Irrigate with Drips to Grow Better Tomatoes and Other Tips

Growing tomatoes provides inexperienced gardeners a surefire vegetable for first time success if a few simple procedures are followed.  Tomatoes are very productive.  One plant can produce more juicy, delicious tomatoes than you can eat everyday. Tomato plants are also very tolerant of mistakes commonly made by inexperienced gardeners and keep on producing despite the errors. Their bounty and ease of growing make tomatoes a popular staple of almost every garden.

Here are some tips for growing incredible tomatoes in your very first attempt.

1. Tomato varieties have been developed that thrive in specific climates.  Ask your local nursery what hybrids do best in your area of the country.  You'll have a lot more success and bounty growing these varieties than those best suited for climates other than the one you live in.

2. Warm soil is a key to copious tomato growth.  Locating your tomato garden on a south exposure will give it the maximum sun, which your tomatoes will thank you for by producing many more fruits.  In colder climates a piece of black cloth or plastic can be placed over the area you plan on planting your tomatoes a couple of weeks prior to planting to warm the soil.

3. Prior to planting enrich your soil by removing the black covering, watering, adding nutrients such as peat moss and digging into and turning the soil to loosen and aerate it.

4. Plan lots of space between your tomato plants.  Your seed package will give you a recommended spacing.  If you have the room you should add a little more to the recommended amount.  Tomatoes send out
a large root system and the less competition they have for water and nutrients the better they will produce.

5. Water is the last quick tip for successful growing of tomatoes.  Your plants depend upon a consistent and adequate amount of water to thrive and without it, even if all other support factors are met, your plants will be poor producers. When you water by hand it is so easy to forget a watering, or be late for one, or neglect to water a sufficient amount.  All those problems vanish when you install a simple drip irrigation system.

Your local hardware store can provide a digital timer for between $20-$50 depending on bells and whistles that attaches right to your outdoor faucet.  Another $25-$50 will provide you with all the drip irrigation hose and sprinkler heads to water a 6'x30' area.  The variance in price depends upon the type of delivery outlet you choose.  You could go with a straight drip irrigation hose line or add little sprinkler heads in for faster watering.  Both ways work well as long as you program in enough watering time for the volume that is expelled from the outlet you choose. The timer will allow you to regulate when, how often and what quantity of water your tomatoes receive. The timer never forgets, misses a watering or neglects to water enough.

Mulch should also be applied in top of the soil to help hold in moisture and prevent evaporation from the sun hitting the otherwise bare, exposed soil.

The end result?  You and your neighbors will all be amazed at the buckets full of delicious vine-ripened tomatoes your garden produces!