare growth and maturation rates between the indoor tomatoes and the seedlings.
It took the indoor plants 10 to 14 days to recover for the move to the outside. The seedlings had a harder time and I lost ½ of them.
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| Tomatoes in raised garden when they were first planted on June 1, 2016 |
It is now the middle of June and the plants are doing well but no flowers or small tomatoes have formed yet. The seedlings are still growing and small. I will continue to observe and report on them. At this time the indoor plants are over a year old and doing well. I have enjoyed watching the progress of these plants.
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| Close up of tomatoes after it was shortened and planted on June 1, 2016 |