By Johanna Silver, Sunset test garden coordinator

I love the Nicotiana sp. (flowering tobacco) that self-seeds over the test garden. It grows to be over 6 feet tall and has awesome bursts of white flowers at the top.

I was weeding small nicotiana sprouts from in between my tomatoes the other day when I had a moment of panic. I know that smokers have to wash their hands thoroughly before handling tomato plants as it's possible to spread Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) and infect the crop, ruining it for the season.

Oh no, I thought, does nicotiana inherently carry TMV? Is this a disaster waiting to happen?

A plant pathologist from the Master Gardeners of Santa Clara County put my fears to rest. While nicotiana is suceptable to the disease, TMV is not inherent in the species. In fact, many commercially produced tobacco plants are resistant to the virus. I should only be concerned if the nicotiana is already infected with TMV. In that case, the virus can be mechanically transmitted to the tomato plants via my weeding. But the nicotiana shows no signs of disease, and my tomatoes are doing just great.

In fact, many consider nicotiana to be a great companion plant in your garden because the sticky leaves trap potential pests (white flies, aphids, etc.), preventing them from finding a home in your precious tomatoes (or roses!).

Here are some of Sunset's tried and true tips for growing your best tomatoes.

And here is how to celebrate your bounty.