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Easy to grow. Sow as seedling. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed.
Best planted at soil temperatures between 16°C and 35°C.

All tomatoes are frost tender and should be grown in shelter or under cover in cool climates.

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Your comments and tips

20 Aug 2007 Chris

Local advice is to wait until Melbourne Cup day before planting out tomatoes or anything frost sensitive.

30 Aug 2007 Norman Genuis

Tomatoes - to prune or not to prune. Is the difference between the two just whether you want less quantity of fruit but in bigger size or more quantity with smaller size? Thanks.

31 Aug 2007 Chris Hutchinson

Clive Blazey in his Diggers Club book "The Australian Vegetable Garden" (http://www.diggers.com.au/books.shtm#vegbook) describes how they ran pruning trials and found that pruned plants produced much lower yields (25% in Tigeralla and 33% in Grosse Lisse compared to unpruned). They also found that pruning had no effect on the size of the fruit.
They did find that late pruning tended to produce larger fruit, but with greatly reduced yields.

28 Nov 2007 Judy Ramsey

I had some success last year with planting the lateral shoots taken off the main plant (put in water for a few days until roots develop). Great site - very useful

16 Dec 2007 Liz Hutchinson

Spray tomatoes with copper at least once a fortnight. If the weather is humid and/wet spray weekly to prevent blight. Organic gardeners can use copper. Also mulch well and keep up the deep watering during dry spells.

08 May 2008 Audrey

I have some cherry tomato vines growing in my garden (left over by previous tenants). I have no idea how to keep them from frostbites since they are growing on the ground instead of pots. But i would love to maintain the vines since it is winter is round the corner. How do i keep them from frostbites? Is there anything that i can buy to cover over them? Would appreciate some advice.

09 May 2008 Chris

Audrey, you could try piling up tons of mulch around the plants, or covering them with agri-fleece or other frost protection sheeting that nurseries supply. Ordinary clear plastic sheeting can work too, but I've found it needs support, while agri-fleece is light and can be placed directly onto the plants and anchored round the edges.