Gardening : Dwarf Tomatoes Grow as Garden Size Shrinks : Compact: Even apartment dwellers can raise their own tomatoes as breeders develop new varieties.
With a sizable portion of the country’s population living in apartments and condominiums, the popularity of dwarf tomato plants suitable for containers is on the increase.
Breeders have responded to the demand by developing a number of such plants. These do not sprawl as standard tomato plants do. But the fruit is smaller than most regular tomatoes, ranging from cherry-size to six ounces.
Growing dwarf tomatoes in containers is fairly water-thrifty; the smaller varieties require only a few gallons a week and even the larger dwarfs have only moderate water requirements.
There is a nice assortment of dwarf tomato varieties available. Here is a rundown of some of the dwarf tomato varieties particularly suited to Southland growing conditions.
Patio Hybrid. This is listed first, not because it is the best, but because it’s often the only dwarf tomato variety sold as a plant in local nurseries. Patio Hybrid bears good-flavored fruit up to five ounces. The plant grows to 30 inches, requires at least a medium-sized container and requires container staking. Patio Prize is a new version of this tomato. It is slightly earlier and has more disease resistance.
Pixie Hybrid II. This is an attractive, flavorful tomato, compact and upright. It produces large quantities of fruit that grow up to two inches in diameter and have a “big-tomato”flavor. Pixie Hybrid requires a small stake and is suitable for medium-sized containers. It can be grown indoors in a sunny window.
Orange Pixie Hybrid. This is brand new for 1991. It is the same tomato as Pixie Hybrid II, but it has orange skin and flesh.
Small Fry Hybrid. This plant bears huge quantities of smaller-than-cherry-size tomatoes. The flavor is sweet, perhaps the best of the dwarf types. The plant tends to spread rather than grow upright. A cage over the container will control growth. The soil capacity of the container must be at least four gallons.
Better Bush. This is the largest of the dwarf tomatoes and requires a large container; at least 15-gallons of soil capacity. This tomato has one great advantage over the other dwarfs: It usually produces fruit until fall. The other dwarf varieties have a determinate plant habit; they bear all of their fruit over a short period, then the plant stops growing and dies.
Better Bush also produces the largest fruit of the dwarf types--up to six ounces. It grows to 3 1/2 feet in height and spreads to a diameter of 3 feet. Although the plant has strong, stocky stems, it requires three-foot stakes for its heavy production. The fruit tastes sweet, but it does have a tang.
Micro Tom. While Better Bush is the largest of the dwarfs, Micro Tom is the smallest. It is new this year. The tiny plants can be grown in three-inch pots and they produce tomatoes about the size of salad croutons. While it is strictly a novelty and won’t supply any great quantity of fruit, Micro Tom might be fun for kids to grow in a sunny windowsill.
Red Robin. A small, spreading plant habit makes Red Robin a particularly good candidate for hanging baskets or small containers. The cherry-sized fruit has a delightful sweet flavor.
With the exception of Patio Hybrid, you probably won’t be able to find plants for the dwarf tomatoes mentioned here. They will have to be grown from seeds. Incidentally, you can plant the seeds directly into the container that they will be growing in. Just make certain you plant at least three seeds per container and if all three sprout, thin them to the healthiest plant.
Seeds for Pixie Hybrid II and Orange Pixie Hybrid are available from Burpee Seeds, 300 Park Ave., Warminster, Pa. 18991. Seeds for Better Bush and Red Robin can be ordered from Park Seed Co., Cokesbury Road, Greenwood, S.C. 29647. Seeds for Micro Tom and Small Fry are stocked by Tomato Growers Supply Co., P.O. Box 2237, Ft. Myers, Fla. 33902. All three companies offer free catalogues.
Place the container in an area where it will receive at least six hours of sunlight daily--the more sun, the better. Be sure it has drainage holes.
Use a heavy potting mix for the soil. Some of the dwarf tomato varieties need staking, and the lighter potting mixes won’t support the stakes. Use a timed-release fertilizer. Most potting soils contain few, if any, added nutrients, and your tomatoes need nutrients. Most timed-release fertilizers will last four to five months; they should be administered again every time you replant.
Also, feed your tomato plants every two weeks with a light application of a liquid fertilizer that contains the various trace elements needed. Miracle-Gro for Tomatoes is a good choice. Never exceed the recommended amounts.
Water on a regular basis. Apply water until it has seeped from the drainage holes.
Eliminate tomato worms by spraying with a biological spray such as Dipel or Thuricide. These products will not harm beneficial insects.
Dwarf tomatoes do not have to be grown in containers; they are suitable for a small garden patch. Plants that are grown in the garden will be slightly larger than those grown in containers.
