The organic revolution is in full swing. More and more consumers are choosing to eat healthy, organically-grown foods free of pesticides, growth hormones, chemical additives, and other harmful ingredients.
Though many people prefer that all fruits and vegetables be grown organically, the most importance is placed on thin-skinned produce like tomatoes that easily absorb chemical treatments. Because the cost of organically-grown tomatoes and other produce remains high, many people are opting for a home-grown approach that is spurring a revolution in urban farming.
Though residential landscapes are often small and unable to support large gardening systems, almost anyone with an outdoor space can grow tomatoes organically and without disrupting their lifestyle. When managed properly, most tomatoes require very little space and will typically grow on any balcony, patio or sunny area.
Traditionally, tomatoes grow wildly on a vine that can sprawl over an expansive amount of space. However, most gardeners know that they are best managed with support by a stake and wire.
However, many people are finding that they can grow tomatoes with very little soil out of a pot. In fact, some urban tomato-growers opt to grow the plants upside down in specially designed containers.
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You don’t need a huge garden plot to successfully grow tomatoes. Use this guide to learn how to grow tomatoes in an apartment.
You may think that tomato gardening is impossible if you live in a small condo or apartment, but that is far from the truth! Growing tomatoes indoors is actually easier than it may seem. With a little planning, a pack of seeds, and a sunny windowsill or balcony, you can enjoy fresh, healthy tomatoes all year long.
People who choose to grow tomatoes out of a pot should make sure they choose plant varieties that will thrive under limited space conditions. The plants should have smaller vines and be bushier. They should also have compact growing habits and preferably produce fruit steadily throughout the growing season, rather than all at once.
It’s important for a gardener to be aware of the characteristics of the tomato especially if there’s a designated spot in the garden or container for them. Knowing what is purchased helps the gardener be successful with growing vegetable crops. Depending on their needs, gardeners may find they don’t have enough tomatoes ripen at the same time; or too many for them to use all at once.
The first step in growing tomatoes indoors is choosing the correct variety. Small varieties such as Pixie, Patio, Toy Boy, Small Fry, or Tiny Tim are the best for this purpose. Like their names imply, these are dwarf varieties of tomato, and they produce fruits that are one to two inches in diameter.
The best tomato plants for hanging baskets and upside-down planters are Roma tomatoes, tomato garden pearls, and celebrity tomatoes. Gardeners who have property space for an in-ground garden can opt for almost any kind of tomato, regardless of how big its vines are or how far they stretch.
Once you have chosen your variety of tomato and bought the seeds, germinate them in the seed starting mix in the tray or in small pots. Once the seedlings have grown to three inches in height, transplant them to the larger pots. If you buy seedlings instead of germinating the seeds yourself, simply plant them directly in the 6” pots.
Seed packages are usually marked as determinate or indeterminate. When purchasing seedlings at a nursery, they may be marked “DET” (determinate) or “IND” (indeterminate). If they aren’t a nurseryman can help.
The last thing you’ll want to check before purchasing tomato plants is how many days before the fruit will be ready to be harvested. While it’s good to know the dates, in any case, it can be vital for growing zones that may have a short growing season. This information is almost always on seeds packets as well as the containers of seedlings.
Understanding the determinate and indeterminate characteristics of tomato plants gives the gardener more control over his tomato crops than ever before.
When choosing tomato plants, it’s easy for a gardener to focus only on the size of the tomatoes, the color, and how many plants they would like to see in the garden.
But, unless you understand the difference between determinate and indeterminate tomato varieties it’s hard to know how many plants are necessary. Knowing these differences make it easy to have tomatoes when the gardener needs them.
A determinate tomato variety’s usual habit is to grow into a bush-type plant, and their height is rather fixed, although this may not be true for all of them. Once they reach a certain size (3-4 feet), they bloom and set fruit. This is all done in one fell swoop and the tomatoes need to be harvested all at once.
