How to grow tomatoes

Good Morning my gardening chums!,

This article today is for my friend Sharon Wong, she is wanting to start to grow Tomatoes and i like to try and help, but of course its for you guys out there as well.

For many people tomatoes are one of the first food crops that they try to grow. It is an excellent choice!

High in vitamins, low in calories and homegrown tomatoes taste great! much sweeter than those tasteless supermarket ones. Tomatoes are used in a wide number of recipes, too. You can use your tomatoes to eat fresh, or make salsas, sauces, ketchup, juice, casseroles and soups. Tomatoes are also easily stored frozen. Simply rinse them off, lightly dry and place in a freezer bag. Frozen tomatoes are easy to peel by simply running warm water over them and then rubbing off the peels. Frozen tomatoes are great for use in cooking; however they become too watery for slicing after being frozen.

The long standing argument about whether a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable is an easy one to solve. If it comes from a flower... it is a fruit. Yes, even a green bean is biologically a fruit. Of course everyone always classifies it as a vegetable, so.... I guess we can continue to debate about the tomato as well. 

Tomatoes are very productive plants capable of producing 8 pounds of fruit or even more on each plant. This makes them even more attractive to people with limited time on their hands. Tomatoes are easy to grow here in Malaysia. They are very adaptable, being productive whether grown in a garden setting or in a large pot on a balcony in the town.

Tomatoes prefer a rich loamy soil to grow. (Loam is soil composed of sand, silt, and clay in relatively even concentration about 40-40-20% concentration respectively)

 They like plenty of water, but only on the roots. When watering a tomatoe, in fact any big leafy plant generally, always water at the root source rather than the leaf as this will reduce rotting, fungus infections and also will not burn the leaves when tthe sun is on them. Mentioning their leaves brings up the point that many people suffer from dermatitis and itching if they touch a tomatoes leaves. If you are sensitive to them protect your self by wearing long sleeves and gloves while handling them. 

Tomatoes may be planted by starting with either seeds or small plants. Starting you tomatoes from started plants is the easiest and most common way. The first thing to do when planting tomatoes is make sure that the soil is ready for success. Mixing compost or well composted manure into the soil will help provide for your tomato.  Rabbit manure, or barnyard manure like cow or chicken composted with bedding like straw or shavings is the best. Tomatoes can be rushed by using black plastic, row covers, water jug forts, etc... But it is not recommended for the beginner. Usually plants started in the normal fashion catch up with the rushed ones soon and often surpass them in productivity. 

 If you need to keep the plants a while before planting them into your permanent location, be sure to give them as much sun as possible and water them by standing their container in a shallow pan and watering from the bottom. You have your plants, the soil is warm and ready,Try to plant your tomatoes in the evening. This prevents the newly planted transplants from being scorched by the sun while they are first recovering from the shock of being up rooted. Prepare the spot for your tomato by digging a hole wider than the plant's root ball and deep enough to bury the plant up to the second set of leaves. By planting the tomato deep in this way it will sprout roots along the entire buried stem bringing the plant more nutrients. Gently remove the plant and all of its soil from the original container. Give a gentle squeeze to slightly loosen the root ball, and then add the plant with the roots stretching down. Fill the hole around the plant. Press the soil in gently, but firmly. Be sure to leave plenty of greenery above soil level. After planting give the plants a drink of water and water thoroughly. 

Starting your own transplants from seed can be fun and rewarding as well. Start the seeds in a small peat pot 6 weeks before your planting time.
If more than one seed sprouts in your pot simple snip off the weakest one. As the plants grow and get spindly place the peat pot inside of a larger pot and slowly add more potting soil. Give your transplants plenty of light and keep them moist, but not wet. Placing them in a breezy area or pointing a fan at them will make them more sturdy as well. When they are big enough, simply set them out as instructed above.

Caring for tomatoes is not hard. Eating homegrown tomatoes is easy! enjoy the fruits of your labour