
Fungicides can reduce certain diseases when properly selected and applied. For prevention, use young, healthy transplants, avoid overhead irrigation, plow in tomato plant refuse in the fall, rotate crops, and do not handle tobacco or smoke before handling plants. Tips: Learn the common tomato diseases in your area. Store firm, ripe fruit 45-60☏ for 4-7 days. To deliver sound fruit, pick fruit less ripe the further the distance and the longer the time between the field and the customer.

Harvesting: Fully vine-ripen fruit only for local retailing or use. This is usually 65 to 80 days after planting. Fertilize again when first tomatoes begin to appear and then again when first tomato is picked.ĭays to Maturity: Tomatoes are ripe when they have reached the right color – red for red tomatoes, yellow for yellow tomatoes and so on – and are slightly soft when squeezed. Always water the base of the plant and not the leaves.įertilizer: Add 1 ounce of high phosphorus fertilizer (5-10-10) in hole before transplanting. Watering: Water at least 1 inch per week. Transplant after last frost date and soil temperature has reach 60☏. Start with shade and no wind outdoors and work your way up gradually to sun and wind. Slowly introduce your tomato seedlings to the outdoor environment one week before transplanting. Using a heating pad to keep the soil between 70-80☏. No fertilizer is needed until transplanting. Place in a sunny window with at least 8 hours of sunlight. Planting: Start seeds indoors under controlled conditions. Homegrown tomatoes taste delicious fresh, or they can be used for canning, sauces and other recipes.īefore Planting: Tomatoes should be grown in a sunny location with good soil drainage. Tomatoes range from typical red to yellow to seedless and heirloom varieties. However, growing a tomato from seed allows for more options when it comes to the type of tomatoes a gardener wants to grow. Feel the soil if the top inch is dry, it’s time to water.Tomatoes are one of the most common plants grown in the garden, but they are usually grown from transplants bought at the store and not seeds.

Be sure to fill containers with premium potting mix, such as Miracle-Gro® Performance Organics ® Container Mix, for best growth. If growing in containers, you’ll need at least a 24-inch pot for an indeterminate variety, or an 18-inch pot for a determinate variety. Improve the planting area by mixing in a few inches of high quality garden soil, like aged compost-enriched Miracle-Gro® Performance Organics ® All Purpose In-Ground Soil, with the top layer of existing soil. Stockier determinate plants can be grown 2 feet apart.

Space robust, long-vined, indeterminate varieties about 3 feet apart. Decide on a support plan before you set out your plants, then add that support directly after planting. You will need to stake, trellis, or cage most tomato plants to keep them off the ground.Tomatoes need at least 6 to 8 hours of sun to bring out their best flavors. Devote a prime, sunny spot to growing tomatoes.Tomatoes run on warmth plant in late spring and early summer except in zone 10, where they are a fall and winter crop.
