Tomatoes top every gardener's list of favorite crops. There's nothing like a homegrown tomato.

Period.

It doesn't take an expert gardener to appreciate the virtues of a homegrown tomato. But even veteran gardeners can experience challenges in growing these beauties.

While generally easy to grow, tomatoes aren't without problems, so here's a quick primer.

Location: Tomatoes need 10 to 12 hours of sunlight every day for maximum flavor and productivity, although they can get by with less, said Scott Meyer, editor of Organic Gardening magazine. Choose a sunny spot with good drainage. Plant in soil that is rich in organic matter.

Choosing varieties: Taste should be at the top of the list when choosing varieties. We all want tomatoes that taste great, not the typically insipid ones from the grocery store. Catalogs describe various tomatoes as sweet, fruity, tangy, delicious, mouth-watering _ who could resist wanting to grow them all?

So the question becomes hybrid versus heirloom. Meyer said his magazine has done a fair share of tomato taste tests. "Our experience with heirloom varieties is they are less productive than the hybrids, but they might make up for it in terms of flavor."

Also look for disease resistance, Meyer said, since it can be frustrating to watch a healthy tomato plant suddenly succumb to a wilt disease or be throttled by nematodes. Most heirloom varieties are resistant to the main tomato diseases, he said.

A quick look at the tomato tag can tell you. If it has the letters "VFN," "VFNA" or "VFFNA," then it is resistant to the most common problems that plague tomatoes. "V" means the variety is resistant to verticillium wilt. "F" means the variety shows tolerance to fusarium wilt. (Two "F's" means it is resistant to both types of fusarium wilt). "N" means nematode resistance. "T" means the variety resists the tobacco mosaic virus. "A" means it is not susceptible to alterneria root rot.

Planting: Tomatoes have the unique ability to grow roots along their stem, so dig a deep hole and plant them clear up to their top leaves, Meyer said. If you can't dig a deep hole, then dig a trench and lay the plant in the trench with its top leaves sticking out of the soil. Tomatoes have a pretty good-size root ball, so it's important to work the soil down 10 or 12 inches.

Meyer cautioned gardeners not to grow tomatoes where peppers, eggplant or potatoes grew the year before. That's because they share some of the same diseases. If you have to plant tomatoes in the same spot, or where you had peppers, eggplant or potatoes previously, then be sure to add lots of compost to keep the soil healthy.

Watering: Talk to 20 tomato growers about watering and you'll get 20 answers. Most people water tomatoes too much, Meyer said. Be especially careful about watering once fruit starts to form, he said. Too much water can cause the fruit to crack and split. He uses a gallon watering jug and gives his established tomatoes a gallon of water a week.

Getting the plants established is another matter, he said, and plants will need to be watered more frequently. The key is to water them more, but less often as they get established. "A good visual test is if the plant wilts during the heat of the day, but perks back up at night, it's OK. Wilting is the plant's way of conserving water. If it doesn't come back up at night, then you probably need to water again." A little stress is actually good for the plant, he said.

Water in the morning, Meyer said, or an hour or two before dark so leaves have time to dry. "Put the water where the plant can use it, at ground level," he said. "Water on leaves sets up a hospitable environment for disease."

Fertilizing: Organic Gardening magazine has done quite a bit of research about feeding tomato plants, Meyer said. "There are two critical times: two weeks after you've planted and then after the first blossoms appear."

Staking: "I find stakes sturdier, but cages are easier," Meyer said. Durable, strong cages can be made from remesh, concrete reinforcing wire, which generally is sold in 50-foot rolls.

Pruning: "We've studied this question, tried it ourselves and read a lot of research about whether to remove side shoots or leave them alone," Meyer said. "It doesn't seem to have much impact on productivity, either way. It looks a little nicer to remove them, but if you're looking for an excuse to do less, you don't need to bother. If you're one of those people who likes doing something, then feel free to go to town. You're not hurting your plant," Meyer said.