tomatoe in the phils

[eddysmit]

Hi there I'm very new to this site and also a beginner in gardening
Well I have this problem of growing tomato's seeds from Italy
starting from the seeding all ok, and get nice plants then I put them in my garden box which is 10inches deep and width 12inches, and runs on all the sides of the terrace. They seem to be doing fine they have growen taller than I, but when they blossom the flowers just fall off after flowering I have one tomatoe on each plant and that is all. The seeds I have are the cherry type tomatoe which I have seen growing wild in the Hawaii, the others are the Roman type and the cuore di buia which means the heart of the bull. That tomatoe really only grow in the Sorrentino area or Capri so I'm not surprised that it doesn't grow here in the phils. I don't know if its the climate here that has anything to do with it? because its never below
25 centigrade and very humid. oh just one other thing is I have tryed
to grow parsley from the seeds 3 times, not even one parsley seed has
begin to grow I hope I haven't asked you to much? but thanks a lot
Eddy Smit

[Newt]

Hi Eddysmit,

I wish I could answer your questions, but I'm at bit at a loss as I know nothing of growing tomatoes where you are located. I have some ideas though. It seems that you are experiencing something called 'bud drop' which can be caused by something environmental. That could be too much water, too little water, too hot and then too cold or some combination of those. You don't say what type of soil they are growing your plants in and if you've enriched it with compost.

There is also a pest called a blossom midge that can damage the flower buds. I don't know if you have this pest where you are located. Take a look at this site to see if this is your problem.

https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/IP-11.pdf

Parsley seeds take a long time to germinate (4 to 6 weeks) so you just may not have been patient enough. They also need alot of warmth. Take a look here.

https://www.gardenaction.co.uk/fruit_veg_diary/fruit_veg_mini_project_march_3_parsley.asp
https://www.richters.com/newdisplay.cgi?page=./OnlineSeminars/seeding/demo.html&&cart_id=5440704.22962
https://www.windowbox.com/cgi-bin/floracle/plant.asp?plantId=199&001=true

Hope this helped.
Newt

[The Helpful Gardener]

I like Newt's take on things and I too am not suprised that tomatoes that were raised for the arid dry situation of Italia don't work in the jungles of Micronesia! Look for some local varieties that are working for people there; every area has a few cultivars and selections that work better there than anything else (That goes for New England, New Jersey or Mindanao!)

Good luck Eddy,

Scott