Anyone who loves the taste of tomatoes and has sampled home-grown versus shop-bought varieties will definitely know the difference! Undoubtedly, those just picked off the plant at home are fresher than those from the supermarket shelf. They even smell fresher, too!
There is often a sense of pride in cultivating and serving your own food. The great news is, learning how to grow tomatoes is relatively easy – and you don’t have to be a green-fingered whiz to start growing a crop of delicious veg (or is that fruit?) all of your own.
Read on and let’s get started!
Growing tomato plants – should I start with seeds or seedlings?
Tomato plant seeds are cheaper than seedlings, and may actually give you a bigger crop if you cultivate them successfully.
A single pack of seeds could enable you to produce 20 or more plants – and you would usually need to buy four or more packs of growing seedlings to raise the same crop.
Seeds take a little longer to produce fruit than seedlings, however, who have a head-start at time of purchase. Seeds are convenient to store, however, requiring no attention. You can also plan and buy them well in advance of setting them. You can also spread the dates you sow them to stagger the production of crops.
On the other hand, seedlings are guaranteed to have started growing. At point of purchase, you’ll be able to see tender, green shoots. The initial planting, watering and monitoring will have been done for you! Seedlings are also easy to transplant into bigger pots, grow bags or the ground.
Both seeds and seedlings should be identified by type and named by the supplier. You can also grow seeds from tomatoes you have purchased or home grown previously – more about that further down!
How do I choose which types of tomato plants to grow?
Choosing which type of tomato plants to grow depends on what you want to eat and where you intend to grow them. Your taste requirements will direct you to some specific types of tomato, while your gardening options will steer you towards using pots, bags, a greenhouse, or open soil. You can even grow tomatoes inside indoor greenhouses!
Let’s take a look at how to marry the requirements of your taste buds and consider your options for cultivation.
What are the three main types of tomato?
The three common types of tomato grown in the UK are cherry, plum (regular), and beef.
Cherry tomatoes are usually sweet, small and are coloured red, yellow or orange. Some varieties are round whilst some are shaped a little more like eggs or pellets. Great for using on cocktail sticks, as a garnish, or popping into salad, they’re also great for school lunch boxes!
Regular round and plum tomatoes grow as bush or cordon tomatoes. There are numerous varieties, tastes and shades of colour – from dark purple to brownish red, maroon and numerous shades of orange and yellow.
Beef tomatoes are large and can be mild or salty flavoured. Their size is impressive with a single slice sometimes able to cover a slice of bread! They are the giants of the family, measuring up to 13.2 centimetres (6 inches) and weighing up to a pound each! They grow on the tallest of tomato plants, requiring more space than their smaller relations. They also require more watering and more nutrients too!
How to grow tomatoes at home – getting started
Warning – cultivating tomatoes often becomes addictive! Once you have raised, nurtured and picked your own, it’s likely you’ll be hooked on providing for your own plate. Anyone who has picked a tomato from their own plant and eaten it still warm from the sun, knows there is nothing that can beat that flavour – so, here’s how to start planning your tomato plant care for the tastiest crops.
When is the best time of year to grow tomato plants?
Providing it’s nice and warm inside, you can start sowing from early March onwards if you want a nice crop – but if you’re set on growing outside in the soil, you’ll need to start sowing later towards the start of April.
If you’re growing indoors, you’ll normally start to notice seedlings within a couple of weeks. However, this is only a part of the growing fun you’ve got to come!
Choosing bush or cordon tomato plants – which are best?
Bush tomato plants
Bush tomatoes are ideal to grow in pots, generally in a greenhouse, verandah or conservatory to start with – you may decide to take them outside once weather permits, though.
Ideal for balconies, terraces, outside by a kitchen door or to be given as a gift, potted tomatoes are a welcome sight and practical to handle. Bush plants can also be cultivated in grow bags or in the ground itself.
Cordon tomato plants
Cordon plants may be grown in large containers including pots – but unless it’s a grow bag or barrel, it’s most likely to be the ground for these taller tomato plants.
Beef tomatoes are cordon giants! They grow up to six feet tall (just under two metres) and have comparably hungrier and thirstier roots than your average tomato plants. They need to be a good distance from neighbours otherwise they will compete for nutrients and plants won’t reach their full potential – they will also compete for light.
Can I grow tomatoes in the house?
Yes! After all, that’s why you’re here at Houseplant Corner, right?
Pots can be placed by a sizeable, sunny window and certainly profit more when opened! Tomatoes need lots of air to breathe and plenty of light to grow.
Cherry tomatoes can make a lovely, colourful display and can be handy to pick from a kitchen windowsill. On a cautionary note, tomatoes can attract insects and aphids. These can be a nuisance and spread to other houseplants, so place with care.
Can I grow tomatoes in a hanging basket?
You most certainly can! This is ideal in a conservatory or on a verandah, by kitchen doors or anywhere with light.
Smaller plants in baskets can include the array of colours from different varieties of Cherry tomatoes. They form a great visual display as well as a crop that’s handy to pick!
How to look after tomato plants – a deep dive
Now we know a little bit more about how to get started in growing tomato plants from home, let’s take a look at what you’ll need to keep in mind when caring for them over time.
