Tomato: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
How do you sow your tomatoes under cover?
Plan sowing around the eventual planting date. Tomatoes intended for a protected greenhouse can start earlier than those going outdoors. In many temperate climates, around six to eight weeks of preparation is sufficient; adjust to the packet and your ability to keep seedlings warm and well lit. Very early sowing without enough light can easily produce stretched plants.
Use clean pots or modules with drainage holes and fine seed compost that you have already moistened. Space seeds thinly and cover with a light layer according to the packet, rather than burying them deeply. Label the varieties. Maintain steady warmth, around 18 to 20°C, and keep the compost moist without saturating it. Ventilate any clear covering and remove it after emergence.
Give seedlings plenty of light. Once they have a few true leaves, move them carefully into individual pots, supporting the roots and avoiding damage to the stems. Water and allow surplus water to drain away. Move to a larger container if roots become crowded. Before outdoor planting, gradually harden the plants off and wait for sufficiently warm, frost-free conditions.
How do you plant your tomatoes?
Choose well-rooted plants with sturdy stems and healthy leaves. Gradually harden off those raised under cover. Before planting outdoors, wait until frost has passed and the soil has warmed; a spring date is not enough if nights remain cold. Give tomatoes a bright, warm, sheltered position in soil that holds moisture without staying waterlogged.
Check the growth habit on the label. Indeterminate tomatoes need tall supports. Determinate or compact forms grow differently and may need a cage to support their fruit. Set spacing according to variety and training method, often around 50 to 90 cm for plants in open ground. Put supports in place at planting so you do not damage the roots later.
Water the rootballs, remove pots carefully and prepare suitable holes. For an ungrafted plant, you can bury a section of stem after removing its lower leaves so that it produces extra roots. On a grafted plant, keep the graft union above the soil. Replace the soil, firm gently and water at the base. Check moisture during establishment. Mulch limits evaporation, but leave a clear gap around the stem. Container plants need enough space for their variety.
How to care for this plant
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Remove side shoots
If you train an indeterminate tomato on one or two stems, look for small shoots between a leaf and the main stem. Remove only those you do not want to keep, preferably while small, without removing flower trusses. Leave determinate bush tomatoes to branch naturally. If you do not know your variety's growth habit or prefer to let it grow freely, do not prune routinely. Between reminders, check new shoots when harvesting.
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Install plant supports
If your tomato variety needs support, fit a sturdy stake or string when planting. Tie the stem loosely and check ties as it grows. Bush varieties may not need staking.
How do you harvest your tomatoes?
Check your tomatoes regularly once fruits approach their usual size. Judge ripeness by the colour characteristic of the variety and a texture that becomes less hard without turning soft or damaged. Ripe tomatoes are not all red: there are yellow, orange, pink, purplish and green varieties. Use the packet or label to interpret their appearance.
Pick ready fruits while supporting their weight. Detach them gently with their small stalk attached. If the join resists, cut with a clean tool to avoid tearing a branch or knocking off nearby fruits. Small tomatoes may ripen earlier than large ones, and greenhouse crops may start before outdoor plants. Timing varies with climate and type. Determinate forms generally concentrate production more than indeterminate forms.
Sort out damaged fruits and use ripe tomatoes promptly. For short storage, keep sound whole fruits at room temperature, away from direct sunshine, and check their condition. At the end of the season, before frost, well-developed fruits that have begun changing colour can finish ripening indoors. Lay them out without piling them up and inspect them regularly. Very immature fruits often give disappointing results.
Tomato
- Type : Vegetables
- Subtype : Fruiting vegetables
- Botanical Family : Solanaceae
Characteristics
- Lifecycle : Annual
- Exposure : Full Sun
- Frost Hardiness : Frost Sensitive
- Cultivation Difficulty : Medium
- Mature height : 150 cm
Sowing & Planting
- Greenhouse crops : Unheated greenhouse
- Greenhouse Growing : Recommended
- Sowing Depth : 0.5 cm
- Plant Spacing : 60 cm
- Row Spacing : 80 cm
Maintenance
- Maintenance : Moderate
- Water Requirements : High
Other characteristics
- Soil Type : Humus-rich
- Soil pH Preference : Neutral
- Pest Sensitivity : Moderate
- Disease Sensitivity : Moderate
- Weed Sensitivity : Moderate
- Pollination : Insect-pollinated
- Propagation : Sowing