A lot of the result when gardening comes down to the tools at your disposal. The right plant varieties can make for wonderful food producing plants right on a porch or a patio.
Even if you have an outdoor garden, the patio space can become another growing spot. The tomatoes can also be right outside the door for you to pick a few off.
My cherry pickers were what I put in salads or made into sauce. The bigger tomatoes were good on pizzas or burgers.
The thing with tomatoes is there is a lot of variety. Until recent times many people thought the mealy plain Jane offerings at the store was it, those were tomatoes.
But with gardening you open up a whole variety of colors, tastes, and sizes. They have the most amazing flavors and taste profiles.
I have a soft spot for heirloom tomatoes in particular. There has been a huge interest in them in recent years. Some of those tomatoes are good for small space gardening.
What prompted this post is I keep getting gifted these boxes for a small outdoor space and a concern of late is best use for for the space.
Growing Tomatoes In Containers
It is required to plan a patio planted garden carefully as their are pros and cons.
You have to consider the following:
Right variety for container growing
Nutrient dense potting soil
Good watering habits
Fertilizing often
Locating plants so they get good sunlight
It helps to select tomato varieties that grow alright in a container. People generally report best luck with the small and medium plants that have a smaller growth structure and smaller roots.
The main thing is that the plant can be trained to stay small size while producing a lot of fruit without a ton of soil and space.
Really excellent soil needs to be used as well since it has to feed and help nurture the plant and roots. They keystones of good soil is that it is low weight, very nutritioned, and doesn’t get waterlogged.
Tomatoes are considered heavy feeders and need a lot of nutrients.
Location
Patio planting is all about sunshine. The general knowledge is plants that off put leaves and be put to shade but plants where the fruit is the main goal need the sun. Locate a spot where the tomatoes will get tons of light for strong growth.
Plants shouldn’t be under things like umbrellas and awnings unless the sun is that intense that day.
Watering
Another key thing to patio tomatoes is water. With it being so hot out the tomatoes I have outside wouldn’t be alive past a few days of no water.
Plants get stressed out when they are watered too much and too little.
With time and experience you start to get a feel for when the plant looks like it could use a little water.
If in doubt during the learning phase a soil moisture meter can help. They are often inexpensive and useful. I prefer the digital moisture thermometers. It helps to use digital when tending a bunch of plants.
Fertilizing
Tomatoes need to be fed a lot and often.
The world of fertilizing plants has a lot of approaches to fertilizing. You can do things like compost tea, worm castings, seaweed, and a wide range of organic fertilizers.
Couple Of Great Tomatoes To Grow On A Patio
1 – San Marzano
San Marzanos are a fleshy and meaty tomato that I prefer for making both salsa and pizza sauce. These are also tasty tomatoes for fresh eating.
The plants grow compact and upright so they are easy to work into a patio mix. They do better in larger containers but the results are worth it.
2 – Maglia Rosa Tomato
This variety is one of my show stoppers. The seeds sometimes can be found at more niche seed stores.
The color is gorgeous, with a light-pink and a yellow dapple. The plants are good producers and short enough where container growing is possible. Fruit should be gathered when still light. This is a quick growing indeterminate where you should expect harvest around 55 days.
3 – Red Torch Tomato
This is a hybrid variety. The Red Torch is another eye catching tomato that has excellent flavor. The fruits are around 2 inch long and are red streaked with yellow.
These make for good snackers and will get you a couple of bites. Perks are early maturation and you have some really cool vine growth.
Seed Link : Red Torch Tomato Seeds
4 – Stupice
I’m in a colder more Northern garden so I’ve been collecting seeds from cold regions.
This variety is early bearing and has some cold tolerance. The fruits have a rich and great tasting flavor and are excellent for container growing.
5 – Artisan Blush Tomato
The Artisan Blush tomato is another beautiful tomato with stripes and gorgeous color.
It is rated as being super tasty and full of flavor with massive sweet crops of fruit. They are also really pretty as they mature to a yellowish-orange.
The plants will need staking support.
