How big is too big to transplant in the ground to you?

[gixxerific]

I have heard everything from only plant the smallest plant or even by seed to wait until they are 3 foot or so tall to plant.

I usually bought my plants and can tell you I believe I have bought some with fruit on them already, from what I hear (depending on who you listen to) that is not good.

I'm no newby to gardening but I am new to seedling somewhat. Most of you know I have a ton of Tom's growing inside. I have potted them up some of the a couple of times and bury them deep. They were going slow until I potted them up now they are growing like mad. I just raised my lights today and it was either last week or the week before I did the same. They were touching the lights. Needless to say they are doing fantastic.

But some of them are getting pretty dang big (one of them is your Brandywine D_V ). I'm starting to think I might have started too early. With at the minimum another 3-4 weeks before they go out these things are gonna be HUGE.

So the question to you all is what is too big, or do you think there is a "too big" tomato transplant?

Thanks Dono

[applestar]

Try to look up hendi_alex's posts on his tomato care. With a greenhouse (space!) and more southern location (earlier plant out time), he's got two advantages going for him, but he's told us in the past how he continues to uppot his toms in up to 3 gal pots, lugging them in and out until the weather settles.

[gixxerific]

Well I have 10 plus gallon pots so that is not a problem. I'm thinking I might have to uppot again maybe I'll wait to next week but I have all sizes of pots.

I was just thinking if they are too big when you start they might not produce as long. But than again in the perfect climate Tom's are perennials so maybe that does't matter.

I do have other starters going that are just getting their true leaves. If there is room I might even try to seed in the garden and see what happens.

I'll try to find Hedi's post.

Any other comments?

[applestar]

If you're asking me, only that I wouldn't have the room or enough lights for big pots like that, and that I can't imagine successfully removing the container from the rootball (or the rootball out of the container) at 1 gal container size without damaging the top or without help, let alone 3 gal, OR digging planting hole big enough to put it in. Also, once they're in 5 gal or bigger containers, you might as well leave them potted since the consensus of container tom growers seem to be 5 gal buckets as minimum container size.

[gixxerific]

Oh that's good Apple They are surely not big enough for 10 galon pots. But as I said I have 6 inch and 2 gallon what ever size I would need.

However I do have about 5 Spirodonovskie's from D_V that is a dwarf plant growing to roughly 2 feet. They will go into 5 gallon or bigger pots. That will also free up some of my garden space.

I already have onions and potatoes doing great in BIG pots.

[Duh_Vinci]

Dono - I think I'm with Apple on container size... Too bulky to transplant from anything larger (with out the damage to the plant) Unless, it is a cheap, soft plastic container - set it on the ground near the hole, slice the sides of the container open 360, then - slide the rootball into the planting hole (did that with a pepper plant last year). But not going to do that again.


So 1gal I think that's the biggest size I would go with. Dwarfs - 5gal should be just fine, and let them be with out transplanting.

One of my early plants from the germination mix test gotten to be waaaaay to big, was sitting in the 1gal bucket (about 3' tall). Since I have no green house, and simply can't provide enough light for such big plant - I choped the top, about 18" tall, set it in a tall vase last Mon, and by now - full roots are all along the stem in the water. Will replant it back into the same container, and should be just fine in time for the transplant.

I think it is a general belief, that since genetics is not altered during the cutting, plant should recover just fine, and production and the future growth should not suffer either. Nothing I can personally compare, but will see how it does.

Regards,
D

[hendi_alex]

Transplant size to me depends in large measure up the objective and to less extent the quality of soil and growing environment. My plants that make it up to 3 gallon size are planted purely to get the earliest tomatoes possible. Those are no more than six or eight plants that get started in mid to late December and are nurtured throughout the winter until planting time in late April. About half of the plants go into the ground and half get set into very large 25-30 gallon containers where they grow the full season.

My other plants generally make it up to 1 gallon pots before going into the ground. One advantage of taking the plants up to one gallon size is that they stay in the relatively sterile soil a longer period. Once they go in the ground at my location, they then become subject to the nemotrodes and soil borne disease.

[hendi_alex]

Here is a photo of this year's earliest plants which are in 2-3 gallon pots. The plants are not nearly as pretty as last year's but are in bloom now, and will likely have some fruit set before going into their final planting spot.

[img]https://farm5.static.flickr.com/4071/4431821509_802bab8cce_o.jpg[/img]

[gixxerific]

So Alex do you think that the big plants produce the same as the smaller tranplants?

I just uppotted few more toms and am still in the prcoess. So far they are in 6 inch deep (at least the bigger ones). I need the little pots for new upstarts. Thinking about seeding more not sure if I should. I do have the seed and my neighbors are all getting free toms.

Now back to my plants, reinstalling Windows on my other PC and than back to here.

[gixxerific]

Here is what I have so far


[img]https://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj185/gixxerific/Gardening/DSC03399.jpg[/img] [img]https://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj185/gixxerific/Gardening/DSC03398.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj185/gixxerific/Gardening/DSC03400.jpg[/img]

[hendi_alex]

I think that big transplants, if they have a long healthy season, will produce more than the smaller transplants will. I also think that plants that are planted very early may get spent, past their prime, and need to be replaced by mid to late summer.

Just to be on the safe side, I have three or four plantings per summer. The earliest plants plus some younger transplants go into the ground in April. Another batch will go in the ground in June. With a final batch going into the groung in mid to late July. I also keep some spare replacement plants growing in pots in the nursery area, just in case they are needed.

Last year my container planted 'Sweet Cluster' lasted from April until early fall. The very early planted 'Juliets' grown in containers did as well. None of the very early slicers survived much beyond mid August. My late planting (mid to late August) produced nicely from early October until frost in late November. Succession planting has to be the single most important practice that contributes to a long, successful harvest of most every veggie that we grow and it works well every year.

Gardeners further north where disease is not much of a problem and temperatures are more moderate, probably do not need to rely on succession planting so much. Tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash (if vine borers don't get them) probably last from early summer until late in the season. At my location, the only way that I can keep healthy productive plants/vines growing is by constantly replacing older plants with young vigorous ones.