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Growing Tomatoes

Tomatoes for afternoon sunlight

10 years ago

I recently moved to an apartment with a balcony that receives 5-6 hours of direct sunlight in the spring and summer, starting at about noon each day. I grew Juliet tomatoes in a hydroponic setup, with 5 plants in a 14-gallon container. The fruit never got bigger than a large cherry size. Is that because the plants were crowded or is it because of the lack of sunlight? What varieties would produce decent tomatoes even if all the fruit was undersized?

Comments (5)

ABlindHog
10 years ago
Only 5-6 hours of sunlight is marginal, but there is some potential for success there. Five plants in a 14 gallon container is far to many, it might be adequate for 2 tomato plants but one would be best. Finally, Juliet tomatoes are supposed to be Roma shaped tomatoes that are about 1 to 1 1/2 ounces, or about the size of large cherries.
ykerzner
Original Author
10 years ago
The cucumbers that grew right next to the tomatoes grew 2 inches a day, but that was actually one plant in a 5-gallon container.

Is it even worth trying a large beefsteak-type tomato or is it best to stick with cherries?
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Hi Wheayatwhodat, Iam3killerbs is right about the practice of having two gowing seasons in the hotter zones. While those of us in cooler climates may still have tomatoes when your first set of plants have stopped producing, you have the advantage of a longer growing season and two crops to our one. ...make a small covering over the garden with clear visqueen... If you wish to provide some shade or filter the sun for your plants, I would recommend shade cloth instead of visqueen. It is porous and will allow air and rain to pass through it. It comes in a variety of percentages, or the amount of sun it blocks. 30% will block about one third of the light hitting it, while 50% will block about half and so on. I have a piece of knitted shade cloth that is about 5 years old now (average life is approximately 7 - 10 years) that I use to shade my transplants each year. My babies go out onto my transplant table and don't come back in unless really nasty weather is predicted. Your mileage may vary. *wink* Betsy Here is a link that might be useful: Shade Cloth
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ABlindHog
10 years ago
There are countless varieties of tomatoes that can be grown in containers, including many large slicers or beefsteaks. This past season I had good results on my deck with Tycoon, a determinate hybrid that is particularly good in south Texas and was the 2011 rodeo tomato at the San Antonio stock show. Also with New Big Dwarf, a dwarf plant that produces big beefsteak tomatoes. Browse some seed venders and find something you want to try. I tend to stick with plants of smaller stature (dwarfs, determinates, or semi determinates) for containers, but many people are happy to do otherwise.

This post was edited by ABlindHog on Thu, Dec 19, 13 at 20:46
seysonn
10 years ago
I can say that 6 hours of sun , in zone 9 Texas should be enough. Part of the sunlight is used as heat energy by the plants. In zone 9, TX, they will get lots of energy AND also consider the amount of indirect light in bright long summer days. Actually 6 hours is considered FULL SUN. I do garden at PNW, cooler weather with just about 6 hour of sun.
dickiefickle
10 years ago
hard to grow large fruit from a small fruit plant

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