Growing Tomatoes
HOW TO GROW TOMATOES STEP BY
STEP
Tomato plants are usually ready to plant outside 8-10 weeks from sowing. Sow tomatoes during March in greenhouse and outdoor varieties from late March to April.
Tomato seed is quite easy to germinate, as long as you provide a tempereture of at least 15°C, but preferably near 20°C. Fill a 3 inch pot with mutli purpose compost, level and firm lightly. Stand the pot of compost in a bowl of water until the surface glistens, then remove and leave to drain. Space a couple of seeds on the surface andcover whith a dusting of compost. Cover the pot with a piece of clingfilm and put it somewhere warm – a windowsill in a centrally heated room would be ideal. When seedings begin to emerge, move the pot to a well-lit windowsill, but make sure the temperature doesn't drop below 15°C.
Earliness of production and quantity of fruit produced are influenced by the quality of the plant and the time it is transplanted in the garden. The ideal tomato plant should be six to eight inches tall and dark green, with a stocky stem and well-developed root system. Normally, six to eight weeks are required to produce this type of plant from seed. A family interested in having only fresh fruit should plant three to fve plants per person. If fruit is wanted for home processing, then fve to ten plants per person should be grown.
To get best results with only a few plants, and to minimize trouble, buy plants from your local plant grower at the proper planting time. Ask for improved varieties by name. Plant growers need assurance of the sales of new varieties before they are willing to risk growing a new variety. Plants may be started from seeds in a pasteurized seedling mix, such as vermiculite. After the seedlings have emerged and developed the firstset of true leaves, transplant them at least two inches apart and give them plenty of light for stocky stem development. The seedlings should be transplanted into a pasteurized potting mix. Use either a commercial potting mix or a mixture of one part sand, one part peat moss, and one part good garden soil. If started in the house, expose seedlings to a south window and rotate the containers regularly to give them uniform light. The temperature should be kept below 80°F but above 45°F.
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