As of: May 2nd, 2024 3:23 p.m
A sunny and wind-protected location is ideal for planting tomatoes. If you fertilize regularly and remove unnecessary shoots, you can reap a rich harvest.
Tomatoes are one of the tastiest and most popular vegetables. They are available in a wide variety of colors, shapes and flavors. There are said to be more than 10,000 cultivated varieties worldwide. They can be small like a currant or large like a pumpkin.
The color spectrum runs from classic red to yellow, violet and black. There are even striped, marbled and multicolored specimens. Anyone who has found their favorite tomato can propagate and cultivate so-called seed-resistant varieties.
The optimal location for tomatoes: A covered place
Tomatoes should not be left in the rain, but rather have a sheltered place.
Tomatoes require nutrient-rich and permeable garden soil; they cannot tolerate waterlogging. The location should be sunny, sheltered from the wind and covered. So-called tomato houses, which are small foil greenhouses, are available in stores from around 50 euros. With a little skill, you can also build your own roof using squared timber and a sturdy foil. Such houses offer the plants optimal climatic conditions. They should be open at the sides so that there is sufficient ventilation.
The roof also indirectly protects the plants from a typical fungal disease, late blight. Spores of the fungus are often found in the soil. Through heavy rain or watering from above, the pathogens reach the leaves of the tomato plant with the splashed water and it becomes infected with the disease.
Growing tomatoes on the balcony
If you don’t have a garden, you can easily grow tomatoes on the balcony. Many varieties thrive in a pot or simply in a plant bag. Bush tomatoes are particularly recommended; they grow low and compact and are very productive.
Sow and transplant tomatoes on the windowsill in spring
Hobby gardeners can grow tomatoes as early as the end of March, for example in a mini greenhouse. The seeds are then planted in nutrient-poor potting soil. At temperatures of around 20 degrees, the first seedlings appear after eight to ten days. At a slightly higher temperature of up to 24 degrees, the tomatoes germinate faster – and the plant is even more productive. So that the seedlings do not hinder each other’s growth, it is important to prick them out, i.e. separate them, after about three more weeks.
Further information
If you want to prefer tomatoes, you should definitely pay attention to the right time. What is important when sowing? more
Plant outside after the Ice Saints
The young plants are only allowed outside after the Ice Saints in mid-May, as they are very sensitive to cold. If that’s too much effort for you, you can also buy pre-grown plants at the garden center. However, unusual and seed-resistant varieties are rarely offered there. They should be planted at least 50 centimeters apart and the row spacing should be one meter.
This is what matters when fertilizing tomatoes
Tomatoes need a lot of nutrients to grow vigorously.
As soon as the tomatoes grow outdoors, they should definitely be fertilized. Tomatoes are so-called heavy feeders, which means they remove a lot of nutrients from the soil. These must be fed to him regularly. It is best to enrich the bed with ripe compost in autumn, so the basis for the coming spring has already been laid.
In addition, organic fertilizer such as horn meal, horse manure or nettle manure is recommended. Alternatively, special ready-made fertilizer for tomatoes can of course also be used – here you should definitely be very precise with the dosage and take the soil condition into account. For example, a clay soil requires less fertilizer than a sandy soil.
Water tomatoes regularly
A clay pot can help with watering tomatoes.
Tomatoes need plenty of water. If it is very hot, potted tomatoes may even need to be watered in the morning and evening. As soon as the fruits ripen, tomatoes should be watered less from time to time. This makes the fruits of well-fertilized tomatoes more aromatic. To regularly supply tomatoes in the bed with water, you can use a clay pot with a drainage hole next to the tomato plant so that it serves as a watering aid. We then poured it through the pot so that the water goes directly to the roots of the tomato. This also works with a so-called Olla.
Disinfect trellises
Tomato plants should not grow too large. Only five, a maximum of seven inflorescences can mature optimally. Therefore, simply cut the plants if they develop too many inflorescences. With the exception of the compactly growing bush tomatoes, all tomato varieties require a climbing aid, which should be disinfected with denatured alcohol or a gas burner before use to avoid fungal diseases.
Thin tomatoes: Remove excess leaves and inflorescences
Breaking out unnecessary shoots strengthens the growth of the tomato.
In order for the tomato plant to put all its strength into the fruits, unnecessary shoots in the leaf axils must be broken off. The gardener calls this exhausting. This ensures that enough water and nutrients reach the fruit. In addition, all leaves can be removed, especially below the first fruit cluster. The plant develops better and the lower fruits receive more light, ripen faster and diseases do not spread as quickly. In late summer, existing inflorescences can also be cut off. If you like, you can use the shoots that were broken out in early summer as cuttings and grow additional plants.
Mixed culture for healthy plants
If you want to grow several types of vegetables, for example in a vegetable patch or in a raised bed, you should opt for a so-called mixed culture. If the right plants are combined in the bed, they benefit from each other in terms of growth and health.
Tomatoes grow excellently alongside the following plants, among others: basil, bush beans, nasturtiums, garlic, brassicas, kohlrabi, lettuce, leeks, carrots, parsley, lettuce, radishes, radishes, beetroot, celery and spinach. Unsuitable plant neighbors, on the other hand, are peas, fennel and potatoes.
Further information
Dark spots are a sign of what is known as blossom end rot. This is how to avoid tomato disease. more
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The tips: Do not use seeds from diseased plants, try new varieties or change the location of the plants. 2 mins
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Garden professional Peter Rasch visits a vegetable grower in Wöbbelin. Tomatoes also grow in huge greenhouses almost all year round. 7 mins
Green tomatoes that no longer turn red outside due to low temperatures do not need to be thrown away. more
Dried tomatoes, ketchup or juice: Gardener Peter Rasch has lots of ideas on how to preserve tomatoes. more
41 Min
Growing and growing tomatoes is not complicated. Now you can start sowing on the windowsill. 41 mins
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Quickly through the garden | May 13, 2024 | 9:00 p.m