[LorraineWB]

I only have two plants in a growhouse and a couple of weeks ago I got all excited because ONE of my tomatoes had finally turned green!  I went away on holiday last week and noticed when I returned at the weekend that I had several red tomatoes, but on closer inspection I discovered that all the ripe ones, bar two, had been eaten - no doubt by one of our slimey friends.  How disappointing.  I will be keeping an eye out to try and save the rest of the fruit that is finally starting ripen. 

[bendipa]

I grew tomatoes outside for the first time in years. I don't have a greenhouse. I couldn't have picked a worse year to grow them. Most of this summer has been cool and sunless with the temperature only getting above 70 F and having 8 hours sunshine a day for about 2 weeks altogether out of 3 months down here in London

Although many of my Gardeners Delight are now starting to ripen on the vine, unless we get a half decent summer it's a waste of time growing tomatoes outdoors, and this summer has been one of the worst for that.

[Lulu]

Last year I lost about a dozen plants on my lottie to blight.  So decided not to do that again.  Now - I've had a good year for tomatoes too.  I've had 6 Inca in the greenhouse all producing well. I had a spare one and put it outside and its loaded with fruit but much slower at going red (not sure it will survive the wind today).  I've also got 3 Gardener's delight that is again loaded with fruit and is now goiing red.  I've had to put scaffolding up they have been that good.  Sorry to hear about others who have not had such a good year. 

[gremlin]

I'll put my question here if I may rather than starting a new thread.

I have grown cordon tomatos for many years and tried many varities* but have never solved the problem that once the trusses develop a few medium sized green toms the truss stalk breaks, or kinks, under the weight and the toms stop swelling as if they cant get enough sap. To get a good  truss of 6 ordinary sized toms I have to tie up each truss with a cats cradle of string to stop it kinking under its own weight - which is a hassle.
(I didnt bother tying up this year and I have got droopy tomato trusses that look like a bunches of marbles!)

Does anyone else notice this problem?  The photos on this thread suggets that it's just me.  Surely commercial growers dont support the trusses to get 8 or 10 big toms per truss, although I think they grow the plants at 45 degrees to the vertical.
I cant do that in my 6 x 8 greenhouse!

 *My favourite is Market King.  It's almost indestructible ! 

[viettaclark]

Mine kinked under the weight but toms still kept growing.....

[NN2Blue]

I grew tomatoes outside for the first time in years. I don't have a greenhouse. I couldn't have picked a worse year to grow them. Most of this summer has been cool and sunless with the temperature only getting above 70 F and having 8 hours sunshine a day for about 2 weeks altogether out of 3 months down here in London

Although many of my Gardeners Delight are now starting to ripen on the vine, unless we get a half decent summer it's a waste of time growing tomatoes outdoors, and this summer has been one of the worst for that.

For the past few years, toms in Northampton have been slaughtered by blight. I only grew my Gardener's Delight because they were a free packet of seeds from a gardening magazine that had been hanging around for a couple of years - I've been pleasantly surprised. Grown outdoors I have been picking for weeks. And what a good tomato!
One of the benefits of what has been another drought year in Northampton town. 

[LilacSandy]

Hi NN2Blue,
I am also in Northampton and was worried about Blight again this year but we seem to have missed it and my crop has been ripening well over the last three to four weeks and my freezer is now full to bursting with pasta sauce.  Cold weather does have some compensation. 

[lazydog]

my 7 plants including 3 beefsteak all seem to be ripening at the same time we are getting 5Lb + everyday now nothing in August so a definite glut now

[Lee G]

I have lots and lots of large but green Roma's and a fair few beef toms too, my Gardeners Delight have started ripening last weekend so I have been eating them for a few days now.  Nice taste and texture but a lot of effort for what will probably be a 3 or 4 week glut of toms.

How long should I give the others before I turn them into green tomato chutney? I don't want to be too hasty as I was looking forward to making some home made pasta sauces and sun dried toms, but also don't want to leave it too late and be able to do nothing with them.

[JayG]

Roma were specially bred for making sauces, so to get the best from them you need to get them ripe if possible.
As I have posted several times recently (but it's still true!) as long as they are a good size and preferably either a lighter green or yellow they should ripen well on a warm windowsill, especially if accompanied by some riper tomatoes or a banana skin.

I put mine about 3 deep in an old supermarket meat container, which is probably breaking another rule (some say space them out in a single layer in a warm, dark drawer) but it works fine as long as you check them regularly in case any have started to rot.

[Richard S]

I don't want to crow, but we've had an excellent crop of cherry tomatos from just three plants in pots, well staked and up against a white painted South facing wall, near Burton on Trent. The problems we HAVE had are they have kept blowing over in the recent winds and dropped a lot of fruit, and with the one beef tomato plant the fruit go black from the base and rot away. Any ideas why that might be and how to stop it?

[mumofstig]

It sound like blossom end rot...
This RHS page explains all
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/Profile.aspx?pid=395

[AlaninCarlisle]

I've got a really heavy crop of Shirley in the polytunnel but the Alicante and Gardeners Delight in the glass-house were a disaster with leaf-curl, mildew and blossom-end rot. I think I may have over-watered them in their early stages

[Beachcomber_John]

I live in Spain (Almeria) and wonder if you suffer a problem I've had all spring and summer. A small grey/brown coloured moth lays eggs on my tomato plants and a tiny green Caterpillar hatches some days later.
It then goes on to eat young leaves mainly (leaves its poo on them too) and it is difficult to find as it hides during the day under a leaf somewhere!

Iv'e tried the recommended Bacillus Thuringiensis and they LOVE IT, cant seem to get enough. The Caterpillar cripples the plant and my results are about 25% of what they should be.

Anybody know a cure or if the beast is going to carry on into the autumn, we can often be picking our last toms around Christmas if the weather has been kind to us, we get no frosts anyway.

John.

[NN2Blue]

Hi NN2Blue,
I am also in Northampton and was worried about Blight again this year but we seem to have missed it and my crop has been ripening well over the last three to four weeks and my freezer is now full to bursting with pasta sauce.  Cold weather does have some compensation. 

Hi! I have an allotment(s) at the Thornton Park site - are you talking about "garden grown" or do you have an allotment as well? I grew some tomatoes last year that were blighted and talking to my "neighbours" it was the fifth year in the row so I almost didn't bother! 
Mike