Tomato plants are undoubtedly the first plant that every new gardener starts their gardening journey with. Even though they’re easy, one mistake can ruin the whole thing. That’s why it’s important to know the right way to do things.
So how to grow tomato plants? Choose the right variety, put them in a seed tray with seed starting mix, and move them to a big pot when they start to grow leaves. After that, get the soil ready outside and let your plants spend 4 to 6 hours outside to get used to the environment. Move them outside when the soil is ready.
Nevertheless, you shouldn’t just plant them and wait for them to grow. To enjoy fresh fruits, there’s more to it than just planting them and forgetting about them. Everything will be covered here.
Step-By-Step Guide: How To Grow Tomato
As a gardener myself, I have started my journey with tomatoes. The primary reason behind this is its simplicity. So if you are eager to cultivate your juicy tomatoes but aren’t sure where to start, you’re in the right place.
In this beginner-friendly guide, I will walk you through each step of the process, making tomato growing a breeze. Let’s start.
Step 1: Choose The Right Variety Of Seeds
There are tons of varieties available for tomato seeds. Firstly there are determinate tomato seeds that grow to a certain limit and stop. Indeterminate tomato seeds keep growing as long as nature allows them to.
Secondly, you have to choose the variety between different types of tomatoes. For example, Roma, Beefsteak, Better Boy, Big Beef, etc.
The rule of thumb is to choose the variety that is well-suited to your climate and available space. Once that has been set, you can go for your desired flavor and size.
Step 2: Selecting The Right Time
Before you plant the seeds, you need to ensure it’s the right time for the tomatoes. Since tomatoes don’t like cold weather, you need to keep in mind the frost date in your area.
Nevertheless, one of the best times for planting tomato seeds is late spring.
Step 3: Plant The Seeds
Take a seed tray filled with seed starting mix and start planting the seeds inside it. Start by digging small holes about 1/3 inch deep for the seeds to go in and then put the seeds inside it. Later on, cover the seeds with the seed starting mix ensuring the seeds are in contact with the mix.
Step 4: Transfer Them To Large Containers
Once you start to see the seeds grow and develop leaves, it’s time to transfer them to a large container. However, before planting them in a container, ensure that you have made some holes in the back of the container for the excess water to drain out.
You must wait about four weeks before transferring them to outdoors. In this period, you can start preparing the soil.
Step 5: Preparing The Soil
I have to say as a gardener that this is one of the crucial steps since your tomato plant’s growth depends on it. So before you plant, improve the soil’s richness and structure by adding compost, aged manure, or other organic matter. Simply take a garden fork and dig them about 7 inches inside the soil.
On the other hand, you should test the pH level of the soil. Tomato plants generally prefer between 6.0 to 7.0 pH levels.
Step 6: To-Do Before Transplanting Them Outdoor
Before permanently transplanting them outdoors, your tomato plant should be comfortable with the outdoor environment. You can do that by keeping them outside in daylight between 4-6 hours every day for a week.
Step 7: Transplanting Outdoor
Once everything is done, choose a spot where there is direct sunlight and dig 3 to 4 inches into the soil. Transplant the tomato trees from the large container and dig them into the soil gently. Nevertheless, make sure there are no air holes.
Step 8: Take Care Of Your Tomato Plant
Your tomato plant is ready and only needs some care and maintenance to provide you with fresh tomatoes. Well, the care and maintenance part might be challenging and require much understanding. That is why I have included sections that will assist you with it.
Tips For Tomato Care
In this section, I will dive in and uncover the secrets to successful tomato care for nurturing healthy tomato plants as per my experience. Here they are;
- Providing your tomato plants with at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight is key for their well-being.
- Water your tomato plants 1 to 2 inches every week. However, if it’s too sunny out there then you should water them twice.
- Avoid overhead watering to prevent fungal diseases.
- Spot the suckers in your tomato plant and remove them for optimal tomato fruit growth. Suckers are the small shoots that form between the main stem and branches.
- Regularly check your tomato plants for any diseases, being yellow and being powdery mildew are common symptoms. Apply organic methods such as applying baking soda onto the plants to get rid of the diseases.
Tips For Tomato Maintenance
Similar to tomato care, maintenance is equally important. Here are some tips for tomato plant maintenance from my side;
- For indeterminate tomato plants, use cages to support plants as they grow. This helps to keep fruits off the ground, reducing the risk of rot.
- It’s vital to feed the plants with a balanced or tomato-specific fertilizer throughout their growing season.
- Put organic mulch around the foundation of plants, like straw, grass clippings, and compost. This helps to keep the soil wet which is beneficial for the plants to grow properly.
- Just like any other plant, tomato plants stay well in shape when crop rotation is performed. This helps maintain soil health and prevents diseases.
- When your tomatoes are fully grown, there’s a chance that they weigh more than your plant’s branches can take. So use mesh bags or slings to cradle large fruits and reduce stress on the plant.
Conclusion
To sum up, the process of how to grow tomato plants is quite simple if you know the right techniques. Simply start by choosing the right variety for your environment and start planting them in a seed tray. Once, they start to show leaves, it is all about getting them used to outdoors and preparing the soil.
On the other hand, caring for and maintaining them is equally important to get results. So mulch them, pinch off the suckers, provide them with 6-8 hours of sunlight, and water them every week.
