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Tempting Tomatoes® Patio Sunshine Cherry Tomato Solanum lycopersicum

Exposure
  • Sun
Flower Season
  • Spring
  • Summer
Mature Size
18" 18" 46cm 46cm
Height: 15" - 18"
Spread: 12" - 18"
Height: 38cm - 46cm
Spread: 30cm - 46cm
  • Details

    15 - 18 Inches
    18 - 24 Inches
    12 - 18 Inches
    38cm - 46cm
    46cm - 61cm
    30cm - 46cm

    Features

    This perfectly petite tomato is a great option for small spaces.
    No room? No problem! This little determinate tomato packs a whole lot of flavor into just over one square foot—the perfect size for patio pots. 100 or more, bright yellow, 1” round tomatoes appear early in the season on this disease resistant plant. Its mildly sweet, slightly acidic fruits ripen for harvest in a quick 45 days.

    Taxonomists recently changed the the genus and species for tomatoes.  Lycopersicon esculentum has changed to Solanum lycopersicum.

    Edible
    Heat Tolerant

    Characteristics

    Plant Type: 
    Annual
    Height Category: 
    Medium
    Garden Height: 
    15 - 18 Inches 38cm - 46cm
    Trails Up To: 
    12 Inches 30cm
    Spacing: 
    18 - 24 Inches 46cm - 61cm
    Spread: 
    12 - 18 Inches 30cm - 46cm
    Flower Colors: 
    Yellow
    Flower Shade: 
    Yellow - not grown for flowers
    Foliage Colors: 
    Green
    Foliage Shade: 
    Deep Green
    Habit: 
    Mounded
    Container Role: 
    Filler

    Plant Needs

    Light Requirement: 
    Sun

    The optimum amount of sun or shade each plant needs to thrive: Full Sun (6+ hours), Part Sun (4-6 hours), Full Shade (up to 4 hours).

    Maintenance Category: 
    Moderate
    Bloom Time: 
    Late Spring through Summer
    Hardiness Zones: 
    10a, 10b, 11a, 11b
    Water Category: 
    Consistent
    Soil Fertility Requirement: 
    Average Soil
    Soil Fertility Requirement: 
    Fertile Soil
    Uses: 
    Container
    Uses: 
    Landscape
    Uses Notes: 

    This is a container tomato that will prolifically produce cherry-sized tomatoes with great taste.  The compact size works will in patio planters, window boxes and would be a fun hanging basket plant where it will cascade and allow for easy harvest. It should not need to be staked or caged to grow it successfully. This tomato will produce fruit for an extended period of time. If you are growing this plant in a container, a 12" diameter (3 gallon volume) is the minimum necessary size. The ideal size would be a 14" to 18" (5-7 gallon) container. 

    Maintenance Notes: 

    Seeds can be started indoors 5-6 weeks before the last frost in your area. Seeds should be planted about 1/8" into the soil then transplant the seedlings outdoors after all risk of frost has passed. You can also direct sow into your garden or pots outdoors after the threat of frost has passed. However, starting seeds indoors will give you a substantial head-start for harvesting your first tomatoes.

    When germinating the seeds, be sure to keep the soil temperature at 75-90° until the seeds sprout. The temperatures can be decreased a bit once the plants are up and growing. The number of days to germination is 7-20.

    Once the seedlings are a few inches tall and growing well, you may want to thin out the number of seedlings. One plant in a cell or pot would be ideal.  If you are direct seeding into the ground, thin seedlings until they are about 2 feet apart. Rows of Patio Suhshine should be about 3 feet apart.

    Once you transplant the seedlings it will take about 45 days for the first fruits to ripen.

    Patio Sunhine is a small plant and is best suited to be grown in patio planters, hanging baskets and raised beds. The small cherry tomatoes that it produces are great in salads, are perfect for appetizers and can be sundried as well.

    Tomatoes will do best with a minimum of 6 hours of direct sun a day, although the more sun you give them, the happier they are.

    The basics:

    • Days to Germinate – 7-20 days
    • Germination Rate - 90%
    • Transplant to Harvest – 45 days
    • Planting Depth – 1/8”
    • Plant Spacing After Thinning – 24-30”
    • Row Spacing – 36”
    • Exposure – Full sun (6+ hours)
  • 5 Reviews

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    Browse reviews from people who have grown this plant.
    • I had great germination from these seeds and the tomatoes tasted wonderful this summer! I plan to purchase more for next year!

      GreenmontGardener
      , Pennsylvania
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • Germination was awful. Started 8 seeds and had 1 germinate. 2+ year old tomato seeds from another retailer came up with a significantly hgiher germination rate than these. Do not recommend.

      Chelsea
      , Iowa
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • Growing Patio Sunshine in an Aerograden. It is growing very well with lots of tomatoes. Can't wait to try this tomato in the garden this summer.

      David Anderson
      , Michigan
      , United States
      , 3 years ago
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