Everything you’ve wanted to ask about growing tomatoes

If you’ve never grown tomatoes but plan to this year, you’re in for a treat. Not only are they easy to grow, even from seed, but they will taste better than any store-bought variety just because you’ve grown them yourself.

Tomatoes are divided into hybrid and heirloom varieties. Hybrids generally produce more fruit and are bred to be resistant to nasty diseases such as verticillium and fusarium wilts. Heirlooms are open-pollinated, which means you can save seeds from them to grow the same tomato next year, which doesn’t work with hybrids. Determinate tomatoes grow to a predetermined height and produce their entire crop within a few weeks, making them good for canning or freezing. Indeterminate tomatoes will keep growing, producing fruit until the plant freezes or dies at the end of the season.

You’ve bought your little plants, so now what? Put them someplace sunny and warm, either inside or out, and keep them damp. Keeping them outside where they’ll get some wind will make the stems sturdier. You may need to bring them in at night initially, and you should wait until the end of April (or past your last frost date) to plant them outside, so the soil has warmed up. If you put them in too early, they’ll just sit and sulk, or worse yet, possibly rot in too damp soil.

Where to plant your tomatoes? In the sunniest part of the garden where they’ll get six to eight hours of sunshine daily.

How to plant them? Cut the leaves off the stem all the way to the top two or three sets of leaves. You’ll bury the stem all the way up to those leaves because tomato plants will grow roots along that stem, which gives them the best start. Don’t do this with other plants.

You can dig a little trench for the stem if you don’t want to dig a deep hole, but deep roots are best for capturing soil moisture.

Planting time is the best time to rig a support system, so you don’t disturb the roots later. If you opt for a cage from the garden center, get the sturdiest one and stake it in place. Or build your own system using material from a lumber yard. A simple wire fence down the middle of the row can be used to trellis tomatoes, saving space by keeping them in a thin, elegant line, making the fruit easily accessible.

Watering is essential for optimal growth, but the less you use, the more flavorful your tomatoes will be. Some commercial growers will gradually ween the plants off water and dry farm them for extra flavor. If you let them dry out and then soak them too much, you risk blossom end rot, which is easy to recognize. Aim for consistent soil moisture — not too dry, not too wet — tapering off the water as fruits start appearing.

Don’t forget to store your tomatoes on the kitchen counter — never in the refrigerator, which will ruin their flavor and texture. Enjoy the best eating of the year from your own garden.

Master gardeners have been working since the early part of the year, selecting and growing tomatoes that will do best in our microclimates, to prepare for the annual Tomato Market.The 16 varieties that will be on sale are a mix of hybrids and heirlooms, and some are marked for good performance in the cooler coastal climates of Marin.

There are truly yummy varieties: Sungold is a little orange hybrid that tastes like a burst of sunshine; Green Giant is an heirloom with outstanding flavor; Early Girl is a time-tested hybrid with good flavor and production; Jaune Flamme is a French heirloom that’s disease resistant and tasty.

The UC Marin Master Gardener’s Tomato Market is from 9 a.m. until starts are sold out April 15 at Bon Air Center at 50 Bon Air Center in Greenbrae and Pini Ace Hardware at 1535 So. Novato Blvd. in Novato. Admission is free, seedlings are $5. Cash or checks. Contact 415-473-4910 or HelpDesk@marinmg.org.

Sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension, the University of California Marin Master Gardeners provides science- and research-based information for Marin home gardeners. Email questions to helpdesk@marinmg.org. Attach photos for inquiries about plant pests or diseases. Please call 415-473-4910 to see when a master gardener will be at the office or drop off samples 24/7 in the sample box outside the office. To attend a gardening workshop or subscribe to Leaflet, a free quarterly e-newsletter, go to marinmg.ucanr.edu.