Tomato – Red Cherry – Heirloom Seeds

Red cherry tomatoes are one of the most forgiving tomatoes for beginners. Plants grow tall and vigorous and keep fruiting through summer, producing sweet, bite-sized red tomatoes that are perfect for salads, lunch boxes and fresh snacking straight off the plant.

Growing guide for South Africa

• When to sow: in trays from August to November in most areas and transplant after frost danger has passed (Highveld from October). In warm areas, sow in succession until January to keep a harvest going all summer.
• How to sow: sow about 3 to 5 mm deep in seedling trays, keep warm and moist, and transplant at 5 to 6 weeks.
• Germination: 7 to 14 days at 20 to 25 degrees C.
• Spacing: 50 to 60 cm apart. Plants are vigorous climbers, so stake or trellis them and remove side shoots if you want a tidy plant.
• Position: full sun, rich soil, regular deep watering and a mulch layer. Also suited to large containers of 20 litres or more.
• Harvest: roughly 65 to 80 days after transplanting, and then continually.
• Care: feed with compost or a tomato fertiliser once flowering starts, water evenly to limit fruit splitting, and watch for whitefly, early blight and fruit fly.

Quick facts: Packet: heirloom seed. Small round red fruit. Annual. Sowing times are a guide: adjust for your local frost dates and climate.