The idea of “dry farming” tomatoes is fascinating for anyone who is passionate about sustainable living and eco-friendly farming practises. But it is not something that anybody can do. For dry farming to be successful, you will need to live in a climate that is able to support the growth of your plants naturally.

Early Girl tomatoes grown using the dry farming method at a farm near Santa Cruz in California.

What Dry Farming Means

Technically, dry farming means just that: you grow your crops without using any form of irrigation. If your climate is right, it will be cool enough, and you’ll get enough rain, for the tomato plants to grow without your help. Of course you’re going to have to ensure that the soil is right; it needs to be rich and fertile, with all the nutrients it takes to produce good, healthy fruits. Lots of organic matter in the soil will have the effect of slowing down evaporation of whatever moisture there is in the soil. You will also need to remove weeds, and should consider companion planting, as well as rotation planting once the last of the season’s tomatoes have been harvested.

Because surface water is not supplemented by irrigation, the plant roots grow deeper in their search of water. This results in wonderfully tasty tomatoes.

While some people maintain that it is necessary to water your tomatoes normally until the plant begins to set the fruit, this is not the way the purists do it at all. (If your climate isn’t perfect, yet you want to give dry farming a try, it could be a workable compromise.)

Pioneers of Dry Farming Tomatoes

There is no argument that the pioneers of modern dry farming tomatoes come from California on the west coast of the USA. Generally summers are hot and dry and winters cool and wet. Close to the coast, for instance in the Santa Cruz area, which is recognized as a major “dry farming” region for tomatoes, overcast, foggy evenings and mornings help to keep the plants cool in summer.

Here farmers who have proven that the technique produces incredibly tasty tomatoes (albeit in smaller yields), have dispensed with irrigation in their tomato fields altogether.

For example, Mark and Nibby Bartle who established the organic Two Dog Farm near Santa Cruz more than a decade ago say of their dry farmed tomatoes: “We don’t water them in after transplant, don’t water during dry spells, we just don’t ever water them. We don’t even have water available in those fields. The plants and the fruits are smaller and the yield is less, but the flavour of the tomatoes is intensely concentrated.”

Like many of the organic farmers in this area, the Bartles sell their flavoursome tomatoes at farmer’s markets. Like most of the rest, they also plant the Early Girl variety. It seems that’s the way to go.

Black cherry tomatoes

Some of the most appealing little tomatoes on the market today come with names that make them sound ultra fruity and wonderfully tasty. And it’s not just plain cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes that fit the bill. Today they come in so many shapes and colours, it’s difficult to know what to choose.

So next time you want to plant tomatoes with a difference, and you are looking for small “fruity” tomatoes, check out the vast number of different seed offerings available from reputable seed companies on the Internet.

The Best Cherry Tomatoes

Cherry tomatoes don’t taste like cherries – although some types are unbelievably sweet and juicy –and only some of them are shaped like cherries or are even the size of regular cherries.

Today cherry tomatoes are generally either round, plum-shaped (like popular Roma tomatoes) or even pear-shaped, like the gorgeous heirloom variety, Yellow Pear that bears huge numbers of yellow-orange bite-sized cherry tomatoes.

They also come in a vast variety of colours, from tomato-red to yellow, and even “black”.  For instance Supersweet 100 is quite a dark red, while Sungold is a kind of orange. Brown cherry tomatoes are a brownish colour, while Snow White and Dr Carolyn are kind of “white”, or perhaps better described as very light.

If you’re fascinated by the idea of “black” tomatoes, there’s a relatively new Black Pearl Hybrid on the market. It’s a tasty treat, and one that changes its flavour when refrigerated, taking on a super-sweet grapey flavour – even though they are characterised as cherry tomatoes and not grape tomatoes!

The Red Lightning Hybrid is particularly interesting in terms of colour. If you painted tomatoes to look like these people would laugh at you! A kind of orangey red, they look as though an artist has washed lines of dark red and yellow over the fruits. Better still, they are said to taste beautifully sweet.

Other examples include tiny Red Currant and Yellow Currant tomatoes that grow on a vine. They look like they sound and are, by all accounts delicious.

To top it all, Green Envy cherry tomatoes are intriguing little fruits that look more like emerald green figs than tomatoes.

All worth trying to grow.

