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CONTAINER TOMATO GARDENING Tomatoes can be grown easily in container gardens.

Here's how:

USE LARGE CONTAINERS Tomatoes are large plants when they mature. For this reason, your container size should be at least 12 ' 14" in width or diameter. Any smaller container than this and your tomatoes will not last the season. With smaller pots, the plant dries out early in the season and the bloom simply doesn't happen. The choice is yours. Whether you want to be stingy now or repent later. Pay for the bigger pot to ensure that you get great tomatoes in August.

GOOD QUALITY SOIL Use good quality soil all the way to the bottom of the container. By using an artificial soil mix rather than the garden soil; you prevent the soil from compaction. Compaction stunts the growth of the tomatoes and kills them. The soil should also have the right pH balance for the tomato to thrive fully. The soil should be mixed properly and good quality fertilizer should be added at the time of filling the container this is why garden soil is seldom used. Tomatoes need lots of soil with constant watering. You should put in at least six shovels of soil in the container. Any less than that can spell doom for the plant.

LOTS OF FERTLIZERS Tomatoes need lots of fertilizers, they need at least fertilizing once a week. This leads to great growth and great yield for the tomato plant. Use a good quality fertilizer that's available. Both organic and synthetic fertilizers are available in the market. You can also use a liquid mix fertilizer, which assimilates quickly into the soil.

WATER & MORE WATER Since the tomato fruit is 95% water, the plant needs lots of water regularly. You have to water the plant regularly or when the soil appears as if it drying out. Don't be lethargic in watering the plant else your fruit will suffer. In hotter climate, water the tomato plant at least twice a day.

STAKING IT OUT You can grow the tomato plants on stakes and without the stakes. The branches of the tomato plant are easy to break which is why its essential to secure them. By using stakes, you can ensure that they are secured to the stakes. In this way they have less chances of breaking during a windstorm. A windstorm can easily ruin your tomato plant.

You can leave them to flop over the pots but if there are slugs then they will enjoy the tomato fruit as much as you enjoy the fruit. Tomato plants with stakes seem a better option that those without.

PEST AND DISEASE CONTROL This is as important as watering. Pest control as well as disease control is important otherwise the fruit will rot even before it blooms. There are plenty of commercially available organic and synthetic pesticides and fungicides, which can combat your woes. Added to this tomatoes need to be pruned regularly.

CONCLUSION All other factors remain the same as for the tomato plants, which are grown in the soil.