Tomato Moneymaker – Over 100 Seeds

The Ultimate Guide: How to Grow Tomatoes from Seed in South Africa

Growing your own juicy, sun-ripened tomatoes from seed is one of the most rewarding projects a South African gardener can undertake.

Whether you are planting compact, heavy-yielding bush varieties like Floradade or tall, prolific climbing vines like Moneymaker, starting from seed gives you stronger plants, healthier roots, and a much wider choice of varieties.

This step-by-step guide covers everything you need to know to successfully grow tomatoes from seed to harvest in our unique local climate.

When to Plant Tomato Seeds in South Africa

Tomatoes are summer crops that love warmth and are highly sensitive to cold and frost.

Your planting calendar depends entirely on your local climate zone:

Highveld & Inland Areas (Gauteng, Free State, North West): Sow seeds indoors or under cover from August to September. Transplant them out into the garden beds in October, once all danger of late spring frost has completely passed.

Winter Rainfall Areas (Western Cape): Sow seeds indoors in August. Move them out into the garden from September to October as the soil and daytime temperatures begin to warm up.

Subtropical Regions (KZN Coast, Lowveld): You have a massive advantage! You can grow tomatoes almost all year round. However, sowing from February to September is ideal, as it helps you avoid the extreme mid-summer humidity and heavy seasonal pest pressure.

Essential Supplies You Will Need

1. Before you get your hands dirty, gather these essential gardening tools:
2. Premium, non-GMO tomato seeds (like Floradade or Moneymaker)
3. Seedling trays, cell inserts, or small biodegradable peat pots
4. High-quality, fine seed-starting mix (do not use heavy, compacted garden soil)
5. A misting spray bottle for gentle watering
6. A warm, sunny windowsill, a mini-greenhouse, or a plastic propagation dome
7. Liquid organic seaweed fertilizer (such as Kelpak or Seagro)

Step 1: Sowing the Seeds

Fill your trays: Fill your seedling trays tightly with your seed-starting mix. Tap the tray gently on a flat surface to settle the soil, leaving about 1cm of space at the top.

Plant the seeds: Make a small indentation in the centre of each cell, roughly 5mm deep. Drop 1 to 2 seeds into each hole.

Cover and press: Lightly cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil mix or vermiculite. Gently press down so the seed makes good contact with the damp soil.

Water softly: Use a spray mist bottle to thoroughly moisten the soil without washing the tiny seeds away.

Step 2: Germination & Early Care

The Warmth Factor: Tomato seeds need warmth to germinate (ideally between 20°C and 25°C). Place your trays in a warm spot, like a sunny windowsill or on top of a warm appliance.

Keep it Moist: Check the trays daily. The soil should stay damp like a wrung-out sponge, never soggy or bone dry.

Sprouting Time: You will see the first green hooks emerge within 7 to 14 days.

As soon as they sprout, they need maximum sunlight. Move them to your brightest north-facing window, or put them outdoors in a protected spot during the day so they do not grow tall, thin, and “leggy.”

Step 3: Thinning & Feeding

Once your seedlings are a few centimetres tall, they will grow their first pair of “true leaves” (which look like miniature tomato leaves).

Thinning: If both seeds sprouted in a single cell, use a pair of scissors to snip the weaker seedling off at the soil line. Do not pull it out, as this can damage the roots of the remaining plant.

Feeding: Start feeding your young plants once a week with a half-strength mixture of liquid organic fertilizer to encourage strong root development.

Step 4: Hardening Off (Crucial Step!)

About a week before you want to plant your seedlings into the ground, you must “harden them off.”

Seedlings grown indoors are soft. Moving them directly into the harsh South African sun will burn them.

Day 1–2: Put the trays outside in a shaded, wind-protected spot for 2 hours, then bring them back inside.

Day 3–5: Increase their outdoor time by a few hours each day, gradually moving them into direct morning sunlight.

Day 6–7: Leave them outside all day and overnight. They are now tough enough for the garden!

Step 5: Transplanting into the Garden

Your seedlings are ready for the ground when they are about 10–15cm tall and have several sets of leaves.

Prepare the soil: Choose a spot that gets at least 6 to 8 hours of full sun daily. Dig in plenty of well-rotted compost and a handful of organic bone meal for strong roots.

The Deep Planting Trick: Dig a hole deeper than the seedling’s root ball. Pinch off the lowest leaves of the seedling and bury the plant deeply—all the way up to its first set of remaining leaves. Tomatoes can grow roots along their buried stems, which creates a massive, resilient root system!

Spacing: Space your plants 45cm to 60cm apart, depending on whether they are bush (determinate) or climbing (indeterminate) varieties.

Water deeply: Water the base of the plants thoroughly immediately after transplanting.

Top Tips for a Massive Tomato Harvest

Water the roots, not the leaves: Fungal diseases love wet tomato leaves. Always apply water directly to the soil at the base of the plant.

Mulch heavily: Cover the surrounding soil with a thick layer of straw, dried leaves, or bark mulch. This keeps the roots cool, retains soil moisture during hot summer days, and prevents soil-borne diseases from splashing onto the leaves.

Support early: Set up your wooden stakes, trellises, or tomato cages at the time of planting so you do not disturb the roots later on.