Planting tomatoes on their side develops more roots to nourish them
Q I have been growing my own tomatoes for a few years now and always looking at ways to improve their growth and production. I know I recall you mentioning that planting tomatoes deeper is one tip but something tells me you have also talked about planting tomatoes on their side. Am I imagining this?
A You are not imagining this. Planting tomatoes on their side is a thing and it works. Tomato stems have parenchyma cells that are located just below the dermal layer.
Parenchyma cells can form adventitious roots. The more roots the plant has the better the ability to draw up moisture and nutrients.
Planting tomatoes sideways is really quite simple:
Remove the lower leaves of the
■ plant. Leave only the top of the plant and any leaves that will be left exposed once the tomato has been planted.
Next dig a shallow trench
■ approximately 10-15 cm deep. The length of the trench should be around two-thirds of the height of the plant. The goal is to have one-third of the plant sticking up out of the ground.
You next lay the plant into the
■ trench. The top branches and leaves should be resting on the top of the soil next to the trench.
Cover with soil. I like to mix
■ compost into the soil that you are using to cover the plant.
The finished product will be
■ two-thirds of the plant under the soil with the top third exposed. There is no need to try to bend the top. The plant will grow upright on its own.
A final tip is something I stumbled across a few years ago. Jobes Tomato Fertilizer Spikes have worked very well for me.
There is no muss or fuss. You insert the spikes at planting time and they release fertilizer over a two-month period. I then reinsert for another two months or continuous fertilization.