“That’s a beaut!” There’s no sweeter music to a gardener’s ear than admiration for their homegrown tomatoes. Try these secrets for growing a good — no — great tomato!
1 Sunshine — tomatoes need 8 to 10 hours daily.
2 Elbow room. Space plants to allow good air circulation — a longer distance than suggested on the label, if possible, to reduce fungal diseases.
3 Rotate crops. Soil-borne diseases are carried over from year to year and can infect tomatoes and other plants in the nightshade family, including potatoes, peppers and eggplants.
4 Choose sturdy, short and thick-stemmed transplants. Pluck off flowers when planting.
5 Plant in well-drained soil loosened with organic matter or compost. In pots, always start with a clean pot and fresh soil.
6 Bury the tomato stem up to the first set of leaves to encourage root growth.
7 Pinch off suckers if you like, just don’t pinch determinate varieties.
8 Keep plants moist for the first two weeks for good root growth, then begin watering deeply but infrequently. (Check containers and expect to water more frequently.) Don’t water in the heat of the day. Leaves curl up to reduce moisture loss in the heat of the day and can’t absorb water. When leaves are wilting, water can’t be absorbed by the leaves.
A sign of underwatering is if leaves remain curled after the sun goes down. If it rains 1 inch or more, you shouldn’t have to water.
9 Stake plants.
10 Fertilize every other week as plants grow. Stop fertilizing when fruit sets to prevent watery fruit and lush growth with little yield.
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