How to grow tomato plants from cuttings
Propagating new tomato plants from cuttings is easy. We show you how.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At its best | yes | |||||||||||
| To do | yes | yes |
Taking cuttings from existing plants in your garden is a great way of getting plants for free. Cuttings can be propagated from many types of shrub, herbaceous plant and vegetable, including tomatoes.
You can increase your yield of tomatoes by taking cuttings from your tomato plants and growing them on. They will produce fruit slightly later than the more developed plants that you took the cuttings from, but this may even help to extend the fruiting season into the autumn when grown in a greenhouse.
During May and June, tomatoes often need their side shoots snipped off to help promote more growth the the main stem. Taking cuttings from tomatoes means that not only you can grow more tomato plants for free, but you can put your off-cuts to good use at the same time.
You Will Need
- Tomato plants
- Secateurs
- Glass of water
- 10cm pots
- Multi-purpose, peat-free compost
Total time: 15 minutes
Step 1
Cut off unwanted side shoots from plants, keeping those that are 10-20cm long.
Step 2
Remove the lower leaves and place in a glass of water on a sunny windowsill.
Step 3
Keep it filled with water and a strong root system should develop in three to four weeks.
Step 4
Plant into 10cm pots and grow on until well rooted. New plants may fruit later this year.
Christmas offer
Gift a subscription to BBC Gardeners' World magazine and save 51% on the shop price.
Year Planner 2025 on sale
Starting to plan your gardening year? The Year Planner 2025 is packed with expert advice from the Gardeners’ World team, to ensure you have your best gardening year yet.
New podcast series
Join Monty and the team for advice on winter gardening, tulips, caring for birds, house plants and more in the new BBC Gardeners' World Magazine podcast series.
