Planting a tomato garden involves good logical thought. That is you have found the right location and prepared the best soil for tomato plants.You have planted the seedlings in the garden. Now What?

Now you have to care of them regularly as they take root and get stronger.

In some previous articles I have described different parts of tomato gardening, how I pick the location with plenty of sun and then prepare the soil with compost,leaves and lime.

In order for those things to work the small plants need lot's of water. In the beginning when they are planted, water them deeply and then probably every day unless you have had some heavy rain. After about 10 days or when you see the plants are looking sturdier, keep watering but less often, usually every other day. Make sure the soil feels damp, down about an inch, otherwise water.

At the same time build up the soil around the stem to protect the plant and give a little more support. As you water and sometimes due to weather conditions the soil washes or blows away from the stem. The soil should be loose enough for you to scrape some up by hand or with a small trowel. Be careful not to disturb the fragile roots especially if you planted the seedling sideways.

If you haven't already put in a stake, do it ASAP, again taking care not to disturb the roots. It is best to put the stake in as soon as you plant and watered the 1st time. The reason to water 1st is because the plants need it badly in the beginning. If possible try to plant on a cloudy day, if not convenient then plant a few seedlings and water them , then go on and do the rest a few at a time.

Tomatoes love the heat, so it is worth waiting until your ground warms up. We especially want to avoid any cold nights. If it looks like cold is coming and you have already planted you can cover the plants by draping newspaper or a light breathable cloth around them very carefully. Make sure you take it off in the AM to warm them up again.

Some home gardens may have 3 to 6 plants others 12, or 24 or more and of course depending upon how much area you have, how big your family is and how generous you are with your neighbors will determine how big your tomato garden will be.