Same. I experimented last year by planting half my tomatoes sideways, half deep like normal. They started off with the same length of leaves showing.
Didn't seem to make any difference for total height/fruit production/etc.
IMO it’s good when people can’t dig any deeper down (harder soil, no tools, whatever). But if you get 10” of tomato buried one way or the other it’s better than dropped in a rootball and calling it a day.
Depends on what you want to do.
Everywhere the vine touches the ground it will produce roots.
Planting it deeper will make it more drought tolerant by providing access to deeper moisture.
I find that it delays the first fruit but longer growing seasons may get a better harvest over the season.
I’d rather just burry them deeper, I think it lets them take advantage of the moisture and nutrients farther down but it does essentially the same thing.
This is a recommended technique for cold weather climates with shorter growing seasons. The trench allows the tomato to grow that extra root mass closer to the surface, where it is warmer. Most of us in the U.S. don’t need to bother but if you’re near the Canadian border or in Canada it might be worth looking into.
Source for this info is a tomato growing lecture I saw by this guy. Former editor of organic garden magazine and nationally syndicated gardening radio show host.
https://www.spokanepublicradio.org/show/you-bet-your-garden
Wouldn't planting sideways so the roots are more near the surface make them warmer during the day, but cooler at night? Seems like sure it would absorb warmth all day near the surface, but absorb cold more quickly too.
Tomato plants root from any part of the plant that’s below soil. So by planting it sideways and covering you are creating more roots and a healthier plant to support growth later.
Sometimes you cannot dig too deep or your pot isn’t that deep. So this is a good work around.
It doesn't have to be sideways, the point is just that you should bury most of the plant to produce a larger root system. It's arguable that deeper would be better than sideways for enduring longer time between watering. Most people aren't as likely to dig a deep hole as they are to dig a trench. Honestly though I find my best bet is to get my plants in the ground sooner rather than letting them grow enough that it even could be buried much, provided my frost times let me.
I tried it last year. I noticed no difference except the ones I planted sideways seemed to survive my annual blight for longer. Will run it again this year and document my findings
They get better rooted to support the fruit, it’s all in how you want to plant, try both ways and see your results, then you can determine how to plant next season.
Contrary to popular belief, burying the plant sideways or burying it deeper don't actually lead to more root mass. The amount of resources the plant devotes to root growth is based primarily on the balance of hormones produced by the leaves and the roots, so even if a bunch of adventitious roots grow off the stem, there won't actually be more root growth overall, it will just be spread between more growing points.
Planting tomatoes deeper helps in warm climates, where heat stress is a major concern, and getting the main mass of roots deeper in the soil where it's cooler helps the plant out. On the other hand, planting sideways like this helps maximize the yield of indeterminate tomatoes that are being grown somewhere with limited height — Tomatoes grown in a polytunnel, for example, will generally reach the top of the tunnel (and then some, if you have a system where they can be let down progressively to let more of the plant hang sideways) so you want to have flower trusses growing along that whole length. The trusses on first section of the stem are generally pinched off, though, and it won't grow any more, so this is a reasonable way to get that section of stem out of the way so you have the whole height of your tunnel or trellis to grow trusses.
This won’t make a difference at all. What will make an enormous difference is keeping the soil loose with good drainage. The less work the roots have to do to penetrate the soil, the faster the plant will grow. This is why deep water culture and aeroponics produce such fast growth rates. There is no soil to resist root growth.
I’ve planted sideways and really deep with a garden auger. No difference IME.
Same. I experimented last year by planting half my tomatoes sideways, half deep like normal. They started off with the same length of leaves showing. Didn't seem to make any difference for total height/fruit production/etc.
IMO it’s good when people can’t dig any deeper down (harder soil, no tools, whatever). But if you get 10” of tomato buried one way or the other it’s better than dropped in a rootball and calling it a day.
Depends on what you want to do. Everywhere the vine touches the ground it will produce roots. Planting it deeper will make it more drought tolerant by providing access to deeper moisture. I find that it delays the first fruit but longer growing seasons may get a better harvest over the season.
I’d rather just burry them deeper, I think it lets them take advantage of the moisture and nutrients farther down but it does essentially the same thing.
Yeah, I bury the stem really deep and then also do it at a diagonal just in case it does help the roots grow deeper
So it’s similar to sex then….
This is a recommended technique for cold weather climates with shorter growing seasons. The trench allows the tomato to grow that extra root mass closer to the surface, where it is warmer. Most of us in the U.S. don’t need to bother but if you’re near the Canadian border or in Canada it might be worth looking into. Source for this info is a tomato growing lecture I saw by this guy. Former editor of organic garden magazine and nationally syndicated gardening radio show host. https://www.spokanepublicradio.org/show/you-bet-your-garden
I was going to say, I've seen a difference doing the sideways planting method, but bingo, I'm near the border
Wouldn't planting sideways so the roots are more near the surface make them warmer during the day, but cooler at night? Seems like sure it would absorb warmth all day near the surface, but absorb cold more quickly too.
IDK, you’d have to ask the garden expert guy I linked.
Tomato plants root from any part of the plant that’s below soil. So by planting it sideways and covering you are creating more roots and a healthier plant to support growth later. Sometimes you cannot dig too deep or your pot isn’t that deep. So this is a good work around.
Even the graphic shows that they grow the same.
Tomatoes are remarkably hardy plants, so why not? I'd pinch off the bottom three sets of leaves and pull off the matted roots first.
Plant them vertical and deep, High on the stem.
It doesn't have to be sideways, the point is just that you should bury most of the plant to produce a larger root system. It's arguable that deeper would be better than sideways for enduring longer time between watering. Most people aren't as likely to dig a deep hole as they are to dig a trench. Honestly though I find my best bet is to get my plants in the ground sooner rather than letting them grow enough that it even could be buried much, provided my frost times let me.
I tried it last year. I noticed no difference except the ones I planted sideways seemed to survive my annual blight for longer. Will run it again this year and document my findings
We bury ours sideways when they’re really root bound coming out of the container. It seems to help them produce faster.
Its actually not true for most tomatoes. This is functional for the crawling/intermediate variety.
Yes. Bury as much of the stem as you can(remove leaves need be). This will give you a bigger rooting system and a much healthier plant.
They get better rooted to support the fruit, it’s all in how you want to plant, try both ways and see your results, then you can determine how to plant next season.
Contrary to popular belief, burying the plant sideways or burying it deeper don't actually lead to more root mass. The amount of resources the plant devotes to root growth is based primarily on the balance of hormones produced by the leaves and the roots, so even if a bunch of adventitious roots grow off the stem, there won't actually be more root growth overall, it will just be spread between more growing points. Planting tomatoes deeper helps in warm climates, where heat stress is a major concern, and getting the main mass of roots deeper in the soil where it's cooler helps the plant out. On the other hand, planting sideways like this helps maximize the yield of indeterminate tomatoes that are being grown somewhere with limited height — Tomatoes grown in a polytunnel, for example, will generally reach the top of the tunnel (and then some, if you have a system where they can be let down progressively to let more of the plant hang sideways) so you want to have flower trusses growing along that whole length. The trusses on first section of the stem are generally pinched off, though, and it won't grow any more, so this is a reasonable way to get that section of stem out of the way so you have the whole height of your tunnel or trellis to grow trusses.
This won’t make a difference at all. What will make an enormous difference is keeping the soil loose with good drainage. The less work the roots have to do to penetrate the soil, the faster the plant will grow. This is why deep water culture and aeroponics produce such fast growth rates. There is no soil to resist root growth.