If you love tomatoes as much as we do, then you’ll want to get your plants off to a really strong start.
Here is a method we use which is very space-efficient at the early stages where controlling environmental conditions are most critical:
- Fill a 10cm pot with fine seed compost to 2cm from the top and gently firm down to remove air pockets
- Sprinkle tomato seeds on the surface, we use one pot for each variety. You can put many seeds (30) in one pot
- Cover with 5mm of compost and water with a sprayer to avoid too much disturbance
- Leave in a warm (~22C) place. We use a heated propagator but a window sill is fine too, the most important thing is that the temperature is constant
- Make sure the compost does not dry out by regularly spraying the surface
- Once the seeds have germinated and have opened their seed leaves aka ‘cotelydons’ (as in the photo), the seedlings can be pricked out into module trays or individual pots.
We have a video of how to do this on our YouTube channel watch by clicking the link below.
Great tomato varieties for you to grow this year
We’ve got an eclectic mix of tomato varieties in our catalogue this year, including quite a few new ones for you to try such as:
- Paul Robeson – A Russian heirloom beefsteak variety with cult status in the USA. Super tasty and productive.
- Santiam Sunrise – Our best-tasting tomato (in our opinion!). A yellow cherry variety, with an extremely fruity and zingy flavour
- Purple Ukraine – A classic purple plum variety, very early cropping
- Costoluto Fiorentino – An Italian heirloom, bright red with deeply furrowed skin. A real looker! Delicious sliced and chucked on a plate with fresh Genovese basil and mozzarella and drizzled with lashings olive oil
- And loads more! Click the button below to check them out on website…
Growing tips for February
- Planning your garden will make you feel organized, ensure you get a harvest all year round
- It’s the time of year when you’ll be going through your stored seeds from previous years wondering if they’re still good. Try germination testing them (see our how-to guide here) before replacing and ordering more
- Get your tools and growing materials ready now. Stock up on seed compost (we recommend peat-free growing media), and pots, containers, tools etc.
- Clean and repair everything so you can get going as soon as the weather permits.
- Beat the winter blues by getting excited about the growing season ahead and stocking up on seeds!