How to grow tomatoes?

About 25,000 tomato varieties can be found all over the world and most of these varieties are easy to cultivate. In fact, you do not have to be an expert to plant tomatoes. As long as you have the right planting materials, water and plenty of sunlight, you can grow your own tomatoes at home.

Get your seeds ready

Fill a tomato planter with garden soil to create a suitable plant bed for your seedlings. Dig holes on the plant, about ¼ inches deep, and moisten the holes by putting enough water. The holes should be moist but not soggy. After moistening the holes, put about three to five tomato seeds inside each hole then cover the seeds with garden soil.

Cover the plant bed

Tomato seeds germinate best under dark and moist conditions. So make sure that you cover your plant bed properly using garden covers. It will take about five days for the seeds to germinate. To help coax your seeds to grow, keep the plant bed moist.

Expose the plants to sunlight

After five days, remove the garden cover and expose your seedlings to sunlight early in the morning and late in the afternoon. The plants need approximately six hours of sunlight to grow healthy.

Get ready to transplant

Once the seedlings start to bear flowers, you may now transplant them to your tomato garden. Tomatoes need a lot of sunlight to grow. So, find a place where there is lots of sunlight. Once you find a suitable place, prepare your garden soil. For best results, use plating soil which has about 6.0 and 7.0 pH. Add compost or fertiliser to condition the soil for planting.

Space the plants

Tomatoes need to be spaced about 12 to 18 inches apart to achieve optimum growth. You may use a tape measure or ruler to measure the distance between the plants and mark the appropriate areas for planting.

Dig holes for planting

Dig holes, the size of a soccer ball, in the designated areas and moisten the holes properly. Place the tomato plants inside the holes and cover the base of the plants with garden soil.

Water the plants

Water your plants regularly and check the stems and leaves for possible infestation.

Build tomato cages

Build tomato cages around your plants to support its weight as it grow and bear fruits.