Grow tomatoes yourself in egg carton greenhouse

Grow your own tomatoes is not as difficult as you think. We'll show you how to plant and grow tomatoes in a homemade egg carton greenhouse.

Amateur gardeners know this feeling: from January onwards your fingers start tingling. You finally want to start with the cultivation. From mid-February, things can really get started - for the time being still on the windowsill and then hopefully soon outdoors.

Tomatoes are among the most popular vegetables among Germans. And also among those who prefer to grow yourself.

So that you also succeed in growing, I'll show you how to grow tomatoes in an egg carton. Because if you start gardening, you don't have to buy an expensive greenhouse. With a few simple steps, an egg carton can be transformed into a greenhouse.

I'll show you what to look for in a DIY grow house and how to get a great tomato harvest.

Why should I grow tomatoes myself?

Once you start, you can not stop. Grow your own tomatoes is not only incredibly fun, but also brings many health benefits.

Of course, you can buy ready-made tomatoes everywhere in the summer. But homemade just tastes better. The tomatoes directly from the balcony or garden are also much healthier.

Because a lot of time can pass before the plants from the gardener end up in the supermarket and finally on your plate. Time in which the vegetables can lose vitamins and flavor.

If you grow your own tomatoes, you can be sure that the plants are not contaminated with harmful substances.

Growing tomatoes yourself is not an art. If you create the right conditions, your plants will become as beautiful and large as those in the store.

By the way, self-sown tomatoes taste much better, because in them there is a big portion of love and pride :)

Attention: Egg carton greenhouse not suitable for all plants!

As great as egg carton greenhouses are: They are not the right choice for all plants.

Seeds that take a long time to germinate (such as peppers or chili peppers) can cause the DIY greenhouse to become soggy and unstable. Mold is also possible.

But for growing tomatoes egg carton is perfectly suitable. They germinate quickly and can soon be transplanted into larger pots - but more about that later.

For all plants with a longer germination period, I recommend investing in a stable propagator. For my peppers and chilies, I have a Plant cultivation set with integrated heating in use. The purchase is worth it even if you are already late and overlooked the optimal time. The temperature is much more constant in it than in an egg carton.

In addition, such greenhouses have a ventilation option so that the humidity does not become too high.

But if you are still well within the time frame, then everything speaks for upcycling and the DIY plant house.

How to make a greenhouse for tomatoes from an egg carton

Save yourself expensive growing pots. Much easier and also visually nicer is with an egg carton greenhouse.

This is our tutorial for your homemade egg carton greenhouse.

What you need:

• An egg carton
• One pair of scissors
• Cling film
• Bast
• Growing soil
• Tomato seeds
• Gloves
• Adhesive

Instruction:

Cut the inside of the lid from the egg carton. It is best to use a Stanley knife for this. The lid remains on the carton. Your egg carton greenhouse should now look like the photo here.

Apply cling film to the bottom of the egg carton greenhouse. It serves to prevent the soil in the egg carton from drying out so quickly and to ensure that it is constantly moist in the carton. You can attach the foil with raffia. But also a string or a rubber ring work without problems.

Now the mini greenhouse also gets a film at the top of the lid. I fix it with liquid glue.

First cut the foil to the desired size. Now apply the glue to the inside of the lid - you can use a lot of glue here.

Press the foil with your fingers on the opened lid and press firmly. It is worthwhile to weigh down the foil with stones in the glued areas. This way you can be sure that it will hold later.

Let your mini greenhouse dry for about an hour. And you're done!

Then you can go straight to growing the tomatoes in the egg carton.

When at the latest sow tomatoes?

Growing tomatoes in the apartment begins End of February to mid-March. This gives the seeds enough time to grow into large and strong plants.

But there is still plenty of time at the end of March. However, the right location is all the more important here.

You shouldn't start much earlier, because the bigger the tomato plants grow, the more soil they need, and that can get pretty cramped in the apartment.

If you really want to start growing plants earlier, then consider Grow peppers or chili. You can start as early as mid-January.

Attention: fungus gnats!

I am very fond of animals, but I hate fungus gnats. They are the little black beasts that can soon be found everywhere in the apartment. They're annoying on the one hand and really bad for the young plants on the other.

The midges lay their eggs in the moist soil. This is where the larvae hatch and feed on the roots of the young plants. It doesn't take long for the plants to die.

Therefore very important: bend over! You can read detailed instructions here: "Never again fungus gnats!„.

You should therefore always prepare the soil before sowing. To do this, you can put it in the freezer for at least 2 hours or in the microwave for 4 minutes at full power. This will kill the larvae and eggs.

