Vacations and healthy gardens are difficult to juggle without extensive "planning ahead". So for many, the vacation moves to non-gardening times of the year. That way you get the best of both. Planning ahead allows you to incorporate auto watering set-ups into your gardening; either someone to cover for you or auto water timers attached to in-place drip tape or soaker hose or even sprinklers. Even the most inexpensive auto-timer can take care of all but huge garden plots for you and when the garden is heavily mulched and deep watered from the beginning of the season, one week of no attention is no problem when it comes to water. Pests and disease issues can still run wild when there is no attention but the plants won't lack water. :) Dave

Agree that some sort of automatic watering system is needed. They won't survive 2 weeks with no attention so I'd also line up someone to check on them every few days. Hopefully someone with some working knowledge of tomatoes, their pests, their need to be fed, and their water needs. As to whether they will set fruit? That all depends on the weather and how consistent the soil moisture level is maintained. Sadly, trips away from home while gardening, even for a few days, seldom work well. If they are in containers then the problems are even more complex. Dave

Give it consistent water and it should come back. For those who live in hot/dry climates I would recommend moving the tree into a spot with less sun to help prevent it from drying out. However, this may not be necessary in cool and humid climates. The fact that your tree turned all brown after only week and a half leads me to suspect the climate conditions where you are might have been a little drier or more hot and sunny than usual. One option, if you think it is probably going to be another few months before you are ready to plant the tree, is to simply move the tree to a slightly larger container. This would allow a little more space for the roots to grow, and be able to provide more water to the tree. This is not an immediate fix, however; it will take a few weeks for the roots to grow out, and whenever you replant a tree there can be a little transplant shock, so it would probably be better not to move unless it is not going to go into the ground for another few months. Also, although it needs consistent water, do not completely drown the tree either. If the roots are continually sitting in water, that is not good for the tree either. Ideally the soil should be kept fairly moist. When the tree has recovered, you do not have to keep the soil constantly moist any longer, indeed it is probably a good idea not to, to give the tree a short timespan of a few days where the soil is dry periodically. This can help avoid root rot, and help the roots go deeper so the young tree will not become as dependent on frequent watering. Since it is so late into the growing season right now, if the tree does put out new leaves this year, you might want to give the tree a little shelter in early winter to try to extend the growing season a little. It would be a little pointless for the tree to put out new foliage, only to have it die back in the winter 2 months later. Personally, I would not expect the tree to make any dramatic comeback until next Spring.

Smaller version of Terra Cotta irrigation unit that siphons from reservoir. Waters by difference in water tension in unit and soil. Works like a leaky tensiometer , the vaccum in the unit draws water from reservoir thru tube. http://www.amazon.com/Self-Watering-Probes-Package-of-5/dp/B0002VAHXC%3FSubscriptionId%3D14H876SFAKFS0EHBYQ02%26tag%3Dhubpages-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB0002VAHXC