Hey PC thanks for your comment again:)

They won't rot away while I'm gone right? All of the photos where taken today.

Will the ping pong ball tomatos be orange or red 2 weeks after I'm gone?

Some of them are cherry though.

Sorry but I'm not nearly as positive in my reply as PC was. The reality is that 4 weeks is a full third of their lifespan. So a lack of or only minimal attention doesn't bode well for them or any plant for that matter. Tomato plants just don't tolerate begin neglect at all well.

Not only can fruit easily ripen and rot on the vine within that time frame but diseases and pests can easily do plants in within that time frame. I don't know if you have tomato hornworms in the Netherlands but if you do then just a couple of them and you'd come home to nothing bu stripped stems and fruit full of wholes.

So their odds of thriving are slim IMO unless your caregiver is sufficiently well informed to do more than just water them. It would be sad to see such beautiful plants die but sometimes things are beyond our control.

I do wish you luck however.

Dave

Thanks you for your reply Dave..

It would indeed be a shame if they die.

I'll see what I can do.

I agree that their welfare will be in the hands of your niece. If she's not very knowledgeable about gardening, she may need a bit more than "water the plants while I'm gone" such as how often to water, how much to water, precisely how to water (to the base of the plants) and so on.

Anything you can pass on to her (preferably in writing so she'll remember) will increase your chances of returning to healthy, productive plants.

Certainly she could pick the ripe ones while you're gone and enjoy them as her reward for taking care of them.

I went by a nursery last week and they must have had 100 to 150 tomato plants outside almost dead. They told me they were the ones they couldn't sell, too late in the season. If it gets to that point why don't they just give them away. The had all kinds of heirlooms that were about 1 day from total death. I felt so helpless not being able to save them. RIP

Great looking plants! You know how much is required to keep them up so if your niece can do what you are doing then I wouldn't worry. Hopefully they will wait to ripen until you return. Have a nice trip!

Vince, some nurseries dont want to give things away, I guess, which is DUMB. My local (mom and pop operation, I love!) had veggie plants buy one get one free, a bit better than 1/2 price because they got rid of 2 at once. Then a couple weeks later, they were giving them away. I think that PR will get them further!

You should postpone your vacation. hehe
In my estimation those tomatoes in the picture should take upward of two weeks, depending on the variety.
From flower to ripe fruit takes 30 to 45 days, depending on variety and climate. From small peach size to ripe takes about 2 weeks (average, beefsteak variety).

Sey

"I don't know if you have tomato hornworms in the Netherlands but if you
do then just a couple of them and you'd come home to nothing bu
stripped stems and fruit full of wholes."

I don't think there are tomato hornworms occurring in Holland, digdirt, but your point is equally made if Tuta absoluta, their recent plague, and ambiguiously known as the Tomato Leafminer (this one is like a mutated one from the incredible expanding ray science fiction movie) ... were to get in the plants. California, btw, is just marking its laid back tomato gardening days until this pest finds a way to establish there and make Californias worry as much as the rest of us.

If you can bring some tomatoes with you, you can cut them off at the mature green stage. This is the stage that if you look carefully, you will see the tomato turns from deep green to a pale green after stops increasing in size. Some of your tomatoes may be at that stage and it is ok to pick them just before you leave if they won't disturb you and you can ripen them inside (not in direct sunshine). It would be best to do that because these will be the first ones to ripen when you are gone, making them the first to rot. Rotting is a catalyst to more disease so it is in your best interest not to let that happen.

Digdirt is 100% right about pests, and I wasn't addressing that. When you said your niece would do it, I imagined, like any normal Dutch girl, she would be an expert at caring for plants and come there every day on her bicycle after riding by the windmills. Also, the real truth is I didn't want you not to enjoy your vacation worrying about it. I never enjoy my vacations any more because of this reason. As others have also said the key to getting someone to care for your plants is that they don't under and don't over water, and I hope the plants have sufficient fertilizer to support the fruit production because now is the time of the highest usage.

