Creativity is needed for your gardening endeavors. You don’t have to follow the same “old and mundane” processes. Growing plants in repurposed plastic bottles is one of the new eco-friendly ways of growing your fruits and vegetables.
Beyond the ease that comes with the process, it is also an interesting adventure because you can see your plant growing from scratch.
It gives you a sense of purpose when you see what goes on “beneath”.
Recently, I tried to grow tomatoes in plastic bottles. Well, it turned out VERY SUCCESSFUL and I want to share how I did it.
How to Grow Tomatoes in Plastic Bottles? Step-by-Step
If you follow this guide, you will achieve the same result as I did.
Ready?
Read on to find out more.
1 – Get Your Plastic Bottles Ready
Ensure it is appropriately sized to contain your tomato seed.
Also, check to see if it has enough space to accommodate the budding of the seeds. In addition to this, the bottle must be clean and free from contamination.
Get a clean, clear plastic bottle.
It ensures adequate light transmission to your tomato seeds and enhances their overall growth. Furthermore, don’t use “hot” plastic bottles.
I advise people to stay away from plastic bottles that have been exposed to the sun. Keep this at the back of your mind as well.
2 – Select quality Tomato seeds
This is an important step!
The success rate of this process largely depends on the quality of the tomato seeds you plant. Now, there are varieties of tomatoes. Your preference determines your choice. However, don’t lose sight of the overall health of these seeds.
Picking an unhealthy tomato seed can disrupt the entire process. Therefore, be deliberate about knowing the source of each seed you select.
To put it simply, take a tomato, cut it into slices, and plant it.
In a few weeks you will have your tomatoes ready to be transplanted into plastic bottles.
3 – Potting Soil
Ensure your potting soil is mixed with compost. It contributes to the healthy growth of your tomato plant. Pour the soil into the plastic bottle until it is “almost” filled up. While pouring in the soil, ensure you hold the root ball in place.
To prevent rapid drying of the soil, I add mulch to it. You can try this out as well.
Choose the best potting soil. You can get this soil from your garden pots, or buy from a verified potting mix seller.
4 – Hang the plastic bottle in the sunlight
To make this happen, you need to insert twines into the plastic bottle via the holes you initially made.
Direct sunlight is needed for tomato plants for photosynthesis purposes. It’s responsible for the overall growth as well.
Sunlight stimulates the rapid development of the tomato seedlings/plants.
5 – Regularly Fertilize and Water it
Once you have completed steps 1-4, the next action is to constantly water the soil to prevent dryness. During warm months, it might be daily.
Furthermore, once you notice that the plant begins to bring forth new leaves, use a diluted water-soluble tomato fertilizer to enhance its growth.
This can be done once every 2 -4 weeks.
Don’t forget to regularly check for pests and diseases. Be involved in the growth process of your tomato plant. If you follow these steps, you will get a healthy tomato plant that will bloom – using “just” plastic bottles.
Now you just need to enjoy your new tomato plants!
Keep taking care of your tomato plants, within months you will have fresh tomatoes whenever you want them!
