If you’re growing a garden, there’s a decent chance you’re growing tomatoes. It is the most popular crop and has a huge yield in taste.
Of course gardening is rarely as easy as throwing a few seeds in the ground and walking away. Tomatoes, in particular, need a little extra TLC and a little extra equipment, especially if you want to get the most out of your plant.
But how much is too much? Once you dip your toe into his world tomato cultivation parts, you’ll find that the sky’s the limit for what people will sell you. They will insist, of course, that you need it all.
The article continues below
Probably not, though. And you especially do not need the most expensive tomato fertilizers or belts specially designed to support fruit ripening.
To help you out, here’s a breakdown of the tomato garden produce worth splurging on and the ones you can save just fine.
Where to figure out
I tried to find a “cheap” flame for each of them, because we’re growing tomatoes here, not buying engagement rings.
Strong plants
This is perhaps the most important. No matter how much you pamper your tomato plants, you’re going to have an uphill battle if you don’t start strong. Starting strong means buying resistant to diseaseshealthy seeds or seedlings from a reputable seller. (Burpees it’s great!) You can buy all of these as seeds or live seedlings.
Lifter Tomato Plant Mortgage
Super Sweet 100 Tomato Plant
High quality soil
Not all soil is created equal, and even good soil is not necessarily suitable for the job you have in mind. If you are growing in a container, you really need potting soil, which drains better and will protect your container from water. Grow outdoors in a bed and you can get it cheaper garden soil.
No matter what, don’t just dig up dirt from outside to fill a pot – that’s a surefire way to rot your roots. And if you want to grow tomatoes in the ground, test your soil first. Many soils contain lead and other heavy metals and should not be used for growing edibles.
Ocean Forest Potting Soil
Suitable fertilizer
Tomatoes are heavy feeders and while they will probably survive well without them, regular feeding can be the difference between a good harvest and a good crop. Choose a vegetable or tomato fertilizer. This will ensure you have plenty of fruit and not just endless green vines.
Organic Concentrated Tomato Plant Food
Organic fertilizer in tons of tomatoes
Rich Compost
As with fertilizer, high quality compost it can be what makes a good tomato crop. You don’t have to break the bank, but choose something a little richer and you’ll notice a difference.
Lobster and crab compost mix
Solid support
If you’ve read my other writings about tomatoes, you know that I have a long-standing beef with cheap wire tomato cages. Tomatoes spend all summer getting heavier and unwieldy – you don’t want them collapsing under their weight at the height of production.
My personal favorite is the hinged cage below. It’s sturdy, it’s adjustable, and it collapses to fit in your shed at the end of the year. Plus it’s cheap!
Where to store
Now we get into the cool part of the article, where you can breathe a sigh of relief and actually save some money.
Seed starter trays
(Image credit: T.sableaux / Shutterstock)
Seed starting trays like this one from Amazon they are super convenient and really not that expensive. But you don’t need one to be successful starting tomatoes from seed indoors. You can start the seeds in an egg cartonor you can make one Snail seed by bubble wrap. Doc, you can even start the seeds in an ice cream cone! Your tomatoes will probably do the same.
Containers
(Image credit: Ivan Kocha/Getty Images)
You don’t even have to do that. Want to grow tomatoes in containers? Do you have a container? You are ready!
Just make sure your container is big – tomato plants can get huge. And make sure there is at least one drainage hole. If you want, you can buy specially tomato containers with built-in trellis, but it’s really not necessary.
Mulch
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Anything can be mulch! Wood shavings, chopped greens, straw. You can always buy mulch, but it’s not necessary.
Ties
(Image credit: Oleh Strus/Getty Images)
Ties are something you might not think you need when you first plant a tomato. After all, it seems so small. But as the tomato plant grows, you’ll probably need to tie it to its cage or trellis, just to keep it moving in the right direction. Commercial ties like this one from Amazon they are extremely cheap. But if that’s still too much for you, try using tights or a ribbon. It just needs to be flat so it doesn’t cut into the soft flesh of the plant.
