How to Make Heirloom Tomato Clones

There is nothing more satisfying that eating a tomato that you have grown yourself. Most gardeners have experienced the joy of biting into a fresh tomato, but the rest of us are stuck with the tough fruit which survives shipping to end up in our local store. But what if you could have fresh tomatoes all year?

First, you need to find a plant which produces fruit which you enjoy. I recommend choosing an "heirloom" variety (preferably from a local grower who has not needed to breed for transport or longevity). A local gardening club may be able to offer something which suits the needs of your region. Once you have the "mama" plant, you can take cuttings to create "clones." There is nothing to stop you from growing a plant or two, all year 'round. The following recipe will produce twelve clones from which you can select the best for planting.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Plastic cutting tray, holds 12 rock wool cubes
• Heating Pad
• 12 Rock wool squares 1 inch by 1 inch (a horticultural growing media)
• 1 Bag of Perlite
• 1 Bottle of Liquid Rooting Hormone
• 1 bottle of Liquid Plant Vitamins
• 1 Eyedropper
• Razor blade
• 1 gallon jug of distilled water
• 1 gallon jug of spring water
• Measuring Spoon
• Small Cup
• Heirloom Tomato Plant

1. Prepare a spot for the tray. It should be in a warm, well lit room in front of a window. Put the heating pad on this spot. The first set of cuttings should be done in the late spring, using a mature tomato plant that has not started to bear fruit yet this year. The timing for your next set of cuttings will be determined by the maturity of the new plants, rather than the season.

2. Prepare the tray. Pour enough pearlite in the tray so that it just covers the bottom. This won't use up an entire bag of pearlite so you will have plenty for the next time. Pour enough spring water into the tray to wet the pearlite.

3. Prepare the dipping mixture. Into the small cup pour 1 tablespoon of liquid plant vitamins (such as Dip N' Grow). Now add 12 tablespoons of distilled water. If your cup is small enough the mixture should be about 2 inches deep. If it is less than 2 inches deep you should add to the mixture until it is about 2 inches deep, being careful to maintain the "1 part vitamins to 12 parts distilled water" ratio. Use Caution: The liquid plant vitamins are poisonous to humans so don't drink the mixture or leave it out where it can be mistaken for a glass of water. Wash your hands thoroughly if you get the concentrated vitamins on your skin.

4. Prepare the gallon jug of distilled water for soaking the rock wool. Do NOT reuse the distilled water dipping mixture from Step 3 in this step. Start fresh with untainted distilled water. Cut an opening into the top of the plastic gallon jug of distilled water large enough to fit your hand in it. Its ok to pour out a little of the water in order to do this. Using the eye dropper, put 10 drops of liquid plant vitamins into the water. Put 12 of the 1 inch by 1 inch rock wool cubes (1 tray's worth) into the jug. Allow them to sit a few minutes to soak up the water.

5. You are now ready to start cloning. Beginning at the top of the mother plant, use the razor blade to cut a 5-6 inch piece of one of the large stems. Make the cut at an angle so it can pierce the rock wool more easily, and have greater surface area to absorb water and generate new roots. If the cutting is too big (long), it will fall over in the tray. If it is too small, it will be a small plant when it matures, with a correspondingly low tomato yield. Make sure that your cutting has at least two little branches on it, no matter how small they are. These branches are baby stems that will grow into big stems later.

6. Dip the cutting into the dipping mixture for seven (7) seconds. You want to coat the baby plant with the mixture 1 to 2 inches up the stem from the cut at the bottom. That is why you should have about 2 inches of mixture so you can rest the cutting on the bottom of the cup. Hold on to the top of the cutting so it doesn't tip over into the cup or knock the cup over. After seven seconds, remove the cutting from the mixture and poke the stem into the hole in the center of one of the rock wool cubes. You want it deep into the rock wool without it coming out of the bottom of the cube. Now place the rock wool in the tray. Dig it in so it rests on the bottom of the tray and not on top of the pearlite. When the tray has 12 cuttings in rock wool you can put it on the heating pad. Turn the heating pad to its highest setting. You can take fewer than 12 cuttings but keep in mind that several may not take root.

7. One mother plant should yield 12 good cuttings with no problem. There should be enough of the mother plant left to continue to grow and make tomatoes.

8. The cuttings should be watered approximately every 24 hours. The water can be good quality tap water or spring water. After the first 3 days of pure water, you can add a small bit of 20-20-20 fertilizer to the water. The trick to the watering is you want the plants to dry out every day. This stimulates the root growth as they go "searching" for water, but you don't want to stress the plants at this tender stage. The best way to determine if they are dry enough is by examining the rock wool. If it looks dry and feels dry then its time to water. If it is wet or there is water in the tray, then wait a little longer. Don't allow the plants to dry out to the point that they are drooping because they do not yet have the root system to "snap back" from that kind of hardship.
   
   The best way to water is by using a long necked water jug and dribbling water on each rock wool in the tray, making sure they each get a bit of water. Put a little water in the bottom of the tray for the rock wool cubes to absorb. In 24 hours the cubes should be dry again. Check the tray often at first. Practice will make you familiar with the needs of the plants.

9. After about two weeks in the tray, the new plants should start to show roots. The roots will grow through the rock wool on the sides or on the bottom. A really strong baby plant may burst open the rock wool with its roots. At this point, it is time to transplant the young plants into cups.
   Use large plastic drinking cups and put a hole in the bottom for drainage. Fill the cup with fresh planting soil and then make a hole in the dirt to insert the plant, rock wool and all. Cover the rock wool with dirt and water it on the dirt to pack it in. Put the cups in a large tray or other receptacle to catch the water when it drains. At this point you can water them with the same amount of 20-20-20 fertilizer that you would use with adult plants. Allow them to grow in the cups for about another two weeks to give them a chance to make a strong root system.

10. You may notice that not all of the babies root in two weeks. Don't be too concerned. You only need two or three to thrive in order to have fresh tomatoes throughout the winter months. If you were hoping to give the extra plants to friends or had some other use in mind, then wait a little longer than two weeks. Sometimes you just have to give them enough time to root.
    
    Another tip to check if a cutting is about to show roots is to tug slightly on the plant. If it comes easily out of the rock wool then it obviously isn't rooting. If the stem is showing a white coating, toss it. If not, it may still make roots, so replace it in the rock wool. You want the stem to be snug and air tight in the rock wool, though, so replace it by sticking it into a different part of the rock wool.
    
    If you are ready to plant and need more babies, you can gently break open the rock wool to see if there are any roots. Even a tiny single root is adequate to grow a plant. If it has no roots at all or just a thick white bulge then throw it away.

11. After four weeks (two weeks in trays and two weeks in cups), the new plants are ready to be transplanted to their final home. Tomatoes have large root systems so be sure to choose a large pot for indoor growing. If your plants become root-bound, the fruit will suffer. Dig a hole in the dirt where the new plant will go and remove the baby plant from the cup, dirt, rock wool and all. Do this by squeezing the sides of the cup to loosen its grip on the dirt, then put your hand over the top of the cup, with the plant's stem between your fingers. Turn the cup over and the plant, dirt and all, should drop into your palm. Plant the baby "as is" into the hole and cover the rock wool/dirt ball with fresh soil. Water the soil to pack it in.

12. Tomatoes need full sun and warmth in order to thrive and produce fruit. The warmth of the kitchen is a good start but winter sun may not be enough. There are different types of grow lamps which can serve your purpose, but you will need to decide what works best for your space and the number of plants you have chosen to grow. The website listed below is an excellent resource for indoor gardening needs.

Resources

• Worm's Way Gardening Resources