The Tomato Triangle Experiment

Originally posted by thelibra

Originally posted by Digital_Reality
Just remember that herbs like dry well drained soil. Don't over water or they will not grow good. Its a good idea to plant Rosemary close to tomatoes but tomatoes like well watered soil unlike herbs.

As the above poster mentioned it is a good idea to grow peppers with tomatoes because they grow well under the same conditions.

Now I can't help but wonder if I should instead of planting basil and rosemary in the same triangle as the tomatoes, maybe plant peppers instead. With the current cage I have, a tomato/pepper combination will mean the tomatoes are spaced 2.5 feet apart, but the peppers will be within 18" of each other, and each plant will be within barely over a foot from any other plant. At first I thought this might be a problem, but then I saw this thread on companion planting:

Rosemary likes the soil cry, but basil requires quite a bit of water.
In hotter climates, basil in a pot may not do well.

Not all herbs like dry soil.

reply to post by DontTreadOnMe


This is true.....my sweet basil, planted in full sun, was looking rather burnt until I mulched it quite heavily. It has perked up considerably since. and I have to water it fairly often for it to stay happy.

Opal basil seems to be tougher, but I've not had much luck with the seeds I've ordered lately. Years ago my Ma-in-law gave me some seeds from hers.....and they seemed much hardier than any I've gotten since, from so the called , 'reputable' commercial sources. ( This seems to be the case with other seeds I've ordered......my 'saved' seeds are out performing them across the board!! )

My rosemary is an old established plant ( perennial ) and is quite woody and tough......rarely gets watered individually....doesn't seem to know how to wilt.

Someone mentioned mint and how invasive it is......don't plant it in a small space!! It spreads like crazy and has already over run a small rose bush, some daylilies, and now threatens to invade the main garden! It does smell lovely when I trim it back with the lawn mower, or just brush against it when walking by........( anyone have any good mint jelly recipes??)

Another tough herb is lemon balm, also has a wonderful fragrance and will spring up voluntarily all over, as the birds ( or wind) seem to spread the seeds.

How do some of you handle your spices - dill, parsley & basil for instance?

I'm thinking I may dry the basil leaves in a paper bag for a few days then do the mortar & pestle bit and bottle it up in an old, clean, spice jar.

I still have some empty containers - big pots - that Sweetie insisted we bring along when we moved and I'm glad she did.
Need to get some dill and rosemary seeds and plant some of that.

Kinda fun to have some containers going along with the garden.

Originally posted by Desert Dawg
Good recycling of the dog cages.

Thanks man, I was rather pleased with how it turned out, actually, and how easy it was. My next plan is to recycle all those big plastic Folgiers coffee cans I've been saving, and make those into flowerpots by drilling out the bottoms, and either use them for my herbs or my strawberries. Probably the herbs, so I can take them indoors in winter and keep getting fresh herbs year-round.

Originally posted by Desert Dawg
The bunny rabbits - Cottontails - come right through the chain link fence and help themselves to the goodies.
The fat and retired dog that lives there gave up chasing bunnies long ago.

Thankfully Peter Cottontail hasn't visited our yard...yet... but that could be because of the obsessive-compulsive Border Collie who runs around the yard... probably not so much our cowardly little corgie-mutt though.

Originally posted by justyc
pinch these new shoots off so they don't grow. you will get much better growth by doing this.

Thanks Justy, I'll do that. I did snip all but the top leaves before I planted it in the ground, but didn't know about snipping new growth after the plant has taken hold with new shoots.

Originally posted by frayed1
I have used pantyhose for tying up the vines in the past.....they give a bit and are not as likely to cut into the stems as cord or twine would.....I have since given up those horrid things and now just trim a few limbs off the privet hedge (it grows rampant here) and criss cross them through the cages to support the tomato branches.

Why "those horrid things?" Were they unduly messy or ugly? I've got a really powerful honeysuckle growing in the front, I could easily get some vines from that. I can't help but wonder if that'd end up taking root though. The thing is a monster, an even better success than my roses, but not quite as much as the trifid-wisteria along the fence.

Originally posted by Desert Dawg
How do some of you handle your spices - dill, parsley & basil for instance?

I'm thinking I may dry the basil leaves in a paper bag for a few days then do the mortar & pestle bit and bottle it up in an old, clean, spice jar.

Basil and Rosemary can both be frozen, or alternately, find a dry glass jar and buy a thingy of salt. Then alternate layers of salt with a leaf. A milimeter of salt, a leaf, a milimeter of salt, a leaf, and so forth. That way you can dry-store your herbs. Then when you need a leaf, just pluck it out, brush off the salt, and pop it into the cooking.

Oh! BTW, unless you've used some rather poisonous stuff on your herbs, don't wash your basil before using it in the cooking. Apparently it deadens the taste considerably.

If your herbs are in a pot, you could just move it indoors and that way get fresh herb year-round.

Originally posted by thelibra

Originally posted by frayed1
...I have since given up those horrid things ...

Why "those horrid things?" Were they unduly messy or ugly?

Have you ever worn pantyhose????

They can manage to be quite horrid ( especially in Georgia summer humidity!) without being messy or ugly!

The tomato vines did not seem to mind, tho and perhaps even liked the pantyhose tie-ups, but they did not pony up the four bucks or so for a new pair, and as I no longer wear them on a daily basis ( retired ), I don't have a stash of old ones to use.......the privet is handy, free, and needs cutting anyway....so now it's the 'support' of choice.

Originally posted by frayed1
Have you ever worn pantyhose????

Do tights in a Shakespeare play count? Otherwise no, but if they're anything like that, I see your point. Heh. I'd thought that the "horrid" part was in regards to the actual gardening part. No, I'm quite thankful I don't have to deal with even a half of the clothing drama that many women do. As a guy, if I merely remember to wear pants and comb my hair, I get extra points.

Originally posted by frayed1
The tomato vines did not seem to mind, tho and perhaps even liked the pantyhose tie-ups, but they did not pony up the four bucks or so for a new pair, and as I no longer wear them on a daily basis ( retired ), I don't have a stash of old ones to use.......the privet is handy, free, and needs cutting anyway....so now it's the 'support' of choice.

That's a real good point. Hmmm... Well, I've already got a pair that the wife said she can't wear due to tears or something, so I'll use those till they're gone, and then switch to honeysuckle vines. I'm sure they'll work fine. Thanks for the advice.

Originally posted by justyc
oh - i forgot to mention .....

you will notice as the tomato plant grows that new leaves will appear at the bottom of each branch (where the branches come off the main stem), - pinch these new shoots off so they don't grow. you will get much better growth by doing this.

I've always heard them called 'suckers'! They grow in a 'crotch' between the main stalk and a side branch......if left long enough they grow into another stalk or fork. Here's a couple that I missed when they were small....


They will hinder the upright growth, and cause the plant to spread sideways, branching in all directions. They divert the strength from the main stalk and seem to make for smaller tomatoes.

It's easy to pinch them out if you catch them when they first appear, but if you miss a few and they get several inches tall, you can still remove them ( careful not to break the main stalk....you might want to snip with garden scissors). Put these larger ones into a cup of water and in a few days they will sprout roots and you can transplant them into potting soil and voila! You have more tomato plants at virtually no cost!