The Best Grape Tomatoes

Not as well known as cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes (like some varieties of cherry tomato) grow in clusters on a vine. What makes them stand apart is that they are amazingly sweet in taste and very juicy.

One of the reasons grape tomatoes haven’t attracted the same worldwide popularity as cherry tomatoes is probably because they have to be picked AS they ripen. This means that those who grow them don’t normally do so commercially. Where they do make the stores, they are VERY expensive.

There is currently a lot less choice when it comes to grape tomatoes than any other type of tomato – cherry included. They are also more likely to be traditional tomato red in colour. But look out for Rosalita which is “pink”.

If this doesn’t tempt you to try growing little fruity-named tomatoes, nothing will. Have fun!

There’s a classic book called Carrots love Tomatoes that was written by a North American woman, Louise Riotte, nearly four decades ago.

Considered by many to be the “bible” of companion planting, it was first published in 1975, and is still on the bookstore bookshelves years after her death in 1998. But in those days the idea of growing particular plants together for mutual benefit was something most backyard gardeners either rejected or failed to consider.

Today, with the ever- growing trend of things organic, and an increasing awareness of the need for sustainability, home gardeners – and many commercial gardeners for that matter – are practicing companion planting, along with crop rotation, green manuring and other natural pursuits.

Why Tomatoes Need Companions

While the companions favoured by different plants vary, the reasons for companion planting are essentially (within broad parameters) the same for all of them. While not all companions fulfil the same function, broadly speaking certain companion plants will:

• attract bad bugs
• attract good, beneficial bugs
• assist pollination
• feed and nourish the soil
• provide shade
• provide support

The end result is that by planting good, suitable companions for the vegetables and other plants you are growing, you will that you are able to minimise the pests in your veggie garden and produce beautifully healthy, organic crops for the table.

The Tomato’s Favourite Companions

Plants that are acknowledged to be the tomato’s best friend are asparagus, basil, cucumber, gooseberries, marigolds, nasturtiums, onions and other members of the onion family, including chives, parsley, stinging nettles and yarrow. They are also compatible with garlic.

Of course carrots are also reputedly an excellent companion for tomatoes, although oddly enough Louise Riotte doesn’t explain why in her book about companion planting. She had an article published on the Internet in 1992, titled Carrots love Tomatoes: Companion Planting for a Healthy Garden, and she doesn’t elaborate there either! Carrots have antiviral properties which might be why tomatoes like them; although the Riotte book’s title seems to state that carrots benefit from tomatoes, not necessarily the other way around. Tomatoes certainly protect roses against black spot, although roses don’t necessarily benefit from tomatoes. And it is the active solanine (a powerful natural insecticide) in tomato leaves that is so special … so maybe this is what the carrots like too.

It is this way with all companion plants, and in this instance, some like tomatoes, while tomatoes benefit from others. Marigolds probably come out tops, since they have a powerful active ingredient that gets rid of the nematodes (or eelworms) that so often attack tomatoes.

Plants that Tomatoes Don’t Like

Tomatoes belong to the nightshade family (solanaceae), as do peppers, eggplants (aubergines), and Irish potatoes, and it is a golden rule in gardening not to grow plants from the same family together. They simply don’t like one another, and therefore won’t thrive.

The other family of plants that tomatoes despise are the brassicaceae – members of the cabbage and mustard family. These plants include broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, radishes, rutabaga, and turnips.

They also hate fennel … but then so do most other vegetables.

Discover More About Companion Planting

Our new book – Companion Planting for Veggies provides a wealth of information on the benefits of companion planting and which plants to locate near each of your favourite veggie plants, and which to keep apart.  It also comes with a great bonus book How to Control Pests Using Natural Remedies – which delivers over 50 remedies and recipes to rid your garden of 25 common pests.

If you’re looking for an exciting, tasting hybrid tomato plant to grow in your garden, now is the time to try out grape tomatoes.

A typical grape tomato plant

Originally developed during the 1990s, these dinky tomatoes have become hugely popular small-sized tomatoes. They have a slightly thicker skin than cherry tomatoes – more like the skin of yummy beefsteak-type tomatoes – and a much lower water content. Their flavour has been likened to popular Italian Roma tomatoes, only they are considerably sweeter… and as the converts will tell you, much better.

Origin of the Grape Tomato

The very first tomatoes of this type are thought to have been grown in Southeast Asia. They had quite thick skin, very low water content, and they were incredibly sweet (which basically fits the contemporary descriptions of this type of tomato).