I also recommend treating the soil with a mixture of neem oil and water. The neem oil ensures that the larvae cannot develop into mosquitoes and die.

I water with it as a preventative measure so that it doesn't become a pest in the first place and have had good experiences with this product:

Plantura organic fungus gnat repellent neem

View at Amazon* Note: This box contains affiliate links (images, titles, buttons). As an Amazon partner, we earn from qualified sales. Read more

If you want to know more about it, you can read here how I use the Treat mosquitoes with neem oil.

How to grow tomatoes in the egg carton greenhouse?

If you have treated the soil in the microwave or freezer, wait until it has returned to room temperature. Fill your egg carton greenhouse with soil.

• With your fingers, press the soil firmly. Water it very lightly with lukewarm water and wait until it has absorbed the liquid.
• Now the tomato seeds are already coming to the earth. Per "pot" only one seed. Cover the seeds with one to two centimeters of soil.
• Close the lid and wait.

TipIf you grow several varieties, you can stick a piece of the label on the front of your egg carton greenhouse or write on it with a permanent marker. This way you can't mix up the boxes if you want to grow several varieties of tomatoes yourself.

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Pricking tomatoes from the egg carton greenhouse

Once the first pair of leaves has formed after the cotyledons, it's time for your plants to leave the egg carton greenhouse. They now need more soil to grow and want to be set apart.

The advantage of the greenhouse is that you can now simply cut it up. Because the cardboard simply dissolves in the soil.

If you want to remove the cardboard completely, be careful not to damage the small and delicate roots of the plants.

Prick tomatoes:

1. Water the plants to soften the egg carton
2. Carefully cut the cardboard
3. Grab a pot and fill soil into the pots
4. Lift the plant with its egg carton pot into the new pot
5. Press the soil with your fingers and fill the pot with soil

If you do not want to move again when growing tomatoes yourself, it is best to take a larger pot - in my case, the growing pots are about 12-15 cm in diameter.

Once you still need to move - in the last, large pot. But the less often you transplant during this time, the better it is for the plants. Because pricking out always means stress.

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Planting tomatoes outdoors

And then it's here, the big moment when your plants are allowed outdoors. But be careful: not too early! Because tomato plants love warmth and sun.

They are very sensitive to frost. Therefore, in any case, they should not be planted before the icemen. If you have already made so much effort to grow tomatoes yourself, you should wait.

However, there is a difference whether the tomatoes are planted in the ground or in pots. If the plants are in pots and you expect a cold snap, you can put them protectively to the wall of the house.

Or if necessary, even just carry it into the house overnight.

Outdoors and in the pot, you can protect the tomato plants from low temperatures with a fleece.

Protect your plants from rain. Because if they get wet Brown rot spread more easily. This is a disease in which your plants are attacked by a fungus.

Regularly fertilize and water

Don't forget to fertilize tomatoes in pots regularly. They are really hungry for nutrients and are happy to receive a load of potassium to form even more fruits.

When it comes to tomato fertilizer, it is best to look for organic quality and that it is safe for pets, bees and hedgehogs.

Your plants will be happy to get a daily load of water on very hot days.

Where can I buy the best tomato seeds?

You can buy tomato seeds at garden centers, hardware stores or online. I always buy a colorful mix of different varieties. This way I have a lot of variety on my plate in the summer.

You can find some wonderful and unusual tomato seeds in my favorite seed store. I store with pleasure at Chili-Shop24There are not only chili and peppers, but also great unusual tomato seeds. There are tomatoes in purple, black fruits, large, small, oblong, round and much more than just standard to discover.

I recommend a mix of small and large fruits - cocktail tomatoes and beef tomatoes. This way you can harvest continuously from the end of July and enjoy different flavors.

I make sure to have many different varieties at the same time. My mixture this year consists of these seeds

• Red beefsteak tomato oxheart - Particularly aromatic and my absolute favorite
• Yellow cherry tomato - tastes slightly sweet
• Indigo Blue Beauty - medium-sized cherry tomato with a sweet, aromatic taste and purple color
• Classic cocktail tomato
• Two or three unusual varieties such as Italian elongated tomatoes, black cherry tomatoes or marble tomatoes with lots of small fruits are a must.

What to look for in tomato seeds

When you order the seeds or buy them in the supermarket, it is important to pay attention to the height of the plant. There are tomato plants that can grow up to 2 meters high. This is basically not a problem if you have a framework and a garden.

