How To Grow Beefsteak Tomatoes Indoor?

Beefsteak Tomatoes or any kind of tomatoes are the crops of the summer season. They die when the temperature is too cold. It means you cannot grow tomatoes indoors unless you have a small greenhouse or a source of light which would be LED grow light. You must have a source of light (LED) to grow Beefsteak tomatoes indoor.

Why I grow Beefsteak tomatoes indoor (under lights)?

Growing beefsteak tomatoes indoor is not an easy task. There will be so many difficulties, but if you show a little bit patience, you will be rewarded with a sweet juicy harvest of your own beefsteak tomatoes. Here is why you should grow indoor:

1: All Year Supply.

The biggest benefit is you can grow Indoor anytime you want. So you can have a whole year of supply of fresh tomatoes.

2: Space Problem.

When you are growing indoors, you don’t face the problem of not having enough space. You can start growing tomatoes in a pot, grow bags or any container you have.

3: Credibility.

When you grow anything by your hands you will believe in the authenticity of that crop more than anything. Tomatoes we buy in markets are not fresh and grow in industries using so many toxic chemicals. But if you grow your own tomatoes, you know the benefits of this.

4: Stress.

Growing your own vegetables is very satisfying. For some people, it is stress-relieving too.

5. Money-Saving.

Tomatoes (especially beefsteak tomatoes) are very costly if you buy them from the supermarket. And if buy from organic stores, that will be so much more costly. So instead of buying, you can invest a little money and grow whole year supply of beefsteak tomatoes.

6: Fun.

Indoor gardening is so much fun. You will learn so many things about plants, led grow lights and types of soil. That activity will be enjoyable.

Read Everything about LED grow lights Click Here

Varieties Of Beefsteak Tomatoes You Can Grow Indoor

There are so many varieties of beefsteak tomatoes available. Here are the top 5 varieties of beefsteak tomatoes.

1: German Johnson Beefsteak Tomatoes:

This is a very popular heirloom variety of southern United States. This variety produces about 16-ounce fruit. Fruit colour is reddish-pink. The fruit has very few seeds and meaty flesh.

2: Black Krim:

This is also an heirloom variety. This variety is from Russia. In just 80 days, fruits will ready to harvest. The fruits will be dark purple in colour and sweet flavour.

3: Big Beef Variety:

The growth time of big beef is just 70 days. They produce fruits of 12 ounces. Big beef will be perfect for your sandwiches and salads.

4: Cherokee Purple Variety:

This is an heirloom variety with a big fruit of pink-purple color and sweet flavor. The growth time of Cherokee purple is 80 days.

5: Brandywine Pink Variety:

This is also a very famous heirloom variety. Brandywine will have huge sized fruits with pumpkin-like beautiful ridges all over the fruits.

Steps To Grow Beefsteak Tomatoes Indoor:

1: Select A Good Soil.

Indoor gardening means growing in pots or containers. Beefsteak tomatoes are very heavy feeders. Potting soil is the best choice to grow beefsteak tomatoes indoor.

Because the potting mix is a mixture of organic matter and so many nutrients like phosphorus, potassium etc. Here are some tips about soil before sowing seeds:

Always add fresh potting mix in your container.

Do not reuse the soil, because the previous crop may have pests of any kind of disease.
Add some mulch on top of the soil. Which loosen up the soil for better growth of roots.
A little acidic soil is best for beefsteak, around 6.5pH.

2: Selection Of Container.

Do not choose smaller pots for beefsteak. Beefsteak is heavy feeders, so they will need more growth medium to show their best performance. At least 1-2 square feet of pot or container is good for only 1 plant.

Remember do not plant some kind of herbs with beefsteak plants, indoor plants will have a competition of nutrients and moisture.

You can also use fabric grow bags indoor. Fabric grows bags are the best and cheapest choice. Fabric grows bags has a very aerated fabric. They are easy to carry. They are both degradable and non-degradable.

3: Sowing The Seeds.

At this step, you have two options. You can sow the seeds or you can go and buy some good healthy seedlings from a nursery. If you are going with seeds, then add some potting mix in a cup or any small container you have, add some water in the soil and sow the seeds.

