Growing Tomato

Lycopersicon esculentum : Solanaceae / the nightshade family

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

(Best months for growing Tomato in Australia - tropical 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 16°C and 35°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 40 - 60 cm 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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24 Jan 09, Domenic (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi i have plenty of tomato's this season but im just noticed alot of my tomatos have been eaten away by some pest it looks like a tiny tiny white fly they have been there for months.They make a small drill hole into my tomato's.And also, the bottom of my tomato's are black its very strange.Never have i seen this in my garden before. i have been using calf manure for some time.These little pests are now eating my peppers and my basil but not my cucumbers and zucchini .Could somebody help??
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01 Jan 09, sally (Australia - temperate climate)
Is it too late to plant tomatoes if i plant them in the next day or two? planting would be approx 3rd Jan 09
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12 Dec 08, Liz (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Whoops, but the same comments apply to a pot, Tony :)
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11 Dec 08, Anthony Robert Dawson (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Errrm what bag? I am in a pot :)
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11 Dec 08, Tony Dawson (Australia - temperate climate)
I am growing a tomato plant in a large black plastic pot. I have used a specific tomato potting mix and initially was watering every day. Although there are quite a few tomatoes most of the bottom 2/3 of the plant has yellow leaves. Is there any way of saving the plant to allow the tomatoes to ripen?
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04 Dec 08, Perry (Australia - temperate climate)
I found some biological insecticide among my crops in the form of a few small web spinning spiders which are thriving in the warmer weather.
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03 Dec 08, Perry (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi Rosie, I am only into my third crop of tomatoes ever. I seemed to have lucked on the ideal growing conditions. I am trying to be as organic as possible.You may find pics of pests at the google image search box, and remedies in google search. There's a short list of some villians in my Nov 14 post above, from Wikipedia. My crop is wilting a little in its first 30+ temps this week. Storms to follow, maybe.
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29 Nov 08, Rosie (Australia - temperate climate)
Perry someone suggested the little moths were actually 'white fly' and should be sprayed with oil or a soap based spray as they can get quite bad. However, i google them and I don't think they are my visitors. They are probably tomotoe moth (potatoe moth) - and they didn't sound like they would be helpful towards my tomotoes either. BUT when I went out again they were gone! They were only a few around - so maybe they are seasonal and don't hang around for long. They seem to have done any damage...
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29 Nov 08, Peter (Australia - temperate climate)
I have four tomato plants in Sydney. Small holes are appearig on the green fruit. Also some leaves are turning yellow (lower leaves) What should i use for the small hole pest.
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29 Nov 08, Peter (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Green fruit is being holed 2-3 mil holes also foliage on some plants turning yellow. What do I treat the plants with?
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Of course there are lots of factors (soil watering etc.), I\ll point out a few you may have issues with. I'm a little concerned about your night time temperatures harming the growth or steady growth of your tomatoes -- in addition Blossom drop will occur in if daytime temperatures are warm but night temps drop below 55 F. (13 C.) -- a condition that can easily occur in a greenhouse in winter. When you look at days to harvest for tomatoes -- they are assuming spring/summer growing -- which means the NUMBER of daylight hours is HIGHER. Your area may drop from 12 hours of daylight in summer to 9 in winter.... that's a big difference. Additionally the INTENSITY of the sun is not as great in winter as it is in summer. This means the plant is not collecting as much light. I would GUESTIMATE you need to at double the DAYS to harvest to account for your growing conditions. If you decide to go forward I would opt for varieties that tend to grow well in colder climates that NATURALLY have less intense sun and shorter days (or install lighting if you don't have it and perhaps some heat). REMEMBER your soil temp needs to stay at about 16c -- so if your pots are on the ground or if you are planting directly into the soil, the cold may creep into the soil from below. There are specific tomato varietals bred for cold hardiness which will tolerate conditions at or below 55 degrees F. (13 C.). The best choices for colder climates are short to mid-season tomatoes. These tomatoes set fruit not only in cooler temps, but also reach maturity in the shortest number of days; around 52-70 days. I would look to some indeterminate cherry or plum size tomatoes (so small tomatoes) with very low days to harvest. I have never grow this tomato -- but -- Originally developed for cool rainy nights, Quedlinburger Frühe Liebe (or as I like to say, QFL) is a German heirloom tomato variety that’s ready for harvest in just 40 days after transplanting (!!!) and keeps producing until killed by a freeze. This makes it quite an amazing all-season plant and a real keeper in the garden if you’re prone to cold snaps. QFL is sweet and flavorful with small, juicy red fruits ==> tomatofest (internet site in the USA) says : Old German potato-leaf variety means "Early love of Qued Linburg". Small spindly vines produce 1 1/2-inch, round, 4-lobed fruit in clusters of 4. These tomatoes have great flavor with good acidity. Developed for cool rainy nights. Prolific even during colder summers. **** you really need to review the conditions in your green house -- day and night time temps, hours of sunlight --and you need to choose your variety wisely -- and even then, this might be difficult -- a lot depends on your greenhouse.

- faith Celeste Archer

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