Heat, Humidity, and Hard Lessons: Tips for Tomato and Pepper Success in Excelsior Springs

Excelsior Springs, Mo. – Laurie Stuckey discusses unlocking the secrets to growing vibrant tomatoes and peppers at the Excelsior Springs Senior Center. Stuckey, a local gardener with a passion for regenerative growing practices, explained that both tomatoes and peppers are “extremely easy and hard,” to cultivate but “they are extremely easy if someone has the right conditions.”  

In Missouri, she observed that several variables make growing warm-weather plants challenging, such as choosing the right seeds for the region, plant care, and issues related to the Midwest microclimate. One of the main challenges for these plants, she said, is “temperature fluctuation,” because they can be “susceptible to certain types of fungus within the humid climate.” 

Fungi in humid climates can thrive on plants because spores germinate on leaves, spreading from one leaf to another and from plant to plant. Stuckey mentioned that when the leaves of pepper and tomato plants get wet in humid and warm weather, the extended moisture creates a perfect environment for disease. These conditions make plants vulnerable to blight, fruit rot, gray mold, buckeye rot, and leaf rot. 

She explained, however, that these diseases can be managed through proper seed selection and regular plant care, allowing both tomatoes and peppers to thrive. For those growing these types of plants, she recommends choosing plants that are resistant to common fungal diseases and suitable for the Midwest climate, including: 

TOMATOES: 

• Cherokee Purple: A large heirloom variety with a native origin that is heat tolerant and reliable in the Missouri climate. 
• Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye: An heirloom slicer that is disease-resistant with a unique color. 
• Amish Paste: An heirloom paste variety that is proven to be reliable in the Midwest. 
• Black Cherry: An heirloom cherry variety that is crack-resistant, productive, and heat-tolerant. 
• Big Beef: A hybrid slicer variety that is heat tolerant and known for its flavor-packing disease resistance with a high yield. 
• Celebrity: A hybrid slicer reliable in hot temperatures as well as disease-resistant. 
• Mountain Magic: A hybrid containing late blight resistance made for humid climates.
• Lemon Boy: A hybrid slicer with a high production rate as well as heat tolerance. 
• Sun Gold: A hybrid cherry tomato with a sweet taste that ripens quickly, with a high success rate in the region. 
• Juliet: A salad topper, grape tomato that is crack-resistant as well as heat and humidity-tolerant. 

PEPPERS: 

• Aristotle: A hybrid sweet bell pepper that is disease-resistant and heat-tolerant, and is known for being a good producer. 
• Big Bertha: A hybrid large, fruited bell pepper that is reliable and can withstand disease with a high yield. 
• King Arthur: A hybrid sweet bell pepper is known for being a high-yielding producer and resistant to bacteria-causing diseases, making it suitable for humid conditions. 
• California Wonder: An heirloom bell pepper that is heat-tolerant and reliable, with large fruit. 
• Jimmy Nardello’s Sweet Pepper: An heirloom Italian frying pepper that is drought intolerant with a quick maturity rate. 
• Jalapeno Traveler Strain: An heirloom spicy pepper that grows well in hot, humid conditions. 
• Serrano Tampiqueño: a heirloom spicy pepper known for being pungent and its ability to withstand summer temperatures. 
• Cayenne Pepper: An heirloom variety known for spicing up any meal, which is a prolific producer and adapts well to the Missouri climate. 

Stuckey pointed out that selecting varieties suitable for the region also improves the success rate of each plant. “If you go to a local grower who understands the climate, they will also know what works well with the best interest of the plant,” she said, “they won’t choose varieties to sell that don’t grow in the area.” 

For those considering growing tomatoes and peppers this year, she also explained that beginner growers should select determinant rather than indeterminate plants. 

Determinant plants, according to Stuckey, have a set height and width that grow to a specific size. “They are great for container gardens and beginner growers,” she added. Each determiner plant will “produce fruit all at once and typically be shorter.” 

For those seeking indeterminate tomatoes, she explained that these plants do not have a fixed growth limit and will continue to grow, sometimes reaching up to 10 feet. These plants will also produce at different rates throughout the growing season and require additional support and pruning. 

Additionally, each plant needs basic care, and Stuckey explained that both peppers and tomatoes are similar because they require proper sunlight—up to eight hours a day and no less than six—and optimal soil temperatures between 60 to 70 degrees. She added that even when temperatures rise significantly in Missouri, the plants’ growth still depends on them not getting hotter than 85 degrees during the day. 

Because of the hot temperatures, she mentioned that gardeners can use different shade-covering techniques to prevent plants from overheating while also ensuring consistent watering for the best results. 

In addition, growers can keep their plants thriving by pruning as “suckers will need t be removed from the plants throughout their life span. Suckers, according to Stuckey, are small shoots that grow between the main stems and branches of a tomato plant located at a 45-degree angle between branches. 

Her recommendation is for gardeners to remove most of the suckers, while some people never remove any. She said the “suckers reduce energy expenditure on multiple growth points of the plant and removing them improves air circulation and reduces fungal disease.” 

Also, she recommends growers remove any leaves touching the ground to prevent microbial splash-ups and to reduce the chance of fungal growth on the plant’s leaves. Her advice is to keep at least one foot of space between the ground and the lowest leaves once the plant matures and grows, to prevent disease overall. 

“Tomatoes are endeavors. They’re essential summer plants to grow, and they’re both extremely easy and extremely hard. They’re extremely easy if and only if you have the right conditions,” Stuckey concluded.