When can I plant tomatoes?
We've been farming in downtown Victoria
now for 16 years. When it comes to tomatoes, we're always trying to get a head start! That's why we plant our first round in the greenhouse. Usually the 1st or 2nd week of APRIL.
If planting outside, we plant our tomatoes in the 2nd or 3rd week of April under a thick cloche*
If we have no cover for our outside plantings, we plant tomatoes out in the last week of April to the 1st week of May.
Indego Drops
Based off of current long range forecasts, We are expecting the 3rd week of April 2023 to be a good time to plant our healthy tomato starts outside of the greenhouse, & we still recommend some kind of temporary cover like floating row cover (remay), or clear poly for an easeful transition and to speed up early spring growth.
*Transplant into a cloche
A cloche is an incredibly useful and versatile
DIY farm technology that every home gardener could bring into their back yard for season extension and faster production.
A cloche is basically a mini greenhouse that you can instantly install anywhere in your garden and move around whenever you want.
At mason st farm we use them to direct sow our salad greens in January, and to plant out our tomatoes in early April.
Materials: 1/2 PVC irrigation pipe and clear poly or 'remay'.
You can also trade out your heating cover with mesh netting to protect crops like cauliflower or carrots from pesky early spring pests.