Your Go-To Guide to Growing Tomatoes From Seed Starting to Harvest

When it comes to garden staples, you can’t get much better than tomatoes. These juicy, bright red and yellow fruits are beloved by gardeners of all skill levels.

Tomatoes are popular not just because they bear delicious harvests for your favorite summer dishes, but also because they’re so easy to grow and grow well in many different climates and conditions, both in the ground and in containers. And, depending on the type you grow, can produce hundreds of fruits all season long.

So consider this our ode to tomatoes. From starting your first seeds to planting them in the best place for guaranteed success, to ensuring your plants are the healthiest they can be all season long, this is your complete handbook to growing tomatoes—from our tomato-loving editors, writers, and experts to you.

Because our love for tomatoes on The Spruce knows no bounds, we created your foundational, go-to guide to successfully growing them. From tried-and-true hacks gardeners always use to the must-grow varieties, we’re sharing all of our tomato knowledge with you.

Whether you’re trying them in your garden for the first time or have been doing it for decades—happy growing!

Start Strong Seeds

Good tomato plants start with strong seeds, and making sure your seeds get off to the best start will ensure you have the ripest, juiciest, healthiest tomatoes all season long.

Whether you prefer to grow your tomatoes in the ground or in pots, we have some pro gardener-approved tips and tricks up our sleeves to start strong seeds this spring.

Get Ready to Grow

Getting your seedlings into the ground isn’t where the work ends—you’ll need to nurture then and make sure you’re giving them everything they need to thrive throughout the season. Get up-to-speed on when you should plant tomatoes, how to grow them in small spaces, and how to stake or cage them to grow strong plants.

Tips for Award-Winning Plants

It’s fairly well-known that tomato plants require a lot of water—and plenty of fertilizer to keep them producing fruits throughout the growing season.

We tapped experts to find out how often you really need to water tomatoes, get the down-low on the best fertilizers for your tomatoes, and how to repot and protect tomatoes the right way, so you won’t have to worry about killing them halfway through summer.

Tomato Troubleshooting

No matter how diligent you are with your tomato plant care, you’ll inevitably face some challenges this summer. Tomatoes, like other fruits and veggies, can be a magnet for pests, but you can get rid of them as long as you start treating the problem early on.

Diseases can also pose issues with tomato plants, and can cause tomato leaves to turn yellow. Luckily, we have everything you need to troubleshoot any of your tomato problems this year.

Joy of the Harvest

What’s the point in growing tomatoes if you don’t enjoy the harvest? Picking tomatoes at exactly the right time is key to getting the best fruits from your plants. And if your tomatoes aren’t ripening but staying green, don’t give up—we can help.