Growing veggies in our home brings
us immense happiness and satisfaction.
In the current situation, it is
hard to get organic vegetables from the market. People understand the need to
have organic and rich foods. So we are moving towards a new phase of gardening
called Apartment gardening or container gardening. A small step towards a better
tomorrow.
Tomatoes are great for beginners who are getting started on growing kitchen
gardens. Tomatoes are easily grown and cultivated in a small space.
They are good starters for your balcony. Tomatoes do surprisingly well in small containers.
They are good starters for your balcony. Tomatoes do surprisingly well in small containers.
I will walk you through the entire
process of growing the tomatoes from sowing the seeds to harvesting.
Additionally, as a bonus, I would be sharing a few tips on how to hand
pollinate if your tomatoes are not fruiting.
Buy seeds
This is the first step in growing tomatoes. You can purchase Tomato seeds online or directly used from the kitchen scraps. Cut the tomatoes and remove the pulp that has seeds. Dry the tomato seeds in a tissue paper. You can also place the tomato slices directly in the soil.
Grow seedling
Use a seed starting tray or a pack
away box to start your seeds. Place the tissue paper with
seeds onto the takeaway box or tray. Spray some water and close the
box.
The seedlings will grow in a couple of days. Mist them when the tissue paper feels dry.
The seedlings will grow in a couple of days. Mist them when the tissue paper feels dry.
Transplanting into bigger pots
Transplant them into bigger pots
from the takeaway boxes or seed starting tray when the true leaves have formed.
The first set of leaves that develop from the seed is cotyledons or
False leaves.
The second set of leaves that
develop is True leaves. This is the most crucial step.
Repot them without disturbing the roots and keep in them in a controlled
environment. Move them outdoors occasionally. Let the tomato seedlings set in
the new environment (You can find this when you start to see new
growth in the plant) you can move them outdoors.
Stage 1: Flowers start to grow from
your plants.
Stage 2: If the Flowers are successfully pollinated they would develop into fruits. The flowers that are not fertilized would eventually fall off.
If the flowers are not turning into fruits you could try some of the below methods, grow some flowers in your balcony garden as it attracts pollinators like bees, butterflies, and insects. As Tomatoes are self-pollinating (i.e - They have both male and female plant parts) hard pollination is another best option if you are not able to attract pollinators. Brush the flowers with a paintbrush or something similar like a Q-tip. Tapping the calyx (where the flowers are held together by green sepals) also helps. Check out the short video on How I do hand pollination in my tomato plants.
Stage 3:If the pollination is successful they would develop into fruits. Else the flower would shed eventually.
Stage 2: If the Flowers are successfully pollinated they would develop into fruits. The flowers that are not fertilized would eventually fall off.
If the flowers are not turning into fruits you could try some of the below methods, grow some flowers in your balcony garden as it attracts pollinators like bees, butterflies, and insects. As Tomatoes are self-pollinating (i.e - They have both male and female plant parts) hard pollination is another best option if you are not able to attract pollinators. Brush the flowers with a paintbrush or something similar like a Q-tip. Tapping the calyx (where the flowers are held together by green sepals) also helps. Check out the short video on How I do hand pollination in my tomato plants.
Stage 3:If the pollination is successful they would develop into fruits. Else the flower would shed eventually.
Growing and Fertilizing
Grow your tomato plant
with enough light and water them regularly. You will see growth
within a few days.
Next step is to check if your
Tomato is determinate or indeterminate.
Do not panic if you are not aware
of these terms. In simple terms, Determine tomatoes are more bushy and small.
The fruit ripens all at the same time. Thus giving a huge harvest at a single
time.
In the case of indeterminate
tomatoes, they grow indefinitely. They can give you a continuous harvest till
the end.
Light requirements
Tomatoes need direct to bright
sunlight as they are fruiting plants. A good light-receiving balcony or a
window sill would work perfectly.
You can also use grow lights if no alternative is available.
You can also use grow lights if no alternative is available.
Water requirements
Tomatoes are heavy drinkers. Water
them regularly.
Tomato plants tend to dry and close themselves when do not receive water for 2 or more days.
Tomato plants tend to dry and close themselves when do not receive water for 2 or more days.
Potting soil requirements
Use ready pot mix to plant
tomatoes. Or prepare the pot mixture by mixing 70%soil, 20% coco peat, and
10% compost. Coco peat helps in retaining the water for a longer
period.
Pruning
Pruning is an essential process in
growing more fruits. Tomatoes if not pruned they will produce many leaves and
not enough fruits.
Pruning the suckers is very
important as this helps in diverting the nutrients back to fruits. Suckers are
shoots growing in between your main branch and sub-branch.
Fertilizers
To produce healthy tomatoes use
compost once in 15 days.
Homemade fertilizers which are readily available from the kitchen scrap are good for your plants.
Example: Eggshells, Onion peels, dried banana peels, and Used Tea dust
Homemade fertilizers which are readily available from the kitchen scrap are good for your plants.
Example: Eggshells, Onion peels, dried banana peels, and Used Tea dust
Happy Gardening!
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