Two American tomato growers – one in Mexico and one in Florida – imported the tomato seeds from the East in the 1990s. Once on the market, it got its name because of its size and shape, being a lot smaller than some cherry tomatoes, and much more grapey in look (if not in colour).

Pros and Cons of Grape Tomatoes

These tomatoes grow in clusters on the vine, and must be picked as they are ripening, and changing colour. The green tomatoes won’t ripen off the vine, and if the fruit is too ripe, it’s shelf life may have passed by the time it gets to its destination. This makes harvesting a very labour-intensive exercise, and is the main reason that these tomatoes wre initially only marketed to special produce and up-market gourmet grocery stores willing to pay more (and charge more) than regular supermarkets and grocery outlets.

But the grape tomato has at least one winning aspect – in many areas you can grow it all year round. This means that you can harvest your own grape-type tomatoes at any time of the year, even when other varieties are out of season.

Some Different Types of G-Tomatoes

Elfin grape tomatoes

While these particular tomato seedlings are not very easy to find yet, you can find different types of seed including:

• Elfin, an open-pollinated type that is shorter than most other types.
• Rosalita, a pink grape tomato that epitomizes the size and shape of the true red grape tomato. These are indeterminate tomatoes that grow on tall, vigorous plants.
• Sprite, which is a much smaller plant that produces small, red, oval-shaped grape tomatoes. These are determinate plants that should bear large numbers of berries.

Sprite grape tomatoes

Even if you aren’t sure whether this type of tomato is for you, if you enjoy growing your own veggies, particularly tomatoes, how on earth can you resist trying them out?

People often get a kick out of growing the biggest vegetables possible. In fact there are competitions that farmers enter to show off their giant vegetables. And the biggest of the big sometimes even get into the Guinness Book of Records.

Record-sized Tomatoes

Certainly the world’s biggest tomato has made it into the Guinness Book of Records. Grown by Gordon Graham in Edmont, Oklahoma, who harvested his record-breaking tomato in 1986, it weighed a whopping 7 lbs 12 ozs or 3.5 kg.

Charles H. Wilber, who managed to grow and pick 1,368 lbs (620.5 kg) of tomatoes off just four plants in the 1990s, also made it into the Guinness Book of Records.

But what about the world’s smallest tomatoes? These don’t appear to have the same appeal, expect perhaps for the ideal child’s “fairy garden”.

How Small is Small?

We all know that cherry tomatoes are small, and that some are smaller than others. But what seems to be one of the world’s best-kept tomato secrets is that you can even grow tomatoes that are the size of tiny peas out of the pod.

Photograph: Reimer Seeds

A USA-owned Internet seed shop is now selling the “world’s smallest tomato” which they advertise as Lycopersicon esculentum. You’ll expect to wait about 65 days to harvest after the plant has germinated, and then you can expect “heavy yields” of the tiniest, cutest little red, pea-sized tomatoes imaginable.  Described as “very flavourful”, this variety of Lycopersicon esculentum is so tiny you will be able to cram at least 10 onto an ordinary dessertspoon.

The plant itself is an indeterminate variety, which means it will continue growing, and can reach a height of up to five metres or more than 15 feet. If your crop thrives, you should be able to continue tomatoes for a good three to five months, depending on local conditions.

Like all Lycopersicon esculentum species, these tomatoes grow best in soil that has a pH of between 5.5 and 7.0. They also thrive in the warm season and won’t survive if there is frost.

Currant tomatoes – Lycopersicon pimpinelilfolium – are heirloom tomatoes, and also tiny. They are a lot more purple in color to the so-called smallest ever tomatoes, although their popularity has resulted in a number of exciting hybrids emerging out of the USA. Examples include:

• Hawaiian Currant,
• White Mexican Currant,
• Sugar Plum,
• Cerise Orange.

Tiny currant tomatoes

So if you want to grow something that is really different, why not give the world’s smallest tomatoes a try?

Tomatoes are amongst the most rewarding veggies to grow in your own home garden – although strictly speaking they are a true berry, and therefore a fruit. This is probably why so many different tomatoes have generically fruity names: for instance plum tomatoes, grape tomatoes, and of course, much-loved cherry tomatoes.