Gardeners who prefer less staking and trellising would do well to choose a determinate variety. Although a cage is usually still required, most need very little pruning if any at all. Many hybrid or cultivated tomato plants are determinate.
Determinate varieties are a plus if canning (either whole or as a sauce), or drying is the primary reason for growing the tomato crop. For some, it may make good sense to plant determinate types if the tomatoes will be grown in containers.
An indeterminate plant is a vine, which means it continues to grow during the entire growing season. Some may argue that “true vines” are those that can attach themselves to support as they grow. Still, most consider this to be a mere technicality as the idea here is that the branches grow like vines continually.
These tomato plants can reach up to 12 feet tall. They can take up a lot of space and definitely need to be caged or staked. Even then, many need continued support with ties or by trellising throughout production. Indeterminate vines also need pruning to keep them from becoming completely unruly.
That said, the indeterminate varieties have a lot going for them. For one, these wild vines produce a higher fruit yield per square foot compared to their bushy cousins. Also, indeterminate tomatoes win the taste-test every time.
In general, their tomatoes are bigger, tastier, and they continue to produce right up until a hard frost kills them. Most heirloom tomato varieties are indeterminate plants.
Indeterminate tomato varieties are perfect for the gardener who would like to use them periodically throughout the season such as adding them to sandwiches, salads, or side dishes. They’re also simple to add to a garden with a fair amount of space.
Indoor gardening is not as tricky or as messy as it may seem. All you need to start out with are a few simple things: tomato seeds or seedlings, seed starting mix and tray (or small pots), 6” pots, soil mix, tomato stakes or cages, and fertilizer.
Water the plants consistently and thoroughly until the water runs out of the hole on the bottom of the pot. Make sure the soil stays evenly moist at all times, although not muddy or boggy. Fertilize the tomatoes around two weeks after transplanting in the 6” pots with a well-balanced fertilizer, or one specially developed for use on tomatoes.
In order to maintain a constant supply of tomatoes all year long, plant more seeds every two weeks or so. This will ensure that there will always be a healthy new plant to replace your older and less productive plants.
Place the tomato plants on a sunny windowsill, apartment balcony, or doorstep. In tomato gardening, you will see no results unless your plants get at least 7 hours of direct sunlight every day. If you have your plants on a windowsill, rotate them every other day or so to make sure that sunlight reaches the entire plant.
When the plants have developed their leaves fully, it is time to transplant them into permanent containers, which will be their home for the rest of the growing season. Each plant should have about a gallon-size pot.
You can plant several plants in one pot but make sure they have adequate spacing and room for growth. Dry out the small pots by ceasing water for a day or two. If the plants have become spindly, bury the stem deeper in the soil, but make sure the roots will have enough room to extend.
Surround each plant with soil, patting down the loose soil. Water each plant until soaked. Apply Miracle-Gro or other fertilizers if you so wish. Place the plants in a sunny location that will get regular daylong sun.
Water the plants regularly, an important key to producing healthy tomatoes. Also, make sure to provide stakes or cages for those plants that need to grow vertically.
Urban tomato-growers should be sure to keep a watchful eye on their plants. It is important to keep the plants away from bugs, as pesticides will ruin the benefits of growing produce at home. Additionally, the plants must be properly watered.
Tomatoes will begin to wither and shrivel quickly when they become dry. The soil should always contain some moisture, but never so much that it could promote the growth of fungus. The plant must have a proper drainage system to release excess moisture, or else the plant will rot and die.
One great way to utilize the upper space in a greenhouse or garden is to grow tomatoes upside down. This technique has other advantages in that there is no need to use cages or other means to support the tomato vines. Hanging tomato plants have a much lower incidence of pest infestation than their traditionally grown counterparts.
Plastic 5-gallon buckets work great for growing tomatoes upside down, but they need to have lids like the buckets in which paint or pool chlorine tablets come. Restaurants generally are able to provide these buckets, because many food items are delivered in them, or they can be purchased at most hardware stores.
