Steps For Growing Your Tomato Plants Indoors
Like most people tomato lovers are happy to see summer when it comes around the bend and they feel sad when the summer dies down because they know they will have to buy their tomatoes from their local grocery market.
There are ways to grow your tomatoes indoors though and if you follow our tomato growing tips these simple steps will help be able to enjoy your own tomatoes year round rather than the chemical sprayed kind at the market. The hard part is knowing where to begin.
Your first thing you need to know is when to plant tomatoes. Remember tomatoes have 2 very important requirements they need heat and they need temperatures. If you do have a garage it would be perfect but it needs to be heated. Try to keep the temperature around 60 to 70 to allow the tomatoes to grow properly. Anything more or less and the tomatoes will not fully grow.
Once you find the perfect location you will need to get lights. It is far easier to use lights than to rely on the sun to hit the plants through a window, especially if you have harsh winters. You should be able to find the proper lights at any garden or home improvement store. Also remember to use a timer as the lights should be on for about 12 hours, place the lights about 1 to 2 inches above the plant and raise them as the plant gets bigger.
Next you will choose your seeds, when buying the seeds look for the words patio or container on the seed label. There are many different types of tomatoes. You will need to germinate the seeds into small pots about 2 to 4 seeds and mix in the seed starter mix. Remember you want to keep the soil moist but try and make sure that it is not too wet. In about a week the seeds should then sprout.
Once the seedlings are about 3 inches tall you will have to move them into bigger pots. Make sure to place a stake into the soil and that it is away from the seedling, you can then start adding fertilizer. Once again make sure to water the plants but do not use too much. You will want to use a catch underneath the plants for the excess water. If you do see signs of stress on the plant give them water and liquid seaweed. To make sure you water it properly once the soil dries out you can then water it again.
You plants should start to get yellow blooms, once you see the blooms you will need to give them phosphorous, you can put some bone meal into the top of the soil which will help promote growth. Once this is complete the flowers will need to be pollinated, many people suggest using an electric toothbrush but simply giving the stem a light shake will also do the trick. As long as the plant is producing blooms continue to do this about once a week.
Now all that is left is attaching the plant to your stake in your soil. As the plant grows you will need to re arrange the support to the stake, using Velcro garden tape will do the trick. Now the only thing you have left to do is wait for tomatoes to ripen and you will be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor.