With summer here, if you want a great harvest you need to keep your tomato plants healthy. There are a few maintenance things you can do to keep them growing strong and producing the best fruits they can.
Simple little things like adding some mulch and staking plants to keep them off the ground away from insects and rot.
Keep Competing Weeds at Bay – Weeds are one of the biggest detriments to the overall health of tomato plants. Tomato plants need all of the nutrients and water they can get in the summer months to keep producing fruit. If your plants are smothered in weeds, they are losing those nutrients to the weeds. In addition, those weeds become a great place for pests to hang out and multiply. Last but not least, remember that if you let this year’s weeds take over and go to seed, they will only multiply next year’s problem. Remove the Damage and Disease – Here is another big one in keeping your plants healthy! Take a few minutes a day as you walk through your garden to remove any branches that have broken off or begin to show signs of disease. In addition, be sure to prune out the bottom branches to allow light, water and circulation to your plants. Those three things are invaluable in keeping your crop healthy and producing.
Stop Fertilizing – This one surprises a few people, but is really important to stop any type of heavy fertilizing once summer sets in. Too much fertilizer can actually lower your harvest totals as the plants use the nutrients of the fertilizer to create more leaves and stems – and less fruit.
Great tips from oldworldgardenfarms.com
