Ask any Arkansas gardener what they’re most excited to grow, and you’ll hear one answer over and over: tomatoes. Whether it’s a giant, juicy slicer for your first BLT of the season or cherry tomatoes that never make it inside because you eat them right off the vine, tomatoes are the crown jewel of the summer garden.
We’ve learned a few things over the years of growing tomatoes at home. In this guide, we share how you, too, can grow tomatoes that would make your grandmother proud. Let’s dig in.
Understanding Tomato Types
Before you drop that plant in the ground, it helps to know what kind of tomato you’re working with. Most fall into two main categories:
🍅 Determinate (Bush) Tomatoes
These grow to a set height (usually 3–4 feet) and produce most of their fruit all at once.
Great for container gardens or gardeners who want a more compact, manageable plant.
When choosing varieties at the garden center, think about how you want to use your tomatoes—slicing, sauces, snacking—and how much space you have to support them
How to Plant Tomatoes: Set Them Up for Success
Tomatoes need three things above all else: sun, warmth, and good soil. Here’s how to give them the best start:
Pick a sunny spot: 6–8 hours of full sun is non-negotiable. No dappled shade here, they want the spotlight.
Amend your soil: Tomatoes thrive in loose, well-drained soil rich in organic matter. Mix in compost and a handful of tomato fertilizer at planting time. They will deplete the soil of nitrogen, so be sure your soil has plenty of it.
Bury them deep: Here’s the trick: plant your tomato deeper than it sits in the pot, removing the lower leaves and burying the stem up to just below the top set of leaves. That buried stem will sprout roots and give your plant a stronger foundation.
Space them out: Airflow is your friend. Leave 2–3 feet between plants to help prevent disease.
Container tip: Use a pot at least 5 gallons in size, with good drainage and a high-quality potting mix. Water often! Containers dry out fast in our summer heat.
Pruning Tomatoes Early for Better Harvests
It may feel counterintuitive, but snipping your tomato plant in its early days sets you up for a better harvest later.
Why prune?
Pruning reduces leaf congestion, improves airflow, and redirects energy into fruit production instead of sprawling vines.
What to prune:
Suckers: These are small shoots that grow in the joint between the main stem and a leaf branch. On indeterminate plants, remove most of them when they’re 2–4 inches long.
Lower leaves: As the plant grows, remove leaves that touch the soil or crowd the base. This helps prevent a splash-up of soilborne disease.
Note: Determinate tomatoes don’t need as much pruning: just remove anything dead or crowded.
Disease Prevention & Care: Staying Ahead of Trouble
Here in the Ozarks, tomato diseases are pretty common with our high humidity. But you can reduce risk significantly with a few proactive steps:
Mulch early: Use straw, pine needles, or shredded leaves to reduce soil splash and keep moisture consistent.
Water wisely: Water at the base of the plant, not overhead, and try to keep leaves dry. Morning watering is best.
Rotate crops: Don’t plant tomatoes in the same bed where you grew tomatoes, peppers, or eggplant the year before. (They all deplete the soil of nitrogen but can also hold onto diseases from year to year.)
Support them: Use cages, stakes, or trellises to keep plants upright and reduce leaf contact with soil.
Use organic sprays as needed: Products like copper fungicide or neem oil can help prevent early blight or fungal leaf spot when used correctly—especially in wet seasons.
Ongoing Maintenance: Feed, Water, Repeat
Tomatoes are hungry plants. Keep them happy and growing strong with these regular tasks:
Fertilize every 3–4 weeks with a balanced or tomato-specific fertilizer. Cut back on nitrogen once the plant starts setting fruit to avoid excess leafy growth.
Monitor for pests: Watch for hornworms, aphids, and whiteflies. Hand-pick pests or use neem oil as needed.
Harvest often: Picking ripe fruit encourages the plant to produce more. Use clean pruners to snip the stem just above the fruit.
And finally—keep an eye on the weather. If a late frost sneaks in, be ready to cover your plants with fabric or buckets overnight. One cold snap can undo weeks of growth.
Final Thoughts: Grow with Confidence
Tomatoes might just be the most rewarding crops to grow around here. There’s nothing like stepping outside in June and seeing those first fruits turning from green to blush, then red. It’s the payoff for the soil prep, the pinched suckers, and all the watering you didn’t feel like doing.
With the right variety, a little planning, and a lot of sun, you’ll be picking homegrown tomatoes for months. And once you do? You’ll never go back to store-bought again.
