Expert Tips for Buying Tomato Plants

Ever wondered how to grow tomatoes? It is one of the easiest plants to grow for the first timer and it is an enjoyable experience. Tomato plants bear huge crops for a long growing season. And best of all, there are so many ways to use tomatoes – use them in salads, sandwiches or turn them into chutney. You can also cook them whole and make them into sauce and can them. Sun dried tomatoes taste great and are excellent for baking – but best of all nothing beats eating fresh tomatoes picked straight from your crop. Home-grown tomatoes sure put those expensive, tasteless store bought mockeries to shame!

Tomatoes have been shown scientifically to prevent several types of cancer due to the lycopene that it contains. Raw tomatoes host a wide range of vitamins including Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Iron, Folic Acid and much more.

Tomato Varieties

There are various variety of tomatoes so you have a wide range to choose from. Basically they are divided into 3 categories - Determinate, Indeterminate, or Heirloom. So what is the difference between them?

Determinate tomato plants such as cherry tomatoes and Roma tomatoes plants grow to a certain height and then stop, producing fruit all at once.

Indeterminate tomato plants will keep growing and produce fruit sporadically over a longer period of time.

Heirloom tomatoes are more flavourful and colourful and are passed down from generation to generation. They are however prone to diseases and alot of attention need to be given to them. The yellow tomatoes are heirloom tomatoes.

Ways to Grow Tomatoes

You’ll be amazed at the various ways and places that tomatoes can be grown.

You can grow them from seeds – which of course takes a long time as you need to germinate them indoors before transplanting the seeds.

Tomatoes can be grown in a vegetable patch or garden. It can also be planted in a raised garden patch which is laid over concrete or brick ig you don’t have a garden to plant them in

For those living in apartments, tomatoes can be grown in containers or a window box.

How to Buy Tomato Plants

Purchasing tomato plants ready to be transplanted into your garden is much easier than starting them from seeds as the seeds need to be carefully cultivated indoors before being planted in the garden.

1. As tomatoes come in different varieties, you need to decide which type of tomato you want – the smaller varieties like the cherry and plum tomatoes or the larger ones like Beefsteak Tomatoes.
   
   
2. Choose a good reputed store from there you could buy tomato plants because the reputation of a greenhouse or a store is certainly important to make sure that you get healthy plants.
   
   
3. Try to grow different types of tomatoes in your garden so that you will know which one works best and will flourish better than the others in your garden
   
   
4. Only purchase dark green leafy plants that stand upright. Pale green or yellow coloration on the leaves indicate a nutrient deficiency. Make sure the leaves have no holes or are wilting.
   
   
5. Choose a sturdy but small plant. Don’t choose scrawny plants as it will be hard to transplant them into the garden. Check that the stem isn’t cracked or broken.
   
   
6. Check the tag - you'll find the diseases and insects your plants are susceptible to. Different varieties are prone to different diseases. The fewer items on this list, the better!

Growing your own tomatoes organically can be one of the most delicious options on your salads and other dishes to make it not only taste better but also give you the right kind of nutrition. Buying the optimal tomato plants require a bit of due diligence, but it is well worth the rewards.