Vegetables/Moderate
Tomatoes
Solanum lycopersicum
Tomatoes are the gateway crop for most home growers: nothing tastes further from a supermarket tomato than one still warm from your own vine. They need heat, sun and steady water — get those right and even a small balcony pot will deliver kilos of fruit.
Choose between indeterminate types (tall, staked, ripen over months) and determinate bushes (compact, ripen all at once). Feed weekly with a potassium-rich tomato feed once the first flowers open, and mulch the soil to keep moisture even — this alone prevents most cracking and blossom end rot.
Year at a glance
Common problems
Black leathery patch on the base of the fruit
Blossom end rot — caused by uneven watering, not calcium deficiency. Mulch and water more consistently.
Full guide: Yellow Leaves →Leaves curling upward
Usually heat stress or aggressive pruning. Provide afternoon shade above 30°C and stop over-pinching side-shoots.
Fruit splitting on top
A dry spell followed by a heavy watering. Keep the soil evenly moist and mulch 5 cm deep.
Questions, answered
Why are my tomato leaves curling?+
Upward curl is almost always heat or wind stress, or an over-vigorous prune. Downward, twisted curl on new growth can indicate herbicide drift from lawn treatments nearby.
How often should I water tomatoes?+
Deep-soak two to three times a week rather than a little every day. In 30°C+ heat, container tomatoes may need daily water — mulch heavily to buffer this.
Do I need to pinch out side shoots?+
Only on indeterminate (cordon) varieties — remove the shoots that grow at 45° from the join between stem and leaf. Determinate bush varieties should be left alone.