Do Tomatoes Grow Well in Containers?

QUESTION : I want to grow tomatoes in containers , but I ’ve never done it before , and I ’m not sure how they ’ll do . Do Lycopersicon esculentum grow well in containers ? — Thomas G.

ANSWER : If you choose the good miscellanea , tomato can grow quite happily in containers . There are just a few road map you should follow to cultivate your own tomatoes in containers . If you be the instruction below , your tomato plant plants will grow sizable and impregnable in container , yielding a hefty harvest . Here ’s what you need to make out .

Situate your containers in a spot with plenty of sunshine.

Your tomato plants involve to get full sun so they will perform well . “ Full sun ” have in mind the plants must get between six and eight hour of direct sunlight each day to perform well . Do n’t endeavor to skimp on the sunshine — tomato plants postulate plenitude of sunlight and warmth to bring forth flush and tomatoes .

Watch your garden to see how sunlight move across it . you could make a diagram if you need to so you could keep course of how much sunlight the unlike areas in your garden get . You should monitor the sunshine in your garden a few time a year , because it changes .

For the respectable yield , place your tomato plants in a smear where they will get at least eight hour of sunshine . If sun is sparse in your garden , you could grow cherry red tomatoes somewhere that fix four to five hours of sunshine . However , you should have sex that the harvest will be lighter than it would have been if the industrial plant received full sun .

Because love apple thrive in warm weather , they do n’t do so well when it ’s chilly . If the temperature in your field fall under 50 degrees Fahrenheit ( 10 degrees Celsius ) , you should bring your tomato plant indoors or to a sheltered field like a shed or garage . If the temperature climb above 90 degrees , you may observe that flowers no longer appear and the tomatoes do not grow to full sizing and mature .

Choose the right containers for your tomato plants.

love apple plant have thick roots , so they must have a container large enough to provide them to develop a stiff , healthy root system . The pot you will utilize to grow love apple must be at least 24 inches wide and 24 inches cryptical .

Another rule of thumb you could habituate to choose a container is that the pot must be able to hold at least 15 gallons of potting soil . Smaller container will quickly dry out out in the summer sun , requiring you to irrigate them frequently and causing needless stress on your tomato plant life . accent can make industrial plant more susceptible to diseases and other problems .

The pot you choose absolutely must have drainage mess in the bottom . You may hear some gardeners say that you’re able to employ containers without drainage holes if you line the bottom of the slew with broken pottery or rocks . This is simply out of true . you’re able to discover out more about why containers you will use in the garden must have drain muddle in our articleDo You postulate fix in Your plant life Pots ?

cherry tomatoes growing in pots with text overlay Do Tomatoes Grow Well in Containers?

Place a layer of mesh at the bottom of your container before tally soil and the tomato plant life . The mesh will rent piddle exceed through without charter the soil with it . If you notice that grime is still steal out of your plant pot with the water , you could add another bed of interlocking to keep it in place . Mesh made to use as a windowpane covert crop well for this .

Bolster Your Tomato Plants With a Stake or Other Support

If your tomato plants are undetermined , they will need astake or another kind of livelihood . If you are n’t sure how to tell the difference between determinate and indeterminate love apple plant , you could refer to our articleDeterminate ( Bush ) Vs . Indeterminate ( Vine ) Tomatoes , Explained .

Determinate tomatoes will still need sustain , but you may habituate a smaller cage , brusk treillage , or shorter stake for them . To quash damage the tooth root system of rules of your tomato plants , set up the stake or cage before you plant the tomatoes . About once a week , make certain the main stem of your tomato plant plant are connected to the support system . If not , loosely tie the stem to the stake or other support with garden tie or twine .

Most tomato potpourri will require some form of support . However , if you are produce Lycopersicon esculentum that splatter out of a flow basket or a very summary variety , you could cut the stakes .

Keep Moisture in the Soil with Compost or Mulch

Without a protective layer of compost or mulch , the soil in a container dries out much more quickly than the soil in your garden . Save yourself extra lachrymation trip and verify your works get the hydration they need by using compost or mulch on top of the soil .

You ’ll require to add a layer of compost or mulch that ’s between two and four inches deep around your tomato plants in their containers . check that not to lease the compost or mulch disturb the flora . They need a few inches of empty space around them to keep industrial plant diseases from moving easily through your garden . If you are n’t sure whether to use compost or mulch , you may take our articleCompost Vs . Mulch : What ’s the Difference .

Give Your Tomato Plants in Containers Plenty of Water

Tomatoes in containers might expect water as frequently as twice per day when the temperature rises . There ’s a dim-witted test you may expend to decide whether it ’s time to water your tomato . Insert your fingerbreadth into the ground to a deepness of two inches . If the soil sticks to your skin or feel moist to the touch , it ’s not yet fourth dimension to give your tomato plants water . You ’ll point out that plants growing in larger containers need piddle less frequently than those in smaller pot .

If your plant ’s leafage is droop even though the soil has plenty of wet , do n’t fret . The plant life conserves wet when it needs to by allow the leaves to wilt . However , more extended wilting that happens when the soil has dry out mean your plant is suffering the consequences of desiccation . This not only hit your plant susceptible to stress — it cancause the disease blossom end rot . If your tearing agenda has been inconsistent , you may also see emergence such as cracking or splitting .

When you water your plants , purpose the urine at the base of the plant so it can be suck by the roots . The tomato plant plant can not apply water supply that falls on its foliage — not to remark , if water squish onto the foliage , it can cause problem such as blight or fungus .

Nourish Your Tomato Plants With Fertilizer

Even if the potting mix you used to implant your tomato says it include a slow - release fertilizer , you ’ll still require to fertilize your Lycopersicon esculentum plants . Every two or three week is a estimable schedule for adding fertilizer . Your tomato plants need this nourishment most when they ’ve started to create flowers . employ an all - intent water - soluble plant food or fluent organic fertiliser . There are also fertilizers made particularly for tomatoes that you may use .

you may distinguish when it ’s clip to fertilize your tomato plants by check over the color of the foliage . A tomato plant that ’s incur slew of victuals has colored green leaves , but the color will twist wakeful if fertilizer is involve .

Bury the Stem for a Well-Developed Root System

When you move your tomato industrial plant into its container , you have an chance to help it grow an panoptic etymon scheme , which sustain the plant render with moisture and nutrients . Clip off the bottom few leaves or small stems . Then localize the tomato plant in the hole you ’ve made , burying the stem so that the spot where you clipped a leaf are under the surface of the grease . The plant will send out roots from those places .

Fend Off Insects With Netting

If turgid insects like tomatohornworms , caterpillars , and stinkbugs are an issue in your garden , black netting can be a solution . It wo n’t keep off smaller bugs likeaphidsorwhiteflies , but it ’s good against larger pests .

Each container will call for two yards of disgraceful netting ( each 72 inches wide ) . Put the netting around the outside of the wire cage in your container . you’re able to use clothespins to clip the veiling to the wire batting cage at the top . To keep the top close , you ’ll demand some large , hard - tariff rubber bands .

The veiling can also aid protect your tomato plants fromsunscald . intervention such as insecticidal soaps orbotanical Btcan be apply through the netting .

Select the Right Tomato Varieties for Containers

Not all love apple plant will fly high in container , so it ’s imperative that you get a variety that will execute well in the lowly blank space . Check the seed packet or online product description to find the estimated ripe size of the works . little mixed bag are a secure bet than larger ones , though you’re able to grow plant that will stretch to seven substructure tall if you apply a five - gallon to seven - congius container .

Here ’s a listing of tomatoes that gardeners recommend for container horticulture :