Your comments and tips

29 Jan 10, DelBoy (Australia - temperate climate)

I've had trouble with my tomatoes too this year. Last year I had 3 x cherry and 3 x Roma plants which all gave me loads (too many) tomatoes. This year I planted 3 x cherry and 1 x Roma (in a different section of my garden). Two of the cherry plants gave me a handful each of tomatoes and grew to maybe 15cm in height. The Roma is still producing huge tomatoes but is only about 40cm tall. The last cherry plant is about 1.4m tall and still producing flowers and delicious fruit. I've treated all plants equally well, feeding them and watering them all equally. They all get equal sun. The only difference? The small cherry plants came from Bunnings and the other 2 came from K-Mart!

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26 Jan 10, Chris (Australia - temperate climate)

Lyndall, Flowers not producing fruit could be due to too much water. with regard to the height, last year I let all the side shoots grow and that stopped vertical growth compared to this year where I have religiously trimmed out any shoots from the leaf joints and my plants which were planted 23 November are between 1 and 1.4 metres high. My theory is that if you let the side shoots grow a bit it will stop trying to grow vertical because the plant needs to keep flowering and the only way to flower is to produce new growth. This growth comes from the main stems or new stems nearer the bottom of the plant. I have 4 plants so am going to let to bush out more and keep 2 growing vertical. If you let the plant grow up through the wire the possums will do the trimming for you.

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24 Jan 10, Barb (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Lyndall, don't worry, your tomatoes will work out what space they have - probably fall over or grow sideways a bit, but that's OK they don't have to grow upwards all the time. Marina, wilt is apparently exacerbated by poor drainage, so check if your soil is too 'heavy' and mix in compost or 'no-dig' garden ingredients to help the soil drainage if need be. Better not to 'drench' the soil - soil is full of microbes both good and bad, so help your soil with worm-wee, compost or even seaweed/fish emulsion will helps the good guys fight the bad guys for you. Drying your stakes in sunlight should kill off any fungus you don't want. I turn my stakes over each time I use them, so whatever came from last crop's soil is now up the air.

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24 Jan 10, Barb (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

HI Alison, A good aid for tomatoes is to spray the plant with a weak solution of Seasol (or similar seaweed product) which feeds the plant through the leaves, and also dissuades tomato russet mite. Also strengthen the plants by adding a good quality compost and organic fertilisers like fish emulsion, worm-farm liquid, etc. All these give the plant more resilience to diseases and pests. Don't give up!

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18 Jan 10, Lyndall (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

I have planted roma tomatoes, they started to flower at about 40cm high and are now about 1m tall but each time they flower the flower soon dies and drops off and no fruit?? Im wondering what is doing this?? I also now need to know is there a tomato plant that grows no taller than 1m because i have them in a built up vege patch which is completley caged in thanx to the possum problem I have!! So my tomato plants have now hit the top of the cage with no where to go and no fruit, which is really frustrating! Do i cut them right back or start again with a completley different type?? Hope to get some help soon Lyndall

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15 Jan 10, Dian Smit (Australia - temperate climate)

Nematodes are too small to see without magnification, the white threads COULD be a beneficial fungus, A book called "Teaming with Microbes" A gardeners guide to the soil food web ..Authors Jeff Lowenfels & Wayne Lewis published 2006 Timber Press, very enlightening

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10 Jan 10, Marina (Australia - temperate climate)

My tomatoes had the wilt very badly this year. I've pulled them all out now. I've added lime, blood and bone and mushroom compost to the soil and am growing legumes as suggested. I noticed as I turned the soil, clumps of what looked like white threads about 5cm long. Are these the dread nematodes and if not, what? Also the garden stakes I used for my tomatoes and have now pulled out have white stuff clinging to them along with the soil. Is this the wilt fungus? Is it ok just to rinse the stakes off before reuse? Is there a drench I can apply to kill off nematodes and the wilt fungus? I would really love of any help. Help! Marina

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09 Jan 10, Janet (Australia - temperate climate)

I've been growing my toms by the instructions in "Gardening Aust." mag. Not given them too much nitrogen (although the bushes are still quite big) and fed with sulphate of potash. Plenty of fruit just starting to ripen but the first ones I've tried are "hollow". What may be causing this? I've never had it before. Some of your comments indicate that I should be giving them more food, if so what? I'm in Perth.

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06 Jan 10, Katrina (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Whilst crop rotation is important, it doesn't seem the whole answer. We have a raised bed, no dig garden, built on bedrock and layered last winter with manures, lucerne etc. So no prior soil, let alone where tomatoes had been. Despie using the preventative milk spray on first signs, wilt has taken out two plants already, which still had a light harvest, and is close to killing a third, though it's harvest continues well. More experienced gardeners (this is just my second year) have said it's inevitable in Sydney and just to hope for some harvest before the end of the plant. I'd appreciate any other tips. My Dad suggested a copper sulphate spray, but we garden organically.

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05 Jan 10, alison (Australia - temperate climate)

Thanks Barb ... novices are always keen but boy I lack knowledge. I'm trying to companion plant and not use pesticides (except my garlic mix). Also heard that "solar sterilisation" will kill organisms - black plastic over bed before planting - weighed down and let the sun kill off the bugs. Oh well, there's always next year! Barb is there anything we can do now to save our tomatoes? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheers

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