Gardening is a hobby for some people while for others it is how they feed their family sometime. The most popular thing to grow right in your back yard are tomatoes. Tomatoes are used for just about everything so there is a high demand for them. If you use them frequently then growing them is a very good thing to do. You know where they are coming from and you save money as well.
Growing tomatoes is an easy process once you get the hang of it. There are many different kind of tomatoes but they are mostly made the same way just take different times for them to mature. Just to name a few of the type are tomatoes are the popular cherry tomatoes. They are used on salads, some eat them by itself. Others are grape, pretty much as it is described its smaller than a cherry tomato. There is also the plum tomato that is also known as the paste tomato because as you may have guessed this is what is used to make tomato paste and tomato sauces. The largest tomato is called the beefsteak tomato, the name alone should give you an idea of how big it is. It is large enough that one slice can cover a whole sandwich.
Starting the process of growing tomatoes are tomato seeds. It is best to plant your tomatoes indoors to start with, you can put them in small containers. The best time to start planting is eight to ten weeks before the last frost date in your area. The seeds should be planted about 1/8 of af an inch into the soil, use seed starting soil to plant your seeds. Once the seedlings have emerge you will need to start giving the plant sunlight for it to remain sturdy. If you do not have an area with goo sunlight, you can use grow lights to supplement light and that will work just as good.
The actual growth of the tomato is the fun part, this is where you will be able to see the progress of the tomatoes. Before planting the tomatoes in your garden they need to be hardened off. What this means is that they need a bit more firmness. You will need to bring them outside during the daytime and increasing the time that they are outside every day until they are staying outside overnight. If there is frost predicted in your forecast you will need to bring them inside. You do not want you tomatoes to be frozen. This website has some great tips and pictures to give you an even better idea on how to make your tomatoes perfect: Vegetable Garden Guide.
When you are planting your tomato pour a small amount of water and use a soluble liquid fertilizer. Plant the tomatoes carefully and be sure to fertilize them daily. When starting out your fertilizer needs to be high in nitrogen. Once tomatoes have started to blossom you can change your fertilizer to something that is higher in potassium and phosphorus. The tomatoes will have to be heavily watered instead of just frequently watered. The water has to reach deep into the roots, aim for the roots when watering the tomatoes. If possible refrain from watering the leaves. You want to prevent any disease from growing on the leaves by keeping them dry.
When will you be able to enjoy these fresh tomatoes? I know the anxiety builds especially because you want to see how well of a job you have done with your tomatoes. As I mentioned before there are different tomatoes and the maturation age will vary across them all. The average maturation age for the tomatoes is between 55 days to 85 days. The maximum will of course be for the largest tomato which is the beefsteak. Pick the tomatoes while they are green or orange. Be sure to rinse them off throughly before eating them.
