Planted by seed in early September my mortgage lifter tomato's are starting to ripen.
Around the fattest part of the tomato measures 28.5cm (that's almost 12 inches in the old language) not the biggest tomato but one I'm proud of.
So with fruit fly in mind and 5 months of work and growing behind me I'm not about to leave these guys to the fruit fly.
But what to do on a low budget.
Solution, paper lunch bags.
Tomato's only need heat to ripen, not sunshine, although sunshine is good for the rest of the bush, so the paper bag will keep out the fruit fly while allowing the Tomato to ripen on the bush.
Anyone got any other ideas for beating fruit fly?
Also after 7 or 8 years of resisting temptation, curiosity (professional jealousy I think) got the better of me while I was in my local Bunnings and I grabbed a Bourke's Backyard Italian Tomato just to see if it is worth all the fuss.
Just so there is no bias on my part I have used a half a bucket of my best compost, added a handful of dolomite and watered it in with 6 lts. of water with added seasol .
8 comments:
I'm afraid I've always got around this one by living in a country that doesn't have fruit flies. I suspect that isn't much use to you! In lieu of useful tips, I leave you with the knowledge that time flies like an arrow, but fruit flies like a banana (thanks Chomsky).
I like the brown bag tip. I don't think we have fruit flies here? Maybe yet another pest to battle with!
Good luck with your tomato, hope you get to eat it and not some free loading feral. I'm snacking on cherry tomatoes from my garden as I read yours and other blogs.
im thankful to live in a state where fruit fly is not a problem. i just cant imagine having to add that to the list! well done on the mamoth! and nice soloution..but what happens when you have 100 ripening at once? ;-)
100 at once, arrgh, just shoot me. I only grow 4 or 5 bushes of a variety each year, just to try them, because of the fruit fly (mortgage lifter this year, oh and now I can ad burke's Italian tom), but grow a lot of cherry and roma Toms because for some reason they don't seem to trouble them.
Cheers
Stewart
I live in Southern Middle Tennesse in the US, and I am only just now starting plants for my garden this year. I will have about fourteen different heirloom tomato varieties - gee can you tell I am a tomato freak? I am looking for the ideal tomot soup recipe that I can put up in jars to eat in the dark winter months when I am having to rely on seed catalogues to keep my spirits up? Anybody got any good recipes they can share? Thanks, Mary Rhudy
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