everglades tomatoes. grows like a weed and very heat tolerant. very tiny tomatoes. I just bought seeds && will plant as soon as they arrive.

It is weird. When I lived in MN, tomatoes were bulletproof. The bugs and varmits would trash the broccoli, peas, beans, corn, sunflowers, etc, but I always had way more tomatoes than I could ever use. Down here - geez - I am not even really trying at a garden, although I do have some sort of mini-cherry tomato growing that my kid brought home from school that is doing really well.

I am not aware of any tomato that can take a hard freeze.

I’m Sara’s friend in zone 8b. I plant in raised beds.

Hi, janicelecocq. So can you explain your process in more detail? When you start, how you amend the soil, at what stage you plant out, etc? You might try growing one in a container-- a lot of us don't try to do tomatoes in the ground because of the problems with various pests. Everglades is an exception to that if it will grow where you are.

What varieties have you grown in the past? Any more successful than others?

corkball, I feel the same way. My tomatoes in SC would get so big and were so full of fruit, I had to give some away, and there were always plenty of green tomatoes at the end of the season to make pickles & chow chow. Down here, I'm lucky if I get 10 tomatoes per plant, which is why I stopped growing anything but Everglades. I miss my tomato sandwiches.

I agree variety is key, when it comes to growing tomatoes here in FL. Culture is also important, and timing too. I use the veggie guide from UF for planting dates.

I look for VFFNTA tomatoes, and descriptions that include the words “sweet”, “flavorful”, “heavy producer”, vigorous”, etc.

Indeterminates can often outgrow problems and produce over a longer period of time than determinate varieties. They don’t do as well in containers though.

When planting out my tomato starts, I always make a larger, deeper hole and put homemade compost and fertilizer in it and mix it up with the soil and than fill the hole with liquid seaweed extract (Maxicrop), or compost tea, soaking the roots of the seedlings as well.

I start my own seeds. Tomatoes are fairly easy to start yourself, and I’ve never had great results with purchased plants.

HTH

Homestead has been a good producer here for me. Developed by UF Ag for Florida growers. U can get seeds from their website, and they R EZ 2 start. The flavor is good, size is medium, pretty good yield. I use raised beds, lots of compost, mulch and water, only water on roots, oor water foliage oononlonly in the AM if there is no rain at for aall 4 a long time.