"Growing Tomatoes"
To get a reasonable tomato harvest, tomato seed needs to be started in early Spring. In the northern part of France we start ours as early as the end of February. They do however need to be kept warm over the following few months.  To get the most out of growing tomatoes, start the plants from seed, but you can buy ready grown small plants from local nurseries and garden centres that will work just as well. I find there isn't as much choice of variety when buying the plants....but if you're looking for a quick and easy family type tomato, buying plants is a good option.
There are hundreds of tomato varieties available in seed packets. Thompson and Morgan (UK) have got a huge selection... tiny yellow plum red cherry huge beefsteak oriental purple red plum varieties yellow cherry regular family shapes and sizes! Browse through the catalogs and see what's available in your region. Choose two or three varieties, any more can get a little complicated! Find out more about different varieties on this page ...Tomato Varieties
Early spring is the best time to start thinking about growing tomatoes. Unless you're going to buy plants, then simply visit your local garden centre a month or two later. Keep an eye on when the plants are in stock. They often get sold very quickly! You may need a few stakes and bits and pieces. Find out more about tomato gardening products on this page......Tomato Gardening Products   Growing tomatoes - Planting seed: Prepare a tray of warm moist seed compost. You can use any tray for this. Wooden fruit crates work well, lined with a perforated black plastic liner. Or old painting trays with a few holes punched in the bottom for drainage can also be used. (Growing tomatoes doesn't have to cost the earth!) Your compost should be fine and chemical free and to give your young tomato plants a good start in life, it's best to buy a good seed compost. Plant seed a couple of centimetres under the surface ( NB: check on individual seed packets for manufacturer's recommendations for growing tomatoes ) Use a fine water sprayer to moisten the compost, and keep the tray in a warm light place, preferably in a greenhouse or conservatory or equivalent. Growing tomatoes in a light airy but warm place will give them a great start. TIP: Keep a bottle ( or barrel ) of water in the greenhouse and water your tomato plants from this. Cold water straight from the tap can be a shock to the plant's system! Spray compost regularly, up to three or four times a day on sunny or warm days. Keep damp, but not waterlogged. Make sure the tray drains properly and doesn't collect water in the bottom.Most garden plants hate to have their feet in water.  Growing tomatoes - Potting OnGrowing tomatoes isn't just a question of throwing some seed about, as we see now! When your tomato plants are 20-30 cm high, they will need re-potting. Prepare individual pots for this. You can use black plastic pots you've used before, yoghurt pots, specialist trays of individual pots that can be planted straight into the ground. The choice is yours. Go with your budget. Growing tomatoes in yoghurt pots doesn't mean they'll have a disadvantage in life..believe me! The most important thing is making sure the drainage is good.Punch holes in the base of your pots, if needed, and put a little gravel in the bottom of each one before filling with potting compost. Half fill the pots with potting compost or use your own mix. It has to be quite fine though. Put through a sieve before using. Ease the plants out of your seed tray carefully to avoid damage. Handle by the stem as much as possible. Place each tomato plant into it's own pot, fill with compost to top. Firm down the plant and add a little more compost if needed.Sink the whole pot up to the rim in a bowl of water. Remove immediately and leave to drain in a warm sunny place. How Many?For a seasonal crop to feed a family of four and a few extras, you should plant about 24 tomato plants. If you will be wanting to freeze some for the winter months, consider planting 12-24 more plants. Tomato plants do take up some space, so finding places for 40 or 50 plants may not be feasible. Decide on the space. Don't try and grow all your plants you take from the seed trays. You may have hundreds. Throw the weaker plants away. Yes, it's hard, but necessary :-) Look after your pots, watering regularly and keeping them warm for another month or so, and they should be ready to plant out in late spring / early summer.  Planting OutGrowing tomatoes in your garden will ensure a good source of vitamin C for you and your family, but you haven't finished yet! You need a stake for each plant. Buy special tomato support canes from your local garden centre or if you have access to large numbers of straight branches or offcuts that are big enough, use them. Teenage tomato plants aren't at all fussy about who they hang around with!
