Tomatoes for the City Gardener 

 Irving P. Bishop* 



No plant grown by the amateur gardener gives better satisfac- 

 tion than the tomato. It is hardy, tolerably free from insect 

 enemies, and under reasonable culture yields a bountiful crop which 

 can be used in the household either green or ripe. Fruit allowed 

 to ripen on the vines is much superior to that purchased in the 

 market, since the latter is often picked when immature and ripened 

 during transit. 



When allowed to reach perfect ripeness in the sun and served 

 directly from your own vines to the table, tomatoes have a beauty 

 and flavor which gives an added joy to meal time. 



While they seem to prefer a loam, tomatoes will do well in 

 almost any soil that is not actually wet and soggy. The amateur 

 gardener should grow his own plants, since by so doing he may 

 select such varieties as are best suited to his taste. There should 

 be an early variety like the Earliana or the Wonder ; a later kind 

 like the Ponderosa for general crop; and it is a good plan if space 

 permits, to test a new sort each year in the hope of getting better 

 fruit, or plants better suited to soil or climate. For variety, 

 the large Yellow Queen is a favorite with me. It is a strong grower, 

 prolific, only moderately acid, and when sliced with red ones has 

 an artistic value which specially commends it to madame's 

 approbation. 



Seed should be sown under glass or in the window box in March, 

 for very early varieties, and in April for later. The young plants 

 should appear in about a week; and in four or five weeks more 

 should be transplanted to boxes so as to have the plants about 

 four inches apart each way. Transplanting gives the plants 

 more room and develops a stronger root system. As soon as 

 danger from frost is past, which in Buffalo, is about May 20, — the 

 plants should be set out in the garden. The soil should be mel- 

 low and well fertilized with stable manure or a mixture of one part 

 sulphate of potash, three of nitrate of soda and four of acid phos- 

 phate applied at the rate of 1000 pounds to the acre. Early peas, 

 radishes and lettuce should at this time be nearly ready to harvest, 

 and the tomatoes may be set among them. By the time the early 



*Mr. Irving P. Bishop taught Nature-Study for twenty-five years in Buffalo 

 Normal School. This article was written shortly before his death. 



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