The Most Popular Vegetable to Be Planted In Spring – How to Grow Tomatoes? / GREEN MOUNT
When it comes to the most popular vegetables to grow in spring, tomatoes are the first vegetables that come to mind. Tomatoes plants are cheap, produces in great volume, and fit in small backyards or balconies. They can also be grown different USDA zones. Therefore, tomatoes are the prior choice for gardeners to plant their first vegetable after winter. To grow perfect and sweet tomatoes, we should know detail about their characteristic, such as which weather, soil, sun and so on are suitable for them to grow.
According to the sizes of the tomatoes, they are divided into different categories and their uses are also different. The most familiar tomato of all is classic or round. The smallest tomatoes are grape and cherry tomatoes. Others are such as cocktail, beefsteak, plum, sweet pepper and so on. Most of them can be eaten freshly.
(Picture from Pinterest / Cherry Tomatoes)
There are several important points to note before we start growing tomatoes.
◎ Do Not Plant Them Too Close.
If we use seeds to grow tomatoes, we should plant them 1/4 inch deep and 1 inch apart in flats to give the seedlings plenty of room to branch out.
◎ Sufficient Sun
Tomatoes prefer direct sun to make the seedlings stronger. If we plant them in winter, we cannot make sure that there is sufficient sun in outdoors. The best option is to grow tomatoes in greenhouse and use some type of artificial plant lighting for 14 to 18 hours every day if we decide to grow them in winter. Therefore, most people prefer to grow them in spring so they do not have to worry about insufficient sunlight to affect the growth of tomatoes.
◎ Soil, Water and Fertilize
To grow tomatoes successfully, we need rich and fertilized soil. Water regularly and feed weekly with a high-potash fertilizer once the plants start to flower. We need to make sure to pour the water directly on the soil, not the leaves. Common watering tools which can directly water the soil are water cans and soaker hoses. Green mount offers excellent soakers hose for this type of watering purposes. https://green-mount.com/collections/soaker-hose
◎ Support Tomato Plants
If we grow cordon tomatoes, we need a stake or a cane to support the plants. Leaving the vines on the ground makes the plants more susceptible to pests or disease.
◎ Remove the Unnecessary Leaves and Suckers
We should prune our tomato plants especially in these three situations.
- When the first tiny fruits begin to appear, strip away the leaves underneath to allow light and air to reach them better. We usually wear gardening gloves to peel of the leaves in order not to hurt ourselves or we can use hand directly for the convenience.
- After our tomato plants reach about 3 feet tall, remove the leaves from the bottom foot of the stem. These are the oldest leaves and they are usually the first leaves to develop fungus problems.
- To help the plants stay upright, improve air circulation and increase fruit production, we should regularly remove any suckers on the tomato plants.
Garden Pruning Shears are the most commonly used cutting tools that are essential for every gardener and family. It is important to prune unnecessary leaves so that our plants can grow healthier and stronger. Green mount offers a professional garden pruner to take away any unnecessary leaves or twigs that needs to be trimmed. https://green-mount.com/collections/all
It is spring now. Let’s start to grow our own juicy, sweet, aromatic, and blemish free tomatoes in our vegetable gardens. For any type of gardening needs, please feel free to check out the Green mount website, we are also happy to help with any questions you may have. https://green-mount.com/