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Vegetable Gardening

Volunteer Tomatoe Plants

14 years ago

last year in the same spot I had 2 or 3 seedlings show up (I had been dumping scraps here and covering it over, as it was a flower bed that was still in the works and empty)

This year and just recently more plants have come up. What is really strange, is that NOW, I have other plants there, and these volunteers did not arrive until maybe a month ago and there are at least 4 seedlings that are about a foot tall. They are all around a rose bush that went in awhile back.

so perhaps, when I planted the rose, it brought the seeds closer to the top?

I guess another question, how reasonable would it be to move these plants? I think they may all be way too close to the rose bush and although they could grow up around it, *since they wont last much past December* and that wont hurt the rose any. Would they survive a transplant?

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Comments (2)

kr222
14 years ago
I would attempt to move them so they don't end up smothering your rose bush. If left in place they will leave your rose more vulnerable to disease by preventing proper air circulation. The same goes for the tomato plant. I would try to dig it out with the roots as intact as possible. Then replant it in its new spot deeper than it was growing initially. It will develop new roots along the stem. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Kim's Garden
boothc9
14 years ago
My plot is in a community garden and I had plenty of volunteers come up from the previous gardener. I only had room for 3 volunteer tomato plants. They usually turn out to be cherry plants but I was lucky and have one with huge tomatoes on it. I'm hoping it will turn out to be an heirloom. I'll probably post pictures once they're ripe to see if anybody can identify them.

As for moving the volunteers, go for it.
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I'm not a tomato connoisseur and where I live you can get only "small" (meaning cherry) tomato seeds or "big" (slicing size) seeds from the garden center --we don't seem to have the myriad of varieties available elsewhere. That is ok with me as what I am interested in is food of any edible variety. Last year I grew 7 cherry tomato plants from seed and got not enough produce for one person with them all combined. From the compost I've been cultivating I've gotten dozens of 'volunteers' -- there were some of the cherry tomatoes produced from last years' "crop" in there but many more cherry and 'big' tomato leavings I'd gotten from the store/vegetable stands tossed in there. The compost 'volunteer' seedlings are about 100 times more robust and healthy than the new cherry tomato plants I started from seed. My question is essentially, what will give me more food -- the unknown variety of 'volunteers' that sprouted from the compost or the rather sickly, in comparison, cherry tomatoes I've started from seed?
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I transferred a couple of volunteers from my Sungold onslaught of last year just this past week. Tthey seem to be thriving. Bloomed some flowers as well since the transplant. You should definitely do it. Sungolds are hybrids so these will be a real mystery tomato. Enjoy..............elliot
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My Green Giants have wide open rangy trusses with up to 20 plus flowers. I can't help with the small fruit observation.
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I love volunteer tomatoes :) True they normally germinate later than the store bought plants because they need to wait for the soil to warm. However, comma - if they are not transplanted the root structure excels so they need far less watering and can better withstand dry spells. IF you can allow them to grow where they sprout, I would do that. As recommended cut with scissors those you want to remove. The downside is they are always a surprise and you just don't know what the fruit will be until it is time to harvest (which also can be a bit later). Cherry tomatoes can reproduce like weeds. I have managed to go several years on just volunteers until the venison family found my tomatoes and ate all the fruit before it was even ripe so none ever hit the ground :( The finger smell test is the way to determine.
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