Planting Tomatoes? Here's How To Choose The Best Spot In Your Garden

Tomato season is a fleeting one, especially if you love to use your homegrown variety to make a grilled margherita pizza for backyard parties. So, if you are going to jump on the bandwagon and add these fruits to your summer garden, choosing the right spot to plant them is key to your success. Tomato plants are the Goldilocks of summer plants, and they have a simple mantra. They want to be warm, but not too warm. They need water, but not too much. The soil needs to drain properly. Tomatoes want sunlight, but not so much that they scorch. They also need a little shelter from the elements.

So, the first thing to consider is where in your garden your tomato plants will be able to get between six and eight hours of sunlight. Without that direct sunlight, your plants will not grow big and strong. It's needed for both the flower and fruit to grow in abundance. Too little, and you may not see any of either. Too much, and well, they get sunscald. Think of sunscald as sitting by the pool on a hot day without sunscreen. The leaves will turn white, or you might see a speckle of brown spots. The tomatoes themselves can crack and develop discoloration. Tomato plants like to be warm, but not too warm.

Your plants can also benefit from a little shelter. Consider building near a brick fence or wall that soaks up those direct sun rays during the day and will release them in the evening as it cools. You are basically creating a microclimate for your tomatoes. Your plants will get to benefit from that added warmth as the air cools. Walls can also add a little bit of stability. Keeping the fruit off the ground will help keep away those pesky insects and eliminate premature rot.

Planting near a wall that receives direct sunlight throughout the day can also protect your tomato plants from wind and rain that could knock them down. And if you are going to plant tomatoes, be sure to plant some companion plants alongside them. Spinach is a great option. It inhibits weed growth, also known as the nemesis of all gardens. And because spinach roots are short, there isn't a competition for moisture. It's a win-win relationship. Add these tips to your playbook, and you will avoid common garden mistakes that can give your tomato plants a complex.