About Cherry Tomatoes

Native to South America, tomatoes (or rather one particular species, Solanum lycopersicum) were taken to Mexico where it is believed they were first domesticated. Interestingly, there is a school of thought that believes the first domesticated tomatoes were grown by the ancient Aztecs in Central Mexico. It is thought that they were yellow in colour, and the size and shape of our most common cherry tomatoes.

However, it is known for a fact that cherry tomatoes, as we know them today, have only been cultivated since the early 1970s. Two Israeli scientists, Haim Rabinovich and Nachum Kedar, wanted to stop tomatoes in general from ripening so quickly in hot climatic conditions. Having identified tomato genes that would do this, they also discovered a way to produce small cherry tomatoes.

Varieties of Cherry Tomato

Three of the earliest cherry tomatoes were:

1. Santorini, a Greek tomato that is well known for its wonderful flavour.
2. Tomaccio, an Israeli variety bred from wild Peruvian tomatoes.
3. Selke Biodynamic, an exceptionally prolific type named after the 20^th century biodynamic researcher, Margrit Selke, who was a leading pioneer of bio-dynamic composting.

Today cherry tomatoes come in a wide range of colours, shapes and sizes, albeit that the main factor they have in common is that they are small (roughly cherry-sized). You are sure to find suitable seed in your local nursery, but if you like the idea of being boggled for choice, search out some of the amazing catalogues put out by international producers of seed. There is so much choice you could devote an interior veggie garden to cherry tomatoes!

Here are some favourites to look out for:

• Red Robin Lovely sweet red tomatoes that can be grown in your veggie garden or in pots. Determinate.
• Supersweet 100 A darker red than Red Robin, and super-sweet. Produces tomatoes in clusters, like grapes. Indeterminate.
• Sungold An English variety that is extremely sweet and ideal for growing in a greenhouse. Not quite yellow and not quite red.
• Sweet Chelsea Round and larger than most, this variety is resistant to drought and it produces particularly high yields. Indeterminate.
• Sweet Million Even though these plants take a bit longer to produce their fruit, one plant can give you as many as 500 sweet, flavourful tomatoes. Indeterminate.
• Isis Candy Pretty yellow-gold fruit with red streaks. They will grow all year long provided there is no frost. Indeterminate.
• Snow White Ideal for mixing with red and yellow tomatoes in an unusual salad, these are very sweet. Indeterminate.
• Dr Carolyn Not as white as the previous variety, these turn from green to ivory-white, and then to a pale yellow as they mature. Like most of the other types, they are very sweet. Indeterminate.
• Brown A good producer that will also add colourful oomph to any salad. Indeterminate.

And this is just the beginning of a list that seemingly goes on forever. There is no doubt that everyone will find their own perfect cherry tomato if they want to!

Greenhouses and less sophisticated tunnels provide excellent growing conditions for tomatoes, even when temperatures are not closely controlled. They provide protection from wind, rain, hail and of course from the sun and from excessively cold conditions.

When tomatoes are protected from the elements, they can withstand lower temperatures than they normally would when grown out in the open – even though they do need to be heated if there is going to be protection for the plants and fruit from frost.

Many commercial tomato farmers grow their crops in greenhouses which have a scientifically controlled micro-climate. But even a sheltered environment like a plastic-covered tunnel frame gives some natural “control” of both light and moisture.

Choose a Protected Environment for your Tomatoes

Original greenhouse designs originating during the Victorian era were expensive structures that were made with steel and glass. Over time a growing number of companies have manufactured less expensive structures, some of which are available in kit form. Many of these utilise polycarbonate materials instead of glass. Some are made with aluminium (or aluminum – depending where you live!) and either glass or polycarbonate sheeting.

Greenhouses are permanent structures and can be very attractive features in the garden. The glass (or polycarbonate) transmits light during the day and can be capable of trapping quite a lot of heat at night. They are usually the same kind of height as a regular shed and so are tall enough to grow high-growing tomato plants. Large plants can grow up to 3 m or 10 ft!

Windows are often incorporated in traditional greenhouse structures, aiding ventilation. However you will still need to water the plants, and may want to install an automatic irrigation system.

In some countries, greenhouses are more commonly used when weather conditions are less than perfect, or to raise seedlings that are going to be planted out.

