How to Grow Tomato Plant | How to Make Tomato Plants Grow Faster
Want to know how to make tomato plants grow faster and how to grow tomato plants?
If yes! You have landed in the right place, Here in this post, you will know how to grow tomato plants faster in an effective way.
Table of Contents
how to grow tomato plants faster?
Seasons of Planting
Seeds are sown in June and July for autumn-winter crops and for spring-summer crops seeds are sown in September. On the hill, seeds are sown in March and April.
Take some fresh organic tomatoes,(prefer Heirloom varieties) and cut them into slices. Or use fresh seeds from the market.
Take a small pot with drainage holes at the bottom. Fill it with the potting mix. You can use seed starting mix for that or just mix 60% normal garden soil plus 40% vermicompost.
Place the slices on the surface of the potting mix. You can also remove the tomato flesh to avoid any fungus growth.
Lightly cover with soil and pat down lightly and water well.
Keep the pot in partial shade and when the seeds start to germinate, move the pot into full sun or under grow lights.
After 7 days
Seeds can be sown from September to October.
After 14 days
Keep the soil evenly moist during the germination phase.
After 25 days
When the seedlings are 6-8 inches tall at that point you can transplant them at their final location.
For the potting mix-use well-drained soil with a good amount of organic matter as tomato plants require fertile soil for a good harvest. Mix well before use.
Choose a container or poly bag that is at least 18 – 20 inches in diameter and 15 – 18 inches deep. Fill the bag with the potting mix, Make sure to make holes in the pot/polybag for drainage.
With the help of a gardening tool take the plants out from the seedling pot. Make sure not to disturb the roots during the transplanting process.
Keep the root ball intact to avoid any transplant shock. Be very careful when lifting the plants out of their original container or you could damage the roots. Dig a hole about 6 – 8 inches deep.
Make sure that you remove all leaves and branches below the soil line.
Read more: How To Care Tomato Plants | How To Plant Tomato At Home
Right Way to Plant
Tomatoes must be planted deeply. Deep painting encourages a healthy and strong root system. At the time of planting cover the bottom 2/3 part of the plant with potting soil.
They actually have the ability to sprout additional roots along the buried stem. These extra roots strengthen the plant so that it can support more fruit.
Fill in the hole or trench with some of the soil you removed. Only the top few inches of the plant will be exposed.
Water the seedling immediately after transplanting for letting them settle well. Throughout the growing season continue to water thoroughly whenever the top layer of soil is dry.
After transplanting keep the bag/pot in partial shade for 2 days to let the plants recover from transplant shock and after that gradually expose the plants to the sun.
Location
After 32 days
Tomato plants need between 4-6 hours of total sun per day in order to grow and eventually produce fruit.
Water at least once a day to the soil to keep the top layer of the soil evenly moist. Simultaneously good drainage from the pot is also very important to avoid root rot.
After 55 days
As tomato plants grow you need to provide some support to them for that take long stakes/sticks and insert them in the soil close to the plants.
Install wood stakes/sticks at least 4-6 feet tall. Tie the stems loosely to them with twine or strips of fabric.
Pollination
While tomato flowers are typically pollinated y wind, and occasionally by bees, the lack of air movement or low insect numbers can slow down the natural pollination process.
In these situations, you may need to hand pollinate tomatoes to ensure pollination takes place so your tomato plant bears fruit. For that simply shake the flower gently to distribute the pollen grains
Tomato plants will usually produce fruit between 35 to 60 days post-planting.
Now comes the fun part. Within a couple of months or so, your plant with super roots will delight you with a beautiful harvest of lovely fruits.
Fertilizer
You can fertilize the plants with fishmeal, chicken manure, vermicompost, or any other organic fertilizer.
Mix well in the soil. Then, water the plants thoroughly. You will need to repeat the fertilizing process after every 18 – 20 days.
Watering
The key to tomato success is to give your tomato plants a consistent amount of water. The goal is to keep the soil moist, not wet.
Too much water and your plants will rot. Too little water and your plants will get weak.
Make sure to water the soil, not the plants, as wet leaves can encourage diseases and fungus.
Pest and Disease management
After 80 days
Spray the plants after every 6-8 days with homemade organic pesticides made from neem oil, garlic extract, and chilly extract. PRECAUTION IS BETTER THAN CURE.
MIX – 500 ML WATER PLUS 30 ML NEEM OIL PLUS 20 ML GARLIC EXTRACT PLUS 20 ML CHILLY EXTRACT.
As the tomatoes grow bigger and heavies provide extra support to the steams.
After 92 days
Check the plants daily once they begin to ripen to ensure peak flavor. Gently twist the fruits and avoid pulling at the vine.
Harvesting
Harvest your tomatoes one by one once they develop their red color.
Ripe tomatoes can be plucked by gently pulling at the stem with your fingers. Or, use a sharp scissor to snip them off their branches.
A fully ripe tomato will be softer than the unripe ones. Ripeness also varies with each variety of tomatoes but most tomatoes will be ready for harvest within 100-120 days.
Before you eat the tomatoes you harvest wash them thoroughly with water. This will help to remove any fertilizer residue, dirt, or bacteria.
The perfect tomatoes for picking will be firm and very red in color, regardless of size, with perhaps some yellow remaining around the stem.
The remaining ones will mature in a few days.
Growing Tomatoes in Container
- Use a large pot or container with drainage holes in the bottom.
- Use loose, well-draining soil. Good potting mix with added organic matter.
- Add organic compost after every 15-20 days.
- Plant tomato plants deep as possible.
- Taller varieties may need to be staked to provide support.
- Place the pot in a sunny spot with 6 to 8 hours of full sun a day.
- Keep soil moist. Contains will dry out more quickly than the garden soil, so check daily and provide extra water during hot days.
Stay tuned for my next blog in which I show you how to care for Tomato plants, Thank you so much for visiting my blog, take care, and happy gardening.
