Tasty Tomatoes

There’s nothing more satisfying than growing your own tomatoes. Your crop will be the tastiest, freshest and healthiest tomato that you have ever eaten and if you grow them using organic principles and natural fertilisers they will be even better for you. Whatever method you use growing your own tomatoes will bring you plenty of tasty, healthy fruit.

To cater for all gardeners, Westland and Unwins have a wide range of garden healthy products to choose from, including different tomato varieties, so that you can tailor your own garden to suit your own needs. Follow the guidance below to get you started and check out the Tomato Pests for additional help and advice.

What to grow
For the best choice grow your tomatoes from seed. Unwins Seeds has a huge range of different varieties to suit all gardeners and situations.

Bush tomatoes
If you are new to growing tomatoes then bush or determinate varieties may be the best choice. They are compact growing and ideal for growing in outside in pots, in the vegetable garden or in growing bags. The plants branch freely with a flower cluster at the end of each stem. They can be allowed to grow as bushes and do not need to have side leaf shoots removed, so they are less labour intensive. Choose Unwins Tomato ‘Red Alert’ F1, the Unwins exclusive Tomato ‘Berry’ F1 with sweet strawberry shaped fruits all summer or the orange fruited Unwins Tomato ‘Auriga’.

How to sow
Unless you want to grow masses of tomatoes, sow the seeds into small 3 in (7.5cm) pots. If space is short choose square pots as they fit more easily into limited space than round pots. Alternatively use modules that allow each seedling to develop a good root system separately from its neighbour, this removes the need for pricking out and makes potting seedlings up much easier for you and better for your plants.
Sow greenhouse tomatoes from January for an early crop. Outdoor tomatoes should be sown in April and May so that they are the correct size for planting out after the last frosts.
Fill pots and modules to the top with a fresh batch of quality seed compost. Choose Westland John Innes Seed Sowing Compost with Sure Start or if you want to grow organically choose Earth Matters Peat Free Multi-Purpose Compost. Firm the compost gently so that it is about 12mm (1/2in) below the rim of the pot. Water the compost with tepid water and allow to drain. Make a series of shallow holes using a dibber and sow the seeds into these. As a rough guide you can sow 3 or 4 per pot. Cover over with a light layer of finely crumbled compost or a thin layer of vermiculite.
Label well and place into a heated propagator at 18-20C (65-70F). Check daily and water sparingly when required. When the seedlings emerge after 5 to 10 days, move them into a warm, light place to develop and grow on at 21-27C (70-81F). When they are large enough to handle, any that are growing several to a pot or seed tray will need separating and planting into individual modules or pots. This is called Pricking Out.

Pricking out
If you have sown several tomato seeds to a pot, it is essential to give them space to grow on. Prick them out into individual pots to grow on.

Fill suitable, clean pots with John Innes No. 1 Young Plants Compost, this contains a little more fertiliser and other special ingredients to support your plants as they start to grow in earnest. Organic gardeners can choose Earth Matters Peat Free Multi-Purpose Compost. Hold the seedling by the seed leaves (the first pair of leaves that emerge when the seedling germinates) and using a dibber or seedling tool, lift the root ball from the compost carefully.
Make a hole in the new compost and by holding the seed leaves, lower the root ball into the hole and firm in gently. Water with tepid (slightly warm) water.

Potting On
When the roots of your plants can be seen pushing through the base of the pot or modules it’s time to pot them on. If you leave them root bound in a module or a pot it will cause a check in their growth and this will affect their long-term health and productivity.

Water the plants thoroughly and allow the water to soak in.
Part fill a clean pot with a quality potting compost. Choose John Innes No. 2 Potting-on Compost, West+ Advanced Compost for all Plants or organic gardeners can continue to use Earth Matters Peat Free Multi-Purpose Compost. Gently tip the plant from its pot, supporting the main stem between your fingers. Place the root ball on top of the compost in the new pot and infill around the roots using more compost. Firm in gently and water.
Your plant can be grown on in this pot until its roots begin to grow through the drainage holes. Keep it at minimum temperature of 10C (50f) and no higher than 15C (60F).

Flowers and trusses
Tomato plants carry short side stems of flowers; these are called trusses. The flowers need to be pollinated either by insects, or if they are in a greenhouse, you may need to pollinate the early flowers with a paintbrush by brushing pollen from one flower and transferring it to the next. The truss has set when you can see tiny green balls of immature tomatoes in place of the flowers.
Allow up to five trusses to set on outdoor tomatoes; anymore are unlikely to ripen outside before the first frosts. When the fifth truss has set, pinch out the top of the growing shoot to divert all the plant energy into swelling and ripening these fruits.

Feeding
In the early stages of growth the Westland compost that you have used will provide sufficient nutrients for the developing plants. If plants are looking a bit pale after 3-4 weeks of growth then feed them with a dedicated tomato food such as Nutri Tomato Feed. If you are feeding a lot of plants in the garden you can also use Feed-all Soluble Plant Food which offers good value when feeding large numbers of plants. Feed with a when the first truss of fruit has set, this will deliver all the necessary nutrients and trace elements to encourage strong healthy plants and a good crop of fruit. Follow the instructions on the pack and feed your plants at regular intervals, usually once a week or fortnight for soluble feed, to ensure good fruit set and development.

Tomato Tips

When pricking out and repotting bring the compost bag into the greenhouse for a day or two to acclimatise to the surrounding temperature. This reduces the risk of cold shock to your plants.
Some tomato varieties are classed as greenhouse crops. Don’t try and grow these outside, as these types usually need extra warmth and protection to ripen the fruit. Good greenhouse tomatoes include Unwins Tomato ‘Beefsteak’ (Organic seed), Unwins Tomato ‘Big Boy’, Unwins Tomato ‘Gourmet’ and Unwins Tomato ‘Shirley’. Good outdoor tomato varieties include Unwins Tomato ‘Red Alert’ F1, Unwins Gardeners’ Delight’ (Organic seed) and Unwins Tomato ‘Marmande’.
Tomato blight is a particular problem in wet and windy seasons and spreads rapidly through outdoor crops. It can also affect indoor (greenhouse) tomatoes if the outbreak is particularly virulent. Keep a close eye out for dark brown/black patches on the foliage and destroy affected plants immediately. Once a plant has been infected the disease very quickly spreads to the whole crop and there is very little you can do to stop it.

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