Make sure to wash the buckets with natural dish detergent and hot water prior to beginning this project. It is also possible to change the color of the buckets by painting them with special spray paint designed specifically for plastic that is available at most hardware stores.
First, turn the bucket upside down and use a utility knife to cut about a 3-inch hole in the bottom of the bucket. Alternatively, a drill with a hole cutting bit used for installing door knobs can be used to cut the hole.
Next, turn the bucket over and cut a 3-inch hole in the center of the lid. Take off the lid and place several layers of newspaper in the bottom of the bucket to cover the hole.
Fill the bucket with 40 lbs of premium potting soil mixed with the directed amount of four-month time-release fertilizer, or an appropriate organic substitute like crab meal.
Vermiculite or Perlite may be added in place of 50% of the soil to improve water retention, which is especially helpful in hot or dry climates. For an even better soil environment, add a few worms before closing the bucket. Place a piece of screen on top of the soil and secure the lid.
Next, turn the bucket upside down and cut a couple of slits in the newspaper. Dig out a small cavity and plant the tomato plant inside.
It is best to start with a small tomato plant around 10 inches tall and bury 80% of the plant to stimulate root growth. Grow the plant right side up until it reaches 10 inches above the bucket and then it is ready for hanging.
It is important to have a secure fixture for hanging the bucket and to hang it at a sufficient height to accommodate the tomato plant’s growth, generally at least six feet high. T shaped poles that are sold for clotheslines and cemented into the ground make excellent hanging structures and may hang two to four buckets each.
The tomato plants can be watered and fertilized through the top holes and will take much less water than those grown on the ground due to the closed container.
It’s always recommended that you rotate vegetable crops each year to help avoid disease problems. If you removed the plants and all the plant debris at the end of last season, and if your plants were disease-free, you can probably tempt fate and plant tomatoes in the same spot again. Be very careful to remove the spent plants at the end of the season so no insect eggs or disease pathogens remain to infect next year’s crop.
The other problem with planting the same veggie in the same spot is that eventually, you’ll deplete the soil. Avoid soil depletion by adding plenty of organic matter to your garden. This may include aged manure or mushroom compost during the winter, and compost, peat moss or leaf mold in the spring.
Yellowing leaves on tomato plants are quite common and can be caused by a variety of things, including overwatering, lack of nitrogen and transplant shock. Tomatoes like rich, well-draining soil with lots of organic matter.
Tomatoes also need nitrogen at the start of their growth for green healthy leaves. Try fish emulsion for an organic source of nitrogen, or use a balanced fertilizer, such as 10-10-10. Tomatoes are also moisture sensitive and need a regular supply of water to thrive and produce fruit.
The exact cause of tomato leaf roll is not known. It appears about the time of fruit set. The good news is that your plants should produce fruit with or without curled leaves. The condition usually gets worse if the soil is kept too wet, or intensive sunlight causes carbohydrates to accumulate in the leaves.
Odd-shaped tomatoes are usually associated with pollination problems. Dry conditions and very hot weather contribute to pollination problems. However, they usually taste fine.
Another fun possibility in indoor gardening is companion planting with your tomatoes. If you have enough room in your condo or apartment, plant a window box with tomatoes, basil, and marigolds.
All three plants have similar needs and benefit each other. Basil has the beneficial effect of enhancing the flavor of the tomatoes, not to mention the fact that they go great together in recipes. Marigolds, on the other hand, help repel insects that are harmful to your tomatoes.
Don’t worry that living in an apartment will hamper your ability to grow ample amounts of healthy, delicious tomatoes. There are many resources for indoor gardening, including small container options, and small tomato options. Gardening in your apartment can be a fun and delicious experience!
Aside from tomatoes, several other types of produce can be grown organically from an urban location. Examples include most types of peppers and strawberries. Both grow fairly contained and may be planted in hanging baskets and upside-down planters.
Many herbs are also easily grown at home in window boxes and small planting areas. Regardless of what produce a person chooses to grow in his urbanized garden, he will experience greater health benefits and will better serve the environment.
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