How to grow tomato
Family Solanaceae. Hardy to USDA hardiness zone 3a+ (U.S. Department of Agriculture). Full sun, 8+ hrs. Ready in 60-85 days.
Sun
Full sun, 8+ hrs
Spacing
24-36 in
Days to harvest
60-85 days
Hardiness
Zone 3a+
What growers actually recorded
Loading zone 7b results…
When to plant tomato
- Start indoors: ~6 weeks before last frost.
- Transplant out: ~2 weeks after last frost.
Companion plants for tomato
Plant with: Basil, Marigold, Carrot, Onion.
Avoid near: Brassicas, Fennel, Corn.
Common pests & problems
Hornworm, aphids, blight. Rotate 3-year cycle to break disease.
Feeding & fertilizer
N-P-K ratio: Low N (5-10-10) once fruiting starts
Organic options: Compost 2-3 in. at planting · Fish emulsion every 2 wks while young · Bone meal + kelp at flowering for calcium/potassium
When to feed: Compost at planting → light nitrogen through vegetative → switch to P/K when flowers appear.
Watch for: All leaves, no fruit = too much N. Blossom-end rot = uneven watering, rarely a soil calcium shortage; test soil before adding calcium.
N = nitrogen (leaves), P = phosphorus (roots and flowers), K = potassium (fruit and disease resistance). How to read a fertilizer label →
Grower's tip
Bury 2/3 of the transplant stem. Roots form along the buried stem for a stronger plant.
When to plant tomato in your zone
Free month-by-month sowing and transplanting lists, built from frost dates for your USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) hardiness zone.
Soil & water for tomato
Soil & pH
6.2-6.8: slightly acidic
Loose, deep loam. Break up compaction 12 in down; tomatoes and peppers root deeply when given the room.
Work 2-3 in of compost + a handful of bone meal per plant into the hole. Warm soil to 60°F+ before transplanting; black plastic mulch 2 weeks ahead helps in the North.
Watering
1-1.5 in / week, more in fruit set
Deep soak at the base twice a week. Drip or soaker hose beats overhead watering: wet leaves invite early blight.
Stick your finger 4 inches in near the stem. If it's dry at the second knuckle, water. If it's still damp, wait. Flipping from bone-dry to soaked is what cracks fruit and brings on blossom-end rot.
Knowing when to harvest
- Full color (variety-specific) with a slight give at the shoulder.
- Twist-and-lift; ripe fruit separates cleanly at the stem.
- In frost country: pick all mature-green fruit before first frost and ripen indoors at 55-70°F.
Storing & keeping
Never refrigerate. Cold destroys flavor compounds. Counter-store stem-up at 55-70°F for 5-7 days. Freeze whole or can (pressure or water-bath with added lemon juice, pH < 4.6).
What to expect
Per plant: 10-30 lb indeterminate; 5-15 lb determinate
Per sq ft: ~2 lb / sq ft trellised
For most home gardeners, 10-15 lb per plant is a solid win; 20+ lb is master-level territory. JM Fortier's benchmark for intensive market growers is 3-4 kg/m².
Troubleshooting tomato
Blossom-end rot (black, sunken bottom)
Likely cause: Calcium can't reach the fruit. Almost always from uneven watering, not calcium deficit
What to do: Mulch 3 in deep, water 1.5 in weekly on a fixed schedule. Calcium spray is a last resort.
Cracked or split fruit
Likely cause: Heavy water after a dry spell
What to do: Even soil moisture; mulch. Pick fruit at first blush during rainy stretches.
Curled leaves + purple veining
Likely cause: Cool nights (< 55°F) or phosphorus lockout in cold soil
What to do: Wait for warmer weather; foliar kelp helps.
Yellow lower leaves with dark rings
Likely cause: Early blight (Alternaria)
What to do: Remove infected leaves, mulch to stop soil splash, spray Serenade or copper weekly.
Varieties worth the space
Not every name in a seed catalog. These are the ones growers order again, with what each one is actually good at and what it asks of you.
Sungold
Hybrid · 57 days
The cherry that converts people. Sweet enough that half the crop never reaches the kitchen; crack-prone if watering swings.
Cherokee Purple
Heirloom · 80 days
Deep smoky slicer with the best flavor in most side-by-side tastings. Soft shoulders, poor shipper, grow it because you eat it.
San Marzano
Heirloom · 80 days
Dense paste tomato that cooks down fast with little water to boil off. Wants steady calcium or you get blossom-end rot.
Early Girl
Hybrid · 57 days
First real slicer of the season in a short summer, and it sets fruit through cool nights.
Big Beef
Hybrid · 73 days
Beefsteak size with disease resistance heirlooms don't have. The safe bet in a humid, wet-summer garden.
Roma VF
Open-pollinated · 75 days
Determinate paste that ripens in a wave, right when you want one big canning day, not a trickle.
Black Krim
Heirloom · 80 days
Dark, salty-sweet, and productive in heat when other heirlooms sulk.
Sun Sugar
Hybrid · 62 days
Orange cherry with thinner skin and less cracking than most sweets. Vigorous, give it a tall trellis.
Amish Paste
Heirloom · 85 days
Bigger, meatier paste than Roma with real tomato flavor in the sauce. Indeterminate, so it needs staking.
Juliet
Hybrid · 60 days
Grape-shaped, crack-resistant, and nearly unkillable. The one that keeps producing after August blight starts.
Sungold (indeterminate cherry)
The sweetest small tomato most gardeners will ever grow. Vigorous and crack-resistant.
Cherokee Purple (heirloom slicer)
Complex flavor and reliable in humid climates when staked.
Roma / San Marzano (paste)
Meaty, low-seed; the choice for sauce and canning.
Defiant PhR (hybrid slicer)
Bred for late-blight resistance; a rescue variety for wet climates.
Growing tomato in containers
5-gallon minimum for determinates; 10-gallon (grow-bag or half-barrel) for indeterminates. Stake or cage at planting: root disturbance later cuts yield.
Nutrition
High in lycopene (tomato), capsaicin (hot pepper), vitamin C, and potassium.
Common questions
Do I really need to prune suckers?
On indeterminates trained to a single stem, yes. You'll get earlier, cleaner fruit. On determinate bush types, no; you'll cut into yield.
Why won't my tomatoes turn red?
Above 85°F, tomatoes stop producing lycopene. Provide 30% shade cloth and pick at first blush to ripen indoors.
Can I plant tomatoes in the same spot each year?
Not if you can help it. Rotate on a 3-year cycle to break early blight, Fusarium, and Verticillium wilt cycles.
Where these numbers come from
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023 revision). Zone assignment and the 30-year normals behind every cold-hardiness figure.
- NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 Climate Normals. Frost dates, growing-season length, and the probability bands on both.
- Cornell, UMN, and UC Davis Cooperative Extension crop guides. Spacing, days to maturity, soil pH targets, and per-plant yield ranges.
- USDA FSIS / FDA Produce Safety guidance. Wash, cure, and cold-storage handling numbers.
Ranges are regional guidance, not a promise for your yard. Your own logged results always override the published range.