In the apartment or on the balcony, however, this can quickly become a big challenge. On the back of the package you will find the growth height.

By the way, for the balcony there are bush tomatoes. They do not grow very high, but bushy and bear small cocktail tomatoes. So perfect for those who have little space.

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Attention fungus gnats: how to prepare the soil for growing tomatoes yourself

Anyone who has grown flowers or vegetable plants such as tomatoes themselves knows how annoying the little black flies can be and that you can hardly get the pest under control.

In order that the soil is ready for the tomato seeds, leave them outside for 2-3 days at frosty night temperatures. This will destroy the eggs of the fungus gnat. When it stops freezing, take the soil, put it in a tupperware box and freeze it. After 24 hours in the at sub-zero temperatures, you can thaw it and use it.

Who wants to be on the safe side:

• After the soil has survived the cold, it goes in a bowl briefly in the microwave. Preferably 3 minutes on the highest setting. This gives germs, eggs and larvae the rest.
• Instead of potting soil, you can also use pregelatinized tablets. These are dry and pressed sowing soil, which you bring to life with a little water. It contains everything your plants need for the first days and weeks.

But who needs 35 liters of soil to grow tomatoes? That's often the problem at garden centers and DIY stores. But if you look carefully and are quick, you can secure a small bag (from 2.5 to 5 liters).

Now nothing stands in the way of growing your own tomatoes. :)

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This is what you need to know as a beginner

For those who have just discovered their love of gardening and planting, I'd like to share a few odds and ends with you.

• Pre-sproutingIt is said that pre-germinated seeds grow better. To do this, soak them overnight in lukewarm chamomile tea or tap water. Chamomile is said to help against mold.
• The ideal location: Cocktail, oxheart or salad tomato - all need a warm place to sprout. The ideal temperature is 25 degrees and a little sun. When your plants poke their little heads out of the ground, they are happy with temperatures around 21 degrees. A window location with morning sun and brightness in the afternoon is ideal.
• Too much / little light: Too much direct sun dries out the soil very quickly and can even burn the tender leaves. With too little sun, the tomatoes form water shoots - this is also called "gegeilen". If it is too dark, grow lights can help.
• Temperature: The small plants are very sensitive to high temperature fluctuations and drafts - especially if it is cold February or March air. If you are ventilating, put the plantlets in a safe place. As long as they are in the egg carton greenhouse, just close the lid during ventilation.
• Wet: Tomatoes like it moist, but they hate waterlogging. If the soil is too wet, they hang their heads - because their roots become rotten. However, they must not dry out either. Try to find a good balance.
• Win seedIf you like a particular variety, you can take seeds from the ripe fruit. To do this, remove the seeds from the tomato with a knife or spoon, place them on a tissue and let them dry. Next year you can plant them. But not all seeds are seedproof, sometimes you get a "cuckoo", that is, a completely different variety than you planted.
• OrderAs a tomato lover, you will quickly have lots of varieties. To keep track of them, put the seeds in small jars or pressure-sealed bags, separated by variety. Write down the name and the year of harvest.

Germ sample

If you have old seeds and you are not sure if they will grow at all, do a germination test. To do this, place a damp paper towel on a plate. Put the seeds on it. Now cover with another damp kitchen paper or opt for a cling film.

After a few days, the seeds that are still good, get the first small roots and can then move to the egg carton greenhouse.

My egg carton tomato house is moldy - what can I do?

It's not just the plants that feel at home in egg cartons. Mold can also spread quickly. To prevent mold from developing in the first place, don't overdo it when watering.

• If the plants are already visible and mold has formed, open the box and do not close it again.
• Also remove the foil from the bottom and place the greenhouse on a plate to allow air to enter.
• This allows the soil to dry out a little. This causes the mold to disappear - it needs high humidity to thrive.

Is the egg carton already moldy before the plants have germinated? From my experience, I can say that many plants will not grow at all. Make a second egg carton greenhouse today and start all over again. But leave the moldy house for now, maybe you'll be lucky and something will happen.

But the same applies here: remove the lid and foil and try to keep the greenhouse drier.

My conclusion

Growing tomatoes yourself is not witchcraft. It's really fun to watch how the small seeds grow into large strong plants. If you are then also rewarded with a rich harvest, the gardener's heart beats faster :)

If you use an egg carton when raising tomatoes, you save yourself quite a bit of money and can create a custom grow house for your plants.

Have fun making them and have a great season!

Still looking for more tips for your small balcony? Then take a look here: "The best tips for your mini-balcony: decoration, plants and more".

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