Question:
I understand that tomatoes don't need much water. But, if so, how often should I water them?Answer:
- There is no simple answer as to how often to water tomato plants. There are far too many variables, such as temperature, size of the plants, soil preparation, and how quickly the soil drains.
- In addition, vegetable gardens are not well planned out regarding water needs; hence, gardeners tend to overwater. Tomatoes have a deeper root system than other veggies. It's very common to find tomatoes planted with squash, cucumbers, peppers and other shallowed rooted vegetables.
- Tomatoes need to be separated from the rest so you can water them efficiently. The shallow-rooted vegetables need to be watered more frequently, while tomatoes don't like the constant moisture.
- It's fair to say that we fall into a rut and water our tomato plants in August as we did in May. We know to water more when it's warm, but we fail to cut back when it is cool, especially in those gardens using an automatic watering system. Our summertime temperatures are not constant but vary significantly from week to week. Hence, we need to be flexible with the watering schedule. Here is one method to determine what is the best watering schedule for your tomatoes planted in the ground with your variables.
- With new plantings, you need to wait a couple of weeks for them to get acclimated and longer for those planted before April 15. Now water your plants thoroughly like you usually do and mark the date on a calendar. The plants are not watered again until they begin to wilt. The wilt date is recorded along with the average afternoon temperature.
- A ballpark figure will due. Then the process is repeated two more times. The data is then combined and averaged to form a watering' baseline' or norm.
- This information then answers the question, how often do I water my tomato plants? I water my plants' X' (number of days before the plant's wilt) minus one to two days when the temperature average is 'Y'. 'X' and 'Y' become the norm for your yard. You then adjust the watering schedule based on the standard.
- When it gets hotter, you shorten the frequency or lengthen it out when it gets cooler. Pick any day of the week you like to review the watering schedule for the upcoming week and adjust the frequency. Extended five to seven-day forecasts are available from any number of sources. As the plant grows, you increase the volume of water to make sure the entire root system gets wet. In containers, tomatoes are watered more often than those in the ground.
- Depending on the size of the container, tomatoes are watered several times a week. It may be necessary to water them more often with temperatures in the 90s and above. Tomatoes and other vegetables can be watered with recycled water. You need to keep the maturing vegetables off the ground and wash them thoroughly after harvesting.