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Growing from Seed

Bottom Watering Tomatoes

11 years ago

Hey,

Is it safe to water tomato plants from the bottom by submerging the bottom of the plant with holes into another cup filled with water? I just tried it and it seemed like the plants sucked up a lot of water. Now I am thinking I haven't been top watering enough.

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Comments (3)

digdirt2
11 years ago
Bottom watering is the recommended method. Top watering tends to cause shallow rooting of the plants and often isn't sufficient.

Just set the pot in a container of water for 20-30 mins (often less depending on the potting mix used) and let it soak up what it needs then remove it or dump the remaining water.

Dave
digdirt2
6 years ago
Some may find this article helpful in understanding why bottom watering, wicking, and capillary action can work well in very small containers (assuming good soil-less medium is used) but not work well in large containers.

https://gardening.stackexchange.com/questions/13774/what-is-a-perched-water-table

Dave
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Planet Bob
4 years ago
My container tomatoes are wet soil at the bottom and dry at the top, by water meter. Have I a problem?

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