Tomato Dirt Newsletter
Volume 13, Number 17

Dear Tomato Dirt reader,

Welcome back to Tomato Dirt! A couple times a month, we’ll send you this newsletter packed with tips about growing tomatoes and using them.

End of Summer Sale: 50% or more off gardening gear

Our good friends at Gardener’s Supply are cleaning out their garden shed inventory with clearance items in their Gardening Outlet, Kitchen & Home Outlet, Indoor/Outdoor Living Outlet, and even Clothing & Footwear Outlet.

You can get 50% or more off on garden supplies, kitchen and home, pots and planters, tools, gifts, trellises, raised beds, and all kinds of other garden gear and goodies.

It’s a great time to restock your supplies or replace your tools. Browse here .

The clearance outlet stock changes from day to day as items are added. Check now and check back later, too. Browse the deals!

NEW! Check for tomato growing tips each day on our Facebook page

Here’s the dirt: Tomato Dirt’s long-standing Facebook page was recently hacked. For your safety and privacy, we closed it.

But never fear! We’ve started a new page with good security. (Join right here).

You’re invited to like the page and get plenty of tomato growing tips. And please share the new page with other gardeners you know!

Hop on over to Facebook and click “Like” right now, while you’re thinking about it.

FEATURE: Take These 3 Steps Now to Extend Your Tomato Harvest

Reduce watering. If fruit has reached full or nearly full size, cut back on watering to encourage ripening.

Pick excess fruit. Ripening fruit takes a good deal of energy from leaves. A large crop can slow the process, especially if temperatures are cooling off in the fall. When you have a heavy crop still on the vine with just a few weeks before the first expected frost, pick a few of the just-ripening tomatoes (mature green, turning, or pink) to allow the rest to ripen on the vine.

Shift roots. Pull slightly at the bottom of the plant to shift the roots. The surprise sends the tomato the signal that it’s time to finish up with the fruit on the vine and go to seed...

Keep reading

Best Tips for Growing Tomatoes: Bestseller in 89 Countries

You’ll be able to diagnose pest and disease problems using step by step priceless information, illustrated with 260 full color photos.

Get the book and you’ll also get 6 free bonuses, including the Family Tomato Cookbook and a database of 1300 varieties of tomatoes. More details here.

Tomato Growing Tip: When Should You Harvest Cherry Tomatoes?

Image: Tomato Dirt

Get more tips for growing tomatoes on our Tomato Growing Tips Pinterest board.

How to Preserve All That Garden Goodness

Canners and dehydrators let you store and use tomatoes all year long.

Plus, they make great gifts. Check out other handy kitchen gear like scales, drying racks, pickling crocks, tomato presses, kitchen snips … even cheese making kits and other DIY kits from our good friends at Garden Supply.

They’ve also got plenty of tutorials you can use to DIY dried flowers … storing apples … making pepper jelly or tomato chutney or your own Bloody Mary mix.

Browse the dozens of different food preservation, kitchen gear, and gardening gadgets offered to Tomato Dirt readers. Have fun!

More Tips for Extending Your Tomato Harvest