Re: Grafted Tomatoes

**f*@aol.com**

I mentioned grafted tomatoes in a couple of posts last year. Commercial growers here in PA are going that route to protect against soil-borne diseases like late blight. Grafting disease-prone heirloom varieties onto disease-resistant rootstock greatly increases yield. The most dramatic results are seen in tunnels with drip irrigation. If vented properly, tunnels do not allow excessive humidity build-up but do protect against heavy rains, which tend to split some heirlooms. Growers say the tunnels solve the "wet" diseases (fungi, root rot), but make the "dry" diseases (viruses, mites) more of a management challenge. 
I haven't heard of anyone making grafts available to home gardeners. 
JF

Subject: Re: [GWL] Grafted Tomatoes

I wrote about grafted vegetables last summer - getting very big in the UK.
ttp://tinyurl.com/yka6xwc
Graham
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n Sun, Jan 31, 2010 at 7:14 PM, <Hamptongar@aol.com> wrote:
> Last summer there were a number of threads regarding the Late  Blight
 outbreak on tomatoes and there were a few threads about grafted  tomatoes.

 I understand grafting tomatoes to get improved yields on a  commercial
 level but why would one want to do this in a home garden?  The  practice
 does
 seem to improve yields when some rootstocks are used on heirlooms  but I
 think
 most tomato diseases are air, vector and water borne in which case
 grafting would offer no protection.  As far as I can tell the only disease
 protection offered through grafting would be against Fusarium  wilt and
  Ralstonia
 (Southern wilt).

 Can anyone help me out with more information?  Why would  a home gardener
 want to graft his/her tomatoes and are there any mail order or  internet
 retailers offering grafted plants.

 Thanks.  Spring will come.  It always  does.

 Andrew

 Andrew Messinger
 The Hampton Gardener is a  registered trade mark and is published every
 Thursday in The Southampton Press,  The Press and the Easthampton Press

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