40 
HOUSE & GARDEN 
EFFICIENCY STANDARDS FOR THE TOMATO PATCH 
The New Method of Culture and the Results It Brings—Eliminating 
Waste by Proper Pruning and Training—The Best Sorts to Plant 
ADOLPH KRUHM 
N EARLY twenty per cent, of all tomatoes, which nature 
puts on the vines, go to waste. This is not the fault of 
the weather, nor the climate, nor the soil, but the fault of the 
methods now employed in growing the crop. True, a slight 
percentage of fruits will go to waste ever}" year because of an 
over-supply of moisture or an early frost or an inherent disease 
of the plant. But that loss is small as compared with the waste 
due directly to cultivating methods. 
The Practice of Staking and Pruning 
vated, would produce just as much fruit, pound for pound, as 
a plant with two or three times as many branches bearing a 
multitude of undersized specimens. Gradually, the practice 
became more general, especially in tomato growing sections. 
To-day two methods are widely employed, which do not differ 
in principle but simply in application. These two methods 
may be described as the “wire trellis” and the “individual 
stake” methods. Of the two, the latter proves to be more 
advantageous in the home garden, while the wire trellis method 
is the one to employ in field and market garden culture. 
In countries offering the correct climatic conditions, the 
tomato plant thrives as a perennial. In South America we 
find it making an enormous growth, with vines trained over 
arbors, not unlike grape arbors with us. It is the inherent 
tendency of the tomato plant to grow, grow, grow vines at 
the expense of size and quantity of fruits. In studying ways 
to counteract this natural tendency of the tomato plant, gar¬ 
deners found it to be a pay¬ 
ing proposition to cut off or 
prune some of the super¬ 
fluous foliage and branches. 
Soon it was discovered that 
a plant with two or three 
strong branches, well culti¬ 
The Wire Trellis Method 
Set stout fence posts about 20' apart in long, straight rows, 
with 2> l / 2 ' between the rows, so that horse-cultivation may 
be employed. Half way between every two posts, set a 4' or 5' 
stake of \/ 2 " lumber. Then connect the posts with lines of 
8 or 10 gauge wire, stapling these wires to the stakes as well, 
which prevents the wires 
from sagging later in the 
season when they are loaded 
down with fruits. Five lines 
of wires, one above the 
other, 10" or 12” apart, 
(Continued on page 82) 
This is the sort of fruit the toire Especially in the garden where space is limited the individual The old method, where the plants 
trellis method produces. A clus- stake method of growing tomatoes is strongly advised. Under were practically unpruned and 
ter of Comet, the only blemish favorable conditions thirty-six fruits to each plant are often pro- untrained, resulted in small sized 
being indicated by the cross duced by this essentially intensive system and often imperfect fruit 
For tomato culture on a larger scale the 
wire trellis plan is the best. It has many 
of the individual stake's real advantages 
Prune the suckers at the base of the 
plants, thus conserving the vine’s strength 
and throwing it into fruit production 
Stout posts set 20' apart in the row sup¬ 
port the lines of wire to which the vines 
are tied. Allow 12" to 18" between plants 