How to care for tomato plant seedlings
Seedlings require good quality compost, gentle watering and light. Germination takes as little as a week but usually up to three weeks, depending on the variety of tomato, temperature and light available.
Cover seed trays or pots with cling film or within a plastic freezer bag if handy. Remove the plastic when shoots appear.
When to move tomato plants outside
When seedlings reach a minimum of 2.5 centimetres, they are ready to be planted in pots or grow bags.
We recommend waiting a little longer before setting them in open ground. It’s an idea to put them in a plant ‘nursery’ for a short time, too.
Growing tomato plants in pots, tubs or barrels
Growing tomatoes at home in pots, tubs or barrels is straightforward, and usually easiest if you develop a routine. Checking for moisture content and watering is of paramount importance!
As tomato plants grow, you will see flowers begin to form and leaves develop. You may need to turn your container so that plants get their fair share of light, especially if you have positioned pots in groups.
If placed outside, pets and wild birds may be attracted to your tomato plants in containers – for example, cats may try to scratch up soil at their base. It is advisable to protect soil by covering with strong black plastic discs.
You can water these containers from the bottom eventually, but early on, smaller plants will not have developed long enough roots to draw up enough fluid.
Useful tip:
Make a radius-size cut in a plastic planting disc and lift it to deliver water to the base of the plant until it has grown taller. Plastic discs are also useful to reduce water lost by evaporation.
On a cautionary note, plastic gets hot and can burn roots nearest to the base of plants. When the temperatures heat up, it may be best to remove the plastic completely. You could put small stakes around the outer edge of the containers to deter pets, too.
If you have containers outdoors, ensure you don’t overwater your tomatoes after rain!
Caring for tomatoes in grow bags
This process is almost the same as for those in pots. Watering and checks for pests are imperative for the success of your crop!
Cordon tomatoes in grow bags are generally taller than those in pots and require more space. Leaves can be bigger, too, and you may need to snip off any obliterating the sunshine from fruit.
Watering and feeding plants in bags means that roots spread more widely than deep, so try to ensure each plant gets a fair share. If the plant in the centre seems weaker it may be suffering from competitive neighbours on both sides!
You can avoid this by not placing too many plants in a grow bag. You may have a bigger crop from three plants than four, as odd as that sounds!
How to look after tomatoes in the ground or on a vegetable patch
If you have a vegetable garden or allotment, chances are you may have mapped out the best position for your tomatoes.
The best idea is to aim for sufficient space in sunny spots. Prepare the soil by digging in plenty of potash is a good idea and mulching regularly helps. Feed a liquid tomato fortnightly and up to once a week for beef tomatoes!
You will also need a handy source of water, and hosting a water butt is a great, free way to supply it!
Watering cans are generally kinder than hose pipes, especially for smaller plants. If you are watering with a hosepipe, it is best to aim for the base of the plant rather than shower the stems.
Also, when using a hosepipe, be careful to not use so much force you create a moat around plants. A fine spray over more time is better than a fast deluge.
How to support tomato plants outside
If you’re growing tomato plants outside, you may find that they need extra support – literally.
Aside from plants falling in strong winds, strong supports can prevent one stem leaning too closely on another and hindering the development of flowers and fruit. In containers and the ground, supports can be bigger and need to withstand weathering. Canes, bamboo and metal supports are all available to buy and can be recycled – it’s worth buying in bulk!
Useful tip:
Re-use any tall, slender branches you may have from pruning any of your shrubs or trees. It’s a good way to recycle valuable wood! Simply ensure the wood has been cleaned and dried out before you use it for this purpose.
What’s more, make sure to tie up frail, or heavy stems with string or twine and check if you need to slacken or reinforce these as plants grow.
Useful tip:
For bush tomatoes use a pair of metal coat hangers. Pull them apart, use the hooks to push into the soil and the frame to ring fence the plant, or use the hooks to support thick stems and pull apart the frames, so the pointed end goes into the container.
How can I tell if my tomatoes are ripe and ready to harvest?
It’s easy to be over-enthusiastic, so check your fruit carefully before picking. By lifting fruit gently, ensure the skins have an even colour.
Patches of yellow or green indicate the fruit is not yet ripe and needs longer in the sun. Harvest by twisting the fruit slowly, snipping with scissors or using a gardener’s knife. Place fruits in a container and avoid stacking them on top of each other if possible.
Can you grow a tomato plant from a tomato?
Yes! Growing tomatoes from your own seeds is really satisfying. Simply gather a few items you will need and select a fruit you wish to use.
Open it up to reveal the seeds – they will be in the central area of the fruit and usually cream or white. Have some tissue nearby and a small container of water to place them in. You’ll need an egg box with a piece of kitchen roll or some cotton wool, too.
Cupping your seeds in the palm of one hand, use the other to gently separate them and drop them in cool, but not cold, water. Shake the container with a lid to clean away any residue pulp.
Empty the seeds out onto the tissue and separate the seeds to dry out in the egg box on a piece of dry cotton wool or tissue. Allow a couple of days or more for seeds to dry and then sow as above.
Tomatoes are juicy, delicious, and great for you – why wouldn’t you want to grow some from home? Follow our tips above and you’ll be well away.
