Growing Tomato

Lycopersicon esculentum : Solanaceae / the nightshade family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
    S                  
      T T T            
      P P              

(Best months for growing Tomato in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • S = Plant undercover in seed trays
  • T = Plant out (transplant) seedlings
  • P = Sow seed
  • Grow in seed trays, and plant out in 4-6 weeks. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 61°F and 95°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 16 - 24 inches apart
  • Harvest in 8-17 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Asparagus, Chervil,Carrot, Celery, Chives, Parsley, Marigold, Basil
  • Avoid growing close to: Rosemary, Potatoes, Fennel, Cucumber

Your comments and tips

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20 Feb 23, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
They do take a while to ripen.
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02 Jan 23, Irma (USA - Zone 9b climate)
I always gets my seeds From Burpee’s online. They have always yielded great amount of tomatoes.
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14 Dec 22, DENNIS (USA - Zone 10a climate)
I'm looking for a large juicy tomato to just plain eat whole. Looking for a good producer. Can't seem to find a recommendation for my area!
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18 Dec 22, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Google big tomato varieties. Most crops will grow from cold weather to hot weather, just have to plant at the right time of year for your area.
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25 Aug 22, Hannah (Canada - Zone 3b Temperate Warm Summer climate)
I have grow small tomatoes plant about three inches inside pot , now the plant grow about two feet tall n have a lot of tomatoes . I know the plant will die in winter . My question is will it grows back next year spring n summer ? Should I throw away the old plant n grow from small tomatoes plant every year ? Please advice .
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28 Aug 22, Philip Morton (Australia - temperate climate)
Let it die off and start anew. Even indeterminate tomatoes are annual and not perrenial. It could survive in a warm sheltered area but you will very likely be disappointed with a new season crop. Disease is likely to take hold of the plant as well causing further stress.
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03 Jun 22, Siva Sutendra (Canada - Zone 2b Sub-Arctic climate)
I live in Yellowknife, nwt, Canada. I have arctic tomato plants from seeding and grown to about 2 to 3 ft tall. When can I plant them in ground? What is the min temperature during night. Currently, the night temp is about 5c and daytime is 17c.. Thanks Siva
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13 Jun 22, Celeste Archer (Canada - Zone 7b Mild Temperate climate)
The KILL temperature for tomatoes is 2c. If you expect your night time temperatures to be below 4c, I would cover the tomato plant with plastic, and remove the plastic in the morning. The plastic should not be touching the plant. You can cover the plant umbrella style or tent style (fully enclosed like a mini green house). If for some reason you expect to get a really bad cold snap, I would dig the plant up, taking as much soil as possible, you can place the root ball on a piece of plastic (tarp and wrap the root ball), or on burlap, or in a pot, or in a cardboard box... whatever, then move the plant into the shed/garage/on a covered porch close to the house and keep it there until the temps warm up again. The goal when temperatures drop is too keep the morning dew off the plant, and if possible provide warmth by placing it close to the house, or in a enclosed shed.
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06 Jun 22, (Canada - Zone 2b Sub-Arctic climate)
Plant out now by the planting guide here.
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02 Jun 22, KATE (Australia - tropical climate)
Tomato seedlings get up to about 2 inches high, then just fall over and die. Spinach did the same. In tropical Darwin. Tried growing seedlings in trays first, plant them out only to loose them about a week later. Trying to Grow in a raised bed as no success into garden soil. Raised bed built mostly of potting mixtures with bags of compost and sand added. Lots of Dynamic lifter, turned over and left fallow for the wet season. Seedlings did the same death rate in the raised bed. What am I missing. Been here for 3 years and first season crops were really abundant. Now everything dies except for my Lime, Lemon and Guava Trees. Is it just to hot for Tomatoes and spinach now?
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Further to my posts below. I have found this which I believe is the problem with my bunchy curly leaves on cherry tomatoes. It is called -Tomato yellow leaf curl virus. TYLCV. Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Qld In March 2006, tomato leaf curl disease was found in cherry tomato crops in the south and west periphery of Brisbane. The disease has been found in many crops, with infection levels ranging from 5 to 100 per cent of plants. Losses in severely affected crops have been very high and the disease is a major threat to tomato production. In April 2006, infected plants were also found around Bundaberg. By June 2007, the virus was present in the Lockyer Valley, Fassifern Valley, Esk, Caboolture and Redlands areas. Since 2009 it has become a serious production constraint around Bundaberg. In February 2011, it was found in backyard tomato plants in Mareeba on the Atherton Tablelands. Tomato leaf curl disease is caused by viruses in the Geminivirus family of plant viruses, and is spread by whiteflies. The virus causing this disease is tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV). This virus is distinct from tomato leaf curl Australia virus (TLCV), which occurs in the Northern Territory and at several locations on Cape York Peninsula. Silverleaf whitefly (Bemisia tabaci Biotype B) was first recorded in Australia in 1994, it is now a widespread pest in Queensland and Western Australia and could become a major pest in most irrigated agricultural areas of Australia. Silverleaf whitefly (SLW) is also known as poinsettia or sweetpotato whitefly and in USA literature it is now referred to as Bemisia argentifolii. SLW has a wide host range (over 500 species) of crops and weeds, and is difficult to control as it has developed resistance to conventional insecticides. Biotype Q was discovered recently in Queensland. There is also an Australian native species. These three biotypes are indistinquishable in the field.

- Mike

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