Walk-in tunnels are a much more modern invention, but strangely not necessarily cheaper than a small greenhouse. The thing is that tunnels are usually quite large, having been developed for commercial use. But if you have the space for one, it could be a simple alternative to a greenhouse, and could enable you to grow some superb juicy tomatoes at home!

Generally tunnels are made by stretching transparent polythene over a series of metal hoops that form the structure of the tunnel. There isn’t therefore the opportunity to make openings, except at the two ends. While tunnels are not quite as sophisticated as traditional greenhouses, they do a really good job. Another “advantage” some give is that, because they are not “permanent” you can move them if the soil becomes “diseased”. This is largely a fallacy since tunnels are BIG, and if you move them you will damage the plastic, which will then need to be replaced. At the end of the day a tunnel and a commercial greenhouse generally do the same thing.

Constructing a steel tunnel

Pests and Diseases in Greenhouses and Tunnels

Shelter in greenhouse and tunnel structures unfortunately doesn’t translate to protection from pests and diseases.

One of the stock warnings professionals give when it comes to growing tomatoes in soil beneath a growing structure is that it needs to be sterilized or regularly replaced. Greenhouses, however, are more frequently built with a solid concrete floor and then the plants are propagated in growing bags. Tunnels are usually constructed on bare earth.

Regular watering within a greenhouse or tunnel not only keeps the temperature regular and creates a nice humid environment, it also helps to curtail invasion by certain pests including the red spider mite.

Funnily enough the damaging little whitefly is more of a pest in greenhouses that it is when tomatoes are grown out in the open.

So why not do a bit more homework before you decide which way to grow tomatoes at home? It may not be worth spending money on structures; rather spend time and effort ensuring the soil in your veggie garden is good.

There are various ways to control the many bugs and pests that infest and eat tomatoes and tomato plants. Methods range from what may best be described as “good housekeeping”, where your soil and the garden environment are kept clean and well-weeded, to applying insecticides that have been evolved to control specific bugs.

While the many chemical treatments are proven to work, not everybody likes to spray chemicals on plants that produce food they plan to eat. Happily there are also a growing number of organic insecticide-type sprays on the market. Another alternative is to make your own.

Good Housekeeping in the Garden

Before you plant tomato seedlings, weed the area thoroughly. If there are weeds growing in the ground, they will thrive as you feed and water your seedlings, providing a perfect breeding ground for a number of pests.

Also consider planting companion plants along with the tomatoes. Not only do certain plants grow better together, supporting, providing shelter and even producing nutrients in the soil for one another, but some herbs do seem to deter bugs. Basil, for instance, produces a natural chemical that repels aphids. Many people also believe that tomatoes will develop more flavour if grown with basil.

Nematodes can be a major problem in tomato beds, but both companion planting (marigolds make a great companion plant for tomatoes) and crop rotation can help to keep the soil clean and healthy. In severe circumstances, remove the top layer of affected soil and bring in fresh, well-composted soil to replace it.

If you are able to remove bugs by hand, do so. If you act swiftly, it can be effective, if a little time consuming.

Organic and Home-Made Remedies

Apart from the human factor, insecticides will usually kill beneficial insects as well as the nasty bugs that are destroying your tomato plants. Most outlets that stock insecticides also stock organic products that don’t contain harmful toxics. Inspect the labels to see:

a)      which products are recommended for vegetables in general and tomatoes in particular,

b)      what the products contain,

c)       how the products should be used.

Both home-made garlic and chilli sprays can be used effectively to get rid of sap-sucking insects including thrips, aphids, scale, white fly and even stink bugs (a type of beetle).

Many insects loath the smell of garlic

Chillies can be used to dispel insects.

Crop oils and sticky traps can be an effective means of controlling white fly.

Insecticides and Chemicals

Unfortunately there is no getting away from the fact that chemicals are generally the quickest and most effective means of getting rid of bugs and other pests. We also have more knowledge of which chemicals work best to control what. In many instances broad spectrum insecticides may be the only solution for a really bad infestation of pests.

There’s no real mystique to picking tomatoes, except that some types ripen more quickly and differently to other types. Also, if you just tug the tomato off the bush you may damage the stems.

The Best Time to Pick Tomatoes

It usually takes six to eight weeks for tomatoes to form and ripen, and there is absolutely no doubt that they taste best and are most nutritious when they are allowed to ripen on the plant.  Even though unripe tomatoes will ripen quite adequately at room temperature, if you pick fully ripe fruit you really will capture the full flavour of juicy tomatoes. The best is to pick them and eat them right away, at very least within hours.