Nitsua said:
"Certainly she could pick the ripe ones while you're gone and enjoy them as her reward for taking care of them."
This is super advice and Nitsua also is 100% on the bullseye in my opinion, but I'd like to add more to this. You really need your niece to pick these Tomatoes and Cukes, not only as her reward, but to keep your garden healthy (read digdirts post one more time for the unmentionable reality lol). If she is kind to do the irrigation, when you tell her to pick them she may feel she is taking from your hard work. It is very important to explain to her that you need her to remove all ripe and near ripe (colored) tomatoes, even before they attain full color in the first 3 weeks you are gone.

People are funny about this and from experience, I will tell you, she will be slow in picking the ripe tomatoes, it is human psychology. As Nitsua framed it, is kindest, as her reward, but it is a very necessary action, probably to start in the second week of vacation. The cherries will probably begin to ripen in the first week of vacation, but slowly at first, only the first ones in each bunch. By the end of your vacation, there will be many cherries that you need someone to eat first. Don't worry, if everything is cared for there will be many for you when you return. And many more if they are properly picked - everybody wins when that happens ;-).

Meanwhile, vacation is like the weather. You do your best and then leave it in capable hands and go forget about it while on vacation ;-) If you don't you will find yourself doing many crazy expensive things to come back and eat 10 tomatoes. We will all understand, too!
Cheers
PC

Thanks for the comments.

My niece doesn't know much about gardening (she rides a bike though:D), but I'll teach her everything I know. I'll certainly tell her to pick pick the ripe ones, and she will enjoy it:). But she is probably going on vacation herself too. I'll ask my neighbors for help too.

I hope my plants won't catch any disease, that would be great.

Thanks for the advice!

I'm all for people enjoying their vacations too PC. But common sense tells us that "you can't still have your cake and eat it too". :) So

a) you can't schedule a vacation during the middle of gardening season without paying a heavy price on the garden. The price one pays directly correlates to the length of the vacation. Schedule them in the off-gardening season.

or

b) you choose one and forget doing the other. It is a simple matter of choosing the priority and relegating the rest to chance.

Dave

Unfortunately I can't reschedule my vacation, so it only leaves me with one choice:(

It'd really be a shame if such beautiful plants die while I'm gone:(

Very true...for this year. But please do keep it in mind for next year. Just enjoy your vacation. :)

Dave

I did that one year , took vacation middle of July. Pretty much lost my whole crop. The person that was to tend them while we were away didn't water enough, it got really really hot and that was the end of most of the plants. Came home to rotten red fruit and brown dried up plants. Won't ever do that again.

dbrown, what a sad year and crushing sight. Usually the person you pick is the one you can confide in most, which makes it doubly hard after you realize what they didn't do, and further realize you're probably better off just having to smile, suck it up, and say thanks since nothing will bring the tomatoes back.

digdirt, I agree and referenced your comments because they are very helpful for the OP. The original question was focused on the timing of ripening, but then meandered to checking gardening credentials of the kind bicycle-riding Dutch girl who was getting ready to work in the garden. Then it came to what to do next time, which is great info but not going to matter for the plants currently in the ground. Nothing escaped in the final read of the thread.

Unfortunately, for many Europeans, the entire month of August is a vacation commitment. For growing tomatoes that presents a problem, that without help or an irrigation system is simply a conflict of priorities as you mentioned. What eventually happens to the plants in that time will depend on chance, but with some luck, there is a reasonable chance there will be tomatoes. I would guide this thread more along the path of actions the OP can take to improve their chances. After all, there are probably, what, 6 plants? That's actually a consolation in favor since a small plot could slip in under the radar of pests, though you can't depend on this.

