[djlnc]

I've read that tomatoes can be planted here in September and harvested in a couple months. Anybody have experience with that? And where might plants be sold around here now?
Thanks!

[Stu from NYC]

Interesting but think best off with cherry tomatoes for quicker harvest.

[Bogie Shooter]

Growing fall tomatoes in centra Florida.
Growing Tomatoes in Central Florida

[ThirdOfFive]

Originally Posted by djlnc

I've read that tomatoes can be planted here in September and harvested in a couple months. Anybody have experience with that? And where might plants be sold around here now?
Thanks!

You can buy set plants at Lowe's Garden Center (I imagine Home Depot as well). They have a good variety of plants.

My "success" with them has been off and on. Do well with springtime planting (harvesting in May) but not as well with the fall ones. I think my problem the last two years was that I waited until October to plant. This year I started my own seedlings, which I transplanted outside a couple of weeks ago and are now about 4" - 5" high and doing well. I'm trying one I never tried before; "Abe Lincoln" which is an inteterminate heirloom variety.

Peppers seem to do well whenever. Cucumbers and zucchini, not so much.

Good luck.

[djlnc]

Thank you! I had looked online at Lowes and they didn't show any available. I'll do some shopping and do a trial run this year to see how it goes.

[asianthree]

No matter what tomato I plant it just doesn’t taste really good. Kind of reminds me of hot house tomatoes. I am bringing down my heirloom tomato seeds along with garden dirt, in the spring. Plant seeds have been in our family for over 100 years. Hope I can duplicate taste of the many years of great tomatoes, you could pick off the vine and just eat them

[ScottGo]

I planted beefstakes mid-august and doing great. Got asparagus 3 yrs now still growing, jalenapinos more than I need 3 yrs same plant, bell peppers, corn, onions, squash, and pineapples. Cukes grow best in cooler months and radishes also. Beans the birds eat them. I've been starting them in planters in the launi. I use the filtered house water, the tomatoes are usually small for a beefstake but taste better. Spring planting Apr on up, it's to hot.

[CFrance]

There is a nursery in Leesburg on a street kind of parallel to the main drag. I think this is it, though the name doesn't ring a bell: Central Florida Gardener: Simon Seed Farm & Garden Center I bought tomato plants there one year and grew them in the fall. I used a raised planter they sold and the soil they recommended. I agree that Florida tomatoes lack the je-ne-sais-quoi of those in the north.

[Jima72]

Problem with fall tomatoes is the nighttime temperature for them needs to be in the mid to high 70’s.

[mikreb]

Do you have pest problems with tomatoes, peppers, zucchini,...etc?

[MidWestIA]

Tried tomatoes in the southern heat no taste Iowa tomatoes were awesome but take 70-80 days to mature without the big heat

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by CFrance

There is a nursery in Leesburg on a street kind of parallel to the main drag. I think this is it, though the name doesn't ring a bell: Central Florida Gardener: Simon Seed Farm & Garden Center I bought tomato plants there one year and grew them in the fall. I used a raised planter they sold and the soil they recommended. I agree that Florida tomatoes lack the je-ne-sais-quoi of those in the north.

Simon Seed went out of business.

[Santiagogirl]

I planted cherry tomatoes in the spring & picked a handful of tomatoes every day through most of the summer. In late summer I started new plants by cutting off tops & suckers from the old plants (they root very easily in a little moist potting soil). I just removed the old original plants & cages and repotted the new ones in large pots. Going to see how they do in the fall. As an aside, I used a fertilizer product called Mater Magic from Lowes this year, which gave good results.

[nn0wheremann]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

Growing fall tomatoes in centra Florida.
Growing Tomatoes in Central Florida

One other observation. On your next trip north, dig up a couple of buckets of decent topsoil. I recommend southern or central Illinois or eastern Missouri dirt. Florida topsoil isn’t worth dirt.

[RuthA]

I have tried growing tomatoes here and have had NO success. I got plants at the Farmers Market in Brownwood on Saturdays. The plant grew and grew (5' stems) and NO tomatoes! The soil and weather just does not grow good tomatoes here.