Advice WTB Growing Tomatoes

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#2630383 4-Jan-2021 22:08

I grow in a greenhouse too. I've found keeping the tomato plants moderate size, one per pot (I use 100L pots), well trimmed, with good ventilation helps. Plus I spray generously usually with Mavrik otherwise everything in the greenhouse gets eaten by bugs. Tomatoes can get so many diseases I usually don't bother. Copper makes a mess in a greenhouse. I cut the laterals off when I see them, but sometimes they get away and grow tomatoes before I see them if I'm away for a week.

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#2645755 2-Feb-2021 13:07

I was excited to Harvest my first medium-sized beefsteak tomatoes over the weekend. I made them into a Caprese Salad (delicious!). My plant is still growing strongly, despite the blight which doesn't appear to be causing any issues.

It does not appear to be spreading either, which is curious.

So far with water included, I think each of those tomatoes cost me around $100 :)

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#2645756 2-Feb-2021 13:14

networkn:

I was excited to Harvest my first medium-sized beefsteak tomatoes over the weekend. I made them into a Caprese Salad (delicious!). My plant is still growing strongly, despite the blight which doesn't appear to be causing any issues.

It does not appear to be spreading either, which is curious.

So far with water included, I think each of those tomatoes cost me around $100 :)

LOL thats funny

Couple of years back I re did the raised gardens the whole 9 yards. I seemed to be either working or spending. One day the wife picked a few carrots, 8 bucks each I said, no discount either!

But yeah, next time it was a lot reduced $ wise, and a lot more produce. The other day she said spring onions were $3 a small bunch. Well, free here!

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#2645757 2-Feb-2021 13:17

Yeah, I mean, it's always a bit like that, but it really annoys my wife as she gets caught up on the absolute cost of these things.

I barely got away with it, based on the fact I said it was education for the kids LOL.

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#2645809 2-Feb-2021 13:51

I spent from memory about $5K on a custom made greenhouse... definitely hobby rather than economic!

Fred99

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#2650598 9-Feb-2021 19:12

I don't normally grow any tomatoes except a few cherry tomatoes.

Was given some "heritage" tomato seedlings this year - grown from seed by a friend.

These are kind of ugly (irregular shapes) but outstanding - tasty and meaty without being "grainy" or dry, no hard pithy core etc. Nothing even close available from supermarkets around here, I have no idea what type they are:

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#2650823 10-Feb-2021 09:55

Those suckers, or laterals branching from the axil, that you pinch off in indeterminate varieties can root easily as well to form new plants.

In fact I have almost as many tomatoes forming on these that I have growing in the aquarium as I do from the parent plants in the ground.

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#2657327 16-Feb-2021 09:42

So I've had a decent crop, around 10 harvested so far, with about another 4 to go, but I was bummed today to go and collect the last of the ripened ones and found most of the skins had split? I assume they probably aren't safe to eat once that happens?

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#2657350 16-Feb-2021 10:22

Once the skins have split you can't eat them as bacteria can get in. I find that happens with the smaller and yellow tomatoes more than the standard tomatoes.

I've had an ok season. We had tomatoes coming out our ears for a couple of weeks, probably picked a few dozen. The plants are now growing more branches and flowers and such so in a few weeks we should have more. I find I can keep them growing through to about the middle of winter if they don't catch a disease, but the yield drops a lot once it gets colder.

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#2657437 16-Feb-2021 12:36

Skins split due to too much water at once. No doubt you've had a rain deluge .
I've eaten split tomatoes as long as they are picked quickly.
A fry in the pan will rid any germies.

I've also sliced split tomatoes into salads with no ill effects. Just cut out the split bits.

My tomatoes have been raided by birds. Ditto my grapes. Thieving blighters.
Have put netting around but they still seem to sneak it for their tomato snacks...

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#2657440 16-Feb-2021 12:38

And have had a severe fungus (blight ) attack despite using regular copper treatments. May have to use a systemic fungicide next year.

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#2657442 16-Feb-2021 12:40

Yes, it was during the heavy rain Auckland had the last few days. I might heavily trim them and cook them somehow, it feels a horrible waste.

I never knew it was possible for rain to split a tomato, that's crazy!

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#2657451 16-Feb-2021 12:55

I get the little yellow ones splitting if they get overripe. They grow in semi-hydroponic solution, no same amount of water as usual. I think some might be thin skinned.

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#2657452 16-Feb-2021 12:56

My ones were definitely pretty ripe, I should have pulled them off the vine a day or three ago, I wasn't sure when the right time to harvest was.

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#2657505 16-Feb-2021 13:31

networkn:
Yes, it was during the heavy rain Auckland had the last few days. I might heavily trim them and cook them somehow, it feels a horrible waste.

I never knew it was possible for rain to split a tomato, that's crazy!

Not the rain itself but the amount of water in the soil that the plants suck up.

Tomatoes are "gross" feeders. Water and nutrients.

Quite a few plants are susceptible to this. I've had guava berries split due to too much water intake.

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