Water tomatoes with care

Water tomatoes with care this month as they'll struggle to perform at their best unless everything is just right. The heaviest crops and most flawless fruits come from plants kept at an even temperature, good light levels, and above all, constantly moist soil.

Tomatoes like the soil to hold the same amount of water at all times: neither too wet nor too dry. Let them dry out and then give them a thorough drenching, and they'll reward you with split fruit, or worse, an outbreak of blossom end rot. Or they'll just sulk and drop their flowers. Too much water is almost as bad: you'll get watery, tasteless fruits, and plants will eventually succumb to stem or root rots.

Automatic watering systems help you deliver the right amount of water every day - you'll find complete kits ready to set up in your greenhouse here in our garden centre at Co. Limerick. A dripper system or leaky hose on an automatic timer guarantees you remember to water, so your plants never go short.

Adjust the timer according to the weather, increasing the frequency if it's hot and reducing it on cloudy days. That keeps soil water levels more or less constant - meaning bumper harvests of blemish-free toms.