Most individuals realize that to have a thriving garden you must, at minimum, sow seeds in the soil.
But not everyone knows how many seeds to put in each hole.
When you plant tomatoes, you will want to put up to two seeds per hole, however, there is quite a bit of ground work, due diligence if you will, to do before you get to seeds in the ground.
Choosing a Tomato Seed
The very first step in growing tomatoes is determining what the most preferred type of tomato will be after you have spent all the time nurturing it.
The best way to determine which tomato plant is appropriate is to decide how you want to use the tomatoes.
For example: You can make a sauce out of tomatoes, you can use tomatoes as an ingredient on burgers and sandwiches, and there are even varieties of tomatoes that work well for snacking!
Sauces
Some tomatoes are better when cooked, crushed and processed into sauces.
For sauce tomatoes, Roma, Pompeii, and San Marzano are excellent sauce tomatoes.
They are often thin-skinned, fewer seedy and have considerably less water content compared to other tomatoes.
Slices
The best types of tomatoes for slices are the largest ones, and the freshest crisp tomatoes.
One or two slices should be able to completely cover the surface area of your hamburger bun or toast for a BLT.
The best slice tomatoes are the beefsteak, but Brandywines and Mortgage Lifters are also decent for sandwich preparation.
Snacks
Cherry tomatoes are ideal for a healthy snack, but can also be included in salads or served as an appetizer.
There are many different types of cherry tomatoes with different sizes, colors, and tastes.
If you are a tomato lover but haven’t found the right snack tomato, try:
- Gardener’s Delight
- Sun Sugar
- and Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes
Planting Outside vs. Starting Inside
When you’re ready to begin planting seeds and growing plants, there are a few items you will need to think about.
One of your first decisions will be to choose to grow your plants indoors or outdoors.
Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to both methods; ultimately it comes down to what is best for your particular climate and your personal timing.
Growing the plants indoors gives you more control over the growing conditions.
You can control the temperature, amount of water, and type of soil the plants are growing in.
Growing a plant indoors does require more effort.
You must put grow lights on the plants, water them constantly, and provide nutrients.
If you live in an area of the country with a short growing season, you probably want to start your plants indoors.
That way, you can plant them as soon as weather permits.
On the other hand: If you live in an area with a long growing season, you can start your plants when the weather cooperates.
Growing plants in the ground is much easier than using grow pots, but you need to live in an area where the ground doesn’t freeze.
Getting the Soil Ready
Before you can get tomato seeds in the ground there’s a few things you need to do.
Firstly, check the pH of the soil. It needs to be somewhere between 6 and 7 to accommodate healthy tomato growth.
You can lower the acidity of a soil by adding limestone and raise acidity by adding sulfur or aluminum sulfate or sulfuric acid.
Secondly, are you working with loamy soil? Hire a soil specialist if you’re not sure. If your soil is not loamy, then it needs adjusting.
For either clay based soil or sand based soil, you should add organic compost:
- If you are working with clay soil, the organic matter will loosen the soil particles and give the roots space and room to spread.
- If you are working with sandy soil, the compost will allow it to hold moisture and give it some much needed nutrients.
Last but not least, you need to loosen up the soil, by tilling it or digging it up with a shovel.
Watching Tomatoes Grow
Congratulations!
All the preparation work is finished and it’s time to plant your seeds and watch them grow.
Planting the Seeds
Regardless of whether you chose to plant directly in the ground or small seeding pots, you want to make a hole about 1/2 inch deep and 2 inches apart.
Only add a maximum of two seeds per hole you make.
Once they are buried, water them really well. Make sure to keep the dirt moist (not soggy) until you see the seedlings sprout.
Germination
You’ll see those little sprouts pretty soon.
What to Expect? Tomato seeds usually take about 7 to 10 days to germinate.
Thinning the Seedlings
After your tomato plants have sprouted, it’s time to thin them.
Thinning means removing all of the plants except the strongest one in each hole.
To thin your seedlings, just cut the weaker plants off at the base with scissors, being careful not to disturb or damage the roots of the strongest plant.
You can either transplant the removed seedlings to another location in the garden, or toss them in the compost.
Staking the Plants
As your tomato plants grow, they will require support.
You could do this by driving a stake into the ground next to each plant.
Tomatoes can become quite top-heavy, so make sure your stake is at least 2 feet tall.
You could use a tomato cage or other type of support structure too.
Pruning the Plants
When your plants are approximately 2 feet tall, it’s time to start pruning!
Pruning allows the plant to put its energy into producing fruit, and it also makes it a little easier to support your plant.
To Prune a Tomato Plant: Simply remove any side shoots that have grown between the main stem and the leaves. These side shoots are referred to as suckers, and they will not produce fruit.
You can also remove any leaves that touch the ground. Leaves that touch the ground can encourage pest and disease problems.
Harvesting the Tomatoes
You’ve done it! The fruits of your labor are ready to be harvested!
Tomatoes should be harvested about 70 to 80 days after planting.
This will vary depending on the kind of tomatoes you are growing.
To see if they are ripe, squeeze the fruit gentle- as long as it soft, but resistant to the squeeze, it is ready to be harvested.
Make sure to harvest tomatoes that are not cracking, or diseased. Any fruit that is damaged should be used or discarded.
Final Thoughts
Growing tomatoes can be a fun and rewarding experience, but it does take some planning and maintenance.
As long as you are planting two seeds per hole and you have followed this guidance, you should have success growing healthy tomato plants along with delicious fruit.
Enjoy your homegrown tomatoes!