Want to have a home-grown supply of fresh tomatoes all season? Follow our guide to home-grown tomatoes.
Growing tomatoes is a fun and cost-effective way to have a continuous supply of tomatoes throughout summer months. Tomato seeds can be purchased for a very low price and can provide you with excellent home-grown tomatoes. Compared to some garden vegetables, there is a slight learning curve to growing tomatoes, but they are fairly early to grow.
Tomatoes require direct sunlight and plenty of water to grow, so make sure to plant your tomatoes in an open area and have a garden hose or watering pot ready to use.
Follow our guide below for a detailed explanation on growing tomatoes in your home garden.
Choose Your Variety of Tomatoes
There are many different types of tomatoes that can be grown at home. Consider the types of tomatoes that you and your family typically enjoy eating. You will want to buy a type of tomato that is enjoyed by yourself and your family, because you will have plenty of them available throughout the duration of the summer months.
The climate of your local area also determines what type of tomatoes you should grow. Certain tomatoes can withstand extreme heat better than others. If you live in an area that sees high temperatures throughout the summer months, tomato varieties including Solar Fire, Heatmaster, and Phoenix are known to tolerate high heat well.
When selecting your tomato seeds, you must also decide if you want determinate or indeterminate tomatoes. Determinate tomatoes fruit all at once, producing a large amount of tomatoes in the span of a few weeks. If you don’t want to maintain a tomato garden all year and simply want to quickly obtain a large amount of tomatoes for a low price, you may consider purchasing determinate tomatoes.
Determinate tomatoes work well for someone who prefers to can tomatoes or make tomato sauces. If you prefer to eat your tomatoes cooked in a pasta or other dish, determinate tomatoes could suit your needs.
Indeterminate tomatoes produce fruit for the entirety of the summer season. If you want access to fresh tomatoes all season, opt for indeterminate tomatoes. Indeterminate tomatoes work well for someone who enjoys fresh tomatoes in salads or on sandwiches.
Plant Your Tomatoes
In order to plant your tomatoes, dig shallow holes in soil approximately ¼” deep and spaced 1 inch apart. If you plant your tomato seeds directly outside, you must wait until it is warm outside and there is absolutely no chance that there will be a frost or it will kill the seedlings.
If there is still a chance that it could frost outside, start by growing your tomato seeds in a seed tray inside. This ensures that the tomatoes can sprout and begin to grow without being harmed by the climate.
Once your seedlings have sprouted, plant them in their intended outdoor location, leaving approximately 2 feet between each plant. This leaves each plant plenty of room to spread out and grow. They may grow much faster and larger than you’re expecting.
Set the tomato plants deep enough in the ground so that the entire plant is almost covered by soil. Add compost and soil to the base of the plant so that it is well secured.
The location of your tomato garden must be in direct sunlight for many hours of the day. Tomatoes need plenty of sunlight to grow, and aim to plant them in a spot that gets a minimum of 6 hours of direct sunlight.
To prevent weeds in your garden, add mulch or straw.
If you have a household pet, exercise caution when planting tomatoes. Tomatoes can be toxic to household pets when eaten before the tomatoes are ripened. If you’re worried that your pet may snack from your garden, consider caging your tomatoes.
Water Your Tomatoes
Tomatoes need a minimum of 1 inch of water a week. Water your tomatoes on a weekly basis and make sure that the soil is well saturated. As temperatures rise during the hottest months of the year, consider adding extra water.
Tomatoes can be overwatered, so water your tomatoes diligently and with care. Consider the climate of your area. If you live in an extremely hot, dry climate, you will need to water your tomatoes much more often than someone in a cooler, wetter climate.
Fertilize Your Tomatoes
Fertilizing your tomatoes can help them grow and flourish even further. While the first fruit of the season ripens, this is an opportunity to add extra nutrients to the soil of your tomatoes with compost.
Consider adding a plant fertilizer as the season progresses, but use it with care. Tomatoes do not always need fertilizer and too much can ultimately slow the production of tomatoes throughout the season.
Stake Your Tomato Plants
Tomato plants can grow very tall, and often require stakes for support to continue growing. Add stakes to support the growth of your tomato plants by tying the base of the stems to the stakes. Tomatoes will be healthier with less risk of pest interference when supported with stakes, and will be more visually appealing as well.
Tomato stakes should be roughly 6-7 feet tall to allow ample room for the tomatoes to grow.
Tomato cages can also be used as an alternative, because they allow plenty of room for tomatoes to grow whilst being supported by the cage.
Prune Your Tomatoes
Tomato plants should be regularly pruned to encourage growth and fruit production. While caged tomatoes don’t need pruned as often because they have more freedom to grow in different directions, staked tomatoes need pruning in order to grow properly.
Tomatoes can be pruned by clipping any suckers (areas where the plant diverts into a new vine). Pruning tomatoes encourages a more streamlined growth process, further encouraging the plant to produce more fruit.
Harvest Your Fresh, Home-Grown Tomatoes
After 40-50 days of patience and care, the first fruits of your tomato vines will begin to ripen. Inspect the tomatoes visually to see what tomatoes are ripe and ready to harvest. A ripe tomato will appear full and bright red.
After the first batch of tomatoes are ready, your garden will continue to produce fresh tomatoes consistently all throughout the summer months. Continue caring for and monitoring your tomatoes as the season progresses.
Growing your own fresh produce is one of the healthiest and most eco-friendly ways to incorporate more vegetables into your diet. If you find that your tomato plant is producing more tomatoes than you can keep up with, use the Lil’ Broc app to monitor the freshness of your produce and plan accordingly.
How to Grow Tomatoes: Final Thoughts
Growing your tomatoes is not only a fun project, but a cost-effective and eco-friendly way to increase your food supply. By following our guide to growing tomatoes, you will be sure to enjoy fresh, home grown tomatoes within a few months.