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've been in that store too....looking for the elusive 1 quart grow bag (I finally ordered online yesterday. Shipping wasn't too bad after all). It's a nice store, staff are very nice, friendly and helpful. UGro is the same, ditto both Sea of Green stores I've visited. outdoor_andy, see the hydroponic gardening thread on this forum. I never buy soil or ferts anywhere else since I discovered the hydro store. The products are pricy but far superior to anything at the big box stores. tf, the passion vines I dug up at the same time as the one I gave you and looked more shocked than yours have recovered nicely with some of the ferts from SOG. Extreme Serene is what they have been drinking up for about a week and they have perked right up. You can pick up one more if you like, just lmk. You have an email dated this morning.

Thanks much for the nursery suggestions and the suggestions on desert survival. Actually, I have logged more desert time and miles than most people in Arizona or the USA. I have walked from the Colorado River in the southwestern portion of Yuma, Arizona to the intersection of the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument & the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge across expansive dune fields, lava fields, Creosotebush - White Bursage Series communities, through fields of saguaro and cholla, and across lonely mountain peaks along the border. Also I have hiked a good portion of territory in the Coronado National Forest Haven't spent much time in the big cities such as Phoenix and Tucson. Most times I fly into Phoenix and immediately drive to Ajo, Why, or Yuma. I always get a 4X4 Jeep Grand Cherokee or Rubicon rentals plus lots of ice, water, and drinks in the cooler for my lonley desert travels. Cell phones are typically useless were I explore outside of picking up a Mexican cell company on Cingular Wireless. Last winter, I visited a nursery in or near Avondale: Moon something nursery. I almost cried as the selection of trees and shrubs were so much better than I have ever seen at other nurseries in the USA. Tons of citrus, plums, apples, figs, cacti, palms, desert plants, etc. Louisiana nurseries are a hundred times smaller than this one I visited. Many of which species would grow in south Louisiana and I have never seen a nursery as great of this one with so much selection. Most all of the stock required a large trailer or flat bed truck or van to get the plants home. Selection could almost make me want to move to Arizona....almost. Will post to the list if I see anything really cool (plants) at Phoenix/Yuma nurseries in August. At least next week the temps in Yuma should be below 110 degrees. 115 is my max last summer near Lukeville. Thank the plant gods thay yall don't have 90 percent plus humidity combined with the balmy 110 plus heat!!! Happy gardening and try to stay COOOOL!!!

Shady Way in Apache Junction is also a great cactus nursery. I also agree with DDBlue- AZ Cactus sales is great. If you go to our FAQ page (link at top of this page) there is a FAQ for where to buy plants. It has all the nurseries people on this forum like to visit, plus their addresses and phone numbers. Some have websites if you google them. Might help to have this info before you come, so you can kinda plot a route! Enjoy shopping and visiting! Susie