How to Grow Celebrity Tomatoes

Celebrity tomatoes bear medium to large fruit.

Celebrity tomato plants produce medium to large tomatoes. These tomatoes are meaty and can be used in canning, cooking and eaten raw on sandwiches. The celebrity tomato plant has a thick stalk with vining branches. The plants may be started indoors with seeds or bought as small plants at your local lawn and garden store. The plants are transferred outside only after the danger of frost has passed.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Tiller
• Peat moss or compost
• Garden rake
• Hoe
• Garden spade
• Triple 8 fertilizer
• Garden hose
• Trellis or wire tomato cages

1. Prepare garden soil by tilling 6 to 9 inches deep into the ground. Sprinkle peat moss or compost onto the soil and till into the ground. Work the soil loose with a garden rake and hoe.

2. Dig a hole with a garden spade deep and wide enough so the roots of the celebrity tomato plant may fan out and the top of the soil reaches the bottom leaves of the plant.

3. Sprinkle ½ cup of triple 8 fertilizer into each hole.

4. Place the plant into the middle of the hole and with your hand spread the dirt to fill up the hole. Tap the soil gently around the tomato plant to remove any air bubbles in the soil. Create a small dip around the stalk of the tomato plant so water may run down to the roots instead of running away from the plant.

5. Water the tomato plant with a bucket or garden hose. Saturate the soil around the plant.

6. Place a trellis next to the tomato plants or put wire tomato cages around them. Celebrity tomatoes grow to a hefty size and their branches need support in holding the tomatoes. A trellis or wire cage allows the branches to glide through and around them, providing the needed support to hold the large tomatoes.

7. Water the plants weekly if no rain has occurred. Saturate the ground 6 to 8 inches deep. Lay mulch or compost around plants to hold in moisture.

Tips & Warnings

• Plant celebrity tomato plants 1 ½ feet apart with 3 to 4 feet between rows.

• Inspect your tomato plants daily for insects. Use an insect repellent spray made especially for tomato plants to kill any intruders that are eating your tomatoes.

• Harvest celebrity tomatoes approximately 70 days after planting or when the tomato pulls easily from the stem.

References

• North Carolina State University: Growing Tomatoes
• University of Illinois: Tomatoes

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish