{"id":2060,"date":"2019-03-17T11:10:36","date_gmt":"2019-03-17T11:10:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gardener.guide\/?p=2060"},"modified":"2020-01-22T08:41:42","modified_gmt":"2020-01-22T08:41:42","slug":"14-tomato-plant-care-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gardener.guide\/14-tomato-plant-care-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"14 Tomato Plant Care Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Tomatoes are often the first thing that most people grow when they start a vegetable garden, which is ironic seeing as they\u2019re actually fruits, not vegetables. These tangy, sweet, firm, juicy, oxymoronic fruits are absolute perfection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Us humans may find them delicious, but we\u2019re not the only ones, virtually every pest imaginable also has a craving for tomatoes. As such, tomatoes suffer from more problems than any other crop you might grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most important thing when it comes to choosing a tomato with good flavor is that you pick the right variety. You\u2019ll also need to plant them properly and nip any problems at the bud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today we\u2019re going to give you an overhead view on everything that you need to know about tomatoes to get yourself a juicy harvest. From ancient hacks to invaluable tips, we\u2019ve got it all for you in this article. What are you waiting for? Get to reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Enochlophobia<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you start your tomatoes from seeds, you\u2019ll need to ensure that the seedlings have enough room to grow. If you plant your tomatoes in overcrowded spots, it\u2019ll be harder for them to grow. This stunted growth can be stressful for the poor fruit and lead to other health problems down the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep watch on your crops and wait until your tomato seedlings get their first set of true leaves. Once they get that magical indicator, it\u2019s time to move them into their own four-inch pot. Try to leave a few feet of room between each tomato seedling to ensure that they don\u2019t have to struggle for territory but can instead expand without conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid planting your tomato seeds at the end of fall as they might not make it through the harshness of the winter. Tomatoes, under the right conditions, can survive the winter, but only after they\u2019re already established.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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2. Brighten up their day<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

To grow up healthy, you\u2019ll need to ensure that your tomato seedlings are getting enough direct light. Days are much shorter during the winter, so putting your seedlings near a sunny window might not be enough to get them their daily quota of sunlight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unless you grow your tomatoes in a greenhouse, the best bet would be to get some artificial lighting that will help your crops grow during the winter. Leave the artificial lighting on for around 14 to 18 hours each day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to ensure that your tomato crops grow in a stocky rather than spindly fashion, keep the younger plants around two inches away from the artificial lighting. You\u2019ll need to raise your lights as your seedlings grow taller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once it comes time to plant your seedlings outside, try to pick an especially sunny part of your garden to leave them in. You can do this by heading to your lawn at midday and seeing which parts shine brightest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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3. Keep it breezy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In order to develop strong stems that are tough enough to sustain the weight of the tomatoes, you\u2019ll need to let your plant sway back and forth with the wind. When you plant your tomatoes outdoors, that\u2019ll happen naturally with the breeze, but if you decide to start your seedlings off indoors, you\u2019ll have to create some sort of air circulation system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This can be as simple as placing them near a fan and then turning it on a couple of times a day. Let it run for a few minutes and then give your plants a few hours of rest to recover from the intense battle that they just survived.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have some spare time, you could also handle the job manually by stroking the tops of the tomatoes for a few minutes. It\u2019ll take some time, and you\u2019ll have to repeat it a few times a day, but you\u2019ll get a nice tomato scent on you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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4. Preheat or face defeat<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Tomatoes are suckers for heat. They love anything and everything warm. You\u2019ll find that your tomatoes will pretty much go on strike and refuse to grow unless you provide warm temperatures in both the surrounding air and the soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To speed the process up, cover the area where you\u2019ll be planting the tomatoes with a tarp for a couple of weeks prior to setting the seeds. Preheating the area will ensure that your tomatoes grow faster and bloom earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can use a thermometer to check the temperature of the ground before you plant your tomatoes. If you aren\u2019t satisfied with the current warmth, give it a few more days to raise the temperature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could even place some space heaters around the planting site to get it nice and warm for the arrival of your tomatoes. Space heaters are a great way to preheat the area quickly rather than waiting for weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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5. From beyond the grave<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You should plant your