Most planting instructions will have you planting your tomatoes in rows, some a half metre apart in rows 2 metres apart, etc; However, from experience I know that this doesn't always work well with tomatoes. Tomatoes are very susceptible to blight viruses, and if you have all the tomatoes lined up, the virus may invade every single one. Gulp! Beating these viruses and still avoiding chemical remedies is possible though.... Check on the packet for distances, then you know roughly how big your plants will get, a half metre wide for example. Planting your tomatoes all over the garden may seem untidy, but far from it. You could plant 2 or 3 in a row at the end of one small plot, a couple in the flower beds, one or two in the herbs, a line of five against a fence. Get imaginative and try lots of ideas. Finding homes for two or three dozen tomato plants will be a lot easier than you think! Growing Tomatoes - Let's re-cap!Make sure your ground is prepared ( weed-free, dug, hoed, raked etc;) 1.Dig a hole a little larger than the pot holding your tomato. 2.Place stake/cane in the ground right next to the hole 3.Dunk the pot in water and let drain for a few minutes. 4.Ease the tomato plant gently from the pot 5.Tease the roots out and place in prepared hole. 6.Fill with fine soil and firm down the plant with both hands 7.Water well. 8. Using a natural garden string/twine make a loose tie around the plant and stake. This will protect the young plant from any high winds or mean breezes! Voila! Plants are in. Now treat yourself to a cuppa.... Caring for your Tomato PlantsTomatoes do need a little looking after. Keep an eye on them and make sure they get enough water. After a couple of weeks, you can feed the plants.- and every couple of weeks after that. We use comfrey tonic that we make ourselves. Nice to stick with a natural product if possible. Find out more about comfrey tonic on this page ......Growing Comfrey As the tomato plants grow, tie another loop of twine to the stakes, higher up. Don't let them droop. They will break and die.
When your tomato plants start to grow, they will develop little branches between a branch and mainstem, rather like an armpit growing an extra little arm! Pick these out when you see them. Leaving them will give you a lovely bushy plant but very little fruit. By picking them out, you encourage the main branches to produce more fruit. Tip: Wear gardening gloves to protect your skin from staining when picking out tomatoes. So that's it really. To sum up, growing tomatoes is all about: Careful nurture in the first few months Plenty of food and water Support when life gets stressful! And the rewards? No comparism, eating tomatoes you've grown yourself is a totally different experience to eating packaged supermarket varieties. It's hard to believe there can be such a difference - but there is...:-) NB: Use fresh basil to enhance the taste of your home-grown tomatoes even more. More about growing basil on this page...Growing Basil or how about your own fresh oregano to flavour pizzas and anything else tomato-ey! Find out more about growing oregano on this page...Growing Oregano Happy Gardening! Grow Your Own Winter Food: A good diet incorporating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables is a must if you want to stay fit and healthy and keep the bugs at bay during the cold winter months. Growing your own winter food is just one way of ensuring you get the freshest, tastiest produce packed with goodness straight from the garden to the kitchen table. This easy-to-follow self-sufficiency book shows you how to grow your own fruit and vegetables for winter use and includes facts on each fruit, vegetable or herb as well as nutritional value, recipe ideas and storage suggestions.  Grow Your Own Winter Food is perfect for those with limited gardening experience, with gardens big or small who are looking to become more self-sufficient. Order it now direct from the publisher... Grow Your Own Winter Food Grow It, Cook It!: Many crops, including herbs, can be produced in a relatively small space with a little pre-planning and organizing: in containers, on a balcony, and indoors. Herbs are perfect for enhancing the flavour of cooking, treating minor ailments, and preventing colds and flu. Your own back garden will not only produce the best food on the planet for you and your loved ones, it is also economical, environmentally friendly and more fun than shopping. Gardening is more than a hobby; it's a way of life. .  This book provides all the information you need to keep your family and friends healthy, fit and enjoying life to the full. Order it now direct from the publisher... Grow It, Cook It! Grow Your Own Pharmacy: If, like me, you want to be able to eat the best food on the planet, grow your own!  • Clear instructions on planning, planting, growing and harvesting the fruits, vegetables and herbs required for a healthy vitamin intake. • Recipes and menus to help incorporate the fruit and vegetables into your daily diet. Grow Your Own Pharmacy Herbs and Spices: Some herbs grow vigorously, some are tender and need special growing conditions, some are annuals, some perennials, some you can grow indoors, all can be grown in pots or directly into the ground. There are also certain spices, such as chillies, that can be grown in temperate climates.  This clear and concise directory of herbs and spices provides all the essential information to help you grow a selection of these flavour-enhancing foods in small or large spaces. Ideas for which herbs and spices go best with which foods also accompany each description, so that you can really enliven your repertoire of recipes. Order it now direct from the publisher... Herbs and Spices Granny's Book Of Good Old Fashioned Common Sense is packed full of great ideas and tips. Granny brings traditional home-making up to date with cooking, gardening, needlecrafts and even games to play with the kids...Click on the link below to order your copy.  Cooking doesn’t have to be a chore and preparing nourishing home cooked meals for the family will certainly keep them away from the goodie shelf. Gardening encourages physical exercise and a good healthy dollop of fresh air. And you can get the kids involved too. Before the days of computer games and electronic pets, children used to have fun without rummaging about in the fridge every five minutes. Enjoy a few rainy-day games and crafts of yesteryear with today’s kids. They’ll love it and so will you! Granny's Book Of Good Old Fashioned Common Sense Back to Garden Vegetables Flower and Garden Tips Homepage Click here to subscribe to "Creative Gardening" - your FREE monthly ezine! http://www.flower-and-garden-tips.com/growing-tomatoes.html |
And for US deliveries, growing tomatoes couldn't be easier with Gurney's!:
