My neighbor in apartment 4B said she only waters her tomatoes twice a week

I was taking out my recycling yesterday and she was on her balcony checking her plants. She told me she gives her cherry tomatoes a really deep soak only on Tuesdays and Fridays, even in this summer heat. I've been watering my pots a little bit every single morning. My plants look okay, but hers are huge and full of fruit. It made me wonder if I'm actually hurting my roots by keeping the top soil wet all the time. Has anyone else switched to a less frequent watering schedule and seen better results?

3 comments

3 Comments

campbell.robin2mo ago

Yeah, you're totally on to something. I drowned a basil plant that way, watering a little every day. The roots just stayed up near the surface and the whole thing got weak. Switched my peppers to a deep soak twice a week and it was like night and day. They had to dig down for water and got way stronger. Your neighbor's method is the way to go, especially with pots. Stick your finger in the soil, if it's still damp an inch down, skip the water.

kevin_hernandez832mo ago

Same with my tomatoes. Deep watering changed everything.

julia_burns913d agoProlific Poster

And the thing nobody talks about is how much fungus that daily misting can invite. I started doing the deep soak thing last year with my zucchini and the difference in airflow around the base was crazy. Before I was practically creating a petri dish on top of the soil with all that constant moisture and my plants kept getting powdery mildew no matter what I tried. Now with the twice a week watering the soil surface actually dries out between drinks and I haven't seen a speck of mildew since. Even the leaves that touch the dirt stay cleaner because they're not sitting in wet conditions all day.