No growing attempt would be complete without Tomatoes. While I know that I will never be self sufficient in the sweet juicy fruits that I crave, I wouldn't be happy if I didn't try.
I sowed the seeds in plastic cups indoors way back at the start of April. I bought the varieties Garden Pearl, Sun Gold, Gardeners Delight, and then "borrowed" F1 Tumbler, Tumbling Tom Red, and Tumbling Tom Yellow from my parents. All germinated well, and I repotted them into plastic pots made from 4 pint milk cartons, but only after they had got massively pot bound, and leggy from lack of light. The pot bound-ness hasn't seemed to have affected them, and I countered the leggy growth by planting them much deeper in the soil in their new home. As roots sprout from the stem, this helps to build up a larger root system.
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| Tomato seedlings with courgettes alongside |
When I repotted them into their final homes some time in late June, I again submerged the stem up to the first leaf axil, and, despite an initial set back due to a complete lack of hardening off, they have recovered well and the fruits are now beginning to ripen. Final homes include fruit boxes, cheaply bought buckets from Wilkinsons, and large pots, containing a mix of peat-free and multipurpose compost.
Unfortunately I lost all the little tags, so I'm not sure which variety is look the best, but I think it's F1 Tumbler. It is copping well with the intense heat on the roof, and is totally weighed down with green fruit. I'm not going to pinch out side shoots at this point, as I am convinced the extra light they get up top means they can ripen a limitless amount of tomatoes.
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