How many tomato plants do you grow?

I want to grow enough for lots of salads, cooking, and preserving, but I don't have very much space.


How many do you grow, and what kind of harvest do you get?

How many tomato plants do you grow?
This question made me laugh, because last year I planted 48 tomato plants. No, we're not crazy. :)


I grew 2 cherry tomato plants for eating, 4 better boy plants for eating in sandwiches (blt), and I think 1 or 2 big boy plants just to try them out. The rest were all Roma tomatoes, which are commonly used for canning/preserving, and my favorite, salsa. I made a lot of salsa. I also gave some away, and froze them. You can freeze them if you first blanch them, take the skins off, cut the tops off, and put them into containers or baggies (I use ziplock containers). You can also cut them up right away too and freeze the pieces, this is great for stews, spaghetti, and lasagna.


If you want to eat them fresh, cook with them, and preserve some too, I would recommend you start out with 8-10 plants. Get a cherry tomato plant, a couple better boy plants, and the rest Roma's for canning/salsa. This will give you a good feel for how many actually come from a plant (a lot!) and if you have too many, bring them to a farmers market or give them to people at work - they will love it!


Good Luck!
Reply:15 to 25 plants of different varieties, and different maturity dates.


If it is a good hot tomato year, I can about 48 quarts or more off of my garden. That is not including tomato salsa, spaghetti sauce and what we eat.
Reply:I grow 6 cherry tomato plants. Three in each large container. These are determinant plants, meaning their growth is self limiting. There are two of us and we get all we need for a season. I don't preserve any.
Reply:I planted about a dozen tomato plants last year, about three weeks too late for my area, and I didn't have to buy any tomatoes until January. No preserving though. It's just two people in our family, but we do like tomatoes. We eat them almost every day, specially if they're home grown. Remember that the best tomatoes for preserving and for eating fresh are a different kind, so plan on having two different kinds if you have enough space.
Reply:One plant is plenty for my husband and me. It is always loaded. So be very careful, one plant grows lots of tomatoes.





Preserving is another matter all together. It is according to how many jars you intend to put away for the year.





IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO WATER, WATER, WATER. Tomatoes need lots of water. We water ours deeply each morning without fail.





Here is a good way to grow two tomato plants:





http://www.earthbox.com





We have one and love it. I intend to grow cucumbers this year.
Reply:i grew none last year but i plan in growing some this year they come in there own containers i will have about 3 tomato plants.that will give me enough for salads all summer.