In this video, I share my secret weapon that will have you picking ripe tomatoes in April! I follow this procedure growing tomatoes every winter and spring, and it never fails. This simple 4 step process will have you harvesting tomatoes earlier than you ever thought imaginable, even in colder climates than mine!
The tomato is the #1 vegetable grown in the US, but many of us wait until the middle of the summer for our first ripe tomatoes, because we can’t plant them until the frosts and freezes stop. You don’t have to be held hostage by nature! This easy procedure will protect tomatoes from cold, so you can plant tomatoes in January without fear!
Here is where I buy seeds for my garden: https://youtu.be/d_oOPM-JSFA
TABLE OF CONTENTS
0:00 Intro To Picking Tomatoes In April
0:36 Secret #1: Planting Tomatoes Timing
1:57 Secret #2: Tomato Variety Selection
3:32 Secret #3: My Grow Bag Trick
5:37 Secret #4: The Milk Jug Hack
7:10 Proof These Tomato Tips Work!
9:47 Adventures With Dale
If you have any questions about how to grow tomatoes and growing early tomatoes, have questions about growing fruit trees or want to know about the things I grow in my raised bed vegetable garden and edible landscaping food forest, are looking for more gardening tips and tricks and garden hacks, have questions about vegetable gardening and organic gardening in general, or want to share some DIY and “how to” garden tips and gardening hacks of your own, please ask in the Comments below!
**************************************************
VISIT MY AMAZON STOREFRONT FOR PRODUCTS I USE MOST OFTEN IN MY GARDEN*
https://www.amazon.com/shop/themillennialgardener
**************************************************
VISIT MY MERCHANDISE STORE
https://shop.spreadshirt.com/themillennialgardener
**************************************************
SUPPORT MY SECOND CHANNEL!
https://www.youtube.com/c/2MinuteGardenTips
**************************************************
EQUIPMENT I MOST OFTEN USE IN MY GARDEN (INDIVIDUAL LINKS)*:
Miracle-Gro Soluble All Purpose Plant Food https://amzn.to/3qNPkXk
Miracle-Gro Soluble Bloom Booster Plant Food https://amzn.to/2GKYG0j
Miracle-Gro Soluble Tomato Plant Food https://amzn.to/2GDgJ8n
Jack’s Fertilizer, 20-20-20, 25 lb. https://amzn.to/3CW6xCK
Southern Ag Liquid Copper Fungicide https://amzn.to/2HTCKRd
Southern Ag Natural Pyrethrin Concentrate https://amzn.to/2UHSNGE
Monterey Organic Spinosad Concentrate https://amzn.to/3qOU8f5
Safer Brand Caterpillar Killer (BT Concentrate) https://amzn.to/2SMXL8D
Cordless ULV Fogger Machine https://amzn.to/36e96Sl
Weed Barrier with UV Resistance https://amzn.to/3yp3MaJ
Organza Bags (Fig-size) https://amzn.to/3AyaMUz
Organza Bags (Tomato-size) https://amzn.to/36fy4Re
Injection Molded Nursery Pots https://amzn.to/3AucVAB
Heavy Duty Plant Grow Bags https://amzn.to/2UqvsgC
6.5 Inch Hand Pruner Pruning Shears https://amzn.to/3jHI1yL
Japanese Pruning Saw with Blade https://amzn.to/3wjpw6o
Double Tomato Hooks with Twine https://amzn.to/3Awptr9
String Trellis Tomato Support Clips https://amzn.to/3wiBjlB
Nylon Mason Line, 500FT https://amzn.to/3wd9cEo
Expandable Vinyl Garden Tape https://amzn.to/3jL7JCI
**************************************************
SOCIAL MEDIA
Follow Me on TWITTER (@NCGardening) https://twitter.com/NCGardening
Follow Me on INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/millennialgardener_nc/
**************************************************
ABOUT MY GARDEN
Location: Southeastern NC, Brunswick County (Wilmington area)
34.1°N Latitude
Zone 8A
**************************************************
*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
© The Millennial Gardener
#gardening #garden #gardeningtips #tomato #tomatoes
26 Comments
If you enjoyed this video, please “Like” and share to help increase its reach! TIMESTAMPS for convenience:
0:00 Intro To Picking Tomatoes In April
0:36 Secret #1: Planting Tomatoes Timing
1:57 Secret #2: Tomato Variety Selection
3:32 Secret #3: My Grow Bag Trick
5:37 Secret #4: The Milk Jug Hack
7:10 Proof These Tomato Tips Work!
9:47 Adventures With Dale
I will be watching for your early tomatoes 🍅
Do you lay rocks on the bottom of those bags?
