Tomato (Regular) Growing Guide

Solanum lycopersicum

Crop Rotation Group

Solanaceae (Potato and tomato family) ●

Soil

Rich soil with plenty of added compost.

Position

Sunny position.

Frost tolerant

No.

Feeding

Weekly liquid feed from spring onwards.

Spacing

Single Plants: 50cm (1' 7") each way (minimum)
Rows: 45cm (1' 5") with 60cm (1' 11") row gap (minimum)

Sow and Plant

Sow in pots under cover in winter to early spring and plant out when the risk of frost has passed.
Our Garden Planner can produce a personalized calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area.

Notes

Tie upright types to stakes with string to support the weight of the fruit. Remove side shoots which grow in the angle between the leaf stems and the main stem of the plant.

Harvesting

Pick regularly as soon as the fruits are ripe. This encourages production of more tomatoes.

Troubleshooting

Blossom end rot patches on the bottom of fruits are a nutritional disorder best prevented by growing tomatoes in well-prepared soil with constant light moisture and the addition of a small amount of garden lime prior to planting out. Yellow leaves indicate lack of magnesium, so apply liquid feed. In Australia fruit fly are a pest of tomatoes, make sure to take appropriate control measures in areas where they are present. It is important to dispose of any infected fruit and fruit has fallen to the ground by placing them in a sealed plastic bag in the sun for at least 7 days to kill the eggs and larvae. Do not compost fruit as this will lead to the fruit fly completing their life cycle and lead to the problem recurring.