How to Grow Tomatoes With Tender Skins

Start your preparations at the last frost, when the ground warms and dries, to give your tomatoes a safe but early start. Tomatoes can't start until temperatures reach 60 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit. This timing will differ depending on your growing region.

Prepare a 10-foot-square spot in your established garden for multiple tomato plants. Choose a spot that gets full sunshine for eight hours a day, quick drainage and good air circulation. Tomatoes need room, air and light for healthy growth and fail in standing water.

Amend the soil to a depth of 10 inches. Use a garden fork to break up and loosen the soil, then mix in 5 inches of organic compost. The compost increases nutrition and drainage and allows the soil to maintain moisture between waterings. Add 6-24-24 or 8-32-16 fertilizer to the top 2 to 3 inches of soil, per manufacturer directions, to improve rooting.

Plant tender-skinned tomato cultivars like Crimson Carmello, Orenburg Giant, Black Seaman, Brandywine from Croatia, Isis Candy or Heidi. Read tomato labels to find out whether a specific cultivar gives you tender skin or not. If you're planting seeds, place them 1 inch deep every 24 to 36 inches, depending on cultivar size. Plant seedlings in holes deep and wide enough for their root balls, at this same spacing. Leave 4 to 5 feet of space between rows.

Put a trellis behind every row of tomatoes or a cage around each plant. Place this support now, while the soil is moist and soft. Tie tomato vines up to the support with soft cord ties when they get tall enough, to keep them out of the dirt and in the sun.

Water the tomatoes with 2 inches of water every week, to keep the soil consistently moist for growth. Dry soil leads to weak growth and lack of blooms and fruit. Use 2 to 3 inches of organic mulch on the soil to keep it moist and warm and to discourage weeds.

Feed tomatoes with tomato-specific fertilizer at the first bloom and monthly thereafter. Follow manufacturer directions in regard to fertilizer amount and always water immediately after feeding.

Harvest tomatoes at their maturity dates and as they ripen. Tomatoes increase in size and ripeness as long as they're left on the plant, though leaving them too long may lead to skin toughening.