Hello all...I've seen a number of posts in the past about the difficulties in growing tomatoes in the Philippines. Hoping for some responses on exact issues folks have encountered. I have around 70 San Marzano and 30 cherry tomato plants that are ready to transplant into the field. I start all seeds in a 50/50 mix of vermicompost and rice hulls. Seems to be a good seed starting mix for most veggies. The seedlings are all around 8-10" tall and look great, only issue is some minor leaf miner damage. The soil at the farm is mostly clay, we have amended this area with mud press (sugar cane waste). We have had good luck with the mud press previously for corn, long beans, squash and sweet potatoes. Plan is a bamboo trellis system, a little more amendment with the vermicompost and rice hulls and cover the area with shade cloth. I've read that the sun can be a bit intense here and can cause some issues. I know the cherry tomatoes I've grown at the house did well but were grown in raised beds without native soil and under shade cloth. Any tips and/or guidance would be appreciated. I realize it is quite a number of tomato plants, but seeds are relatively cheap and it is important to me to figure out the best way to grow things here. Plus, we love tomatoes. We've done extremely well with eggplant and have 100+ okra plants that are just starting to produce. They are doing well with just digging a hole in the existing clay soil and going with the 50/50 vermicompost and rice hull mix. Also have a bunch of peppers, to include some super hots that are a few weeks from transplanting. Thanks in advance! Shawn
Hi Shawn, We've had quite a lot of success with tomatoees over the last couple of years so I'll just describe what we did: Our soil is also quit clayie (is that a word?). Dug & forked the ground 1 spade deep and turned in 50% cow manure and left it to soak in through the rainy season. Turned over the ground again before planting. Planted the tomato seeds directly into the ground at about 18-24" intervals (2 rows 25 ft long - along a south facing wall) and screened to 3ft height with 50% screening material (This also kept the chickens & dogs out). We planted Basil between the tomato plants as it's supposed to reduce pests - which seemed to work. Be careful not to over-water them (causes wilt and brown leaf edge). Little or no crop from about 4 plants but we cropped over 5kg per plant from the rest. Hope this helps and good luck!
Interesting...I've never direct sowed tomato seeds. Can I ask what varieties of tomatoes? I have some Thai basil seeds that I was planning to start between the plants as well. Thanks! Shawn
Hi Shawn, The main variety was "Moneymaker" (bought in seeds) and a few were plants grown from tomatoes bought locally that had split or gone rotten in some way. We just deseeded them, washed the "gel" from the seed, kept them dry then planted and hoped. We've had 3 good seasons out of this patch but after this crop I'm going to plant Broad beans in the same patch then, after harvesting the beans, we'll turn in a load of cow dung and leave it fallow for a season to rejuvenate. I've tried growing potatoes without success. They seem to get eaten (probably termites) - do you have any experience in growing spuds here? Cheers!
Awesome you got 3 seasons in the same area without any fungal or pest issues. Like your plan with beans for the nitrogen as well as giving it a season after with the manure. I received some atomic grape tomato seeds yesterday, by far my favorite tomato and one I grew in Guam. Interested to grow them here as it could actually end up being the only one I grow going forward. I won't start any seeds until I see how the plants I have now produce. We have gotten a number of plants in the ground and they are looking good so far. Got awhile until we see flowers and hopefully fruit. Actually, me and the wife were just talking about trying to grow potatoes the other day. We have an idea to try, so hopefully we can give it a shot soon. Garlic and onions have been a struggle to grow at the house...I do need to figure that out as I plan to do some raised beds at the farm. Garlic can be expensive at the market and we use a lot, so would love to be able to grow at least enough for our use. Shawn