- training of substitute tomato caretaker (mentioned above)
- regular, but not over-, watering
- weeding, securing vines and clipping lower, leaves that are mostly spent just before trip
- setting a good mulch cover
- spraying anti-fungal just before trip
- picking all mature green fruits before leaving, and taking them or giving them to niece/family locally
-visits at key intervals, even if only every 5-7 days to do more than just irrigate, but do a little housekeeping. Got to watch care takers frequently do the job every day and towards the end forget about it. So it can help to lessen the burden up front in favor of regularly spaced intervals.

In other words a checklist of the usual items to be done, as was mentioned, designed to give the garden a good head start that will last a week or 10 days into the vacation. At that point a crucial to try to get it back to that state. I'm sure I missed a few things.. At this point I wouldn't characterize it as "having cake and eating it too". More like, saving part of the cake after it gets half eaten ;-)
Cheers
PC

If you have a good size yard, it might be good to get someone to garden-share. It can be difficult to find someone who doesn't skip out on their share of the work, but if you could find someone compatible, you could take turns on when you schedule vacation time.

Thanks for the checklis PC.

I've got atleast 13 tomato plants in my backyard, and there isn't much space between them (I can make a photo if you want).

Could you explain what you mean with securing the vines and spraying anti-fungal? And I can Google how to set up a mulch in the Netherlands right?

I see that you know quite a lot about the Netherlands:D

I've asked my niece and apparently my aunt knows a lot about gardening too, so that's a good thing:)I've got more confidence in them now.

" there isn't much space between them (I can make a photo if you want)."

I remember them from the prior thread about the epsom salt damage, and know they must have grown since then, I just didn't realize how many plants you had! You've done such a good job on them too, so far!

"securing the vines"
This I just mean being proactive like you've tied with string as the plants have grown. Get ahead of the growth before you leave so no additional stems end up on the ground, especially those supporting tomatoes that will soon get heavier and bend down to the ground level where they have increased chances of getting foliar diseases from the splashing of dirt, or even breaking under the weight. Mulch also helps.

"spraying anti-fungal"
Foliar fungicide is a preventative action to avoid infection. I know toxic copper sprays are banned for use in the Netherlands even though it is the most common fungicide in the US where regulators ignore the risks and it is sold over the counter in every garden store. You need to call the local garden products center and ask what the most effective option they recommend that is widely available there is. Perhaps its chlorothalonil, which we use in the US; so is Serenade, a fungicide that uses a live ingredient to produce the anti-fungal & anti-bacterial effect ... I'm pretty sure you can get this one in Holland for the home, since it is made by Bayer. There are other fungicide options. Spraying leaves is a common topic of conversation in this forum there are many posts about it, just say the word and someone will probably help with the links. Just one caution, be careful walking around those garden centers as people track all kinds of plant disease into them. If your tomatoes are doing well, I would hate for you to go to a garden center with lots of spores floating around. I'm paranoid - but I feel for good reason. Mulching can help.

"Mulching"
Yes you can see what people prefer in your area. Straw is popular in some places (I use a version actually made from sun bleached pine leaves we call "pine straw" here) but like everything in tomatoes, people have strong opinions about different products. (I hope this link is clean, but it looks like a good explanation from some crazy Drenthe farmboys :-)) The important thing is disease-free mulch of any kind is better than no mulch. The mulch serves at least three purposes. It prevents splashing of soil which may contain pathogens (though many pathogens are airborne and we have little control over rains and winds that carry them). It keeps the ground from drying out quickly which can help with irrigation smoothing, and it helps regulate temperatures, being cooler in the heat of day.

I'm really glad to hear you have an expert joining the Dutch tomato team. Your Aunt sounds like a perfect choice to add to the team. I bet she's got a normal Dutch girl with an expert flair for gardens and bicycles in her, too ;-) If the tomatoes get some love and care, we can start taking bets on how many you'll get !

Cheers!
PC

Haha yeah that's me, the guy from the Epsom salt thread:)

The tomato plant are almost 2 meters, it's becoming harder to support them. But ill see what I can do.

I'll go to a store in my town to see if they got anti fungal spray and mulch someday next week.

Thanks for the advice man, you must be a very experienced gardener :D