Ciao Houstonish Texan-
Tomatillos are fast growers. You could probably get away with sowing the seeds directly, but up here in Canuckistan, I always start them about 2 weeks after I start the tomatoes. The seedlings are friable, nowhere near as sturdy as tomatoes and they need some babying before they get transplanted. Ideally, they should be no bigger than 6" tall because after that they will get floppy. I usually support them with a chopstick or small bamboo stake at first until they find their feet. Jjs is right, you need at least 2 plants for good production. Word to the wise, though: pick up fallen fruit. Tomatillos don't hang onto the plants well and if they fall without you realizing it, you'll have zillions of volunteers next year like Potawie. Also, that stickiness does wash off. When I husk the tomatillos, I do so into a large colander and I scrub them with a soft brush like a mushroom brush to get all the stickiness and bits of husk off. After that, they're not a problem. And they freeze well if all you want to make is a pureed salsa verde and don't need pico de gallo crunchiness. What else..the growth habit is multiple branching, so I usually stake them and use zipties to anchor the wayward branches. They get big, in a good year, up to 6 ft tall, so plan ahead and bury that stake at least a foot if you're prone to summer thunderstorms. Don't let the plants frustrate you. They're going to flower and flower and flower and make empty husk balloons for months before the balloons fill out with fruit that will eventually burst out of the husk when ripe. They have their own schedule and it's worth the wait.
Tomatillos are fast growers. You could probably get away with sowing the seeds directly, but up here in Canuckistan, I always start them about 2 weeks after I start the tomatoes. The seedlings are friable, nowhere near as sturdy as tomatoes and they need some babying before they get transplanted. Ideally, they should be no bigger than 6" tall because after that they will get floppy. I usually support them with a chopstick or small bamboo stake at first until they find their feet. Jjs is right, you need at least 2 plants for good production. Word to the wise, though: pick up fallen fruit. Tomatillos don't hang onto the plants well and if they fall without you realizing it, you'll have zillions of volunteers next year like Potawie. Also, that stickiness does wash off. When I husk the tomatillos, I do so into a large colander and I scrub them with a soft brush like a mushroom brush to get all the stickiness and bits of husk off. After that, they're not a problem. And they freeze well if all you want to make is a pureed salsa verde and don't need pico de gallo crunchiness. What else..the growth habit is multiple branching, so I usually stake them and use zipties to anchor the wayward branches. They get big, in a good year, up to 6 ft tall, so plan ahead and bury that stake at least a foot if you're prone to summer thunderstorms. Don't let the plants frustrate you. They're going to flower and flower and flower and make empty husk balloons for months before the balloons fill out with fruit that will eventually burst out of the husk when ripe. They have their own schedule and it's worth the wait.
