If you’ve ever bitten into a zippy spoonful of salsa verde and wondered what gave it that tangy magic, it’s time to start growing your own tomatillos. Wrapped in a papery husk like a little garden gift, tomatillos are not green tomatoes but rather their own tart, salsa stars! In this guide, we’ll unwrap the secrets to growing tomatillos at home and teach you how to keep these garden gems in veggie beds, raised gardens, and containers too.
Planting
When to Plant
Tomatillos are easy to start from seed, but you’ll want to plant the seeds early to give them plenty of time to grow and harden the seedlings off before transitioning them into your outdoor garden. In most areas, tomatillos should be started indoors about 6 to 8 weeks before your last spring frost. Then, you can move the plants outside when the weather warms, the seedlings have at least five leaves and a well-developed set of roots, and soil temperatures are around 60°F or warmer.
Where to Plant
Full sun, hot weather, fertile, well-draining soil, and mulch are the ingredients you need for a large tomatillo harvest. Make sure to grow at least two tomatillo plants together as they aren’t self-fertile and won’t set fruit solo. For best results, plant tomatillos away from other nightshade plants as they share many of the same pests and diseases.
If you’re growing tomatillos in containers, use pots that are at least 5 gallons in size for each plant you choose to keep.
How to Plant
To start tomatillos from seed:
- Prepare your trays or cell packs with a pre-moistened seed starting mix.
- Sow two to three seeds per cell, about 1/4-inch deep.
- Cover the seeds with plastic wrap or a humidity dome to boost humidity levels. Then, place the seeds in a warm, bright location.
- Tomatillo seeds germinate best when temperatures are around 70°F, so you may want to add a heating mat to speed up this process.
- Once the seedlings are about 1-inch tall, thin them to one sprout per cell or equivalent spacing by snipping the weakest seedlings off at the soil line with fingernail scissors.
To transplant tomatillos into your garden:
- Work about 1-inch of compost into the soil and harden tomatillos off over the course of 1 to 2 weeks.
- Remove the plants from their seedling trays or pots and loosen any pot-bound roots.
- Like a tomato, plant young tomatillos deep—potentially all the way up to the first set of true leaves—for sturdier roots.
- Set plant stakes or a trellis at the same time you transplant to avoid disturbing plants later on.
- If you’re growing multiple tomatillos together, space plants about 2-feet apart in rows roughly 3-feet from each other.
Harvesting
When to Harvest
Most tomatillo varieties should be ready to harvest 60 to 100 days after planting. You’ll know harvest time has arrived when the tomatillo fruits firm up and fill out the papery husks and the husks turn a tan color. Overripe fruit becomes too soft and doesn’t taste as great.
How to Harvest
To harvest, snip the plant’s stems with pruners or remove the fruit by gently twisting it from the branch. Just take care to not harvest roughly as this can damage plants and impact yields. Once harvesting begins, plan to harvest tomatillos about once or twice a week — the fruit ripens quickly!
Storage
After harvesting, tomatillos should keep for 2 to 3 weeks in the fridge or 1 to 2 weeks on the kitchen counter. You can also freeze your harvest or can it into salsa for longer storage.
If you notice a sticky residue on tomatillos, just wash it off before eating.
Types
- Tomatillo ‘Purple’ grows vividly purple fruit that’s sweeter than most green varieties.
- Tomatillo ‘Toma Verde’ is an early maturing variety and a favorite for use in salsa.
- Tomatillo ‘Tamayo’ is a tall hybrid plant that sets large, 2 1/2- to 3-inch diameter fruits.
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