Garden

PLANTING OUT TOMATOES

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transplanting solanaceae and other warm weather crops
growing tomatoes in a temperate climate


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After months of waiting, it’s finally here, that tiny window where you can plant out your hot weather crops! Blink and it’s gone, a month before it was too cool and a month later too hot, without enough time for the fruit to mature before autumns chill prevents fruit ripening. In Melbourne this magical month is November, when the minimum temperature doesn’t dip below 10C, but the rain has not yet dried up and those scorching 30C plus days are few and far between. In the Northern Hemisphere this would be May.

Spring’s warm weather companions have been flourishing, beans twisting around stakes and lettuces feathering over the earth to protect your delicate young seedlings from the worst of sun and wind. The rest of your hot weather lovers such as basil can go in now with your tomatoes, capsicums, chillis and eggplants. There was room for a cucumber too in the corner of my garden bed, to twirl up and over an arbour.

A month of work paves the way for two months of rest

 After you slog this month out you will have earned that beach vacation and the garden should be fairly self sufficient. Remember don’t spoil your plants and they won’t throw a tantrum when you’re not there.

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My garden bed plan for the warmer months. Tomatoes in the centre of each triangle, supported by string thread around stakes. Lettuces suceeded by basil, marigolds, amaranth
Stage 1: September – November
Stage 2: December – March


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Grow plants densely in hot weather to protect them form sunburn, otherwise put up a shadecloth.

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Tips for planting out tomatoes

In warmer months plant in the evening to allow transplants to recover overnight. The opposite is true in cold weather, where the plants need the warm day to prepare for the cold night, to reduce the likelihood of rot.
Tomatoes are nutrient hungry, but if your soil is too rich they will produce a lot of leaves an no fruit. Dig a hole twice as deep as your seedling’s pot and place poultry manure in the bottom, cover this with soil and plant seedling on top. The plant will grow deeps roots, and reach the manure when it need the extra boost, when covered in fruit.
Avoid overhead watering as this can contribute to sun spot and fungal spores can be splashed onto foliage from other plants.
Plant hot weather crops when the minimum temperature is consistently over 10C
Plant tomato seedlings deeper than they were in their pot so the roots are nice and deep to protect them from drying out. Like cucurbits and some herbs, tomatoes form roots on their stems when in contact with soil.
There is no need to prune. Studies have shown yield is actually reduced when plants are pruned.Wounds on plants increase their risk of disease. If you need to cut them, use secateurs disinfected with mentholated spirits.
Plants can get stressed because they don’t get enough moisture. Water your seedling thoroughly an hour before transplanting and for added benefit use seaweed tea. This helps soil cling to the roots and minimises shock. If it is really dry fill the hole with water and wait for it to drain into the soil before planting.
Mulch thickly around plant to keep soil damp.


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Tomatoes have delicate stems, be careful when handling not to bruise of bend them. The same goes for the roots, be gentle!
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Add mycorrhiza fungi to the roots of the seedling before transplant. Whilst natural ecosystem such as the forest floor have millions of fungi in the soil, garden beds often require the addition of beneficial fungi to act as agents for nutrient exchange, making nutrients otherwise locked up available.
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Water deeply to saturate the soil and make sure it stays moist for the first few days after transplant. Try a chamomile herb tea After that water only once a week, but very deeply. This encourages deep roots, watering too often, and too shallowly causes roots to form near the surface and these are vulnerable to drying out on a hot day. Plants watered too become soft and delicate.

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7 Comments

    1. Thanks Tammy! This year I’m determined to be really good and not rush things out, they always seem to suffer from premature planting, fewer fruit and more diseases!

      Reply
  5. Pingback: Tomato cuttings - 10 steps to successful propagation

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