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Articles about Vegetable Crops for the Garden
Best Vegetable Crops for Containers
Brandywine Tomatoes - Get the Most From This Heirloom Variety
Choosing a Site For Your Home Vegetable Garden
Container Vegetable Gardening Tips
Container Vegetable Gardens
Double Your Crops
Getting Children Interested in Growing Vegetables
Grow Your Own Salad
Growing Tomatoes in Pots
Growing Vegetable Plants Becomes More Than Just A Hobby
How to Grow a Vegetable Garden
Indoor Container Vegetable Gardening Ideas
Indoor Vegetable Gardening How to Tips
Learning About Indoor Container Vegetable Gardening
List of vegetable crops by difficulty
Mushroom Growing in Odd Unused Spaces
Non Hybrid Seeds For Survival Gardening
Organic Container Gardening - Simple and Easy Ways to Grow Vegetables and Flowers in Pots
Organic Vegetable Cultivation Table
Over Wintering Chilli Pepper Plants
pH preferences of food crops
Planning your Container Crops
Planting Tomatoes Upside Down
Potato Container Garden Tips
Preparing a Vegetable Garden
Review: Food4Wealth by Jonathan White
Vegetable Container Garden Tips
Vegetable Crops in alphabetical order by name
Why I Recommend Vegetable Container Gardening
Why Vegetable Container Gardening is Getting More Popular Today Than Ever
How to grow organic Asparagus
How to grow organic Aubergines
How to grow organic Beetroot
How to grow organic Broad beans
How to grow organic Broccoli
How to grow organic Brussels sprouts
How to grow organic Cabbage
How to grow organic Calabrese
How to grow organic Carrot
How to grow organic Cauliflower
How to grow organic Celeriac
How to grow organic Celery
How to grow organic Celtuce
How to grow organic Chinese broccoli
How to grow organic Chinese cabbage
How to grow organic Chicory
How to grow organic Corn
How to grow organic Cucumbers and Gherkins
How to grow organic Endive
How to grow organic Florence fennel
How to grow organic French beans
How to grow organic Garlic
How to grow organic Globe artichokes
How to grow organic Jerusalem artichokes
How to grow organic Kale and borecole
How to grow organic Kohl rabi
How to grow organic Komatsuna
How to grow organic Land cress
How to grow organic Leaf beet
How to grow organic Leeks
How to grow organic Lettuce
How to grow organic Mizuna
How to grow organic Mustard greens
How to grow organic New Zealand spinach
How to grow organic Onions
How to grow organic Parsnips and Hamburg Parsley
How to grow organic Peas
How to grow organic Peppers (hot and sweet)
How to grow organic Potatoes
How to grow organic Radishes
How to grow organic Rocket
How to grow organic Runner beans
How to grow organic Salad onions
How to grow organic Salsify, Scorzonera and Scolymus
How to grow organic Seakale
How to grow organic Shallots
How to grow organic Spinach
How to grow organic Squash
How to grow organic Swede
How to grow organic Texsel greens
How to grow organic Tomatoes
How to grow organic Turnips
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Growing Tomatoes in Pots
by Jayne Walker
More and more people are becoming concerned about the quality of the food they eat. You can find more and more organic produce in stores, but just because it was grown organically doesn't mean it's of the highest quality. Commercially grown vegetables are bred for looks and longevity on store shelves, not for taste and nutrition. They have to survive the long trip from the farm to the store unscathed. To that end they have thicker skins and ripen slower, plus they're usually picked green.
The way to get the freshest best tasting tomatoes is to grow them yourself. That way you can be certain exactly where they came from and that they are free of pesticide and chemical fertilizers. If you are lacking in space then you can grow tomatoes in containers. There are dwarf varieties that don't take up too much space and do well in pots. Determinate varieties make small bushes that do well in pots. The tomatoes will tend to ripen all at once then set no more flowers for the season. Indeterminate tomatoes make a tall vine and the produce tomatoes throughout the season. There are also dwarf varieties Better Bush being one that is suited for growing tomatoes in pots.
You should have at least a 3 gallon bucket for a determinate variety, you should have at least a 5 gallon pot for an indeterminate or vining variety. Cat litter buckets make good buckets and it's a great way to recycle. Be sure to drill a hole in the bottom to let water drain. You can buy fancier planters from a home center if you want something nice looking. You'll also want tomato stakes for a indeterminate variety. Put them in a sunny place, if you live in the south or southwest you don't want them getting full sun all day. The tomatoes can get sunburned, you'll see the leaves turn white on the tip. The tomatoes can also split and crack in the scorching southern sun.
Water your tomatoes every few days if they're not getting rain, you'll see the leaves start to droop if they get dry. If this happens make sure to give them a good soaking. You want the soil to stay a little moist, not soggy. In the sunny south you might have to water daily. To fertilize you can use fish emulsion, it's a byproduct of fish processing so it's organic. If you see pests you can use insecticidal soap. It's safe to use on your plants, it really is just soap. It's not dangerous to lady bugs or the praying mantis which are natural predators.
If you start with a seedling from a garden center within a month you could be enjoying your own juicy tomatoes!
David Verde grows his own vegetables in his container garden. Peppers, broccoli, lettuce, carrots and onions are vegetables he grows in the ground. He has the most success growing tomatoes in pots.