How to Plant Tomatoes: A Step-by-Step Guide

By: Angela Judd | September 1, 2024

There’s nothing like the taste of homegrown tomatoes; planting them the right way is the first step to a healthy and productive tomato season. This guide will show you how to plant tomatoes so you can grow strong, healthy, and productive tomato plants. Let’s get started!

1. Choose Healthy Tomato Transplants

Begin by selecting healthy transplants. Look for plants with vibrant green leaves, a sturdy stem, and no signs of disease or pests. Avoid plants that are leggy or have yellowing leaves. If you grew your own tomato transplants, harden them off properly. Learn more about hardening off transplants in this blog post.

2. Amend the Soil Before Planting Tomatoes

Tomatoes are heavy feeders, so preparing the soil is essential. Start by adding worm castings and compost to enrich the soil. If your soil is low in nutrients, add a balanced organic fertilizer (follow the package instructions for amounts). This article explains more about preparing your soil for planting.

3. Select a Sunny Location

Tomatoes grow best with plenty of sunlight. Choose a location that receives at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight daily. Enough sunlight is essential for flowering and fruit production.

4. Provide Support for Tomatoes

Tomatoes are vining plants. Supporting tomato plants with a trellis keeps branches from breaking and keeps the plant off the soil, reducing some soil-borne diseases. Indeterminate tomatoes require a tall trellis, but smaller determinate types like Roma grow well with a large tomato cage. Find several ideas for trellises in this article.

5. Give Tomatoes Enough Room to Grow

Space tomato plants 2 feet (60 cm) apart to ensure they have enough room to grow. Proper spacing allows for good air circulation, which helps prevent fungal diseases.

6. Prepare the Planting Hole

Tomatoes with deep roots have access to more soil, nutrients, and a more stable soil temperature. The soil should be at least 12-18 inches (30-45 cm) deep. Dig a hole deep enough to bury the stem up to the top few sets of leaves. If your soil isn’t deep enough to bury the stem vertically, you can bury it sideways. However, deeper is better for encouraging strong root growth.

7. Plant Tomatoes Deeply

Before planting, snip off the lower leaves from the transplant, leaving just the top few sets of leaves. Place the plant in the hole so the stem is buried up to these leaves. Roots will form all along the buried stem.

8. Fill and Water

After placing the transplant in the hole, fill the hole with the displaced soil, pressing gently to remove air pockets. Water the plant thoroughly to help it settle and to ensure the roots have good contact with the soil.

9. Remove Early Tomato Blossoms

This might be hard to do, but remove any blossoms for the first 2-3 weeks. This lets your plant focus on developing strong roots rather than early fruit. A strong, healthy plant will yield better yields later in the season.

10. Mulch and Monitor Young Tomato Plants

After you plant, mulch the area. A thick layer of mulch helps retain moisture, suppress weeds, and regulate soil temperature. Learn more about mulching in this article. Keep an eye on your plants, watering as needed and watching for any signs of pests or disease. Provide additional shade or water as needed if planting during hot weather.

Bonus Tip: Add Companion Plants

I love adding marigolds, alyssum, and basil around my tomatoes. Marigolds help keep pests away, alyssum attracts helpful bugs, and basil may make the tomatoes taste better.