How Much to Water Tomatoes — In Gallons Per Hour

Question

I’m doing drip irrigation. what size, space, and flow rate should be used for Tomatoes?

Answer 1

There is no set answer for this as drip systems vary and there are many factors that can go into this.

But, I can tell you tomatoes need about 2-4″ per week of water, including rain water and that it is better to water 1-2 times a week rather than every day and a slower flow is better than a faster flow.

To figure out what is best for your system, place one of the drips into a container and let it run until the container is two inches full. If the container is 10 inches square and it takes 10 minutes to fill to 2 inches, you know that you need 1 minute per square inch watered for 2 inches. For each tomato plant, you want to allow for about 144 square inches of space to water, so in this scenario you would need to water for a total of 144 minutes per week.

Answer 2

I would also add that you should check the manufacturer’s website. They may have a drip irrigation calculator for their specific product that will help you figure out (without having to do the calculations) what setting are best for your system.