Growing tomatoes on your balcony… Shall we start this year?

What’s better in the middle of summer than tomato salads… homemade! Not much space? No problem, a balcony offers many more possibilities than you might imagine for growing tomatoes.

Tomato growing can be tricky at times, but as long as you follow a few basic rules you can expect a decent crop. This is also true on a balcony where the tomato can find its place.

Growing tomatoes: how to do it on a balcony?

You have the choice between making your own tomato seedlings or buying ready-to-plant plants… In any case, for a balcony, choose varieties of dwarf tomatoes, drooping or, even easier, varieties of Cherry tomatoes. All these varieties are suitable for cultivation with little space and will not invade your balcony while remaining productive.

Choosing your container

Tomato plants, whatever they are, need to be able to extend their root system in depth. For this you will need to aim for pots or containers that have at least 30 cm depth knowing that 40 cm would be a plus.

Growing Tomatoes: 7 Common Mistakes That Hurt Your Harvest

The development of the substrate

Start by placing a drainage layer of 3 to 5 centimeters at the bottom of your pot and cover it all with a rich soil preferably specially developed for growing vegetables.

Fill the pot completelybecause even if the first waterings will be a little complicated, the soil will settle quickly.

You can add a layer of compost on top without putting too much either, immediately place the stake if you plan to put one (this will avoid damaging the roots once the plant is in the ground). Then, straw all to limit evaporation.

Tip for growing tomatoes in pots

Tomatoes are plants that like heat and can be boosted if they also have some at night. On your balcony and if you have the possibility, do not hesitate to place them near a wall which will give them back heat during the night!
A wooden trellis fixed to the wall and on which you can climb your tomatoes would be ideal for this.

What varieties of tomatoes to grow on a balcony?

Cherry tomatoes

These small tomatoes are perfect for container growing and produce an abundance of fruit.

• ‘Balcony Red’ : Specially developed for balconies and terraces, this compact variety produces small, tasty red tomatoes.
• ‘Red Cherry Tomato’ : Popular and easy to grow, this variety produces small clusters of sweet tomatoes.
• ‘Tiny Tim’ : Very compact, ideal for small spaces, produces sweet, red cherry tomatoes.

Dwarf Tomatoes

These varieties remain small while producing tasty fruit.

• ‘Totem’ : A dwarf variety that produces medium-sized tomatoes, perfect for small spaces.
• ‘Patio Princess’ : Designed for balconies and patios, this compact variety produces medium-sized red tomatoes.

Dwarf tomatoes @ Caroline Ruda

Determinate Tomatoes

These plants stop growing after reaching a certain size, making them ideal for growing in pots.

• ‘Roma’ : Although best known as a sauce tomato, this determinate variety works well in pots.
• ‘Bush Early Girl’ : An early, compact variety that produces medium-sized tomatoes.
• ‘Celebrity’ : A disease resistant variety, ideal for container growing.

Semi-determinate tomatoes

These plants continue to grow and produce fruit throughout the season, but remain smaller than indeterminate varieties.

• ‘Glacier’ : A semi-determinate variety that produces early tomatoes, ideal for cooler climates.
• ‘Oregon Spring’ : Bred for cooler climates, this variety produces medium-sized, flavorful tomatoes.

When to plant tomatoes?

Once the last frosts have passed, you can plant your tomato plant. making sure to secure it well so that it does not break because of the wind. Install a stake now, which will prevent damaging the roots of the plant when trying to plant it later.
Water abundantly when planting and do not skimp afterwards, while being careful not to wet the leaves of your plant (this would allow certain diseases such as mildew to take hold).

The early life of your plants is important, pamper them! © vaivirga

Caring for tomatoes on a balcony

Tomatoes grown on the balcony do not require further maintenance than tomatoes grown in the open ground in the vegetable garden with a few details ready.

The first is watering. which must be regular. You really have to be careful that your tomatoes never lack water even over a short period and especially if they are already bearing fruit. Indeed, if your tomato plants are thirsty while they are bearing fruit, the latter can get “black bottom” or even fall off before ripening.

The second is to manage the “ gourmands »these shoots which appear at the level of the leaves and which will form new stems. If the debate ” leave or remove ” will certainly rage until the end of time as to whether to grow in open ground, in pots there is less discussion to be had.
Removing them will allow you to manage the plan by preventing it from taking up all the space on your balcony and this will give you better production. In pots, growth opportunities are more limited So you might as well make sure that your tomato plant produces tomatoes rather than stems and leaves that won’t have time to bear fruit!

And once the tomatoes arrive? Well a little comment here to share your experience…

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