Growing Great Tomatoes

Red, juicy tomatoes have the unmistakeable taste of summer – they are fantastic for you and a welcome addition to any garden. If you are the primary gardener, don’t miss the treat of eating them, sun-warmed, straight from the vine occasionally – bliss! Here are a few tips on how to get the most out of growing your own.

Tomato seedlings need plenty of space. Crowded conditions can inhibit their growth, so transplant them into shortly after they get their first true leaves, with about 10cm of space around them.

They also thrive on light, so pick a warm spot, with strong direct light to grow them in. A bit of breeze is not a problem, in fact it helps the stems develop strongly.

Tomatoes love heat. To give new plants a real kick start, you may like to preheat the soil  – cover the planting area with black plastic a couple of weeks before you intend to plant. Those extra degrees of soil warmth will translate into earlier tomatoes. Some gardeners prefer to use clear plastic, as it heats the soil and also ‘fries’ any weeds in the soil.
Hold off on mulching until after the ground has had a chance to warm up.

Plant your tomato plants deeper than they come in the pot, all the way up to the top few leaves. When planted this way, tomatoes are able to develop roots all along their stems – more roots will make for a stronger plant.

To prevent fungus and leaf disease, remove the leaves from the bottom 30cm of the stem once the plants are well established (eg one metre tall). These are the oldest leaves and they are usually the first leaves to develop fungus problems.

While your tomato plants are developing, water them deeply and regularly. Irregular watering leads to blossom end rot and cracking. Try and ensure they get 2-3cm of water per week, but during hot, dry spells, they may need more. If your plants start to look wilted for most of the day, give them a drink.

Once the fruit begins to ripen, you can ease up on watering. Lessening the water will promote flavoursome tomatoes, but use your judgement. Don’t let the plants continually wilt and become stressed or they will drop their blossoms and possibly their fruit.