Indoor tomato plants?

rubydust

rubydust

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10 Jul 2014
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I don't have a garden, but I want to try growing some of my own food, as I'm on a tight budget and need to save money. Fresh fruit and vegetables are so expensive.

My family love tomatoes and they are so versatile. I was going to try growing my own.

I have some south facing windows that get a lot of sunlight. I was thinking of trying a couple of potted tomato plants there. Do you think this has any chance of success? The last thing I want to do is waste precious funds setting it up, if it's likely to fail.

Has anyone grown tomatoes indoors?
 
Yes but it was in my garden shed. Fertilization can be done with the tip of a feather. BUT, they do take up a lot of space to get a worthwhile crop. Remember too that they will need turning, unlike a greenhouse or outdoors the light is only coming from one direction.
 
Do you have anywhere in your yard, maybe even a terrace where you can hang a plant? A few years ago I bought one of those Topsy Turvy Tomato plants, you hang it up and the tomato plant grows out of the bottom. It actually produced quite a few tomatoes. They didn't grow very large but they were still delicious. It would definitely need to be outside though, but it may be a solution if you can't plant in the ground.
 
Okay first, there are determinate and indeterminate varieties of tomatoes and the determinate ones don't keep growing and spreading.

Second, tomatoes are self-pollinating so you can just give the vines a gentle shake or vibrate the flowers with a toothbrush to replicate what the bees provide. (See you tube for how-to video.) So that answers the fertilization question above...

Next, there are low growing bush and patio varieties that stay compact for growing fruit in small spaces.

That said, tomatoes need a lot of light, but as there is a lot of tomato production that happens in greenhouses, I would say that successfully growing a plant indoors is possible with a little planning. You may want to read up on ring culture and purchase a plant growing light.

I'm guessing you live in the city in a high rise building with no balcony or patio?
 
I'm not sure how the weather is where you live, but where I live it is pretty warm and cherry tomatoes grow very easily. Both my grandmother and aunt have cherry tomato plants on their homes and they seem to grow fast and easy. The tomatoes look and taste delicious as well!
 
I have a hard time growing anything. Maybe I should start by growing things inside first. However, I did that with an herb garden & that didn't work out well either.
 
I saw pm tv the idea of growing your garden in straw bales. It is a good idea of a source of containier gardening.
 
Your idea might be a good one and successful too if you put a lot of thought into it and of course some research! I like the idea of growing tomatoes indoors however as most of the posters have said you would need to have quite a bit of light shining through to the plant and you will obviously need to give your plants extra care as they will be inside instead of out in the natural air.

With that said, I would give it a shot but maybe start small so as to not waste funds and avoid too much disappointment. All the best with that!
 
Thanks to everyone for the input. It's given me the idea of trying cherry tomatoes, and having them growing in one of the South facing bay windows. Or, I could try growing some in a hanging baskets. I hadn't thought of that. I live in an apartment with no outside space, but I do have an outside door, so hanging baskets on the wall just outside the door could be a possibility. The door is North facing though, so maybe it wouldn't be sunny or warm enough.
 
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