The reason commercial tomato farmers usually pick their tomatoes when they are still green or lightly coloured and firm, is because they want to lengthen their shelf life. By the time they make the supermarket shelves, they are usually almost ripe. If they are too ripe, they become wastage, simply because they soften and start to rot. Of course you can pick them before they ripen if you wish; just be sure that they are looking nice and glossy and that they are just starting to soften.

Indeterminate tomato plants will continue to form and ripen for several weeks. Determinate varieties, on the other hand ripen all at once. The latter generally forms a bush while the indeterminate varieties can grow as high as five metres or 15 feet.

Green, unripe tomatoes

Generally tomatoes start to ripen from underneath, and some types – including some lovely big heirloom varieties – actually ripen before they are fully coloured. This can be confusing if you haven’t grown the variety before. A good rule of thumb in this case (in other words when it is a type of tomato you haven’t grown before) is to pick when the skin is smooth and looks slightly waxy.

Just remember that tomatoes ripen from the inside; so if they look ripe outside, they WILL be ripe inside.

Picking Tomatoes

The best way to pick tomatoes is to remove the fruit by gently breaking the stalk just above the calyx that formed to protect the flower bud. If there is any danger that the calyx will damage the fruit, remove it before stacking and storing the fruit.

Once they stop producing, lift the entire plant out of the ground. You can throw these plants on the compost heap unless they show evidence of nematode infection. These are microscopic, unsegmented and parasitic worms that can cause an enormous amount of damage to vegetable garden crops. While there are hundreds of different species, they all feed on the roots of the plant, and even if you load the soil with fertiliser and water generously, the plants won’t grow and they will quickly lose colour. You can identify nematodes by the lumps they form on the roots of your tomatoes. If you spot nematode damage or infection, burn the affected plants.

Remember that healthy soil produces healthy tomato plants.

Much as we love tomatoes, so too do a number of bugs and other pests. For this reason it is essential to keep an eye out for those that are most common and to take corrective action as soon as you spot them.

Tomatoes are also susceptible to a number of quite common diseases, so you need to differentiate between the effects of these, and the damage that is likely to be caused by pests (including bugs).

Common Bugs

Universally, the most common pests and bugs that are likely to attack your tomatoes are:

• cutworms,
• caterpillars,
• white flies,
• mites,
• nematodes.

Cutworm

Cutworms, which are a type of caterpillar larvae, feed at night, and it is not uncommon to suddenly find that seedlings look as if they have been sliced off at the top. They seem to be particularly troublesome when tomatoes have been planted out in heavily-manured ground. Ironically, the adult moth – which flies at night – feeds on the nectar of tomato flowers, but does no damage at all.

The caterpillars of both the American bollworm and tomato looper can cause an enormous amount of damage. The moth lays its eggs on the leaves of the tomato plant and when the larvae hatch, they move quickly to the fruit, tunnelling through the young tomatoes as they feed.

Whitefly is one of the most serious pests tomato growers have to contend with, particularly when tomatoes are grown in a greenhouse. These little pests gather together on the underside of leaves, secreting a sweet sticky substance that promotes “sooty mould”. The flies grow to about 1 mm in length and can sometimes be seen flying around tomato plants. When they feed on upper leaf surfaces, they cause the leaves to look pale and spotty.

Various types of mites enjoy eating tomatoes! White-yellow speckles on leaves together with a decrease in plant growth, indicates the presence of spider mites. Tomato russet mites cause leaves to turn a bronze colour. They also affect plant growth and can cause fruit to become disfigured. Another type of microscopic mite causes a condition known as erinose, which irritates the stem and leaf tissue and results in a white furry look similar to mildew. Affected leaves usually dry up and fall off.

Bollworm

Parasitic nematodes or “eelworms” are microscopic roundworms. Because they are so tiny, and because they feed underground, we don’t see them and often are not aware of the tremendous damage they cause. Tomatoes are very susceptible to nematodes, so at least you are forewarned. You can usually identify nematode damage by swellings on the roots. If the tomato plants appear to be dying for no particular reason, pull them out and examine the roots.

Other bugs to look out for include fruit fly, stink bugs, thrips and aphids.