This past summer I had a number of people tell me of their failed tomato crop. I have been fortunate to have had a bumper crop the last three years to which, I am sure, my friends and neighbors will attest. I have been told that I'm doing everything wrong. I top-water my plants, and I don't pinch back the new growth, but somehow the plants don't know it either.

I have tried a number of varieties but have had the best luck with Hybrid Celebrity VFFNT and Hybrid Viva Italia VFFT (Roma). I grow my own plants from seed that I order by mail. The plants are spaced 5 feet apart and when planting I cut off the lower leaves and branches and set the plants 6 to 10 inches deep. To ward off cut worms I push a No. 10 can, bottom and top removed, a short way into the ground around each plant. After planting, I give them a good drink of a fertilizer solution and place newspaper tents over them for a few days until they are acclimated. To water, I put in an irrigation line of 1/2 inch poly-pipe and two 2 gallons-per-hour drippers for each plant and cover the entire area with a mulch of straw.

I cage the celebrity tomatoes in cages that I make from 5 foot concrete remesh. The romas seem to do better on the ground rather in cages. The cages are made by cutting a 6' section of 5' concrete remesh and form a tube by joining the ends with wire. After putting the cages around the plants, they should be securely anchored with a couple of steel or wood stakes to keep them from blowing over.

Last of all, I set up my top watering system. I make mine out of 3/4 inch PVC electrical conduit (the grey stuff) because it is UV stabilized. If you do use the white PVC, paint it-any color will do. The risers are 39 inches tall (a 10' section of pipe will make 3 risers) with a full circle shrub spray attached on top. These come in plastic and brass, but the brass seems to be more serviceable. Each head will cover a 15' circle at 40 lbs. per-square-inch of water pressure. On the end of the system I place a female PVC garden hose adapter so that I can attach a short length of 5/8 inch garden hose to join the sprinkler to an automatic sprinkler valve or a sill cock. My top water system has gone through a number of revisions but I feel I have it almost perfected. I use it on my leaf and root crops with equal success. Although building one is neither difficult nor expensive, it does require a number of cuts, welds, and parts which would require more space to describe than I have here. Should anyone like to build one, I would be glad to provide plans, diagrams, and instructions. Please call me at (520) 378-0426 in the evening.

I irrigate early in the morning so not to disturb the pollinating insects. Other than checking periodically for hornworms and side-dressing with a good vegetable fertilizer a couple of times, the tomato plants are pretty much on their own.

Both celebrity and romas are determinate varieties, and they will produce fruit for two to three months. I will have to admit to having a few early fruit with blossom-end rot, but once the fruit starts to ripen it is not unusual to get 2 to 3 gallons of vine-ripe fruit per picking per plant. It is also not uncommon for the plants to reach 6 to 7 feet in height.