How to Grow Hydroponic Vs. Soil-Grown Tomato Plants

Tomato plants succeed in outdoor or indoor environments.

Tomatoes are large, lush plants that thrive in the right soil, location and temperatures. With the right care, a single plant produces multiple fruit harvests throughout summer and into fall. Tomatoes require long, frost-free seasons, though, and fail in areas with short, cool summers. Gardeners in cool areas may opt to grow smaller tomato plants inside, in pots or hydroponic gardens. Plant tomato seeds or seedlings outside or in hydroponic gardens to grow a fruit harvest and always follow the right guidelines for success.

Things You'll Need

• Garden fork
• Organic compost
• Fertilizer
• Mulch
• Trellis
• Hydroponic garden
• Peat moss
• Hydroponic nutrients

Instructions

Outdoor Tomatoes

1. Start outdoor tomatoes only after the frost lifts in spring. Sensitive plants, they must start in temperatures over 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Maintain planting dates through midsummer.

2. Find a spot for your outdoor tomatoes or use your established garden. The plants require full sunshine for eight hours a day along with quick drainage and good air circulation. Set aside a plot of at least 10 square feet for multiple plantings.

3. Prepare the soil to a depth of 10 inches one week before planting. Turn over the soil, then add 4 to 5 inches of organic compost for nutrition and moisture retention. Mix 8-32-16 or 6-24-24 granular fertilizer into the top 3 to 4 inches of soil for extra nutrition. Water the site to settle the soil and disseminate the fertilizer.

4. Plant any tomato cultivar in the outdoor garden, if space and growing season allows. Sow tomato seeds 1/2 to 1 inch deep, or use seedlings for a quicker start. Place the plantings at 24 to 36 inches, depending on cultivar size. If you're planting multiple rows, space them at 4 to 5 feet.

5. Put the garden on a schedule of 2 inches of water every week, and use 2 inches of organic mulch to keep the soil moist and warm. Put a trellis or tomato cage near every plant to give them support during growth.

6. Feed tomato plants with tomato-specific fertilizer or calcium nitrate two weeks after the first harvest and once a month thereafter, until the season ends. This fertilizer encourages continued blooming and fruit production.

Hydroponic Tomatoes

1. Start hydroponic tomatoes at any time of year. Fill hydroponic pots with a non-soil growing foundation like peat moss, fern matter, gravel or vermiculite. Non-soil potting mix keeps the system neat and clean and eliminates the chance of bacteria, fungus or weeds.

2. Plant small tomato cultivars like cherry, Roma and dwarf tomatoes in hydroponic gardens for smaller, more manageable plants. Plant the seedlings or sow tomato seeds 1 inch deep in the potting material.

3. Mix hydroponic nutrients, available at hydroponic shops and nurseries, with water. Always follow the manufacturer's directions in regard to amounts and mixing. These nutrients replace soil nutrition in hydroponic growing. Fill the hydroponic garden's water tray with this mixture to feed and water the tomatoes. Your hydroponic tomatoes will fail without this nutrition.

4. Turn on the system and set it to water the tomatoes with 2 to 3 inches of water every three to four days. Put the system in a spot that gets full natural or artificial light every day. While the system provides water and nutrition, it does not provide the light necessary for growing tomatoes.

References

• "University of Missouri Extension"; Growing Home Garden Tomatoes; David H. Trinklein
• "University of Illinois Extension"; Watch Your Garden Grow--Tomato; Ron Wolford, et al.
• "Virginia Cooperative Extension"; Home Hydroponics; Ruth Sorenson, et al.; May 2009