How many plants?

TightenUp · March 25, 2012

i have a new raised bed and wondering how many tomato plants you would put in this bed? it's 12 inches high and 16Lx4W feet. i am growing indeterminate tomatoes in cages.

i am using mels mix of 1/3 compost 1/3 vermiculite 1/3 peat.

thanks

CJ

brismith70 · March 25, 2012

It depends.

Your average humidity will determine the requirement for airflow around your plants to prevent fungus problems. For example, here in the Phoenix area, the average humidity is 10% give or take. I could plant plants right on top of one another. Your average humidity may prevent that.

Additionally, are you going to pinch suckers so that you are only growing on a single vine or will you let your tomatoes grow as they want to grow? With a single vine, you might be able to plant one tomato per square foot. If you let them grow, you might need 18" to 36" or more between plants.

I have a 2' x 6' section in my raised bed where I plant 6 tomatoes. I just let them grow into one another so they shade the ground and prevent evaporation. But again...my weather circumstances in Phoenix are different from yours in Jersey. I would say 2 to 3 feet between plants - and that might be a smidge close. I would stagger the plants in successive rows. Given this, I would say that you could grow anywhere between 12 to 18 plants in there - but that might be optimistic.

I have never grown tomatoes in the northeast, so take my advice for what it's worth.

Brian

casserole · March 25, 2012

four or 5 plants

feldon30 · March 25, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChefJeff

i have a new raised bed and wondering how many tomato plants you would put in this bed? it's 12 inches high and 16Lx4W feet. i am growing indeterminate tomatoes in cages.

i am using mels mix of 1/3 compost 1/3 vermiculite 1/3 peat.

thanks

CJ

I have typically grown 14 large indeterminate plants in a 4 x 16 bed. They were a bit crowded though. 12 plants would probably be better, setup in a staggered arrangement. In my 4 x 8 bed, I always grew 8 plants and it didn't really get overcrowded.

Suze grows 8 or 9 plants in a 3 x 12 bed.

livinonfaith · March 25, 2012

I have always spaced all of mine 2 feet apart when in cages, and they don't seem too crowded. That's if you keep them pruned down to two or three stems per plant. I don't like more stems than that within a cage, anyway. It just gets to be a jumble in there if you let them go wild.

So, that would be 16 plants for your space, but you could do just 14 to be safe. If you have any varieties that are known to be either larger and bushier than average or more compact than average, you could adjust for that, as well.

It's funny, I've had a guy tell me he plants his in single rows 10" apart and they do great, even here in the humidity of central NC. Then I've heard people say that they need 3 feet all around. I suspect that it really depends on pruning methods, individual variety, and watering/feeding methods.

The square foot gardener says tall vining (indeterminate?) tomatoes need one square foot and "bushy" tomatoes, (determinate?) need 9 square feet. That's a huge difference!

TightenUp · March 25, 2012

thanks for the replies. i was hoping to get 12-14 plants and i guess i will shoot for that amount.

filling the bed this week and might even throw a few plants in next weekend depending on the forecast.

venturabananas · March 25, 2012

I have to echo Brian -- it depends. I had only 6 tomato plants in my 4x10' bed last year and it was too many in my cool, very humid climate. I didn't prune them and I should have with that number of plants. The Sungold plant ended up covering an area 4x5', i.e., half the bed. Given that it's pretty humid in NJ in the summer, I would think you'll need to prune to pack in 12-14 plants in that space.

TightenUp · March 25, 2012

uh oh....i got some sungolds going in

venturabananas · March 25, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChefJeff

uh oh....i got some sungolds going in

Not a problem if you prune them back to a reasonable number stems. I didn't, that's for sure!

March 25, 2012	#1
TightenUp Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Jersey Posts: 1,183	How many plants? i have a new raised bed and wondering how many tomato plants you would put in this bed? it's 12 inches high and 16Lx4W feet. i am growing indeterminate tomatoes in cages. i am using mels mix of 1/3 compost 1/3 vermiculite 1/3 peat. thanks CJ

March 25, 2012	#2
brismith70 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Cambridge, MA Posts: 71	It depends. Your average humidity will determine the requirement for airflow around your plants to prevent fungus problems. For example, here in the Phoenix area, the average humidity is 10% give or take. I could plant plants right on top of one another. Your average humidity may prevent that. Additionally, are you going to pinch suckers so that you are only growing on a single vine or will you let your tomatoes grow as they want to grow? With a single vine, you might be able to plant one tomato per square foot. If you let them grow, you might need 18" to 36" or more between plants. I have a 2' x 6' section in my raised bed where I plant 6 tomatoes. I just let them grow into one another so they shade the ground and prevent evaporation. But again...my weather circumstances in Phoenix are different from yours in Jersey. I would say 2 to 3 feet between plants - and that might be a smidge close. I would stagger the plants in successive rows. Given this, I would say that you could grow anywhere between 12 to 18 plants in there - but that might be optimistic. I have never grown tomatoes in the northeast, so take my advice for what it's worth. Brian

March 25, 2012	#3
casserole Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Dousman, WI Z5 Posts: 95	four or 5 plants

March 25, 2012	#5
livinonfaith Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina Posts: 1,332	I have always spaced all of mine 2 feet apart when in cages, and they don't seem too crowded. That's if you keep them pruned down to two or three stems per plant. I don't like more stems than that within a cage, anyway. It just gets to be a jumble in there if you let them go wild. So, that would be 16 plants for your space, but you could do just 14 to be safe. If you have any varieties that are known to be either larger and bushier than average or more compact than average, you could adjust for that, as well. It's funny, I've had a guy tell me he plants his in single rows 10" apart and they do great, even here in the humidity of central NC. Then I've heard people say that they need 3 feet all around. I suspect that it really depends on pruning methods, individual variety, and watering/feeding methods. The square foot gardener says tall vining (indeterminate?) tomatoes need one square foot and "bushy" tomatoes, (determinate?) need 9 square feet. That's a huge difference!

March 25, 2012	#7
venturabananas Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Ventura, CA Posts: 142	I have to echo Brian -- it depends. I had only 6 tomato plants in my 4x10' bed last year and it was too many in my cool, very humid climate. I didn't prune them and I should have with that number of plants. The Sungold plant ended up covering an area 4x5', i.e., half the bed. Given that it's pretty humid in NJ in the summer, I would think you'll need to prune to pack in 12-14 plants in that space.