There are quite a few tomatoes that do well here, the most important thing to maybe remember is.. days to harvest.. shorter harvest days obviously means, you will end up with more tomatoes when is all said and done. But sometimes you just cant beat a brandywine or beefsteak type tomato. Be prepared to wait 80+ days (sometimes in the 70ish range) to pick those beasts. Siberian and san francisco fog are good seeds to start, they are more cold tolerant then alot of varieties, which means you can get em in the ground earlier, they also mature early. Olives, sweet 100's or million's, Lrg Red cherries, all do well, and would be up to you. You'll find what works best for you by trial and error :) There is a nursery in the "arcadia area"(not sure im allowed to put a name down) that usually has a great selection of varieties ;) tips from my experience in growing tomatoes... -inconsistant waterings can lead to cracks on fruit. So don't forget to check moisture, evenly moist at all times, but not sopping wet like a sponge full of water. Remember there is no schedule to water, you water when the plants need it. Weather, humidity, and soil structure will determine a "schedule" for you. -calcium, do not worry about it, our soil has it, if you are unsure, get a soil test to determine if needed. -To establish more of a root structure, and you have plants already started, try stripping the leaves almost half way up, including side shoots at leaf stem base, and planting it up to where the leaves you didn't strip are. Tomatoes develop very adventurous roots from the stem. -Once the tomatoes get some height to them, i like to strip some of the older leaves at the bottom of the plant to allow air circulation through the plant, and prevent stangnant air and fungi build up. -If growing indeterminate tomatoes (grow and produce fruit until killed by frost) a tomato cage usually wont cut it, think bigger, and know that it will want to grow like a vine. -If growing a determinate variety (grow to a certain height, bloom, fruit, ripen all at once, and then usually dies, or will notice decreased vigor in plant usually) You will notice they tend to be more upright and bushy, usually max would be 4' or smaller depending on variety, and you wouldn't need a cage necessarily. -Tomatoes are hungry plants,so feed regularly, and not when you happen to remember to fertilize them. -High alkalinity in the soil and water CAN create an environment in the soil where a plant can't uptake certain nutrients, so try to keep the pH reasonable by adding compost, and organic type fertilizers. -Rotate your tomato beds every year, a build-up of harmful organisms can be bad for next years crop of tomatoes. (wont get scientific, google can help ya with that.)

I think the best place for a tomato festival announcement would be right here in the tomato section. I went to the first one last year and it was great. Looking forward to this year.

Which heirloom tomatoes grow best in east TX (Longview, TX)? Im thinking of growing some next year. Timely planting is generally the most important factor in success with tomatoes here, moreso than variety selection. Planting too late is by far the most common mistake new TX tomato gardeners tend to make. In a Texas 8b, this means that you'll want to have good sized transplants (8-12 inches tall, not tiny ones from box store six packs) planted out no later than the first or second week of March. You may have to protect a couple of times, but the consequences of waiting until late March or April is that many years fruit set might be poor because it gets hot so fast. Heat denatures (destroys) pollen, meaning day temps in the 90's and night temps in the 70's will usually severely inhibit fruit set. Are you willing to start from seed to get the varieties you want? Otherwise, you'll be fairly limited in selection unless you happen to have a great nursery in your area. A good seed starting time for a TX 8b is early Jan. I start inside under shop lights (40 watt floro tubes kept very close to the plants). On the tomato growing forum, there is a seed starting FAQ that you might find helpful. General variety recommendations might include: Any cherry type - Sungold, Sweet 100, Black Cherry, etc. Cherry and small fruited types tend to set better in the heat, and are more forgiving of less than optimal growing conditions. Indian Stripe - similar to Cherokee Purple, but seems to be more productive for me. Brandy Boy - hybrid, nice pink slicer. Big Beef - med red hybrid, easy to grow, productive, good taste. Arkansas Traveler - good tasting pink, med size. Break O'Day - a nice med red, plants on the compact side. Jaune Flammee (aka Flamme) - orange saladette type, great flavor. JD's Special C-Tex - dark that does well, tastes great - seeds can be hard to find, though. Aker's West Virginia - red slicer. Moskvich, Bloody Butcher (or Kimberly, similar)- early reds. BB is smaller, Moskvich is med size. Just a few that come to mind. Many people when starting out will tend to try a mix of hybrids and heirlooms (I prefer the term open-pollinated/OP), and that is generally a good plan. And can you give me some advantages and disadvantages of heirlooms vs. hybrid tomatoes. Do heirlooms taste better and/or produce better than hybrids? The vast majority of what I grow is OP, but nothing wrong with hybrids. There are some good tasting hybrids, too. Same with production - there are both hybrids and OP that produce well. An advantage of OP is that you can save your own seeds. A slight advantage of some hybrids might be if you happen to have nematodes or systemic disease problems in your soil (fusarium, verticillium wilts) or tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) in your area. Then, it might be worthwhile to try out some varieties that are listed as having those particular tolerances to the diseases you've personally encountered problems with. For the most part, I think you'll find your main problems in Texas are going to be foliar (not systemic) fungal or bacterial disease, which growing hybrids isn't going to help with. Mostly early blight, maybe some septoria, or bacterial spot/speck. Root knot nematodes and TSWV are also possibilities in Texas for some, but usually not the systemic wilts. Again, try a mix and see what works best for you. You'll probably need to give some thought to soil amendment too, as many soils in TX are less than optimal for growing tomatoes - usually either too sandy (nutrient poor) or clay (heavy, doesn't drain well). Fall is a good time here to prep your growing area with some addition of organic matter for the following year - manure, compost, shredded leaves, etc. so whatever you add will have a chance to break down and improve the soil. Although not necessary, raised beds are great, if you have the time and interest in making and filling them.

There are two that might work for you. First is the king of grass in Texas, and that's St Augustine. You can find it anywhere grass is sold. If the area never gets any sun you will have a relatively thin turf. Personally I would let it grow up to 12 inches high or higher in really deep shade. If it gets any sunlight at all it will be more and more dense based on the amount of sun. Watering should be done no more often than once per week in the hottest heat of summer. If you have a week or two with temps over 100, then go to watering once every 5 days. When you water apply a full inch every time. Measure that with tuna or cat food cans. Time how long it takes to fill the cans and water for that time every time. That time can be anywhere from 20 minutes to 8 hours, so every system is different. Where are you in SE Texas? The big St Aug grass farms are in the Wharton area. The other grass that will work is a variety of zoysia called Shadow Turf. It's a lot more expensive than St Aug and a lot more persnickety. If you have a bad month with that stuff, it will turn brown and take the rest of the season off. It will return green the following spring, but who wants to wait? If you simply look at it and never do anything on it, you can do will with Shadow Turf.