Tomatoes are very popular vegetables anyone can grow in their garden. If you live in Mississippi, the next question is, ‘when to plant tomatoes in Mississippi?’
Technically, you can start a tomato seedling or transplant as soon as the danger of frost has passed. You can also start them indoors and in containers to get a headstart in the growing season. However, it’s recommended that you start later on during spring and early summer in order to get larger fruit and healthier plants.
When to Plant Tomatoes in Mississippi?
Tomato transplants are preferred since seeds will take longer to produce fruit. It’s a summer season variety, which means they grow best on hot days and bright sun.
Tomatoes are planted in spring and maintained through summer to try and get a harvest in fall. However, this requires careful planning and execution and mulching, fertilization, and keeping the pests and diseases at bay. The resulting fruit is more or less smaller than what you’d expect.
Seedlings may be started in June, then set out and planted in July or August. Transplants should be planted deeper and ensure it has support for growing upwards.
Mississippi is categorized as hardiness zone 7 to 9, and most vegetable crops can be started anywhere between mid-February to early March, depending on the last frost date.
How to Grow Tomatoes in Mississippi
Mississippi gardeners should not shy away from putting their tomatoes in direct contact with sunlight. Growth and fruiting will largely depend on how much sun it gets daily. Therefore, you should pick a site that gets all-day light.
Tomatoes thrive in well-draining and organically rich soil. Nutrients are essential to a tomato plant, so you should periodically apply mulch and fertilizer to make sure it’s kept in a happy state. Furthermore, it would help if you came up with a strong support, so your tomatoes get plenty of airflows, and the fruit it produces is well above the ground.
As far as fertilization is concerned, the best one for tomatoes is a balance of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. A 10-10-10 mix should be fine and a 2-3-1 variety where phosphorus is higher than nitrogen and potassium. Although tomatoes are heavy feeders, they’re usually satisfied with organically rich soil, mulch, and water.
The Best Tomato Varieties to Grow in Mississippi
Better Boy
Better Boy is a hybrid mid-season species that many MS gardeners enjoy. The plant is hardy and can adjust to a range of conditions. It’s consistent in how it produces fruit, which matures in about 70 days or so.
This indeterminate variety should be grown in cages or stakes. They are particularly resistant against fusarium wilt and verticillium, making them beginner-friendly vegetable plants.
Super Fantastic
Super Fantastic is characterized by large and meaty fruits that are bright red. It’s well-adapted in the US and can grow up to 9 feet tall.
This variety is resistant to nematodes, fusarium wilt, and verticillium wilt and grows particularly vigorous when the conditions are right. It’s also an asset in a vegetable garden since it produces so much fruit in a single season.
Park’s Whopper
Another large-fruit, high-yield variety suited to Mississippi, Park’s Whopper is big enough to fit into a sandwich with just a single slice.
As with other tomatoes, please put them in a place where it gets full sunlight and amend with organic fertilizer and plenty of natural compost material. It will give you a plentiful harvest you can use for salads, burgers, and soups when treated right.
Celebrity
Celebrity tomatoes are aptly named as it produces spectacular, and attention-grabbing fruits come harvest time.
A semi-determinate variety that grows only up to 4 feet in height, it’s resistant against nematodes, fusarium wilt, and verticillium wilt. Keep well-watered for the best results.
Sweet 100
Sweet 100 is a cherry tomato type, which means the fruit is smaller but has a sweeter flavor. You can add them in salads or as they are, and one bite will give you that delicious and fresh taste.
Sweet 100 is known to produce large amounts of fruit from spring to fall.
Related Article: Mississippi Summer Crops