Tomatoes
Tomatoes: when to sow and plant, how to grow them under cover and outdoors, and what to do when something goes wrong.
Tomatoes at a glance
Solanum lycopersicum · Solanaceae (with potatoes and aubergines)
- Position
- Warm, sunny and sheltered
- Spacing
- 45–60 cm apart in the ground (RHS)
- Sow
- Indoors, late February to early April
- Plant
- After the last frost, usually in May
- Harvest
- July to October
- Watering
- Evenly moist, daily in pots in hot weather
- Height
- 30–150 cm, cordons up to 2 m
- Difficulty
- Easy
When to sow and plant
Growing and care
Diseases and pests
Tomatoes through the year
Every job for growing tomatoes on one chart. Click a row to open the full guide.
Common questions
Why are my tomatoes going black at the bottom?
That is blossom end rot. The RHS says it is caused by an uneven water supply, which stops calcium reaching the end of the fruit, not by a lack of calcium in the soil. Keep the compost moist all season and never let it dry out. More
How often should I water tomatoes?
Often enough to keep the soil evenly moist. In pots that can mean every day in hot weather. Irregular watering causes splitting and blossom end rot. More
Is February too early to sow tomatoes?
Not if they will grow in a greenhouse. The RHS gives late February to mid March for a greenhouse crop, and BBC Gardeners' World says from early February. For plants that will go outdoors, the RHS suggests late March to early April. More
In this section we use these sources: Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), Garden Organic, BBC Gardeners' World Magazine, Met Office. Each page lists its own sources at the bottom.