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You know summer is on its way when it’s finally warm enough to plant tomatoes (just don’t plant them too early in the season or they’ll sit there and struggle!). But you may have seen social media hacks that suggest you should plant tomatoes deep for better results, with just a few inches of plant sticking out above ground. Is this beneficial for the plant?
Before you dig a hole that’s a foot deep and bury most of the stem, you should understand how tomatoes grow. “Any plant prioritizes growing roots before growing tops,” says Frank Hyman, author of Ripe Tomato Revolution and former organic tomato farmer. “It’s not going to do anything until a strong root system is established.”
Because it’s true that tomatoes can develop roots along their stems, it may seem like planting deep is a good idea. “Tomatoes are vines that naturally want to spread out and sprawl everywhere,” says garden expert Gary Pilarchik of The Rusted Garden and author of The Modern Homestead Garden. “Wherever those bumps, or nodes, on the stems touch the ground, the plant wants to put down roots.”
But, as tropical plants native to Chile and Peru, tomatoes need soil temperatures around 60 degrees to thrive. When you plant a tomato in a hole that’s 8 or 10 inches deep vertically, the roots at the bottom of the hole are exposed to much colder temperatures than you find in the top few inches of soil, says Pilarchik. Essentially, by putting the baby plant’s roots in cold soil, you’ve just put the brakes on growth.
However, there is a technique that can be used for giving tomatoes a good start in the ground—especially if your transplants are tall and lanky. Read on to learn how to plant tomatoes the right way:
Why a Shallow Trench Works Better Than Deep Planting for Tomatoes
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If your plant is healthy, say, a 6-inch tall plant with well-balanced foliage growth on top and a sturdy stem, it’s fine to plant the root ball at the same level it is in the pot. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with planting it this way, says Pilarchik.
However, if you have a tall, scraggly plant—maybe you didn’t get your transplant in when you planned or that’s all that was left to buy at the garden center—you may want to try a technique called trenching. “This works well with overgrown, lanky tomatoes,” says Hyman. “The plant will do slightly better if you plant it in trench so that it can build a better root system. It also provides better stability for these tall, skinny plants with tiny root balls.”
Trenching means you scoop out a shallow channel, no more than about 4 inches deep. Remove all but the top leaf cluster, lay the tomato on its side in the trench, and cover the stem, allowing only the top few inches of the plant to poke out above the surface of the soil. Don’t bend the plant to try to make it straight; it will figure out what it has to do on its own, says Hyman.
By placing the tomato on its side, roots will develop along the entire stem. “Tomato plants mostly benefit from surface roots, and more roots lead to better nutrient and water uptake,” says Pilarchik. “The plant also does better in warm soil in a shallow trench.”
When planting in trenches, set up your support stakes right away so that you don’t forget where the buried part of the stem is. In addition, water every other day for 10 to 14 days so that the new transplant doesn’t dry out, says Pilarchik.
Is There a Right Way to Plant Tomatoes?
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There’s really no absolutely wrong way to plant tomatoes. Your tomatoes are going to grow if they get what they need in terms of full sun, nutrients, and water. But burying your tomato in a deep vertical hole doesn’t necessarily accomplish anything. Trenching, however, allows a plant to establish a larger root system and provides better support for top-heavy plants, says Pilarchik.
Most of us learn from real-world experiences. If you’re curious, Hyman suggests experimenting with both the traditional planting method and the trenching technique. That way you can see for yourself how tomato plants perform and yield in your own garden.
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