More Thoughs While Weeding: Growing great tomatoes in a short summer season

To prune or not to prune — there lies the question, whether it’s better to trim and stake, or leave the vines to ramble. Veteran North Country gardeners inevitably hold a position on that age-old query. Most believe that taking off suckers early, and continuing to prune the vines over the season hastens maturity, and as we turn the corner into August, the annual race is on to ripen the crop. 

Gardeners are a persistent lot, and tomatoes are the most widely grown crop in vegetable plots across America. Depending on whose statistics you find most credible, they have a place in 86 (National Gardening Association) to 93 percent (USDA) of home gardens, and with good reason. Commercial “cluster” tomatoes have come a long way, as have thin-skinned, on-the-vine cherry types like Nature Sweet and patented Kumatos. But it is impossible to duplicate the taste of a perfectly ripe fruit, picked from the vine.