TOTAL TOMATO GROWING GUIDE

Niki Jabbour's advice for making the most of this grow-at-home favorite

IS ANY CROP AS BELOVED by gardeners as the tomato? It's certainly the most anticipated harvest in my garden. Each spring I plant my family's favorites as well as a few new-to-us varieties. My goto's include 'Sungold', 'Galahad', 'Cherokee Purple', 'Costoluto Genovese', 'Captain Lucky' and Jaune Flamme'. This year I'm excited to grow 'Purple Zebra' and 'Solar Flare', among others.

Tomatoes are a high-value crop, and homegrown tomatoes provide flavor and quality unmatched by any you'll find in a supermarket. Plus, growing your own allows you to explore the thousands of heirloom, open-pollinated and hybrid varieties available in seed catalogs.

There are cherry and grape types for salads, beefsteaks for slicing and plum tomatoes for sublime sauces. You'll find red, pink, yellow, orange, purple, green, white and even striped or streaked tomatoes boasting flavor profiles that range from acidic to sweet. Don't be shy about trying something new in your garden.

STARTING TOMATO SEEDS

In most regions, it's best to start tomato seeds indoors six to eight weeks before the last expected spring frost date. That's because if they're sown outdoors, the plants may not have time to mature their fruits before the end of the growing season. I sow tomato seeds a quarter-inch deep in cell packs or soil blocks and use a seedling heat mat to improve and speed up germination. Just be sure to remove the mat when about half of the seeds have sprouted.

Tomato seedlings need lots of light for vigorous growth. I use a grow light, leaving it turned on for 16 hours each day. Also watch soil moisture, aiming to maintain a lightly moist growing mix. Start to fertilize with a dilute solution once the second set of true leaves has emerged.