Tomato plants are heavy feeders, so, if you want healthy and tasty tomatoes in your garden, you should fertilize them regularly. They need a lot of nutrients, and the taste of the tomato fruits depends very much on the number of nutrients the plant got from the soil.
If you wonder what kind of fertilizer should you use in your garden, I would suggest using an organic one.
Best Organic Tomato Fertilizers
There are so many fertilizers on the market, so, you might be overwhelmed. In this article, I will present my top 5 organic fertilizers which you can use for tomatoes, but other vegetables as well.
Espoma Tomato-tone Organic Fertilizer
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0011UEKKE/
Espoma Tomato-tone Organic Fertilizer is a certified organic fertilizer that contains a large number of living microbes and all 15 essential nutrients. It is suitable for all types of tomatoes.
This will ensure a continuous and balanced feed of your plants; therefore, it will prevent blossom end rot, as it has 5% of calcium content. It will help in strong root development, plants growth and harvesting of pulpy, juicy tomatoes.
This fertilizer is non-toxic and environmentally safe, so you can safely use it in your backyard garden because it will not harm pets or children. However, you should keep the package out of reach.
Dr. Earth HomeGrown Organic Tomato Fertilizer
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VZRV4C
Dr. Earth Homegrown Tomato, Vegetable & Herb Fertilizer is certified as organic as well. It is non-toxic, all-natural fertilizer which is safe for pets and human.
It is a high-quality, Non-GMO Project verified and OMRI (Organic Material Review Institute) verified fertilizer. Dr. Earth Homegrown Tomato, Vegetable & Herbs Fertilizer is enriched with mineral, proteins, carbohydrates, Humic Acids (6% – derived from Leonardite), and trace elements.
It helps you to grow high-quality, healthy and tasty vegetables and tomatoes in your own garden.
This fertilizer is handcrafted from human and feed grade ingredients, sustainably made in the U.S.A. by environmentalists to make the world a better place.
Miracle-Gro Performance Organics
http://amazon.com/dp/B07YM64CJS
Miracle-Gro Performance Organics Edible Plant Nutrition is suitable to feed not only your tomatoes but your vegetables, herbs and fruits as well.
It is OMRI listed as well, which means it is organic. The package is recyclable, which makes it more environment friendly. You can use it every 7 days with the Miracle-Gro Performance Organics Garden Feeder or watering can.
You can just dilute the granules in water, and you can easily feed your tomatoes while watering them.
Using this fertilizer, you help your tomatoes to grow faster and healthier. Also, it helps to harvest tasty fruits from your tomato plants.
Worm Castings Organic Fertilizer
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00062KQ42/
Worm Castings Organic Fertilizer Wiggle Worm Soil Builder is another organic certified (OMRI and CDFA certified) fertilizer that I recommend. It is non-toxic and odour free as well.
This fertilizer is excellent for your tomatoes and your houseplants, vegetables and flowers as well. You can use it indoors and outdoors as it has perfectly balanced nutrients.
It is made from pure earthworm casting and because it is water-soluble, you just need a small amount of it on your plants. They will absorb the nutrients quickly and will be fed for weeks.
Worm Castings Organic Fertilizer Wiggle Worm Soil Builder will help your plants to be healthy and beautiful, and your tomatoes to be juicy and tasty.
Miracle-Gro Shake N’Feed
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01NCL2THZ/
Here is another product from the Miracle-Gro brand which I recommend. The Miracle-Gro Shake N’Feed is easy to apply because it comes in a shake and feed bottle. The bottle pre-measures the amount of fertilizer you need to put on your plant.
You just shake it and feed it, as its name claims. This type of fertilizer isn’t good only if you don’t want to get messy while fertilizing.
Miracle-Gro Shake N’Feed contains added calcium and extra nitrogen, which makes it perfect for nitrogen lacking soils. It is a slow-release fertilizer, which means you don’t have to fertilize your tomatoes every week, but it is enough every 3 months.
However, make sure you’re not over-fertilizing, as it can do more harm than good, because of too many nutrients.
This type of fertilizer is good for your tomatoes, but if you have other vegetables or fruits in your garden, you can use it for those as well. It contains many natural ingredients and micronutrients that help plants to grow strong and harvest many tasty fruits.
How to Fertilize Tomato Plants?
You should fertilize your tomato plants regularly, but depends on the fertilizer type how often it should happen. Always read the labels and use the fertilizer as indicated. If not, you can harm your tomatoes.
Usually, granules are used every 2-3 months, and the liquid fertilizers are used every 2-3 week. But again, please read the labels before using any of your fertilizers.
So, before planting your tomatoes you can mix the tomato fertilizer into the soil at the bottom of the planting hole. Then place some unfertilized soil on the top of the fertilized soil, then you can place the tomato plant in the hole.
If the fertilizer itself comes in contact with the plant’s roots, it can burn your plants.
When you fertilize your tomatoes during growth, eventually after there are fruits already, first you should water the plants. Then you can fertilize the soil. Make sure you are not fertilizing too closely to the plant’s base, again, you can burn the plant.
So, fertilizing the soil around 6 inches (15 cm) from the plant, cannot go wrong.
Are Coffee Grounds Good for Tomatoes?
There are many debates about coffee grounds and their effect on the plants. Some people say it is good, some of them say that coffee ground shouldn’t be used as fertilizer.
But what is all the fuss around coffee grounds? Is it really good for fertilizing or not? Well, my answer is YES and NO.
I would say YES, it is good to fertilize your tomatoes with coffee grounds if you know how and when to use them.
My NO answer is because if you don’t know how to use it, and the circumstances are not helping, coffee grounds can cause problems.
Coffee grounds are a good source of nitrogen, potassium, magnesium, copper and other trace minerals. Coffee grounds are also acidic, the pH is around 6.8. So, if the soil in your garden is already acidic, coffee grounds can make it too acidic.
Coffee grounds are also good as a pest repellent, like slugs and snail, and are loved by earthworms. But if you use too much of it on the soil, it can kill the earthworms, can start to stink and this can attract pests.
As tomatoes like acidic and nitrogen-rich soil, I would say coffee grounds are good for them. However, you must be careful about how much you are using it.
Is Epsom Salt Good for Tomatoes?
This is another controversial question. Is Epsom salt good or bad for tomatoes? And again, my answer is yes and no.
This has to be used with care and with limitation. In some of the cases can help, but in more will be unnecessary.
Tomato plants need magnesium to get strong and healthy. Epsom salt can help if there is a lack of magnesium in the soil and can help your plants to harvest rich in flavour fruits. However, if you use too much of it, can lead to other problems like salt will build up.
Also, there is another common belief, that Epsom salt helps to prevent blossom end rot, but this is not true. This happens when a lack of calcium occurs. Epsom salt will not provide calcium for your plants; therefore, it will not prevent blossom end rot.
So, you can use Epsom salt, but it is not necessary, and if is not used carefully, can be damaging.
It is unlikely that the soil will lack only magnesium, so I would suggest a better use of other fertilizers which are designed especially for tomato plants and are enriched with the needed nutrients.
Wrap Up
If you want healthy and tasty tomatoes, you should fertilize your plants regularly. If you wonder what kind of fertilizer to use, natural or synthetic, I would suggest using always natural ones, because those are not toxic and the fruit will be tastier.
Lack of nutrients can cause stunted growth, increased chances of diseases and unhealthy plants and fruits. But if you over-fertilize can lead to even more problems. So, balance is the secret of everything.
I hope this article will help you to choose the fertilizer for your tomato plants that will work best for your garden.
