How to Grow Tomatoes & Zucchini From Seed

Grow tomatoes and zucchini from seed to save on the cost of buying plants.

Growing tomatoes and zucchini from seed is a rewarding task. Lush tomato plants provide fresh, juicy fruit to enjoy throughout the summer, while zucchini is a versatile vegetable you can use in numerous cooking and baking recipes. Tomatoes are rich in vitamin C and come in a variety of breeds such as heirloom, Roma, cherry and steak tomatoes. Zucchini is a member of the squash family and just one or two plants will provide enough vegetables for your family and your neighbors.

Things You'll Need

• Styrofoam egg cartons or plastic cell trays
• Soil
• Plastic kitchen wrap

Instructions

1. Plant the tomato and zucchini seeds indoors six to eight weeks before the last expected frost. Fill a bucket or bowl with good soil (such as potting soil from a gardening center) and mix in enough water to make the soil moist but not muddy.

2. Fill the Styrofoam egg cartons or plastic trays three-quarters full with soil. Press the soil into the carton/tray, and then place three or four seeds on top of the soil in each compartment. Top the tray off with a bit more soil--to the rim of the carton or tray--and then cover with loose plastic, such as plastic kitchen (Saran) wrap, or place in a greenhouse.

3. Keep the soil slightly moist by watering it with a watering can. Check the plants every two or three days to see if they need watering. If the surface becomes dry to the touch, it needs water. The seeds should sprout in three to 15 days.

4. Transplant the seedlings to individual pots when the seeds show their first true leaves--usually the second set of leaves that are hardier. Fill the new pots with soil then use your finger or a pencil to poke a 3- to 4-inch deep hole in each pot. Pick the largest and healthiest looking seedlings from your trays and carefully dig them up by loosening the soil around their roots. Place each seedling in the new pots and bury them up to the cotyledon leaves (the first leaves). New roots will grow around the buried stem.

5. Replant the tomatoes and zucchinis outdoors when there is no longer a danger of frost. Gently remove each plant from its pot, loosening the root ball. Remove the lower leaves of each plant. Bury the plants in a trench about 3 feet apart. Zucchinis can also be planted on a small mound of dirt. To make a mound, use extra soil to create a small hill that is raised about 12 inches taller than the rest of the garden. Plant two zucchinis in each mound.

6. Water the tomatoes and zucchinis about every three days or when the top 1 inch of the soil is dry. Water with a hose until the soil is thoroughly soaked.

Tips & Warnings

• Tomatoes liked slightly acidic soil between 6 and 7 pH.

• Grow you tomatoes and zucchinis in an area that receives at least 6 hours of sun per day.

• Harvest the zucchini when they are small, to avoid bitterness.

References

• The Gardener's Network: How to Grow Zucchini Squash
• EduBook: Types of Tomatoes and Their Uses
• North Willamette Research and Extension Center: Zucchini and Summer Squash

Resources

• The Free Dictionary: Cotyledon
• Gardening Know How: Light Requirements for Tomates-How Much Sun do Tomato Plants Need