Growing tomatoes in Florida and Lower Alabama isn’t easy. Yesterday, I posted this video explaining why it took us a $10,000 greenhouse to finally grow a good crop of tomatoes.
Beneath that video, we received some good comments, along with some people who wondered how it could be so hard to grow tomatoes in our climate.
jeil5676 comments:
Being from the north, I still cant fully comprehend how its hard to grow tomatoes in the south. You theoretically just need 3-4 months of moderate temps to do so. I think all my local grocery stores stock tomatoes from mexico which should be hotter in my mind. The green house doesnt make sense to me either. To me, green houses are hot. They extend a season but even in canada when its over 30c mid summer, it would get up to 50 in a green house. I dont see how that helps you in a very hot climate. Have you ever thought of just putting shade cloth suspended over a row? That would make sense to me. Water never seems to be a problem unless theres too much. But if thats the case, mounds above grade or raised beds with very well drained soil would be great. Tomatoes are like a edge of the rainforest or even a cloud forrest plant, originally. I’m not doubting you know better than me. I just dont get it. It seems to me its always great tomato weather there except maybe july, aug. Just put some shade cloth over top.
Yes, at first glance at the USDA zone it seems like we have a moderately mild climate for some of the year, and tomatoes should do okay. Yet that isn’t the case.
I replied:
Disease will take them randomly. One day, a plant is rich and green, the next day it wilts completely without recovery. Stink bugs and leaf-footed bugs puncture and tear the fruit, causing it to rot. It will be dry for three weeks, followed by 10″ of rain in a couple of days, causing the fruit to swell and split open. Weather hits the 90s in May, after a last frost that usually happens at the end of March/beginning of April. Tomatoes often start to ripen, but as they turn red, something will chew them and you’ll reach down to pick what looks like a nice fruit, only to discover the back half of it is all rotten mush. The sun gets so hot that it can burn the plants. Hornworms take entire plants in a day or two. Up North they are so easy to grow… down here, they just suffer. It seems like it would work, but it takes high effort. It’s like trying to play King of the Hill against a professional NFL team.
The greenhouse has really made a difference. Now I’m wondering what else might thrive in there that isn’t thriving in the main gardens!
Cabbages in winter, perhaps? Pineapples? Artichokes?
It’s a whole new world for us to explore.
You can have greener thumbs by this weekend!
5 comments
Growing tomatoes in the south is tough. Wearing a suit in a greenhouse, that’s torture. Bet you were glad when you were done filming!
David, that’s a good video man thanks for that. A good mix of humor and information.
Ok i have 2 questions if you don’t mind.
#1) As I’m watching I see the greenhouse side windows are open, assuming to keep it cool in this heat. So how do you protect from the bugs with the windows open? Is there a screen I can’t see?
#2) a greenhouse your size is just not in my budget for now. However, I plan to build a greenhouse to upgrade my deteriorating Amazon greenhouse. So do you think potted tomatoes in the greenhouse are worth my while or should I plan to plant them directly in the ground inside my greenhouse like you did?
Thank you buddy. Been busy on the homestead so I haven’t been commenting as much but I still read your posts when I find some time in between everything.
The air potatoes and true yams are taking over the area I planted them in. It’s so awesome. People think I’m crazy now.
Thank you and take care.
I answered in today’s post – thanks, Cory.
Thank you very much. You rock
I grow tomatoes here in North Florida, but man do they take some babying! Even with lots of TLC, in some years I get little or nothing out of them.
The tomato plants usually look so beautiful in April and early May. The plants are lush and green, growing by leaps and bounds, and covered with blooms and little green tomatoes. Then just as they size up and are about to ripen, some sort of disaster usually strikes. For me, this year it’s Southern Armyworms. Ever had a bad infestation of those? I’d MUCH rather have hornworms! And any time now I expect the foliar diseases to really get nasty. It’s just that time of year.
But I grow tomatoes anyway, because homegrown tomatoes are just sooooo delicious, vastly better than anything you can buy in the store. There’s nothing like a BLT with big slabs of juicy beefsteak tomatoes!
If I ever build a greenhouse, I’m sure I’ll try using it to grow tomatoes, and see if that makes things any easier. I think one of the biggest advantages of a greenhouse would be starting tomato plants earlier, so they can make a crop before the bugs and diseases get out of control. Even 2-3 weeks’ head start would be a big advantage.
But for right now, I just put 40% shade cloth over my tomatoes and sweet peppers last week. It’s too early to see if it will help them. But at least the shade cloth makes it a little cooler working around the plants.
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