At Wishwell Farms, growing tomatoes is a lot more than just planting seeds.
Jason Wish, a local, homegrown farmer who has honed his craft after generations of farming and growing up in the industry, has spent more than 20 years perfecting the techniques that bring fresh, flavorful tomatoes to local markets every spring and summer.
As spring is just around the corner, Wish has been working on his crop for several weeks.
He has more than just tomatoes planned for his farm this spring — you’ll also see things like corn, peppers, and other seasonal produce alongside his signature tomatoes.
Jason starts the tomato season in late January, growing seedlings in his basement before moving them to the farm’s five greenhouses.
He says five is “just the right number” — enough to grow a lot of tomatoes without getting overwhelmed.
Some plants stay in the greenhouses, while others eventually go into fields on the farm to keep producing fruit later in the season.
The tomatoes are grown in rockwool, a soil-less growing medium that helps the plants get the nutrients they need while keeping roots healthy.
Growing them this way — plus starting them early in the basement — helps Wish bring ripe, vine-ripened tomatoes to farmers’ markets weeks before most outdoor crops are ready.
For 2026, Wish plans to have about 2,500 tomato plants, with each plant producing roughly 20 pounds of tomatoes.
That adds up to around 50,000 pounds of fresh tomatoes for the season!
Wish talks more about his process and says farming is in his blood:
Wish and his crew will head to their first farmers’ market a few weeks before Memorial Day, but he says tomato sales really take off over Memorial Day weekend.
But growing tomatoes isn’t as easy as it looks.
Pest management is a big part of the work.
Even in rockwool and greenhouses, insects can threaten the crop.
Jason monitors the plants daily, using natural predators, careful cleaning, and targeted treatments to protect the tomatoes.
Effective pest management ensures healthy plants, consistent yields, and top-quality fruit throughout the season.
The farm focuses on vine-ripened tomatoes, leaving the fruit on the plant to fully mature before picking.
While the farm no longer has a home-based roadside market, the farmers’ markets are where you can find Wishwell Farms’ homegrown tomatoes, including the Logan County Farmers’ Market in Bellefontaine.
Wish also shares the farm’s happenings online through his YouTube channel, posting updates several times a week throughout the growing season and harvest.
Fans can follow along to see behind-the-scenes videos of greenhouse work, field planting, and the busy tomato harvest.
For Wish, tomato growing is more than just a crop — it’s a labor-intensive, carefully timed process perfected over more than 20 years.
The farm will also add peppers, zucchini, cucumbers, eggplant, yellow squash, winter squash, onion, cantaloupe, watermelon, sweet corn, and green beans to the farm this spring.
