This is a repost from my post last year on how I plant tomatoes. I always have good luck with my tomatoes (watch what happens now that I’ve said that!) and this is how I do mine so maybe if you’re having some issues with your tomatoes, you might want to read through this. One note: I always say I’m going to plant less tomatoes. I see that I planted 30 last year and I think I have 40 to plant this year! 🙁
Peppers, cucumbers, parsley and a few other things still need to be planted but 30 tomatoes got planted yesterday.
Tomato Planting Stuff
Most everything I need for good, healthy tomato plants! There’s egg shells, aspirin, bone meal, fish fertilizer and Osmocote.
Hole with Good Stuff Added
After I dig a big hole, I throw in a handful of bone meal, 5 or 6 crushed egg shells, a tablespoon or two of Osmocote and 2 or 3 aspirin, depending on the size of the tomato I’m planting. I stir all this up into the bottom of the hole before sticking the tomato plant in there.
Plant in the Ground
The bottom few “branches” of the plants are cut off so I can plant it very deep in the ground. The fish fertilizer is mixed 4 tablespoons into 2 gallons of water and the hole is filled about half full of the mixture, and the plant is stuck down in that. After a few minutes, the plant soaks up some of the liquid and some of it drains into the ground. Then I fill the dirt in around the plant.
That fish fertilizer says wintergreen oil has been added as a deodorizer. I’m thinking they might need to add a little more wintergreen oil. My entire garden smelled like a pogey plant yesterday.
For weeks I’ve been shredding cardboard boxes. I only use the portion of the box without print. Several inches of shredded cardboard is placed around the top of the plant.
Mulch
Several inches of mulch is then placed on top of the shredded cardboard.
I love my garden!!
Part of the Garden
I didn’t get all the cardboard and mulch down but I did get them all planted and staked.
Karen says
I’m curious as to why the aspirin? what does it do?
Kate says
Maybe it ensures that when the bees visit to pollinate, the tomatoes don’t have a headache!!!! Kate, being silly
Stephani in N. TX says
You go girl! You treat those plants so well, no wonder you have lots of tomatoes. Makes me want to get a pot going on the patio just to have some too!!
shirley says
I put my egg shells thru the blender with water thinking that the calcium will be absorbed easier. I put banana peels thru also and put that water on my rose bush’s.
Donna says
My father n law used to put a tablespoon of Epsom salt in the whole too. I don’t know why but man his tomamtos were good…hey had a little twang to them. Have you ever done that or know why he would have?
Donna says
Sorry I meant tomatoes!
Sherrill says
Do you shred cardboard in a shredder or some other way? My solar fire has produced all winter!! I drug it into the garage when it was cold out but no grow lights or heaters and it bloomed and produced like crazy. Bet I’ll never have another like that one!! HA
Helen says
I was wondering how you shred your cardboard, too! Do you put it in the chipper? Strange question for me to ask you, I don’t have a place for a garden, so I visit our local gardeners and farmers’ markets in the area.
Denise ~ justquiltin says
Is that all fresh lettuce along the edge? YUM!
Amy (NW WI) says
🙂
So glad to hear you have 40 plants for the year. You know they’ll ALLLLL be put to good use in a couple of months.
Jeanette says
Do you know that the little branches/limbs that you remove can be rooted for new tomato plants? Also any suckers that form later on and need removed works the same way. You can have a late crop of tomatoes without buying or seeding any more!
Denise Porter says
My husband puts TUMS (antacid tablets) in with the tomatoes. Probably same idea as asprins. Says that it makes the fruit less acidic. I wouldn’t know if it is true or not ……. as I don’t like tomatoes!