Starting tomato plants right prepares them for an excellent harvest in the summer. Learn how to start your tomatoes with the help of a garden professional in…
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Question by jimbo7676: My tomato plants arnt producing yet should I worry?
I planted 3 tomato plants 1 cherry 1 Roma and the other a dark cherry. My Cherry is growing, My Roma however has 2 tomatoes on it that have looked the same size for 3 weeks and are green also I don’t notice any growth on it. Also my dark cherry tomato looks the same as I planted it no buds about 12 inches tall. Should I be concerned or is it still early?
Best answer:
Answer by Sammy V
The problem is that your tomatoe plants aren’t germinated yet. To solve this problem, I suggest you obtain some cyanide to germinate them. Water the plants with a mixture of three drops cyanide to one gallon of water.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
its still early, the warmer it gets the faster an biger it will grow
DONT do what sammy said unless u want to kill your plants
As I live in South Dakota, I cant even put my plants in the dirt quite yet. I’m sure yours will be fine given the proper time and conditions.
Tomato plants take about two months to reach maturity and start producing. Your plants need to grow to full height for the best production. Use a fertilizer specifically for tomatoes for best results.
Be patient. For one thing, tomato plants take a few days to a couple of weeks to really take off growing after you put the transplant in your garden. For another thing, green tomatoes seem to take FOREVER to ripen, especially when you are waiting for that first juicy bite! Yet another thing, different tomato varieties take different lengths of time to mature. It sounds like there is nothing wrong with your garden, just be patient.
While you are waiting, you can check your garden soil to see if it needs any nutrients. You can take abt 1/2 cup of soil in a plastic bag to your local nursery for testing (results come back in about two weeks, I have found) or you can buy a test kit ans test it yourself. If your soil needs improvement, any garden center can help you with that, too.
And by the way, Sammy V is pulling your leg, I think. “germinate” is what happens to seeds when they sprout, and that happened to your plants several weeks ago. For another thing, use poison like cyanide on your plants? C’mon now!
First of all, you should choose a pot or a container at least eight inches deep (but it is the absolute minimum, twelve or even sixteen would be perfect): most tomato plants, even the ones producing small cherry tomatoes, are quite large and need a lot of space for maximum production. The larger your container, the larger the amount of fresh tomatoes your plant will produce.
You will also need to drill at least four small holes in the pot, for drainage, and if the pot already has large pots you can reduce their drainage using coffee filters.
Tomatoes in a Pot – It can be done!
Tomatoes in a Pot – It’s easy!
Another consideration is the material of the pot: plastic and fiberglass pots are water-proof and tend to retain more moisture, so they are much more suited for tomatoes than clay pots. Besides, plastic pots are less expensive and break much less often than clay pots.
If you’re concerned about economic factors, a good and inexpensive option is a five gallon bucket.
Tomato plants usually need a constant amount of moisture, and should generally not be planted into regular soil.
You should fill your pot with gardening soil with moisture retaining material: this will help keep a constant level of moisture throughout the day.
You should also enrich the soil, at least a week before planting the seeds, with lots of organic material such as fish emulsion, compost and any other all-purpose vegetable fertilizer. The stem should be totally buried, up to about the first set of leaves. New roots will grow along the buried section of the stem improving the general condition of the plant.
A general rule for understanding the correct amount of water is this: stick your finger into the soil and if the first two inches are dry, then it’s time to water again.
Tomatoes should be first planted indoors, to allow for them to grow enough to be able to sustain the threat of frost. Once the plant is large enough to withstand the cold months, it is safe for planting outside.
Alternatively, you could buy an already grown plant from your local greenhouse, but it should be transplanted as soon as possible.
During hot months, you should aim to keep the soil constantly moist by keeping it well-watered. Don’t spill the water on the foliage (this increases the chances of developing diseases and mold): just water the soil and the plant will get the water it needs from the roots.
When your tomato plant grows up to a foot, you should try to understand what variety it is: determinate plants generally grow to a pre-determinate level and then stop, and do not need staking. If your plant is of the indetermined variety, it will most likely need staking once it reaches a foot in height.
You should strive to keep a constant level of moisture (not too much though, the plant should not be floating in water). The high levels of water tend to wash out the nutrients, so fertilizing is best applied bi-weekly at half strength, for a constant stream of nutrients to the plant. Alternatively , you can also fertilize once a month at full strength.
Mulching isn’t too important since the tomato will grow indoor, but it still helps to use some pebbles, bark mulch, and straw to prevent weeds from growing and stealing precious nutrients from your tomato plant.
When tomatoes are ripe, they generally have a yellowish-orange color, but this largely depends on the variety you’re growing: you can find even some varieties whose fruits are green when ripe.
As a general rule, you should be able to pop the fruit from its stem with a light twist.