How to grow tomatoes in your Cedar Planters raised garden bed

By Victoria Fuller

We are often asked whether our planter boxes are deep enough to successfully grow tomatoes in, and we have some exciting news: it’s not tomat-no…it’s tomat…yes! In today’s blog post we are going to give our best tips for how you can enjoy these delicious fruits, you could say I love these tips from my head to-ma-toes (sorry).

Soil: Growing tomatoes in a raised garden bed is actually a fantastic idea as it means you can truly curate the soil to make the perfect conditions to grow instead of attempting to amend your native soil. Tomatoes ideally need well-drained, nitrogen-rich soil with a ph level of around 6.5. An excellent and readily available option for this type of soil is the Miracle Gro Potting Mix! Although we will also mention that tomatoes are a versatile little plant and as a general rule as long as your soil isn’t extremely clay heavy then your plants should still succeed!

Soil Depth: Many customers ask us if our planter boxes are deep enough to successfully plant tomatoes and thankfully the answer is “yes!”, tomatoes need approximately ⅔ of their composition to be planted beneath soil, so if you purchase a 10” plant, all but around 3” of the plant will be buried in soil, this is so that the roots of the plant can be sturdy. Cedar Planters raised garden beds and planter boxes will have ample room for your tomatoes to have all the space they need to thrive and grow. Each Cedar Planters raised garden bed and planter box has a depth of 12", so any tomato plant under 18" will thrive in our boxes!

Trellis: Using a trellis or other support system is a great idea to help your tomatoes reach their full potential and reach for the skies! The main positives of using a trellis is it helps encourage your plants to have strong stems, it can help prevent potential diseases, and it also will make things a lot easier when it comes to harvest time!

Sunlight: When it comes to sunlight: more is more when it comes to tomatoes! The more sunlight your plants get directly relates to the amount of sweetness in your fruit! For sweeter produce you want to ensure that your plants have at least 8 hours of full sunlight every day.

Water: As a general rule, tomatoes require 1-2 inches of water per week, so a sprinkling everyday should do the trick! Tomatoes can easily be over-watered so be mindful to check if the soil is waterlogged or soggy.

So there are our top tips for growing tomatoes! We hope that you’ve learned something interesting and useful in this blog. We will leave you today with a fun fact that will be sure to make you a hit at your next party: there are over 10000 varieties of tomato! Tomat-Woah!