Tomato Lycopersicon esculentum

Tomato plants should be grown in warm areas and receive plenty of sunlight, so choose a sunny spot in your garden. Relocate your tomato plants to different parts of your garden each year to avoid disease. The optimum temperatures for growing tomatoes from seeds are between 80°F and 85°F. Plant your seeds indoors 10 to 12 weeks before setting them outside. Use Miracle-Gro Seed Starting Material for the best germination results. We have tested other Seed Starting mixes and experienced poor germination rates. Do not add any soil, fertilizers, or other chemicals to the seed starting material. Do not use Jiffy peat pots, plugs, or potting soil, or covers, as the soil may become too dry or too wet, which can lead to disease, fungus, and poor germination. Do not bottom-water the seeds, as this can make the seed-starting material too wet and lead to poor germination. We have experienced disease and low germination when using these types of products and covering the pots and trays. When seedlings are 4" tall, transplant them into larger pots. Plants should be at least 10" tall before transplanting outdoors. Plants should be grown outdoors in shady areas for several days before transplanting. Shelter the transplants to prevent sunburn, wilting, and rain damage. Spring planting should occur when the soil is warm, at least 3 weeks after the last frost, and when temperatures remain above 70 degrees F. You can plant early if you use water towers. To prevent branches from breaking from the weight of tomatoes, use 5 to 6 ft tall cages. To tie plants to stakes, use soft cloth strips. Check indeterminate plants regularly and pinch off suckers and side branches where leaves join the stems. Plants can grow from 1 to 6 ft tall.