Vegetable · Fruiting
Tomato
Solanum lycopersicum
A warm-season staple valued for its fruit, ranging from small cherry types to large slicing varieties. Needs consistent warmth and steady watering to produce well.
At a glance
Water
Medium
40–56 fl oz/wk
Light
Full sun
6–8 hrs/day
Space
Medium
24 in
To maturity
60–85 days
Edible parts: Fruit
Family: Nightshade
Includes tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and potatoes. Many members produce fruit that ripens from green to a deeper colour as it matures.
Harvest
Harvest when fully coloured and slightly soft to the touch; fruit picked early will continue to ripen off the vine.
Growing conditions
- Temperature
- 55–85 °F
- Soil pH
- 6–6.8
- Soil type
- Well-draining, loamy, rich in organic matter
- Climate
- Warm-season annual; frost-tender and killed by any freeze.
- Growing season
- Set out transplants after the last spring frost once nights stay above 50°F.
- Nitrogen
- Medium (≈40–80 ppm)
- Humidity
- Medium (≈40–70 %)
- Planting unit
- Seedling
- Support
- Stake or cage for support.
- Feeding schedule
- Seedling: Balanced All-Purpose (10-10-10) every 14 days
- Flowering: Bloom & Fruit Booster (2-5-8) every 14 days
Switch from the all-purpose feed once flowering starts to favour fruit over foliage.
- Pest resistance
- Moderate
- Pests
- Aphids: Small, soft-bodied insects that cluster on new growth and undersides of leaves, sucking sap and excreting sticky honeydew., Hornworms: Large green caterpillars that can strip a plant's leaves quickly if not caught early.
- Pruning
- Remove suckers on indeterminate varieties to focus energy on fruit.
Where it grows
- Container / PotIdeal— 12-18in+ diameter pot, needs support.
- In-Ground GardenIdeal
- Raised BedIdeal
- Vertical / TrellisIdeal— Indeterminate varieties benefit greatly from trellising.
- HydroponicPossible— Works well in DWC or Dutch bucket systems.
- WindowsillNot recommended— Most varieties need more direct sun and space than a windowsill offers; dwarf/patio varieties may work.
Companions & antagonists
- Antagonistic: Kale — Commonly listed as a poor pairing in companion-planting guides; brassicas can compete with and inhibit tomato growth.
- Beneficial: Basil — The classic pairing - basil is reported to repel aphids and whiteflies, and some gardeners report it improves tomato flavor.
- Antagonistic: Potato — Both are nightshades susceptible to the same early and late blight; growing them near each other increases the risk of one infecting the other.
Varieties
- Cherry Tomato
A small, fast-ripening tomato producing clusters of bite-sized fruit. More forgiving and prolific than large slicing tomatoes - a good pick for beginners and containers.
Sources
- Companion Vegetable Garden Plants — Ask Extension
- Tomato-Potato Late Blight in the Home Garden — Penn State Extension