Tomato Plants

Fresh homegrown tomatoes are one of the best rewards for all the time and money that you pour into your garden. You can enjoy your fresh from the garden tomatoes all year long by canning and freezing extra tomatoes. In addition, sharing your bounty is a generous gift to neighbors and family who can’t grow their own. Tomatoes are plants that grow indoors as well as outdoors and one tomato plant can supply you with an abundance of tomatoes.

There are hundreds of different types of tomatoes you can grow. The main varieties that are most common are Roma, grape, cherry, beefsteak or plum tomatoes. Find a variety that will grow well in your region with a fast enough maturity rate to produce tomatoes well before your first frost of the season. Tomatoes love the heat and love the sun. Frost will kill both the small seedlings if they are planted too early and the fully mature fruit if they are not picked before the frost hits. Make sure your soil has a good drainage system, as tomato plants do not like wet soil. You can start your tomato seeds indoors and then transplant them outside when the danger of frost has pasted. Tomatoes need full hot sun to produce big juicy tomatoes.

Water your tomato plants deeply instead of light daily watering. You want to water the roots, not the leaves. Stake your plants to keep the tomatoes off the ground and help discourage pests from getting to eat them before you do. Fertilize your plants regularly to keep the soil in top shape and increase the amount of antioxidants in your fruit. Store your harvested tomatoes in a cool dry place, out of sunlight and not in the refrigerator.