1 seed in each cup. Seeds germinate best under the temperature of 70-80 F. Seeds will germinate in 6-12 days and ready to transfer in bigger pots in 6-8 weeks. When the seedling is 8 inches long, time to transfer it in a big home.

Going with seedlings will save you the time of 8 weeks. But seedlings are seasonal, you cannot buy them the whole year. Plus seedlings have only a few varieties.

4: Grow Light For Better Growth.

As I mentioned before, LED grow light is must, if you are growing beefsteak tomatoes indoor. In normal conditions, tomatoes plants need 8 hours of full sunlight. That is why they are called sun-loving plants.

We don’t have any sun indoor, so we are going to give them what they need through LED grow lights. LED grow lights are the best if you want a whole year supply of organic beefsteak tomatoes. Here are some tips for using LED grow lights:

During the germination period, 12 hours of light is best for at least 3-5 weeks.
Increase the time period of light from 14-16 hours for nest 2-3 weeks.
After that period 10 hours of light per day is good until plant produce fruits.

5: Provide Support To Plant.

Tomato plants cannot hold themselves naturally. They will need support because they can grow up to 8 feet in height. Here are a few things you can do to support your plants:

Simply insert a wooden stick in the pot.
Make some DIY trellis with wood or anything you have.
Or buy some trellis from stores for good.

6: Pollination.

Pollination is required for the production of fruits. And for pollination insects are necessary, which we don’t have indoor. So it is necessary to pollinate the plants with hands.

When the flowers bloom, gently tap the stems of plants so the pollens can spread. Or you can use a cotton swab or Q tip to transfer the pollen from flower to flower.

7: Pruning.

Early and frequent pruning is not good for the healthy and better growth of the plant. Here are a few tips about pruning you can follow.

Remove the yellow leaves from plants, because they are only here to eat the sugar.
Remove new suckers from the plant, if they affect the yield.

8: Watering.

Beefsteak tomato plants need a lot of water. Keep the soil moisturized. Do not waterlog the soil, that will create some fungal infections. First, check the soil with your finger.

Stick your finger inside the soil and check if it feels dry. Only water the plants when it feels dry. Here are a few tips you need to follow:

Water deeply and water slowly. The roots of plants are mostly at the bottom of the pot. So if you water fastly, water will flow from the drainage holes of pots and roots will get nothing. So you need to water the plants with a lot of patience.

Water the soil, not the leaves. Water on leaves can burn the plants and also cause a fungal attack.

9: Protect Plants From Diseases And Pests.

This is one of the biggest benefits of growing tomatoes indoor. There is a lot less risk of any disease or pests. As I mentioned above, change the soil of pot every time you grow a new crop.

That will also cut the risk of disease from the previous crop. Here are few pests that can attack beefsteak tomato plants:

Flea Beetles
Rodents
Tomato Hornworms

Aphids

Do these things to protect them from diseases and pests:

If there is a pest attack, use a hard water stream to remove from plants, or you can handpick them.

Regular watering is necessary to protect them from rot.
Do not overwater the plants to save them from fungal attack.
If there is any weed, pick it and destroy it.

Pinch the leaves from plants which touch the soil. It can also cause fungal infections.

10: Nutrients Supply.

As we all know, beefsteak tomatoes are heavy feeders. And there are not enough nutrients in a pot or containers.

After the soil running out of nutrients, you will need to add some extra nutrients. Add some all-purpose vegetable feed or tomatoes feed for better growth of the plant.

11. Harvesting.

Average growth time of beefsteak tomatoes is 70-85 days. So how to check if tomatoes are ready to harvest? Colour is one of the biggest hints.

But its depend on your variety. If you are growing Black Krim variety, and fruit colour is dark purple, it means it is ready to harvest. Or you can harvest a little early and wait until it ripens.

It is good if you harvest fully ripens fruits. Fully ripens fruits are full of juices, nutrients and meaty flesh.

Summary Of All The Steps:

Choose a bigger pot, container or fabric grow bag.
Buy or make your own good potting soil.
Sow the seeds or select some healthy seedlings from a nursery near you.

Use some good kind of LED grow light.
Use some kind of trellis to support the plants.
Pollinate the flowers by your hands.

Water the plants when the soil feels dry.
Add nutrients in the soil from time to time.

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