Cherry Tomatoes Round 2

A few months before summer came, I planted four tomato seeds. I started them in a seed tray and then transplanted them.

I like to grow most of my seeds in seed starter trays. It is used to ensure more seeds germinate and survive, due to a more controlled environment. I have tried growing seeds directly in the garden, but have learned that they do not do well for me, where I live. Some seeds do not even germinate at all when I plant them directly into the ground. Here in Wahiawa, Hawaii, the ground can become too hot, too moist, and the air too humid. Growing the seeds in starter trays works wonders for me, and so I have stuck by them for the last 2 years.

I have noticed that the plants growing in the ground, bare a lot more fruit. Of course it grows much bigger than container grown ones, which probably is the reason why. The only problem for me is maintaining the growth. About every two weeks I have to cut some branches and leaves off, so that my plants don't get over grown. I assume, it will also allow for the plant to have more room to "live" and "breath." Air circulation is very important for them, as well as space.

I love cherry tomatoes because they grow so so fast. I have also learned that they last for a very long time. For me, in Hawaii, I have had about 3 harvests so far from my 4 plants, in 3 months. I am going to be planting some new seeds and starting a new batch of plants for winter. I believe they will do well, however will still suffer from mildew (like it did last year). - But I just need to remember to spray them with mildew preventing spray (homemade/natural/non-chemical).

In the picture to the right, I have two cherry tomato plants in the ground. I run the "branches" along the fence to allow them to grow long and wide. Like stated above, I trim off leaves and branches to ensure that the plant gets proper air circulation, and prevents mildew from growing on the leaves when a rainy spell hits.

I have learned to pick my tomatoes as soon as they start turning light orange. Otherwise, birds will flock to them and start feeding on them. I usually find two to three tomatoes with big holes in them because apparently the birds love them too.

Know Your Zone!

As a novice gardener, I never paid attention to "zones" or climate zones, when other gardeners posted things in forums and blogs. Today I decided to look my climate zone up, out of curiosity. I also figure I should know this incase I want to try growing some vegetables or flowers that are not going to do well in my climate. I need to get over my "slacker" attitude when it comes to gardening and learn some important facts. Haha.

I went on over to the NGA website. - National Gardening Association.  Click here to find your zone.

I've discovered that where I live - Oahu, Hawaii - That my climate zone is 10.

Now I guess I will look up plants and produce that grow well in zone 10.

Sunflowers

Another easy plant to grow in your containers, garden, or flower bed, is sunflowers! There are different types of sunflowers to choose from. Dwarf/short sunflowers, non-seed producing sunflowers, and also different colored sunflowers that range from light yellow, yellow, to red, and even darker maroon colored ones!

My sister and I started our sunflowers at the very beginning of our gardening journey. It was one of the first things we ever planted, along with tomatoes. They were wonderful and grew fast! They are strong plants and bees love them! We planted them near our tomato plants, which I'm sure was a great benefit, because there were always bees around them, which led them to our tomato plants.

These sunflowers were so gorgeous and easy to take care of. They love fertilizer, water, and sunshine. 3 things that we could provide for it everyday. By winter however, when muggy, wet, and humid weather came, they did not fair well. By that time we would find powdery mildew growing on the stems and leaves. Same thing happened to our zinnia flowers. At the time, I did not know about homemade sprays to fend off mildew, so this year I will definitely be whipping some up and using them on my plants.

We had beautiful flowers for our dining table at dinner time. The only irritating thing we had to deal with was the pollen would fall down and gather on the table, which was easily solved with a quick wipe down.

Cherry Tomatoes

These are the easiest vegetable to grow! They grow quickly and if you plant around 4 seeds and grow them till they are mature, healthy and strong, you will have an abundance of fruit for you, your family, and friends. There is no way you would be able to eat it all by yourself!

Just remember to feed them with fertilizer (every 2 - 3 weeks) as they are growing, and do not forget to water them everyday (either early morning before the sun is burning hot, or later in the evening when the sun has set).

As my 4 tomato plants grew taller and taller, I realized would have to use a stake to help them stand up, because the weight of the tomatoes kept pulling the leaves and branches down to the ground. This would not be good because bugs, slugs, and water would likely damage and kill the baby tomatoes.

Here you can see my 4 cherry tomato plants all bunched together (too close, I've learned, now that I've been growing them for awhile). I know that they would do much better with a trellis of some kind, to help with air circulation and to keep little bugs from swarming the plants.