With the right care and a fewhelpful tips, your tomato plants can produce delicious, ripe fruit.
Start here with these time-tested tips for planting tomatoes toharvest a juicy, bountiful cropthis year.
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Indeterminate tomatoes fruit continuously throughout the season, while determinate tomatoes ripen nearly all at once.
Indeterminate tomatoes, which include many heirloom varieties, are better for continuous harvests all summer long.
Tomatoes are divided into early-season, midseason, and late-season categories.
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Whengrowing tomatoes in colder climates, look forearly-season varietiesbred to grow well in cooler weather.
A 5-gallon bucket with drainage holes drilled at the bottom would be an ideal container.
Avoid black containers because they will become too warm for the plant, which leads to stunted growth problems.
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Also, avoid clay pots because they dry out quickly; stick to plastic or fiberglass posts for tomatoes.
Grow in Direct Sunlight
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Tomato seedlings need strong, direct light.
Tomatoes need plenty of sun to grow well and produce fruit.
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Do this by turning a fan on them for five to 10 minutes twice a day.
A soil test also diagnoses nutrient deficiencies.
Tomatoes are heavy feeders and require a steady source of nutrients.
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It’s best to wait to plant tomatoes outdoors until nighttime temperatures stay above 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
Harden offtomato seedlings that were grown indoors to help them adjust before planting.
Plant Stems Deep
Plant your tomato plants deeper by burying them up to the top few leaves.
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It’s ahack used by many gardenersthat helps tomatoes develop roots all along their stems for a stronger plant.
Dig a deep hole or simply dig a shallow trench and lay the plant sideways.
It will quickly straighten itself up and grow toward the sun.
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Just be careful not to drive yourtomato stakeor cage into the buried stem.
Water Deeply
Water tomato plants deeply and regularlywhile the fruits are developing.
Mulching also prevents soil andsoil-borne diseasesfrom splashing up on the plants and shades and cools the soil.
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Crowded conditions inhibit growth, which stresses plants and can lead to disease.
Transplant tomato seedlingsinto 4-inch pots shortly after they get their first set oftrue leaves.
Harden off seedlings before planting in the garden.
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Provide Support
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Give your tomato plants support when they reach 10 to 12 inches tall.
Indeterminate tomatoes typically need stronger supports than determinate varieties.
Use stakes or cages to help determinate tomatoes stand up straight once they bear fruit.
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see to it to disinfect your clippers between snipping plants to avoid spreading disease.
Prune Suckers
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Remove suckersthat develop in the crotch joint of two branches.
Pinch orprune themoff when they’re 3 inches long or smaller.
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They wont bear fruit and can take energy away from the rest of the plant.
you’ve got the option to root tomato suckers in water to grow additional plants.
Put Epsom salt on tomatoesonly if a soil test indicates your garden has a magnesium deficiency.
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Coffee grounds contain elements like carbon and nitrogen that may benefit plants.
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Horticulture.
Conserving Water Through the Use of Mulch in Our Landscapes.
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Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.
Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum).
University of California, Davis, Vegetable Research and Information Center.
Steps to Prevent and Manage Tomato Leaf Spot Disease.
Home and Garden Information Center, University of Maryland Extension.
Using and Storing Tomatoes.Clemson Cooperative Extension.
The Epsom Salt Myth.North Dakota State University.
17.Ohio State University Extension.
Coffee grounds, eggshells and Epsom salts in the home garden.University of Minnesota Extension.