tomatoes really deep into their pot. Make sure that they\u2019re covered up all the way up to their leaves. When you plant tomatoes deeper in the soil, they\u2019ll be able to grow roots from all their stems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More roots mean a stronger plant, and a stronger plant will have a better yield each harvest. You can dig a shallow trench or deep hole and then lay your plant on its side. Don\u2019t worry about its positioning, the tomato plant will straighten up and grow toward the direction of the sun regardless of its initial orientation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just avoid planting a stake through a buried stem as this could hurt your tomato plant. One way that farmers avoid this occurrence is by placing small twigs in the ground with red ribbons tied around them. These twigs serve as markers so that you don\u2019t forget where your buried stems are when you\u2019re laying down stakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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6. Mulching<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Mulching is an important part of growing any plant, and the tomato is certainly no exception. Before you mulch your soil, give the ground some time to warm up. Whether this is through covering it with a tarp or the use of space heaters, it\u2019s important that you get the soil to a satisfactory temperature before mulching it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulching can ward off diseases and help your tomato plants retain water which is crucial to their development and yield. That said, if you put mulch down before you get the soil to a warm temperature, it\u2019ll cool it down and lead to slower growth for your tomato plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulching your soil is best done during the summer since you won\u2019t have to worry about the ground being too cool. Again, we highly advise that you use a thermometer to check the temperature before you apply your mulch to the soil at the planting site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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7. No bottoms<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Once the height of your tomato plant reaches the three-foot mark, get rid of any leaves that are in the bottom foot of its stem. These leaves are the oldest ones, and as such, are the most likely to develop fungus which could harm your plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When your plants grow, the leaves on the bottom don\u2019t get enough sun. Couple that with the fact that they\u2019re really close to the ground and you have a recipe for disease. Removing low-hanging leaves and spraying some compost tea at the bottom of the stem once a week can help you keep fungus away long enough to enjoy a healthy harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you see fungus growing on one of your tomato plants, be sure to remove the infected area immediately. Leaving fungus to fester could lead to the death of multiple tomato plants in your garden. If an entire plant has been corrupted, take it out before others become infected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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8. Pruning<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s important that you pinch and remove any suckers that might form around the crotch joint of two branches. These suckers won\u2019t yield any fruit, but they still drain energy away from the rest of the tomato plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be gentle when you prune your tomato plants. It\u2019s fine to get rid of some leaves to ensure that your plant gets enough sunlight to ripen its fruits, but bear in mind that the leaves of the plant are the ones who handle photosynthesis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without the leaves, your tomatoes will be tasteless. The fewer leaves you have, the less flavor your tomatoes will have. It becomes a balancing act of getting enough sun while still maximizing the flavor of the final yield.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experiment on some of your fruits so that you can get a feel for the optimal number of leaves on your tomato plant. You can also enlist the help of some seasoned farmers to help you find the sweet spot for your plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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9. Watering<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While your fruits are still developing, be sure to water them regularly and deeply. Insufficient watering or erratic watering can rot your plant and compromise the yield of tomatoes come harvest time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The general rule is that your tomato plants need no less than an inch of water each week if you want them to yield healthy fruit. If you\u2019re growing tomatoes during a dry spell or just live in a naturally arid area, you might want to up the water intake of your plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you get a wilted vibe from your plants, get them some extra water, even if they\u2019ve already had a serving earlier in the day. When the fruits are starting to ripen up, you can reduce the watering a bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you reduce the water intake, the sugars in the plant will pool up which leads to more flavor in your tomatoes. Just find the right balance that keeps your tomatoes flavorful without your plant drying out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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10. Setting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Most of the time, when farming vegetables, your yield is held at the mercy of your local weather. That said, there are some things you can do to help your chances. Two types of tomato plants exist. Determinate tomatoes will grow all the way up to a certain height, and once they reach that height, all their fruit will ripen in unison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conversely, indeterminate tomato plants will just continue to grow indefinitely. If you don\u2019t see your fruits ripen right away, don\u2019t fret, you might just have an indeterminate plant