DIY: Transplanting Tomatoes (again and again) – The most important tip I learned all season
We all know the rewards of having a thriving bountiful crop of tomatoes, and I’m sure we also know the frustrations of having a tomato plant that produces only four fruits all season. So, aside from watering our starts and checking on them constantly, what more can we do as gardeners to ensure that our tomato plant is best prepared to create a bumper crop of bomber, juicy delights?
The Roots
The most important part of a tomato plant is it’s root structure. Without a deep, sufficient root system, tomato plants have no chance at absorbing enough water and vital nutrients to create an excellent plant structure above the soil surface. Because of this need, it is very beneficial to re-pot tomato starts at least once before transplanting them into their final outdoor location.
Most of my tomato seed starts have two sets of leaves now: their original cotyledon (meaning: seed leaf, in Greek*) and their first true leaves (the first set of leaves that resemble a tomato leaf). But, the larger starts are getting pretty “leggy” – which just basically means they are really tall. That is because the roots of the plant have grown as much as they can inside the small coconut pellet, and now, the only place the plants have to grow is UP.
If you look closely at the stem of a 2-4 week old tomato start, you can see what looks like tiny hairs. Those “hairs” are actually roots, which means that every hair, once it is buried under the soil is the plant’s potential to better absorb water and nutrients. So, in a way, tomatoes really like to be transplanted, because every transplanting gives them an opportunity to grow a more extensive root system.
The First – and most important – Transplant
Once the start has two sets of leaves and the plant is 3-4 inches tall, re-plant the start just under the lowest set of leaves. Make sure to use a deep container that will allow ample root growth. If you are using a container to plant more than one start, make sure that there is at least 2 inches of soil between the plants.
Additional Transplanting
Tomato plants can be re-planted several times. You can transplant your tomato again (and again) once it reaches 8-10 inches in height, before you plant your tomato outside.
The Final Transplant
The transplanting of your tomato into it’s outdoor growing location should be done using a similar method of burying the stem above the current soil level. To attain an even deeper planting depth, you can even break the lowest leaves of the plant off at the stem and bury the plant above that level. Roots will form in those locations as well.
References
The information and recommendations in this article were gathered first from a book, The Gardener’s A-Z Guide to Growing Organic Food by Tanya L. K. Denckla, then, for a second opinion, from the online article Repotting Tomato Seedlings by National Gardening Association Editor, and finally from the helpful employees of Agua Fria Nursery in Santa Fe, to determine best practices for the specific climate of Northern New Mexico.
Agreed. I’ve been transplanting tomatoes like crazy. It’s a lot of work, but is necessary. If they don’t have enough room to produce more roots, they’ll start to yellow and that’s no fun!
RT @GrownInTheCity: ► DIY: Transplanting Tomatoes (again and again) – The most important tip I learned all season http://bit.ly/elc2S2 # …
Thanks, Garden Hoard. I never knew that tomato plants yellow if they do not have enough room for root growth – I always thought that they yellow because of a lack of nitrogen.
…I guess the two are slightly related, though: not enough roots = not enough nutrient absorption.
Since, I’m amidst a session of doing this I wrote up and shot a tutorial of how to make your own bags for transplants out of newsprint or even those brown paper that amazon stuffs into their shipping boxes.
http://www.angrywayne.com/origami-seedling-starters-diy-gardening-recyc
Thanks for your post and enjoying your site.
[...] the rest of Oaksford’s suggestions at DIY: Transplanting tomatoes (again and again). Into these yummy, ripe tomatoes! Photo by Marty [...]
I just moved to Las Vegas, Nevada and I’ll only be here until the end of the year. I’ve never really gardened and I don’t have a ton of time but I have set up a small compost outside and I really want to grow tomatoes, probably 2 or 3 plants total, because my roommates have never had fried green tomatoes and it seems impossible to purchase unripened tomatoes. I have a few large ceramic pots and I’m wondering how to make them self watering. Any advice at all would be welcome actually.
Oh, also, since we don’t have much of a yard there aren’t really any leaves and no lawn trimmings, would adding paper to the compost be enough? What could I add to it if not, and if so is there a particular type of paper?
Thanks!
Ashley, I suggest that you take a look at John’s article here on ‘Grown in the City’: http://growninthecity.com/2010/04/diy-building-self-watering-grow-boxes-18-gallon-tub-edition/
John built self-watering containers for his plants. I have never used this technique myself, but I know that John has been very successful with it throughout the last couple of years. I am sure that you can modify his strategy (he uses stacked tupperware containers) in order to incorporate your existing ceramic pots.
As far as compost goes, I would suggest that you purchase a bale of straw (not hay) from a local garden shop and use it as your organic material in the place of leaves. You can also use some of it to mulch around your plants… mulch really helps hold the soil moisture in our dry climate!!
Good Luck and Happy Gardening!