Grant Douglas's Garden Diary

Week 2: second week of January

Tomatoes are probably the most popular Summer crop for the home gardener to grow. Even people who don't grow many veges, like to put a couple of Tomatoes in a pot. They are also probably one of the most frustrating crops, as there seems to be more things that can go wrong with them than anything else. One year they do brilliantly and then the next year they can stuggle. This week I have had a few enquiries about Tomato growing and thought I'd share the answers with you.

The first one was from someone whose Tomatoes (Ramshorn) were growing exceptionally well, after them being blighted last year, but had outgrown their 6 foot high stakes outside. The person wondered if it would be okay to cut off the tops or get even longer stakes.

My advice was to cut off the tops as usually any fruit that sets after about this time, especially outside, will struggle to ripen and stay disease-free into the Autumn. Hence the idea of letting the first two laterals come away and having three leaders and so concentrating the crop from the early flowering.

The second question was to do with blight and whether the leaves should be removed. Yes, I am amazed at how Tomatoes will keep producing decent fruit, with very few leaves. If blight is bad, and copper is being used, then, removing those first few leaves (and not just part of the leaves) will give you a chance to get on top of the disease.

The third question was from someone whose tomatoes were extremely sickly looking - stunted, distorted, discoloured. One option we came to was that some bagged compost had been put in the soil where the plants were growing. It is possible that lawn herbicides (hormone based) can persist in some composts and Tomatoes are extremely prone to the effects of this, resulting in all the symptoms that were shown.

Last question was why did the Tomatoes growing in bags always look wilted? The answer was that the mix in the bags had shunk away from the walls and so the water was running down the sides and out the bottom of the bag before it had actually wet the mix. To re-wet the mix, it will have to be done very slowly so that all the water soaks in and then, in this heat, I would suggest watering thoroughly the soil morning and early afternoon each day. Of course, depending on the weather, don't over-water.

Sowing or Planting this week:

Beetroot
Beans - Runner (Shiney Fardenlosa), Dwarf Butter (last chance for a late crop)
Brocoflower
Brussel Sprouts
Cabbage (Red and Green)
Cauliflower (Frieda - Summer variety, Snowmarch - Winter variety (5 Mths). Sowing these two varieties at the same time will give a good succession.
Celeriac (for transplanting or direct)
Cucumber/Gherkins
Kale
Kohl Rabi
Leeks
Lettuce - Loose-leaf Fancy and Hearting (Webbs or Greatlakes)
Potatoes - getting late for main crop, but quick maturing early Potatoes can still be planted
Silverbeet and Perpetual Spinach
Spinach (New Zealand)
Spring Onions
Sprouting Broccoli
Sweet Corn
Zuchini
Celery

Sow Direct:

Carrots - main crop varieties
Corn Salad
Corriander/Dill
Mescalin Mix
Rocket
Radish

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