How Far Apart to Space Tomato Plant? keep reading and we will give you great details.
When you think of tomatoes many things come to your mind. Tomatoes are fruits that we eat all year long. If you want to grow them in your garden or field they must have the right space between them and also you have to know what is the best compost for your tomatoes.
Tomatoes have many vitamins like A and C, and minerals too. Tomatoes also contain lycopene which the human organism needs. If you have decided to plant them then how far apart you should plant the tomatoes? Below we are going to provide you with a detailed guide that will help you.
Planting Tomatoes Tips
When you will be ready to plant your tomato you should know what to look before you do it. You should make sure that the tomato plants are straight, sturdy and that they are from 6 to 8 inches high. Additionally, they should have from 4 to 6 true leaves.
If you transplant the plant in your soil you should tear the pot off around the top. The plant should sit beneath the soil level. Tomatoes are fruits that we eat all year long and you want them to be fresh. You’ll probably need from 5 to 10 seedlings so as to have the right quantity.
Planting Tomatoes
Plant the tomatoes deep in the soil. Tomatoes grow roots along their stems that is why you need to plant them quite deep up to the first set of leaves.
In case the tomato plant is wobbly or too long you could dig a small trench and place the plant by gently bending it in the right angle.
When you bury the stem leave the first 2 leaves exposed. You should water the seedlings carefully and use a fertilizer that will be high in phosphorus.
You could also use stakes in order to give extra support to your tomato plant. Tomato plants must have space between them but how much space should they have?
How Far Apart to Space Tomatoes
The space that you will leave between the tomatoes is very important. You want to have healthy tomatoes and they need to have the right space between them.
How far apart should you space tomato plants? The ideal spacing should be from 24 to 36 inches.
You want air circulation to be around your tomatoes because you don’t want them to have diseases. There are quite a few factors that you need to keep in mind when you think how far apart you should plant the tomatoes. There are five things that you should keep in mind.
When you want to determine how far apart you should plant the tomatoes you should consider the ground coverage. The area of the soil is important because you might want to plant different tomato varieties. Tomatoes have a deep root system that can be up to 3 feet deep.
If you plant a lot of tomatoes then the root system might extend up to 10 feet away from the plant itself. For this reason, you should keep in mind the quantity of the tomatoes that you are going to plant and the garden or the field that you want to plant them.
You must plant the tomatoes 3 X 5 feet apart if you are going to plant a lot of them. If you place them closer than that then the production will be reduced and the density of the crops will be increased.
Another factor that is important if you want to know how far apart you should plant the tomatoes should be the variety. The variety of the tomato will determine how far you’ll need to keep each one of them.
You might have a dwarf variety, an indeterminate or a determinate. The indeterminate might need 3 feet between them, whereas the determinate ones can thrive in 2 feet between them. If you decide to plant the dwarf variety then you can either do it in a pot or you can plant it in the soil and leave 1 foot between them.
You should always follow the guidelines of how far apart you should plant the tomatoes. If you don’t follow them then you won’t have the right results and the roots won’t have the necessary space.
Another factor that will help you determine how far apart you should plant the tomatoes is the soil and its pH level. If the soil doesn’t have the right pH then the quality of the tomatoes will be affected.
Before you start planting them make sure that the pH of your soil is from 6.0 to 6.5. This is the right pH for your tomatoes to grow.
If you do leave the right space between your tomatoes then you will make sure that they will grow properly, they won’t yield and the quality will be the right one. Apart from the right space that you should leave between the tomatoes, you should also use the right tools.
Once you plant them you can use trellis in order to prevent the tomatoes from yielding. The trellis that you will use will also give you a good idea on how far apart you should plant the tomatoes which is also very helpful for you. Make sure to use them because the tools can help you too.
Finally, the reason why tomatoes must have the right space between them is the nutrients. The nutrients are important in the growth of the tomatoes. The water and the sunlight are very important too.
If you don’t leave the right space between them then the tomatoes will be competing for the sunlight, the water, and the nutrients. All of these will lead to tomatoes that will have smaller plants and not all of them will have the same size.
They will also take a longer time to form. As a result, the production will be smaller than the one that you would like to have. Make always sure for the tomatoes to have the right space between them.
The Conclusion
How far apart you should plant the tomatoes? From what we saw it is actually very important. You should keep in mind that the tomatoes need to have the right space because they will grow roots that they need to spread.
Apart from the roots, the right space will provide to the tomatoes the nutrients that they need. If you follow our tips then you will see that the tomatoes that will grow will be healthy and ready to eat. Enjoy!
