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Tomatoes are the Easiest Vegetable to Grow!

Updated on August 15, 2016
TessSchlesinger profile image

In 1983, with doctors unable to cure me, I studied the human body and diet. Since then, food as medicine has been a strong interest.

The Lazy Gardener Grows Tomatoes

Growing tomatoes can be as quick and easy as cutting open a tomato and throwing the seeds in a sunny patch of soil! The bush will sprout in no time at all. I have a friend who grows a vegetable garden exactly like that. Whether it's butternut or grapes - anything with a seed, she simply scatters the seeds! No gardening necessary. That said...

Technically while tomatoes generally need a warm climate, there are ways around that, including growing them in a greenhouse or a small hydroponic pot with special lights obtainable from Ikea.

Heirloom or Heritage Tomatoes Have Not Been Genetically Modified

They come in all colors  black, green, purple, red, and orange - just to name a few.

Tomatoes are the Easiest Food to Grow.

If you eat a lot of them, and if you live in a sunny climate, there's no reason why you shouldn't have a pot just outside your door (or even one on our porch) so that you can just step outside and pick them when you need them. Home grown tomatoes will also have fewer pesticides.

Home Grown is Cheaper, Healthier, and More Convenient

Home grown tomatoes taste differently to shop grown tomatoes. Heirloom tomatoes are currently the most popular. That's because they have not been genetically modified. You can grow some all year round, so it's a matter of stepping outside your door and picking them off the tomato bush. Here's a step by step guide on how to grow this salad vegetable. Technically, by the way, tomatoes are a fruit not a vegetable.

The deputy director of science of Kew Gardens in London, Monique Simmonds said that tomatoes bought in stores are often mass produced specifically for their appearance, thereby losing out on other properties like taste and nutrients.

Professor Monique Simmonds, deputy director of science at Kew, claimed mass-market tomatoes are often bred for their appearance rather than quality, that herbicides are used and that they are harvested early and artificially ripened to improve shelf life.

Pot Grown Tomatoes Can Be Grown On the Porch

You CAN produce healthier, homegrown tomatoes even if you donât have a garden or a yard!

Protecting Your Tomatoes From Frost!

Tomatoes are best grown in warm soil and in a climate where there is no frost. So if you're living in a very cold climate, it's best to grow them in a greenhouse if your porch isn't protected. Tomatoes need sunny days so chose your spot carefully. They can also grow indoors with some special lighting. Ikea produces a great product!

Best Plant Pots for Tomatoes

  1. Chose a large pot as the root system is intricate and spreads quickly. You can also select a hanging container which is specifically designed for tomatoes. When the plant grows too large for the pot (the roots will start becoming visible, then it's time to depot and re-pot. You simply remove the entire plant from one pot and pot into a larger pot.
  2. Your plant pot should have a good drainage system (pop stones at the bottom of the pot) because this plant needs water as soon as the soil becomes dry.
  3. For hanging containers, pick a bush that has a smaller fruit.
  4. Also remember that tomatoes grow on bushes so go for a pot that will be able to hold the weight of the bush when it grows larger.

You can learn more about growing a tomato in a hanging pot here.

Grow Tomatoes Even if You Live in a Cold Climate!

IKEAâs indoor hydroponic gardens â ranging from one to three tier cultivation units â allowing you to grow vegetables in your very own kitchen without soil.

Different Types of Tomato Bushes, Vines, and Seeds

There are plum tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, heritage tomatoes, beafsteak tomatoes, and grape tomatoes. There are green tomatoes, yellow tomatoes, and red tomatoes. In fact, there are something like 7500 different species of this plant.

There are also bushes and vines. Vines tend to produce fruit sequentially and at different times while bushes tend to blossom in bunches simultaneously. If you do chose to get a vine, then make sure that your plant pot has a trellis of some sort so that the vine can creep up it.

The most popular home grown tomato is heritage because they have never been genetically modified, come in all shapes and sizes and colours, and are indeterminate so the bush will produce great tasting tomatoes every few days for the entire year. They are perennial!

Also look for an indeterminate tomato seed as they grow all year round and produce tomatoes consecutively rather than all at the same time.


In bullet form, here it is. :)

  1. Select which type will grow best in your environment and will best serve your needs.
  2. Purchase seeds. Make sure to ask the storekeeper if the seeds are younger than four years old. You don't want dud seeds.
  3. Purchase pot, soil,fertilizer, container to germinate seeds, and watering can.
  4. Plant them in spring! So in the northern hemisphere, that's about April and in the southern hemisphere, that's about October.
  5. Chose your spot carefully. It should be frost free in winter and have sun in the summer and the winter.
  6. Put moist soil into germinating tray. Make furrows. Put seeds in about a quarter inch deep and half an inch apart. Cover with soil and water.
  7. Make sure the place is warm and that there is either a strong electric light or sunlight.
  8. It takes about a week for them to germinate, i.e. for the stem and the plant to sprout above the ground.
  9. It takes about a month for them to begin to look like a plant! That means that the leaves have begun to show.
  10. Now's the time to transfer each seed to its pot. In order to so do, use a small spade to remove each seedling/sprout from the container and transplant into the bigger pot. Remember that the pot must contain a good soil with fertilizer. Sometimes you can buy a pot plant mix but you will still need to buy a fertilizer as most potting mixes are devoid of nutrients. A slow release fertilizer works best. Water about fifteen minutes after you have transplanted them into their new container.
  11. Your tomato vine or bush will grow best with a rich and warm soil, great sunlight, and lots of room for its root system. Happily, the more you pick your tomatoes, the more they'll grow for you, so you will always have an abundant crop!

Tomato Salads are Delicious, Quick to Make, and Healthy

Absolutely delicious!
Absolutely delicious! | Source

Have you ever grown anything before

Can you taste the difference between home grown tomatoes and shop bought tomatoes?

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So Now You Are an Expert Home Gardener!

The taste of any home grown fruit or vegetable is far more rich in nutrients than that bought in a store. As you successfully navigate the wonders of becoming a gardener, you'll grow more and more veggies. Not only will you save a bunch of money, but you will be healthier as well.

© 2015 Tessa Schlesinger


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    • TessSchlesinger profile image

      Tessa Schlesinger 15 months ago from South Africa

      Aha, thank ou Shyron. :) Much appreciated. I love home grown tomatoes. They genuinely do taste much better. :)

    • Shyron E Shenko profile image

      Shyron E Shenko 15 months ago from Texas

      Tessa, the pictures of the tomatoes in the pot make me want to grow them on my patio. I love tomatoes and we use to have a garden but we have an open yard not fenced in and all the animals ruin our garden.

      Blessing my friend.