Prefer tomatoes: egg cartons are sufficient for the cultivation

Created: 03/18/2022, 02:00 p.m

By: Jasmin Pospiech

Preparing tomatoes yourself is easy.

Because it only takes a little to get the seeds to thrive.

They even feel comfortable in egg cartons.

Hamburg – Red, juicy and versatile: Tomatoes are among the most popular types of vegetables in this country when it comes to growing them in your own garden or on the balcony.

After all, the fruit vegetable is easy to propagate and can be bought as a young plant and planted directly in the bed or in the pot.

On the other hand, if you have tomato seeds, you have something ahead of others: tomatoes can now be grown excellently from these seeds in spring.

Prefer tomatoes: egg cartons are sufficient for the cultivation

After all, seeds are a lot cheaper, and the selection of varieties is huge.

Make sure, however, that the bag states that the selected variety is seed-proof.

This is the only way you can propagate tomatoes from seeds yourself.

By the way: Tomato seeds often have a shelf life of several years.

So, let's go!

Egg cartons do not have to be thrown away, they can also be used to prepare tomato seeds.

(Icon image) © Cavan Images/Imago

Mid to late March is a good time to sow the seeds outside in the bed or on the balcony.

Finally the frosty nights are over.

However, if you plant too early, the shoots may be weak and thin, making them more susceptible to disease and pest infestation.

On the other hand, if you sow the seeds too late, the plants may not have enough time to produce many fruits by autumn.

The yield is then not quite as lavish.

But it is not enough to simply bury the seeds in the bed.

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It doesn't take much, but you should still choose potting soil* as a substrate.

It contains few nutrients, so the tomato plants do not sprout too quickly, but become strong and compact.

Alternatively, you can also use high-quality potting soil, as the "Norddeutsche Rundfunk" (NDR) knows.

This is particularly ideal if you want to grow tomatoes in (larger) pots, for example on the windowsill.

Prefer tomatoes: Make sure there is enough space between seeds

For the latter, there are even special small growing pots that gardeners can buy in stores.

Instead, you can also use bowls, other containers or simply egg cartons made of cardboard.

Fill them with soil* and make sure to distribute them as evenly as possible, otherwise the seed will germinate differently.

When sowing, hobby gardeners should also leave enough space between the seeds so that the young plants do not later compete for light, fertilizer and water*.

An inch between tomato seeds is a good rule of thumb.

In addition, tomatoes like a lot of sun* and need temperatures of around 22 to 24 degrees to be able to germinate.

Therefore, you should not put the seeds too deep in the soil, but only cover them lightly.

Then press the soil lightly and water it carefully.

This will prevent the seeds from being washed away.

*

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