Sowing and Growing Your Tomatoes

After you’ve decided on the types of tomatoes that you want and where you’ll be growing them, it’s time to start sowing the seeds.

When to sow your tomato seeds

If you’re growing your plants in a greenhouse then it’s best to sow tomato seeds from late February to mid-March. Alternatively, for outdoor growing, sow your tomato seeds in late march to early April – 6 to 8 weeks before the final frost of the winter.

How to sow your tomato seeds

Tomatoes are best grown in growbags or 30cm pots with fresh compost. Once the seeds are covered by soil and compost, cover the pot with a plastic bag or clingfilm to keep the compost moist. Once seedlings start to appear, remove the cover.

Growing your tomatoes

As the fruit begins to swell, feed your plants every week with a high potash feed. While your tomatoes are growing, turn the pots regularly to prevent your plant growing lopsided. Make sure to water them regularly to keep the soil and compost evenly moist as fluctuating moisture levels can cause the fruit to split.

Once the plants are about 10cm tall, plant them deeply into individual 7.5cm pots with moisture-retaining crystals and a slow release fertiliser. This will help curb your tomato plants’ thirsty appetite.

Top tips

When taken care for properly, tomatoes are a great plant that’s fairly easy to take care of and maintain.

When it comes to watering the plants, only water the soil or compost; the tomato plant’s leaves and stems hate getting wet, and will only retain moisture properly from its roots in the soil. Watering the soil regularly will not only keep the soil or compost evenly moist, but if it’s not done correctly, you may risk your tomatoes splitting and becoming waste.

Try companion planting with your tomatoes; Basil acts as a great sacrificial plant for your tomatoes because if they’re sowed underneath the tomatoes then white fly pests that typically enjoy tomatoes will eat the basil instead. You could also try garlic, nasturtiums, or tagetes to repel aphids. Another benefit of companion planting is that it saves space and makes room for more plants in a small garden. It also helps to keep the soil moist, prevents erosion and keeps weeds out! So, while companion planting helps a lot with keeping pests away from your tomatoes, they can benefit your garden overall.

To make the experience of growing and harvesting tomatoes easier, we’ve split the key stages into the following categories, which will provide guidance for all of your growing needs.

Choosing the right tomato variety

Tomatoes come in many different shapes, sizes and colours from the very large beefsteak to the bite sized cherry types. The best way to figure out which type of tomato plant is right for you is to grow 3 or 4 varieties to see which best suit your garden and your taste. Choosing the right tomato variety

Common Problems

Like many plants, tomatoes are prone to diseases so keep an eye out for these common problems listed below. Fortunately, most issues that tomato plants run into have quick fixes and aren’t fatal to the plant. Common Problems

Harvesting your tomatoes

Once your tomatoes are firm and full of colour, they’re ready to be picked! If any fall off before they appear ripe, place them in a paper bag with the stem up and store them in a cool, dark place. Never place tomatoes on a sunny windowsill as they may rot before they turn ripe! Harvesting your tomatoes

 

 

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