Tomatoes, like many annuals, are heavy feeders and do better when provided with plenty of nutrients to grow through the season. Fertilizers, either chemical or organic, can help provide the extra nutrients that tomatoes need to grow quickly.
When to Use Tomato Plant Fertilizers
Tomatoes should be first fertilized when you plant them in the garden. You can then wait until they set fruit to start fertilizing again. After the tomato plants start growing fruit, add light fertilizer once every one to two weeks until the first frost kills the plant.
How to Fertilize Tomatoes
When fertilizing tomatoes while planting, mix the tomato plant fertilizer in with the soil at the bottom on the planting hole, then place some unfertilized soil on top of this before placing the tomato plant into the hole. If raw fertilizer comes in contact with the roots of the plant, it can burn the tomato plant. When fertilizing tomato plants after the fruit have set, first make sure the tomato plant is watered well. If the tomato plant isn’t watered well before being fertilized, it can take up too much fertilizer and burn the plant. After watering, spread the fertilizer on the ground starting approximately 6 inches from the base of the plant. Fertilizing too close to the tomato plant can result in fertilizer running off onto the stem and burning the tomato plant.
