How to grow tomatoes: The Ultimate Guide To Growing Tomatoes

Growing tomatoes is a fun and rewarding task, resulting in masses of fresh, nutritious tomatoes that taste better than anything you can buy in the shops. Tomatoes are the most popular vegetable to grow in the home garden, and there’s nothing quite like sliced tomatoes on a sandwich when picked fresh from the garden. There are many different varieties of tomato to grow, including cherry, plum, and beefsteak, each with its own distinctive shaped fruit, flavor, and culinary use. Tomatoes are easy to grow and taste best when grown in full sun.

Here we have compiled all of the articles with tomato growing tips; everything from the best way to plant tomatoes to information on exactly what do tomatoes need to grow.

How To Grow Tomatoes At Home

To grow tomatoes successfully, you need rich, fertile soil or peat-free potting compost, and a good sunny, sheltered spot. Water regularly and feed weekly with a high-potash fertilizer once the plants start to flower.

Tomatoes Growing Types: 

Tomatoes are split into two main growing types: determinate (bush) and indeterminate (cordon). Bush types are usually planted in pots or hanging baskets and their stems trail around the edge. Cordon types are trained to grow tall and are supported by a cane or stake.

When To Plant Tomatoes:

Tomatoes will fail to thrive unless temperatures are optimal. Nights should be consistently no lower than 55 degrees F, while soil temperature should be at least 60 degrees. Prolonged heat over 90 degrees F will cause fruit and flower production to halt. Planting before it's warm enough can result in stunted plants. Planting too late can result in low yields or unripened fruits.

Start Tomatoes From Seed

Start sowing in late-January until late-March. Sow seeds in 7.5cm pots of moist compost, top with a thin layer of vermiculite, then water, and cover with cling film. Stand on a warm, bright windowsill or in a propagator.

When your seeds have germinated, remove the cling film (or take them out of the propagator) and keep the compost damp. Transplant seedlings when they reach about 2-3cm tall into 5cm pots filled with moist multi-purpose compost. Return them to the windowsill. Keep potting on as necessary. Support stems by tying them to a pea stick with soft string.

• Don't Crowd Tomato Seedlings
• Provide Lots of Light
• provide some type of air circulation

Planting Tomatoes Outside

They grow best in full sun location, but some varieties may survive little shady areas or afternoon sun. Since the tomato plant can grow as tall as 7 feet tall, plant the tomatoes on the Northside of the garden bed, so they don't shade out other smaller plants.

Planting Tomatoes In A Greenhouse

Growing tomatoes in a greenhouse are very similar to growing them outside, except you get a longer growing season. you'll need a consistently warm temperature (70 - 75 degrees Fahrenheit, no lower than 60 degrees), plenty of suns, & good ventilation. Tomato plants should be staked, and soil will likely need fertilizer.

Tomato Plants Care

Tomatoes come in a wide range of flavors as well as colors and sizes, from tiny grape-sized types to giant beefsteaks. The choice also depends on how you will use this versatile fruit in the kitchen. For example, Roma tomatoes are not usually eaten fresh out of hand but are perfect for sauces and ketchup. Tomatoes do need vigilant care, as the crop is susceptible to pests and diseases. To avoid problems, choose disease-resistant cultivars whenever possible. 

Watering

Water often and deeply, soaking the soil six to eight inches deep at least twice a week. Tomatoes do not respond well to letting the soil dry out between waterings. Keeping moisture levels in the soil even will help prevent the dreaded blossom-end rot, that small black spot on the bottom of the tomato which eventually can spread throughout the fruit.

Soil

Tomatoes need rich well-draining soil that stays moist but not soggy. Work compost, aged manure, worm castings, or a combination into existing soil. They prefer a slightly acidic pH between 6.0 and 7.0.

Fertilizing

You should have already worked compost into the soil before planting, and added some bonemeal to the planting hole when transplanting.

Side-dress plants, applying liquid seaweed or fish emulsion or an organic fertilizer every 2 weeks, starting when tomatoes are about 1 inch in diameter (some folks say “golf-ball-size”). If you are using an organic granular formula such as Epson Tomato-Tone (4-7-10 or 3-4-6), pull mulch back a few inches and scratch 2 to 3 tablespoons fertilizer around the drip line of the plant. Water in, and replace the mulch.

Continue fertilizing tomatoes about every 3 to 4 weeks until frost.

Note: Avoid fast-release fertilizers and avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers. As stated, too much nitrogen will result in lush foliage but few flowers and little or no fruit.

Prune Tomato Plants Regularly

To increase fruit production, you should regularly prune your tomato plants. Start by removing any suckers — small shoots emerging from the stems at the base of each leaf — ASAP. This helps the plants stay upright, improve air circulation, and grow better produce. While caged tomatoes can develop one or two suckers, staked tomatoes do best as a single stem. Try to clip (or even pluck with your fingers) any visible suckers every few days.

Mulching

A layer of mulch (straw, plastic, grass) will help conserve soil moisture during the hot, dry days of July and August. In addition to moisture, tomatoes need warm soil. Black or red plastic mulch will work wonders if you live in a land of cool summers. For people in warmer climes, straw or another organic will be your mulch of choice.

Supporting Tomatoes

Cages, stakes, and trellises can be used to support tomato plants. Supports will keep leaves and fruits off the ground. Tomatoes that sprawl across the ground will be susceptible to disease and insect pests.

Stakes can be used to train tomatoes upwards. Staked tomatoes are commonly pruned to one or two main stems (called leaders) which are trained up by tying the stem to the stake with elastic horticultural tape.

Trellises can be used to support tomatoes. Fashion a trellis out of 6 by 6 inch (15cm) galvanized mesh. Stretch the mesh between two stakes set about 8 feet (2.4m) apart. Tie off the vines as they grow up, similar to staked plants.

TOMATO PESTS AND DISEASES

Tomato Pests

Here are common insect pests which attack tomatoes (go to the Index to find additional articles about these pests):

Cutworms live in the soil and attack seedlings; place paper collars around seedlings.

Aphids: suck plant juices leaving plants weak; knock them off plants with a strong spray of water.

Whiteflies spray with insecticidal soap.

Tomato hornworms are large green caterpillars that can defoliate a plant; handpick and destroy or spray with spinosad.

Tomato fruitworms bore into fruits; spray with insecticidal soap or Bacillus thuringiensis.

Tomato Diseases

Tomatoes are susceptible to fungal, bacterial, and viral diseases. Disease control can be difficult. Disease prevention is the best course of action. To stave off disease plant disease-resistant varieties and keep the garden clean and free of debris.

Harvesting

Pick fruits individually once ripe and fully colored.

At the end of the growing season, lift outdoor plants with unripe fruit and either lay them on straw under cloches or pick the fruits and place them somewhere warm and dark to ripen. Alternatively, put unripe tomatoes in a drawer with a banana, to aid ripening.