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Re: Newbie tomatoe questions, typo corrections

Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

Square Foot Gardening List -
http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

----- Original Message -----
From: Melissa Algeo <melissa@vorlon.mit.edu>

>....  I have always thought that there were
> two kinds of tomatoes...
>... Could someone straighten me out (heh, sorry) on this issue?
>...

Not a silly question.  Lots of us have puzzled over this.
The two types we normally think of are indeterminate and
determinate.  Determinate tomatoes form their blossoms and fruit
at the end of the growing tips on the stalks and branches.  When
this occurs, the stalk or branch or branch stops growing causing
the plant to bush.  The fruit on determinates ripens nearly at the
same time.  Most (but not all) determinates are hybrids.

Indeterminate tomatoes form their blossoms along the side of the
stalks or branches which allows the growing tip to continue
growing throughout the growing season while flower buds continue
to form.  Tomatoes continue to form and ripen throughout the
growing season.  You don't get the entire plant's yield all at
once.  In the past, most indeterminates were also hybrids.  But
with the wide availability of the so-called heirloom seeds the
past decade or so, there are now many open-pollinated
indeterminates available.

Hope this isn't too confusing.

Olin


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