Lena Hackauf

July 11, 2025, 9:14 am | Read time: 4 minutes

It’s hard to imagine a time when people in Germany didn’t know tomatoes. In fact, the heat-loving fruit only made its way from Central and South America to Europe in the 16th century. Today, it is one of the most popular vegetables for home gardening, as myHOMEBOOK discovered in a reader survey. Besides the classic garden bed, tomatoes can also be cultivated in a raised bed. However, the following mistakes should be avoided.

7 Mistakes That Can Harm Tomatoes in a Raised Bed

When setting up a raised bed, there are several general points that hobby gardeners should consider. For example, the bed should be filled in layers: gravel or clay at the bottom, followed by tree and grass clippings, then leaves, compost, and finally fine potting soil. If you plan to plant tomatoes in the raised bed, you should also keep the following things in mind.

1. The Wrong Bed Partners

A raised bed offers ideal conditions for tomatoes to grow and thrive. It provides warmth and many nutrients. To make the most of these conditions, ensure that tomatoes do not compete with other bed partners.

Poor neighbors include peas, fennel, cabbage, dill, and sunflowers. Cucumbers, potatoes, eggplants, and peppers should also not be planted next to tomatoes in the raised bed.

2. The Wrong Variety

Raised beds–as the name suggests–are an elevated form of bed. Depending on the variety, tomato plants can grow up to two meters high. To avoid needing a ladder for harvesting, choose low-growing varieties for the raised bed. These include bush and dwarf tomatoes with varieties like ‘Minibell,’ ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy,’ and ‘Pendulina.’

3. Lack of Drainage

To produce many juicy fruits, it is important to water tomato plants regularly. The soil should be well-moistened. However, waterlogging must be avoided. If the plants are in overly wet, heavy soil, the roots will rot. Root rot prevents the plant from being adequately supplied with water and nutrients. In the worst case, it will die.

It is therefore crucial to integrate a drainage system into the raised bed. This allows excess water to drain away, preventing the roots from becoming too wet.

4. The Wrong Location

Before setting up or building a raised bed, carefully choose the location. In most cases, the bed is difficult to move later. If it is too dark or in a windy spot, it is unsuitable for planting tomatoes. They prefer a sunny and wind-protected location.

Also interesting: What Not to Plant in a Raised Bed

5. Not Enough Space

In a raised bed, space should be well allocated, and a plan should be made in advance: How large is the area, and how many tomato plants will fit? Once the space is used up, unlike a regular bed, it cannot simply be expanded.

Especially for tomato plants, sufficient spacing is important. Ideally, there should be 60 to 80 centimeters between each plant. If too many tomatoes are in the raised bed, air cannot circulate properly, increasing the risk of fungal diseases spreading.

6. Raised Bed Is Not Deep Enough

Tomatoes need enough space in all directions–including downward. As deep-rooting plants, it is essential to make the raised bed deep enough. It should be filled to a depth of at least 40 to 50 centimeters.

A strong root system is crucial for robust, healthy plants with many juicy fruits. If space is lacking, the roots remain weak and cannot adequately supply the plant with water and nutrients.

7. Ignoring Crop Rotation

If growing tomatoes in a raised bed worked well one year, different plants should be chosen for the following year. Hobby gardeners should rotate the location of tomatoes annually and observe a break of three to four years. Ignoring crop rotation and planting tomatoes in the same spot every year significantly increases the risk of diseases like late blight.