That one day in September, it is almost here, and what a busy time it is leading up to it.

Mad Mondays for some, queuing for tickets for others, the Brownlow Medal count, a public holiday thrown in, the grand final parade, grand final breakfasts and all the preparations for grand final day parties.

It really is a busy week, all leading up to the one big day.

That’s right, it’s the official day to plant your tomatoes in Victoria.

The frosts have finished, spring is here, the sun is shining and the days are getting longer.

Everything is right for planting up your summer veggie gardens, especially your tomatoes, as grand final weekend is tomato planting weekend, or so we are told by many of our customers.

It is the official start time for all those competing with family and friends to have the first ripe tomato of the season.

Tomatoes require a good sunny spot in the garden and love open, friable soil with plenty of organic matter dug through it.

Taller growing varieties will require staking, while the bush crops can be allowed to just sprawl as they like.

There are earlier and later cropping varieties, so it is worth considering planting a few different types to extend your cropping season.

A good early tomato is Rouge de Marmande with its large, ribbed, deep red fruit known for its outstanding flavour.

It is a vigorous tall staking variety, with good disease resistance and produces an abundance of fruit.

Another popular earlier to mid-season variety is the Grosse Lisse tomato, which has a long cropping season.

It is a tall climbing heirloom variety that produces large, globe-shaped, smooth fruit with an excellent, juicy flavour.

This heavy-fruiting variety requires staking to support its abundant growth and is ideal for the home gardener.

Mighty Red is a newer, tall staking mid-season variety with large tasty fruit.

This has become increasingly popular in recent years due to its tough skin and high disease resistance.

Black Russian tomato is known for its distinctive dark, reddish-purple coloured fruit with a rich, sweet and slightly smoky flavour, making it a popular choice for salads.

They are a more compact growing plant, but still require staking to support their vigorous growth.

A good popular bush variety is KY1, which has a dense bushy growth habit that offers good protection from the hot summer sun for its medium-sized, meaty flavoured fruit.

The compact dwarf habit means it does not require staking, even with its high-yield rates.

The Roma or Italian plum tomato is an elongated or egg-shaped tomato that is a popular bush crop variety.

It has a lower moisture content and minimal seeds, making it ideal for cooking and making into sauces or pastes and for drying.

Its rich, sweet, meaty flavour also makes it popular for salads and sandwiches.

A great cherry tomato is one called Sweet Bite.

These plants set long trusses of bite-sized, sweet, flavoursome fruit that are great for snacks and salads or eating straight from the vine.

They grow on vigorous, tall vines that are best staked or trellised and let go as they wish.

They are long cropping and will often go right through to the first frosts of winter.

Growing tomatoes is relatively easy, but you need to be aware of a few common problems that can occur, such as blight, wilts and leaf spot.

They are also prone to pests such as aphids and mites.

Another common problem is blossom end rot, which is caused by a deficiency of calcium.

This, disappointingly, only shows up as the fruit matures, developing a black rot at the bottom of the fruit.

By adding a dressing of gypsum back when preparing the soil before planting, you will quickly prevent this from occurring.

Fruit fly can also be a problem when growing any fruit in the home garden, and tomatoes are no exception.

When choosing to grow fruit in your garden, it comes with the responsibility of being vigilant in the control and prevention of fruit fly.

It is worth noting that some varieties, like cherry tomatoes, seem to be a lot more resistant to fruit fly attack.

A few simple measures will help control or prevent most problems that can occur in growing tomatoes and other crops in your veggie garden.

So, check with the Garden Centre staff to find out how you can get the best results from your patch of dirt in the backyard.

Don’t forget, it is also time to be planting capsicums, eggplant, chillies, cucumbers, zucchini, pumpkin, lettuce and heaps more for a healthy summer feast straight from your own garden.

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Wednesday, 2nd November 2022

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