that wants to grow taller before working on its offspring \u2014 like a woman focusing on her career before having kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to get your tomatoes as soon as possible, try pinching off the tips of its main stems. If you do this early into the summer, your plant will allocate more energy into ripening your juicy fruits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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11. Seeds<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Mastering the art of seed starting is very important for any gardener. It will save you tonnes of money and help you grow virtually any plant you want to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think about how awesome it\u2019ll be when you can grow plants that your local garden center would only dream of having. USDA-certified organic tomato seeds cost around three to four dollars depending on the amount of seeds that\u2019s contained within the packet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seeing as each plant produces around 25 pounds of tomatoes each harvest, you could very well get over half a thousand pounds with a single seed packet. Talk about a return on your investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you can\u2019t consume all these tomatoes and don\u2019t have any means of storing them, you can sell the excess off to your local farmers market and make a nice profit for all your hard work. To put things into perspective, the yield from a single seed packet that costs no more than five dollars will be worth over a thousand dollars if you sell the fruits off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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12. Want a trick? Use a stick.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Most farmers can agree that cutworms are the absolute bain of their existence. Cutworms are the larvae of moths, and they love eating seeds. These little pests can turn a relaxing day of gardening into a rage-filled affair that makes you want to cut down an entire forest with a hatchet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no worse feeling than seeing your seedlings dead on the ground, murdered by these monsters. If you want to reconcile this problem without using pesticides, all you have to do is plant a stick the size of a toothpick in the ground. Situate it next to the stem of your seedling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the larvae see the stick, they\u2019ll think it\u2019s the stem, but when they take a bite, they\u2019ll see that it\u2019s too tough to chew. They\u2019ll then give up and head on over to your neighbor\u2019s garden. This is the best way to deal with cutworms while not compromising the health of your plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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13. Leave those suckers alone<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When tomato plants grow, they\u2019ll inevitably spawn a \u201csucker\u201d between the branch and the stem. Suckers grow just like new stems, and they themselves give rise to more suckers and branches as time passes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The general rule is that you should remove these suckers if you want to maximize the size of your yield and ward off diseases. If you want to break the Guinness World Record for the world\u2019s biggest tomato, you should definitely remove the suckers on your plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, if you want to reduce the amount of maintenance your plant needs, it\u2019s best to just leave them on there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, your tomatoes will come out smaller, but provided your soil is good, the difference should be negligible. While the fruits will be smaller, you\u2019ll end up getting more of them, so it sort of offsets the loss while reducing the amount of work you need to do on your plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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14. Graft it up<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you plant your tomatoes in unhealthy soil, you could run into some problems. At this point, most of the soil isn\u2019t what it used to be. One of the most prestigious types of tomatoes is the heirloom tomato.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These tomatoes were grown in a time before plant diseases were so prominent, making them pretty vulnerable to most pathogens. If you want to grow them in this dirty era, you should graft them onto a rootstock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grafting has been used for millennia and can help you grow heirloom tomatoes in even the worst soil conditions. Plums, pears, peaches, apples, and a myriad of other fruits rely on grafting to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grafting describes the process of placing a cutting from a certain plant on top of a rootstock so that it can grow properly despite the unsavory conditions of the surrounding soil. It may be some extra work, but this is likely the only way to get heirloom tomatoes nowadays.
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Tomatoes are often the first thing that most people grow when they start a vegetable garden, which is ironic seeing as they\u2019re actually fruits, not vegetables. These tangy, sweet, firm, juicy, oxymoronic fruits are absolute perfection. Us humans may find them delicious, but we\u2019re not the only ones, virtually every pest imaginable also has a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2070,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[14,17],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n14 Tomato Plant Care Tips<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/gardener.guide\/14-tomato-plant-care-tips\/\" \/>\n<link rel=\"next\" href=\"https:\/\/gardener.guide\/14-tomato-plant-care-tips\/2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"14 Tomato Plant Care Tips\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Tomatoes are often the first thing that most people grow when they start a vegetable garden, which is ironic seeing as they\u2019re actually fruits, not vegetables. 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