Really excited to try this out this year – got my heat mats, grow bags, and Oregon Spring seeds all ready to go!
This ia a great idea. But I'm picking tomatoes now in my heated sunroom. Every home has a roughly south facing wall. Just build an insulated sun room with dual pane windows and duct your existing house heating to heat it. For maximum energy conservation, all you need are insulated drapes to cover the windows every evening. The amouny of heat you get through the windows every day theres winter sun will more than offset the amount of heat loss through the windows and your energy bill will actually be lower. In the Summer, just disconnect the air duct from the main house and vent the sunroom outside to keep your Summer energy bill low. Any one thats serious about growing food should consider investing in building a heated and insulated sunroom. You can build one yourself for as little as $500 or less by salvaging windows and building materials from construction dumpsters,or repurposing materials.
Love your videos! You got me on the one that had determinates! I now have the Rosella purple and the Stiletz, from Victory Seeds. I will be starting onion seeds now, thanks. It is snowing here in Farmington, NM and I have to go to Colorado to shovel snow off the roof of our cabin, so difficult to get the concept of starting tomatoes now. Will have to cogitate. Thanks again. Jim
Love this! I’m zone 9b, getting tomatoes early would be awesome. I do have a question 🙋🏼♀️ I have a small greenhouse, would that be the same as ‘taking the plant inside?’ My dogs will eat them if I do😂
Thanks 😊 ❤
My Siletz germinated 2 days ago, I'm really excited to try this. I live where the Siletz tomato was bred for so I have high hopes!
When you refer to # seven bags I use your link none of the bags description say # seven they describe the bags in gallons would you mean # seven equals 7 gallons? Not all of use out here speak Garden’ease Also the bags appear in two different locations on your Amazon site directories
🍅 Looks great!
My tomatoes are ready to plant up or put in the ground. Here in zone 9b maybe with a milk jug.
Love all the info, but I also love Dale. Thank you for sharing both.
You said April but you already have ripe tomato in January??? How?
GREAT VIDEO! I did this for the first time last year. I took a cutting off a beefsteak and rooted it. I was harvesting ripe tomatoes in April indoors. I had some 6-12 inch volunteer tomatoes this fall. I brought them into my south facing windows and harvested my first cherry tomatoes around Christmas. The bigger ones are taking longer to ripen but they’re doing great. They are right against the windows so after the subzero temperatures they dropped some flowers and growing tips, but have recovered nicely. Next year I might try some dwarf varieties to increase protection. With 3-4 plants I’ve gotten about 10 cherry tomatoes so far with many more to come , but if I could grow 6-8 plants in the same space I’d get more I think.
Thanks for the encouragement.
Gonna get started on this soon and I would NOT of thought to, had it not been for you.
Hello I love all you videos and I wait for the your tomato’s list for this year 🙏 the process for you seedlings and the soil thank you 🙏
Menards in my area has Burpees 2023 seeds for about half price. Per weight most are less expensive than the “cheap” seeds elsewhere. I’ve also had surprisingly good germination rates for the 4/$1 or 2/$1 seeds at dollar general. They also had heirloom seeds at DG last year.
For me it wouldn't be physically possible to carry things in and out.
Oh ya? I just harvested my first tomatoes of the season today. My trick? Move to Hawaii. 🤣
Marlene from SC! Those tomatoes look so good! I have a hoop house! Planning on trying to fill it with raised beds this year,to get the jump on the season! We plants lots of produce to sell!We set out around 800 to 100 plants most years,and lots of other vegetables!,I'm going to try some your way also in grow bags! Can't wait till Spring! Good Luck with all your growing this year! Love the videos! Like to the point method,and so informative! Thanks so much!
My tomatoes are almost 2 feet tall and just started to bloom. These will be my first time growing slicing tomatoes here in Florida zone 10. Let's see what happens💁♀️. Good luck to all fellow gardeners 🍀🌻💜🦋🌿
Question: Your cherry peppers, are they hot (spicy) or sweet? Thank you in advance for your kind response😊
Love for "Dale the Italian Pasta Dog"🐕
Is that black landscape fabric on your ground?
After watching this video my wife and I planted three different kinds of seeds thank you very much for this video. We were going to wait until next month but hey if we don't try we won't know what works for us .
Can't find "#7 Grow bag" at Amazon. I hope you mean 7 gallon? Also, couldn't find "plant containers list". https://youtu.be/ipv6F7Zmsc0?t=334
Gardening in Chicago here, started Stupice, Sub arctic plenty and a few dwarf tomatoes already, will try to replicate your success.