Growing Tomato

Lycopersicon esculentum : Solanaceae / the nightshade family

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

(Best months for growing Tomato in USA - Zone 8b 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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17 Mar 22, Kylee (USA - Zone 5b climate)
my understanding is that keeping the leaves wet may make the plant more susceptible to disease and fungal issues, so its probably best to only water the base of the plant. Just make sure to give your tomatoes some shade throughout the day and i think they'll be alright
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01 Mar 22, Gary Hall (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Did anyone else have problems with tomatoes this year I had to convert back to my tiny Toms ( skin too tough for those pesky pests next year I going back to Nicotine spray that'll knock them around a bit) .
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07 Aug 22, Tom (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
My summer toms had a lot of rust but I kept cutting out the infected foliage and the rest of the plant produced just fine. The vines didn't look great but I had bumper crops of large, delicious tomatoes. Also a long season the seed came up in early spring and they produced for 6 months.
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10 Mar 22, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I have a problem with wilt at the moment - never had it before. Very annoying.
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04 Mar 22, Anonymous (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I don't have much problems with cherry tomatoes - other varieties the pest generally get to them and yellow leaf curl virus. I'm going to try double layer of bird netting I bought cheap.
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20 Feb 22, Debbie (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
Hi I live in Central Otago and have a variety ot tomato plants that have flowers but no fruit. Am I wasting my time, will they produce fruit & ripen?
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31 Mar 22, Wendy (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
I find the shorter growing tomatoes like early girl do much better - anything longer than 8 weeks seems to only just have fruit at the end of the season and then no time to ripen
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22 Feb 22, Anonymous (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
It says plant spring/summer, give them time to grow.
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03 Feb 22, Steven Winner (USA - Zone 9b climate)
What are the best Beef Stake Tomatoes that grow well in Zone 9b?
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24 Feb 22, Cynthia M. (USA - Zone 9b climate)
I live in The IE, zone 9B, and Kelloggs Breakfast tomatoes do really well for me here. All of the warm season veggies I grow in full sun, I put up sun clothe over the top of the beds, once it starts staying in the 90's F.
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Showing 51 - 60 of 798 comments
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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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