Tips for choosing and growing tomato varieties during winter | Gardening 101 | Gardening Australia

Jerry shows you how to get a heavenly harvest of winter tomatoes in the subtropics. Subscribe 🔔 ab.co/GA-subscribe
Jerry believes a home-grown tomatoes are one of the best reasons to take up gardening, and he’s keen to share his tips for getting the best crops in the sub tropics.
He’s at Old Bishopsbourne in Milton, where a local community garden on the tennis court grows a wide range of tomato varieties.
Timing is Everything:
Fungal and pest attacks are worst in summer so it’s best to grow them in winter.
Choose Your Varieties Wisely:
Pests and fruit fly home in on large-fruited varieties, while cherry tomatoes don’t seem to get as badly attacked.
There are two types of tomatoes - determinate and indeterminate:
Determinate varieties have one central growth point and tend to all fruit at one time, so are favoured by commercial growers.
Indeterminate varieties (including cherry tomatoes) have multiple branches and fruit over a longer period of time.
Tomatoes prefer neutral soil and not too much nitrogen. Jerry adds some compost and half a handful of dolomite per square meter to avoid calcium deficiency, which can cause blossom-end rot. Water it in and wait a fortnight before planting.
Spacing is important to avoid fungal diseases. Small varieties such as ‘Stupice’ can be planted 60cm apart but larger cultivars such as ‘Sweet Bite’ prefer spacing of about 1 metre. Allow a metre between rows.
Plant seedlings a bit deeper than they were in pots to encourage secondary roots up the stem. Mound up the soil to ensure good drainage in heavy rain.
Water in with some potash after planting and apply again two or three weeks later, and then again when the plants start flowering.
Avoid watering the plants’ leaves, as this can lead to fungal diseases.
Don’t mulch - allowing the soil to become a bit dry between waterings will discourage diseases.
Small varieties can be grown in a 30cm pot - place the pot on a saucer so you can water from below. Consistent watering will avoid fruit split.
To protect plants from cold spells, cover them with old net curtains or other protection.
Canker and other diseases may well creep in as the season progresses but if cared for well enough the plants will continue to produce fruit.
Filmed on Turrbal & Yuggera Country | Milton, Qld
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[@sharonm3341]

Thank you for ‘how to grow veg’ video for us in the sub-tropics ❤

[@lesliedevlin8501]

Great show people 💯💯💯 thanks Les from Perth WA 👍👍👍

[@Rainsley63]

I am interested in the ibc setup the tomatoes are growing in.Are they wicking beds.?

[@lizxu322]

I am crying because I bought fancy heirloom tomato seeds off the internet and they all grew weak and yellow but the hybrid truss seeds I got from the supermarket tomato are growing like weeds😂

[@Lea-bw9wj]

I had no problem with tomatoes in summer but winter I gave up fast

[@pukavita]

Would tomato plants get can canker or other diseases if they are grown in greenhouse or indoors?

[@GardeningAustralia]

Tomatoes can get canker disease anywhere, if it’s already present in the seeds, seedlings, or brought in on tools and stakes 😔 It does spread much easier in a warm, humid greenhouse than outdoors, so balancing ventilation is key! Thanks for watching!

[@huggy-Bear]

Interesting.. is it just me or do some of these tips go against previous GA tomato videos? For example the one done by Tino a few years ago.

[@inabates8919]

The whole point of gardening in Australia is to garden for your area! The end game is always what grows best where you are, look around take advice of the old growers etc, GA is only an advisory. 🤷‍♀️

[@Micko350]

Yes I'm certain Brisbane would be EXACTLY the same as Tasmania! 🤭

[@droseghalesundayherbalhome]

Herbs was prescribed by God himself but we choose to ignore checkout diseases that could be cured !!

[@АдемОхутан]

👍👍👍

[@dimijames7960]

no manure?

[@anserbauer309]

Why dolomite rather than gypsum? If anyone knows, please tell me! This guy puts dolomite in everything, but I find the change in soil pH it creates can negatively impact my vegies which prefer slightly acidic soils. Gypsum has calcium just like dolomite, along with sulphur which is also important for metabolism and protein synthesis. Is it just because this dude has acidic garden soil, or is there a reason dolomite is better?

[@GardeningAustralia]

You can definitely use gypsum instead, which won't change the pH. Jerry's preference is dolomite to increase pH slightly and add magnesium, which many Aussie soils are deficient in. Which one you choose really depends on your specific soil type & pH so it's worth testing first. Here's an explainer from Jerry: www.abc.net.au/gardening/how-to/consider-calcium/12906412 🍅Thanks for watching!

[@anserbauer309]

@@GardeningAustralia Thanks so much for your reply. Very helpful. I'd not seen that segment before and now realise that the advice I've seen Jerry previously give is somewhat specific to soils like his. I have heavy clay soils which pH test between 6 and 7 throughout the orchard and garden areas. I have a lot of natives and proteas that prefer more acidic soils, along with berries and fruit trees that also perform better in those conditions. I use natural gypsum for the fruit & veg, and granular for the lawns in the orchard (which are also grazed by poultry) to help break down the clay, add calcium and maintain the pH.

[@jeffreyb3238]

Naming countries in Milton is totally irrelevant to this video.